DIG for Tuesday the 28th of November…..what do you think about Jesus…..John 1 v 11

I carried on reading the start of the Gospel of John after writing my DIG yesterday.

It is a wonderful Gospel however I was saddened a little by one of the verses.

I am of course referring to John 1 v 11.

Jesus came for us, for all of us; He came for all mankind.

However a lot, maybe most men will reject Him.

We know it is God’s will that all men are saved (2 Peter 3 v 9) however we also know many will be lost.

It is sad that many will reject the free gift of salvation.

It is sad that the world tells people that there is no God and many believe this.

Jesus brought reconciliation and forgiveness for all men, and an acceptance of this will result in salvation and life in abundance.

Jesus is the only way into life, and what you do with Jesus is the most significant decision you can make on this earth.

I am hoping that as you are reading this DIG you have made the correct decision about Jesus.

If not you really need to!

He is Lord, Creator and Saviour, and whether we believe that or not has eternal consequences for us.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that Jesus came and dwelt among us and thank you that I have recognised Him as Saviour and Lord”.

John 1 v 11…..He came unto his own, and his own received him not

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DIG for Monday the 23rd of October…..is it a sin…..Colossians 1 v

I had quite a revelation about the way some of us in the church seem to think about forgiveness.

I had not planned to say this but during the message yesterday a thought came to me.

I thought and said, “Asking for forgiveness from God is a sin”.

Now you may think that is a bit harsh, but let me explain.

The Word is quite clear that forgiveness is a ‘done deal’ for the New Covenant believer (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

I am convinced by scripture that we, as born again believers, have already received forgiveness and benefited from that forgiveness.

I believe there are scriptures showing us pictures that we do not need to ask for forgiveness (see DIG from Saturday 21^st October).

So we do not need to ask God for forgiveness, for something He has already given us.

If we continue to ask for forgiveness from God we do not believe the scriptures, so do not believe God.

We are therefore operating in unbelief, contrary to the thoughts and will of God, which must therefore be sin.

It is not just the ‘horrible’ stuff like lying, stealing, cheating and fornicating for example that are sin, it is anything contrary to the thoughts and will of God.

So ask for something He has given us is sin, or maybe if you do not agree with that, it is extreme foolishness.

I will leave you to ponder this one, ask the Holy Spirit to guide you to the scriptures if you have issues with this DIG.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sin through the shed blood of Jesus”.

Colossians 1 v 14…..In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins

DIG for Saturday the 21st of October…..did they ask for forgiveness…..John 8 v 11

Carrying on with my theme from yesterday I want you to look at a couple of encounters Jesus has with people in the Word.

Take the woman taken in adultery for instance (John 8 v 3 to 11).

We see Jesus accepting this woman and not condemning her (John 8 v 11).

Yes, we see Jesus telling her to sin no more, however this was after He accepted her.

Do we see the woman asking for forgiveness before His acceptance?

Now think about the thief on the cross (Luke 23 v 39 to 43).

The thief called Jesus Lord and asked for help (Luke 23 v 42), and Jesus said he would be with Him today i.e. after death (Luke 23 v 43).

Where in this account does the thief ask for forgiveness?

If there were any people who needed to ask for forgiveness surely it was an adulteress and fornicator and a convicted thief on a cross!

These are pictures for us today, showing us that we do not need to ask the Lord for forgiveness.

Forgiveness is a ‘done deal’, and not just for those of us in the church but for all men (1 John 2 v 2).

Forgiveness flowed for all and to all as His blood flowed down the cross (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

You are not required to ask the Lord for something He has already given you, simply thank Him for it.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sin, past, present and future, and that this forgiveness came solely through the shed blood of Jesus”.

John 8 v 11…..She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more

DIG for Friday the 20th of October…..why ask for forgiveness yet keep your eye and hand…..Ephesians 1 v 7

In the previous two DIGs we have looked at sections of the Word where we, as New Covenant born again believers, do not take the words of Jesus literally.

The second one about plucking out our eye and cutting our hand off is from the Sermon on the Mount, and our next ‘difficult’ passage also comes from there.

The strange thing however is that most of the church seems to want to take this passage literally.

I am talking about Matthew 6 v 14 and 15, where Jesus talks about forgiveness.

This is spoken to Jews living under the Law, and Jesus is ‘raising the bar’ (once again) showing that it is impossible to get yourself right with God in your own strength.

This is exactly the same as He did with regards to telling people to cut off their hand or pluck out their eye.

