DIG for Thursday the 6th of July…. so what about the Sermon on the Mount #02…..Ephesians 4 v 32

If you read the DIG yesterday you would have seen how I answered the question about the order of forgiveness with regards to what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.

I said He was speaking to Jews pre-cross, therefore not speaking literally to you as a believer living under grace.

This is not good enough for some people, who have the attitude that if Jesus said it we do it.

They however seem to change their stance when I point them to another section of the Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus said we should pluck out our eye and cut of our right hand if they “offend thee” (Matthew 5 v 29 and 30).

Now I don’t know anyone who has never taken something that did not belong to them or never looked lustfully at another person.

Yet I do not see many one eyed and one-handed Christians in church!

Jesus is speaking in pictures during this discourse, with the main picture being that man can never uphold the law in their own strength.

He is saying we can never do these things on our own; we cannot forgive all others, we cannot live a sinless life.

He is “raising the bar” even higher with regards to the standards of behaviour expected under the law.

For example even thinking about adultery is now an offence (Matthew 5 v 27 and 28).

Jesus is showing we can never live up to the law, hence the need for a Saviour, He is not meaning for us to take these things literally.

We cannot pick and choose; if you think you have to forgive others before God will forgive you, you really should pluck out your eye and cut of your hand.

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

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DIG for Tuesday the 4th of July…..We have already been forgiven…..Ephesians 4 v 32

Yesterday I wrote about forgiveness and reconciliation, and it is my ‘doctrine’ on these truths that cause me most debates with other Christians.

For some reason (probably traditions of men and lies of the enemy) many in the church are still asking God for forgiveness.

However it is a clear Biblical truth that forgiveness is a done deal; it flowed at the cross along with the blood of Jesus.

Jesus came to bring reconciliation from God (Luke 2 v 14) and this could only be provided if sin was dealt with and forgiveness flowed.

But what about the Sermon on the Mount and what about 1 John 1 v 9 I hear you cry?

Well, I can answer those questions in a later DIG.

And I would also say what about the post-cross Scriptures that show God forgave us first!

After preaching about forgiveness at a meeting one night a woman said this to me, “I really like you Vic but I cannot believe what you said about forgiveness”.

So I asked if she would like to have a coffee together where we could discuss the Scriptures pertaining to forgiveness; unfortunately that was not for her!

As Andrew Wommack once said, “Most Christians don’t let the Bible get in the way of what they believe”.

We must be guided by the Bible for all aspects of our faith and Christian walk, especially with regards to vital truths around forgiveness, reconciliation and righteousness for example.

God forgave us all even before we were born; He forgave mankind at the cross.

Jesus paid for our sin and the sin of the whole world in His once and for all sacrifice on the cross (1 John 2 v 2).

There is now no need to ask God for forgiveness ever again.

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

DIG for Saturday the 10th of June…..the New meeting the Old face-to-face…..Mark 14 v 62

In a recent sermon my wife Nunsy spoke about what she called one of the most important human encounters in the history of the world.

She was talking about Caiaphas (the high priest of the Old Covenant) meeting with Jesus (the High Priest of the New Covenant) prior to the death and resurrection of Jesus.

In this encounter we see a picture of the Old Covenant, just before passing away, meeting with the New Covenant.

The high priest was required under the Old Covenant in order to carry out the sacrifices for the people, and one of the high priests necessary accessories was his robe.

This robe was special, part of the accessories that was absolutely required by the high priest to carry out his duties.

This robe had to be perfect; the high priest was even warned not to rent his robe.

Once Caiaphas rent his robe in front of Jesus this was a picture that the high priest could not carry out his duties (Mark 14 v 63).

So, sin could not be covered and the people could not be forgiven, as was required by the Law and the Old Covenant.

But this was OK as the ultimate sacrifice, the new High Priest, was standing right in front of him ready to carry out His once-for-all sacrifice, ready to usher in the New Covenant.

Along with the New Covenant came a new priesthood, and the new (and only High Priest) of this covenant was Jesus.

Caiaphas could tear all the clothes he wanted as his robe and his sacrifices were no longer required.

Jesus’ finished work on the cross was perfect, ushering in the New Covenant and ending the requirements of the Law.

