When I first became A Christian I was "The Chief Of All Pharisees." I was down at the church atleast 4 times a week. I was Mr. Holy Joe. I was judgmental and condemning of everyone that did not live up to my standards, which were ridiculously high. That is until I learned the Gospel of Jesus Christ and then all of my religious chains fell off and I became a human being again.
Religion wants to try and make us to be like God. We can't be like God because we are a sinners. Jesus was a teacher of the law. The law says, "Be ye perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect" Jesus was not a hypocrite, he was perfect. The purpose of the law is to show us that we are a sinner. This is why Paul wrote, "There is none righteous, no, not one" Romans 3:10. Even your very best is still sin. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news for sinners, it is good news because it tells us how we can be saved and justified while still being a sinner.
Paul wrote, "While we were yet sinners Christ died for us" Romans 5:8. This scripture tells us that our salvation is totally and completely outside of us. Before we were even born our salvation was available to us. This means that salvation cannot be earned or deserved by our actions. It is ours by simple child like faith in Christ and his Gospel, plus nothing. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to give us faith and make us into a Christian, Ephesians 2:10. God wants us to be truly human. He doesn't want is to be "Holy Joe's" If you are a holy Joe you will alienate people from yourself and will make it impossible to reach them with Christ and his Gospel.
Jesus did not separate himself from sinners. The Pharisees accused him of being "A winebibber and a friend of sinners" Luke 7:34. Jesus did not fit their holiness profile so they rejected him. Eating and drinking with sinners was against their religion. The Gospel gives us the freedom to be truly human, but it does not give us the freedom to sin. We have been called to be witnesses for Christ and his Gospel. We can't be an effective witness for Christ and his Gospel if we are living like the devil, but we can be an effective witness for Christ by being a human being.
Paul wrote, "I can be all things to all men, that I might save some" 1 Corinthians 9:22 What was Paul's purpose in becoming "All things to all men" "And this I do for the Gospel's sake" 1 Corinthians 9:23. That he might save some. I have been in some very uncomfortable situations where my first impulse was to walk out, but I didn't, because I wanted to be a witness for Christ and his Gospel, in spite of it all.
Paul was not a holiness Christian. Paul readily confessed that he was, "The Chief of sinners" 1 Timothy 1:15. He also confessed that he struggled with sin, Romans 7:13-25. Struggling with sin is a normal part of the Christians life. As Christians we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit, but we are still here on this earth in our sinful Adamic bodies, that are prone to sin. What is the solution for indwelling sin? Sorry, there isn't one. Living life in the Gospel and knowing that we are justified by faith and justified by Christ, will help us to get through it.
Religion wants to try and make us to be like God. We can't be like God because we are a sinners. Jesus was a teacher of the law. The law says, "Be ye perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect" Jesus was not a hypocrite, he was perfect. The purpose of the law is to show us that we are a sinner. This is why Paul wrote, "There is none righteous, no, not one" Romans 3:10. Even your very best is still sin. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is good news for sinners, it is good news because it tells us how we can be saved and justified while still being a sinner.
Paul wrote, "While we were yet sinners Christ died for us" Romans 5:8. This scripture tells us that our salvation is totally and completely outside of us. Before we were even born our salvation was available to us. This means that salvation cannot be earned or deserved by our actions. It is ours by simple child like faith in Christ and his Gospel, plus nothing. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to give us faith and make us into a Christian, Ephesians 2:10. God wants us to be truly human. He doesn't want is to be "Holy Joe's" If you are a holy Joe you will alienate people from yourself and will make it impossible to reach them with Christ and his Gospel.
Jesus did not separate himself from sinners. The Pharisees accused him of being "A winebibber and a friend of sinners" Luke 7:34. Jesus did not fit their holiness profile so they rejected him. Eating and drinking with sinners was against their religion. The Gospel gives us the freedom to be truly human, but it does not give us the freedom to sin. We have been called to be witnesses for Christ and his Gospel. We can't be an effective witness for Christ and his Gospel if we are living like the devil, but we can be an effective witness for Christ by being a human being.
Paul wrote, "I can be all things to all men, that I might save some" 1 Corinthians 9:22 What was Paul's purpose in becoming "All things to all men" "And this I do for the Gospel's sake" 1 Corinthians 9:23. That he might save some. I have been in some very uncomfortable situations where my first impulse was to walk out, but I didn't, because I wanted to be a witness for Christ and his Gospel, in spite of it all.
Paul was not a holiness Christian. Paul readily confessed that he was, "The Chief of sinners" 1 Timothy 1:15. He also confessed that he struggled with sin, Romans 7:13-25. Struggling with sin is a normal part of the Christians life. As Christians we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit, but we are still here on this earth in our sinful Adamic bodies, that are prone to sin. What is the solution for indwelling sin? Sorry, there isn't one. Living life in the Gospel and knowing that we are justified by faith and justified by Christ, will help us to get through it.