Yet we have believers happily asking for forgiveness in order to be forgiven, yet not plucking out eyes or cutting off hands!

This is just silly, especially when we read other New Covenant scriptures about forgiveness.

We have already been forgiven through the shed blood of Jesus (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

We can only forgive others as we have been forgiven first by God (Ephesians 4 v 32).

If these New Covenant scriptures are true is Jesus just confused asking for us to forgive others first?

No He is not, He is using this as a picture of our inability to be made righteous through works, and how we can only be made righteous through faith in Him.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sin through the shed blood of Jesus”.

Ephesians 1 v 7…..In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace

DIG for Friday the 1st of September…..don’t get dragged into trying to live by an Old Covenant principle…..Ephesians 1 v 7

I just never learn with regards to some things!

In the hotel this afternoon I had on a Christian TV channel, but had to switch it off very quickly.

It got switched off when a ‘famous’ teacher started telling me I had to humble myself, pray, seek His face and turn from my wicked ways and then God would forgive me (2 Chronicles 7 v 14).

So why did I switch off; because I did not want to listen to mixture, to listen to a Biblical concept that is not meant for me to live by today.

If you think you can do anything to receive forgiveness you are saying you have not been forgiven yet.

If you think you can do anything to receive forgiveness you are living in unbelief and do not understand the truths about law and grace, about the Old and New Covenant.

If you think you can do anything to receive forgiveness you do not really understand what Jesus did at the cross.

Forgiveness from God is a done deal; we were forgiven through, and only through, the shed blood of Jesus, and Jesus has already shed His blood.

Doing something to receive forgiveness is an Old Covenant principle and is not for those living under grace (Romans 6 v 14).

You cannot do anything today to receive forgiveness as you have already been forgiven through the finished work of Jesus Christ.

There is however a couple of things you do need to do with regards to forgiveness; you need to thank God for it, you need to believe this truth and you need to receive it.

Forgiveness is a done deal, the church needs to stop living as if we are under the Old Covenant and start living as if we understand the Covenant that we now live under.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sin, past, present and future”.

Ephesians 1 v 7…..In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.

DIG for Monday the 21st of August…..cross for forgiveness for salvation…..Colossians 2 v 13

I’m back on one of my favourite topics this morning, forgiveness!

Reading Colossians 2 this morning I noticed this really important verse that confirms (yet again) that we have already received complete and unconditional forgiveness from God.

Colossians 2 v 13 says, “Having forgiven you all trespasses”.

Now before this verse Paul talks about our conversion process, what we were saved from and saved into (Colossians 2 v 10 to 13).

And just after his verse Paul talks about the finished work of Jesus on the cross (Colossians 2 v 14 and 15).

These verses explain when forgiveness was given and what the purpose of forgiveness was.

Forgiveness flowed at the cross as the blood of Jesus flowed (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

And forgiveness was given so that men might be saved and made righteous.

We were forgiven (past tense) at the cross so that we could choose to be saved and made righteous.

Forgiveness and reconciliation were prerequisites for men to be saved; forgiveness was an essential forerunner for salvation.

You did not do anything to be forgiven; you were forgiven long before you were even born.

It is the performance of Jesus that WAS important for forgiveness; no one is being forgiven today, that has already been done!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sins and trespasses, praise the name of Jesus”.

Colossians 2 v 13…..And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you of all trespasses

DIG for Sunday the 20th of August…..it is not about our actions, again…..Luke 23 v 34

As you probably know by now I am a great believer in our unconditional forgiveness from God.

My understanding of Scripture is that we are all forgiven for all sin already through the shed blood of Jesus (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

Forgiveness is nothing to do with us; we do not need to ask for forgiveness or repent of our sin in order to be forgiven.

Forgiveness is absolute and unconditional and was granted as a gift of grace by the Lord through the actions of Jesus.

In church this morning a brother spoke about another verse that highlighted this truth for me.

The verse was Luke 23 v 34, where Jesus asked the Father to forgive His persecutors, saying, “they know not what they do”.

He asked the Father to forgive them irrespective of their actions.

He asked the Father to forgive the very men who were putting Him to death.

If we believe much of what is said in church these days Jesus should have said this, “Father forgiven them if they change their ways and ask You for forgiveness”.

This shows us that forgiveness is a gift from the Father because of Jesus, and that forgiveness has nothing to do with our actions.

All the forgiveness that was ever needed flowed at the cross at the same time as the blood of Jesus flowed.