What an amazing picture/type/shadow showing us about Jesus.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I now live under the New Covenant with a new High Priest called Jesus”.

Mark 14 v 62…..And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven

DIG for Sunday the 5th of March…..grace set me free…..Romans 12 v 2

“I was lost, I was in chains, the world had a hold on me”.

This is the first line of the worship song called Jesus He Loves Me.

As we sang this song in church yesterday I thought, “this was my life before I found grace”.

My life was focussed on my career, working hard to get up the ladder and before that it was focussed on study, trying to get onto that ladder in the first place.

I was really in bondage to the world system.

Even though I was born again the “real” truth about Jesus had not been revealed to me and I was what I would call a token Christian, bound up in the world system and not really that interested in religion.

Grace, and the truth about forgiveness and righteousness, about the finished work of Jesus set me free and changed my life.

The more I understood about righteousness and forgiveness the more I changed.

As I renewed my mind to the truth I was transformed, or changed for the better (Romans 12 v 2).

My career became less important when compared to my relationship with the Lord, to the extent that I resigned from my job to focus on ministry.

That was almost three years ago now and I have never regretted that decision.

What I have found is that as you focus on the Lord, as you seek first the things of the Kingdom, what you need is provided for you.

Blessings chase you and crash over you as you seek first His righteousness.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I can be transformed by the renewing of my mind, and thank you for your Word”.

Romans 12 v 2…..And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God

Click here to watch this song on Youtube

DIG for Thursday the 23rd of February…..there is only one way in which forgiveness flows…..Ephesians 1 v 7

I have been studying the topic of forgiveness in order to preach on Ephesians 1 v 7 this weekend.

Along with righteousness, forgiveness is one of my favourite truths in the Bible.

I love the fact that the forgiveness for sin has nothing to do with my performance.

I continually give thanks to God for my forgiveness and that it is received through the work of Jesus.

Scripture is very clear as to how forgiveness for sin is received.

Forgiveness is not given unless blood is shed (Hebrews 9 v 22).

Forgiveness for the sin of men is given through the shed blood of Jesus (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

There is no other way that a man can be forgiven; forgiveness only comes through the blood of Jesus.

This is the only way in the “apostle’s doctrine” that I can see man forgiven.

We were forgiven at the cross almost two thousand years ago.

Forgiveness could not be dependant upon our performance as forgiveness flowed long before we were even born.

Yes, we may not have receive the benefits of forgiveness until we came to faith, but we were all reconciled and forgiven at the cross; that is a Biblical fact.

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 Monday the 9th of January…..it has all been done, stop asking for it…..Ephesians 1 v 3

 

Before I became aware of what is known as ‘the grace message’ (or as I like to call it the truth or the Gospel) I used to say some silly prayers.

I would ask God to forgive me, ask Him to heal me and ask Him to prosper me.

These are silly prayers.

The Word says we have already received all we need with regards to spiritual matters (Ephesians 1 v 3).

We have already been forgiven for all our sin (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

We have already been healed (1 Peter 2 v 24).

We have already been provided abundance and prosperity (3 John 2, John 10 v 10 and 2 Corinthians 8 v 9).

Many of the prayers that we all say today are silly, asking for God to do things for us that He has already done through the finished work of Jesus.

If you are asking for forgiveness today what you are really asking for is for Jesus to come to earth again to go on the cross again.

This is not required as Jesus dealt with ALL sin for ALL me for ALL time once and once only (Hebrews 10 v 12 and 14).

Our prayers should be prayers of thanks and prayers of appropriation.

This is a good prayer, “Thank you Lord that I have been healed through Jesus and His finished work, I speak out that healing now in the mighty name of Jesus”.

Speak this out today….”Thank you Lord that you have provided for all my needs already through the finished work of Jesus”.

Ephesians 1 v 3…..Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ

DIG for Friday the 18th of November…..you can forgive as you have been forgiven…..Ephesians 4 v 32

One of the hardest things that a person can do is forgive another for hurt done to them.

I know this from personal experience; I think we all do.

Forgiveness is not easy to give; yet we are told in the Word that we are meant to forgive other people.