Forgiveness is a gift, you just need to believe this, receive it and thank Him for it!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have complete, absolute and unconditional forgiveness from because of the shed blood of Jesus”.

Luke 23 v 34…..Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. Ad they parted his raiment, and cast lots

DIG for Friday the 4th of August…..you can actually receive through living by law…..Romans 6 v 14

The Bible is clear in that we receive all we need as a gift of grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus.

We are forgiven through His blood (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

We are made righteous as a gift of grace through faith (2 Corinthians 5 v 21).

We have all spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1 v 3) and have all we need for life and godliness through knowledge of Him, His finished work and of grace (2 Peter 1 v3).

We receive by grace through faith, not through our own works, through law.

We can however receive a couple of things if we want to and try to live by law.

If we seem to be successful for a while (this will not last) this will lead to pride.

If we fail (which will always happen eventually) this will lead to condemnation.

So, try and live by law if you wish, it will always lead to either pride and condemnation or both.

Grace does not involve your works or your efforts, so there is no such thing as your success or your failure, so living by grace cannot result in pride or condemnation.

If there is any pride or condemnation in your life there must be some area of your life that you are letting law in.

Living by grace is not about your successes or your failures; it is all about the amazing success of Jesus.

Living by grace removes pride and condemnation form your life, and as it is dependent upon the performance of Jesus can only result in blessings.

So, I strongly suggest you live by grace and not law!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I live under grace and not under law and thank you that I can live my life free from pride and condemnation”.

Romans 6 v 14…..For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace

DIG for Saturday the 15th of July…..are you sitting down for this one…..Matthew 6 v 9

There are some amazing truths in the post-cross New Covenant Scriptures.

For instance we are told that we have been forgive first so that we can forgive others (Ephesians 4 v 32).

We are told that we have been forgiven through the blood of Jesus (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

We are told that God has supplied all we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1 v 3).

We are told that God will never tempt us with evil for He is a good God (James 1 v 13).

There are many passages that tell us we have been saved (or delivered) as a gift of grace through faith in Jesus.

These are truths of the New Covenant, applicable to believers now living under grace and not under law. You are living under grace and not law (Romans 6 v 14 and 15).

Do you believe these New Covenant truths, and do you believe they are for you? Well, this next statement may shock and confuse you!

If they are true (and they are), what is now known as the Lord’s Prayer is an Old Covenant prayer and not meant for you to recite habitually and try to live by!

In Luke 11 v 1 the disciples asked Jesus how to pray as John did; John was an Old Covenant prophet and as such prayed Old Covenant prayers.

In Matthew 6 v 7 Jesus said not to pray in vain repetition, and in verse 9 told his disciples to pray “after this manner”; He did not say pray in exactly these words.

“The Lord’s Prayer” is not for you to pray habitually; for the New Covenant believer it is actually a prayer of doubt and unbelief.

For example do you not know you have been forgiven, do you not know He is your provider and do you think He may tempt you with evil and not deliver you?

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I live under grace and not law, I live under the New Covenant and not the Old”.

Matthew 6 v 9…..After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name

DIG for Friday the 7th of July…..so what about 1 John 1 v 9 then…..Ephesians 4 v 32

When talking about forgiveness the other verse I hear about time and time again is 1 John 1 v 9.

Now to be fair, this does seem like one (and only one) verse post-cross that seems to talk about forgiveness being conditional for the believer.

It seems to be saying that we need to confess our sins in order to be forgiven.

How can this be if I teach that forgiveness flowed at the cross with the blood of Jesus?

Well, if you take a closer look at the context of this verse you should be able to see that this is not a verse for the born again believer.

This part of the epistle talks about people not in fellowship with the Lord (verse 6 and not in the light (verse 7).

This part of the epistle is talking to people not in relationship with God, i.e. not believers.

In this context I feel that 1 John 1 v 9 could be talking about the conversion (or salvation) experience; if a person confesses their sin (that is agree with God about their sin) they will benefit from the process of forgiveness.

This is not about confessing (or speaking out and being sorry) about your sin; how could it be, what if you forgot about one or missed one?

Forgiveness is unconditional; it flowed at the cross.

We do not need to do anything to be forgiven.

Please do not build a doctrine out of this verse, confession (in the wrong way people think about it) and repentance (old covenant style) for sin is not for you!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I have been forgiven for all my sin through the shedding of the blood of Jesus”.

Ephesians 4 v 32…..And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you