In fact my understanding of Scripture is that we are to forgive all people for all things done against us.

Ephesians 4 v 32 tells us we are to be kind and tender and also to forgive others.

It also tells us how this is possible.

It is only possible through an understanding of how much God has forgiven us.

Through the shed blood of Jesus, through giving up His Son, God has already forgiven us for everything (Hebrews 10 v 12 and 14- Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14)

Once we realise how much we have been forgiven we can forgive others.

If you are saying to me today, “I cannot forgive that person”, then you do not understand how much God has forgiven you.

You may be thinking that I do not know how big the hurt was against you, and that of course is true, however God knows and God has already forgiven that person for what they did to you.

The only person being hurt through your unforgiveness is yourself.

Release yourself today; forgive the person you know you need to forgive!

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

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

DIG for Monday the 14th of November…..only One can forgive, and He has already done so…..Ephesians 1 v 7

I heard an alarming report on the radio today about certain men being able to forgive, on God’s behalf, certain ‘bad’ sins.

The rules were being changed so that lower ranking clergy could now do this job, whereas before only bishops and the like could do such a thing.

I thought that I must have been imagining things, as this is absolute nonsense, but no I was not, I was listening to it with my own ears!

The Bible is very clear on this, men cannot forgive a person for their sin.

Nowhere in the Bible can this doctrine be shown to be true; this is a tradition of men warned about by Paul in Colossians 2 v 8.

God can only give forgiveness for sin.

And the good news is that all men have been forgiven for all sin already!

That is what Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14 says, that forgiveness flowed with the blood of Jesus.

Forgiveness is not coming or waiting to come, forgiveness has been delivered through the finished work of Jesus Christ.

Jesus dealt with all sin from all men once and for all at the cross (Hebrews 10 v 12 and 14).

We do not need to go to any man to have our sins forgiven, no matter how ‘bad’ they are.

Forgiveness is a done deal because of Jesus and what He has done.

Rejoice tonight that you have been forgiven and give Him thanks.

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 if his grace

DIG for Saturday the 29th of October…..being thankful is important…..1 Thessalonians 5 v 18

In our bible study tonight my wife started praying and I thought it was really powerful.

It was not a fancy prayer, or a loud shouting prayer; it was simply a prayer of thankfulness.

I cannot remember all the things she was thanking God for but it really spoke to me in a powerful way, and got me thinking about being thankful.

There are lots for us all to be thankful for, even in the many varied circumstances that we live under

We can all thank God for the finished work of Jesus Christ.

We can all thank God for our reconciliation and forgiveness (2 Corinthians 5 v 18 and Ephesians 1 v 7).

We can all thank God for our salvation.

We can all thank God that we have been made righteous (2 Corinthians 5 v 21).

If you are born again you may be having difficulties and problems in this life.

There may be things that you cannot thank God for right now, however there are plenty of things you can be thankful for; I have just listed a number of them!

Even in hard times we can be thankful; this is what we read in 1 Thessalonians 5 v 18.

We are to give thanks in all things, and God would not ask us to do this if it were not possible.

You have plenty of things to be thankful for, it is your responsibility to recognise this.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for all that I have been given as a gift of grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus”.

1 Thessalonians 5 v 18…..In every thing give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you

DIG for Tuesday the 18th of October…..but surely we need to ask for forgiveness…..Ephesians 1 v 7

I have been known to preach about forgiveness once or twice!

My usual point is that we have all already been completely and unconditionally forgiven for all our sins.

I can say this, as this is my understating of Scripture.

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

We are told Jesus dealt with all sin for all time once and for all at the cross (Hebrews 10 v 12 and 14).

Now, nearly every time I preach this I hear the same comment, and that is, “are you telling me I do not need to ask for forgiveness anymore?”

The answer to this is yes!

You do not need to ask for something you have already received.

Every man has been forgiven for every sin.

I am not saying every man has been saved, but all have been forgiven (and reconciled) thus opening the way for salvation.

So, we do not need to ask God for forgiveness, it is a done deal and something we already have.

We should thank Him and enjoy our forgiveness!

Speak this out today….”Thank you Lord that I have already been forgiven for all my sins 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 glory