Getting from Law to Love: Part 2

Budz Buzz

The last time I addressed this, we discovered what the law really is – a commandment with a penalty attached to it if we fail to obey. We discovered law didn’t begin with Moses, but in the Garden of Eden: “And the LORD God commanded the man, You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die’ " (Genesis 2:16-17). We even discovered that the Law of Moses excelled at revealing sin. But it could not give man what he really needed – life:

Once a law is breeched, there is a debt owed to the lawgiver in the form of a penalty. Because of this, laws stir up our flesh. They’re routine sources of conflict. This doesn't mean laws are bad; they just reveal the rebellion that dwells in our flesh. Think about it. Who likes to be punished? And who likes to owe anyone anything? No one does! So whether a Jew is guilty of breaking the Law of Moses or a gentile is guilty of rebellion and disobedience to God, there is a great conflict between God and mankind. Can this conflict ever end? What do you think?

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Budz Buzz

Wow!I can't believe I took two months off! I've been real snowed under, but I didn't realize it had been so long. I have a few new things to share and hope they minister to you.

I was recently asked if salvation was a two step process. A person had gone into a Bible study where the leader taught this idea. It went something like this: part one would begin when our spirit was saved and part two would occur when our soul was saved. This seems like someone is trying to force schizophrenia on salvation and I don’t see the Bible talking in these terms.

This type of teaching often comes from misunderstanding a man-made theology called progressive sanctification, where a person’s holiness or in some circles, complete salvation, is described as a process that must be continued to death in order for a person to enter heaven.

There is a problem with trying to split salvation into saving your spirit, then saving your soul. I think the answer is found when we ask the question: “Salvation from what?”

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Part 1: Getting from Law to Love

Laws and Commandments

Budz Buzz

Last month I had the privilege of leading a couple of Bible studies on a Saturday at the home of some friends. I thought I had two studies. Instead, I had two more studies come out of the first one and this is an expansion on one of them.

The Law of Moses contained in the Old Covenant fits into the realm of what a Jew could earn through performance – obey the Law and be blessed, or disobey the Law and be cursed. Grace belongs in the realm of receiving a free gift – eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. Consequently, law and grace produce different attitudes. Law produces pride and says, “I’m a self-made man. I followed all the rules!” Grace produces humility and says: “Thank You. I never could have done what you did for me.”

You see, the Pharisees, the scribes and the Judaizers only looked at one component of what made the Law – THE LAW. They were obsessed with the commandments, the behavior demanded by the Law. Yet, they had neglected the consequences of breaking the Law, death (Romans 6:23). It’s important to realize that the command itself is not a law.

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Budz Buzz

Recently, someone asked me some questions concering Judas and his betrayal of Jesus:

It was a great series of questions that really got me to thinking. It’s so easy to think of Judas as either absolutely evil or absolutely controlled by God to be evil having no voice in the matter. The latter view comes off like the voice of Curly of the Three Stooges saying, “I’m a victim of coicumstance!”

But seriously, this is an important topic because it’s often use to unfairly paint God as ogre or puppet master or unloving ‘supreme being’ by dooming Judas to hell so that the rest of us could be saved.

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Budz Buzz

A friend of mine emailed this to me recently and thought it was a good example of how farsighted the Lord is in using one act of grace to produce long-lasting results.

There was a humble man, who's name was Fleming. One day this poor Scottish farmer was working hard trying to make a living for his family. As he was tending to his fields, he heard a cry for help coming from a nearby bog. He dropped his tools and ran to the bog.

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Budz Buzz

Recently someone asked me about how to rid themselves of the shame and the unworthiness accompanying sin. I began with the book of Hebrews. It's a very good place to begin dealing with feelings of guilt, failure and unworthyness in a straightforward and biblical way.

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Budz Buzz

Will Jesus ever deny us? Well, yes and no. Yes. if we reject Him as Savior by having no faith in Him to save. No, if we accept Him as Savior by faith.

A misunderstanding of 2 Timothy 2:11-15 is usually at the root. And usually it's due to a lack of confidence in God's forgiveness. And it's this doubt about being forgiven which puts the idea in our heads that God is poised to punish us - severely:" There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love..." (1 John 4:18 NIV).

Let's visit 2 Timothy 2:11-15, remember how Jesus loved us, gave Himself for us, & was made sin for us, remember eternal means forever without end and trust the Spirit to reason with us:

Let's continue to the next panel to search out an answer ...

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Budz Buzz

Yesterday, I was re-reading a favorite classic by Maj. Ian Thomas, The Saving Life of Christ. He has one of the best understandings of what the Christian life is all about. Like his American brother in Christ, Dr. J. Vernon McGee, he finds Jesus in every book of the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. Drinking from expositions of both these men concerning the Old Testament is very refreshing.

In chapter 3 of TSLC, Maj. Thomas has recorded one of the most profound illustrations of the Christian life and being indwelt by Christ. If you want to be blessed by it, you will have to go to the next page ...

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I was browsing around the web today when I 'accidently' ran across an excellent collection of resources which carefully examine whether or not studing the martial arts is appropriate for a Christian at http://www.pastornet.net.au/response/ . If you carefully read what is given, it is rich in teaching how to discern the snares of eastern mysticism. It is easily applied to excercising discernment in general.

You can read this editor's personal views at http://www.pastornet.net.au/response/articles/109.htm . In the search for a Christian martial arts instructor compatable with his faith, his earnest effort reminds me of searches I've had to make when facing choices in my own life concerning of traditions & expectations vs. my faith in Christ.

Budz Buzz

I recently was asked this question and thought it was an especially good one. When I channel surf, I seem find 'Christian voices' trying to promote faith in many different people or trying to increase the amount or power of their faith. Their common link often disturbs me; they avoid faith in Jesus Christ an awful lot. And quantity ... if faith only needs to be mustard seed size to move mountains ... you get my drift.
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I see faith in Christ expressing itself in two distinct ways. One is faith in Him for salvation(duh). The second is faith in Him to live on a moment by moment basis as His ambassador and a co-heir with Him enjoying the abundant life Jesus promised (not-so-duh).

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Budz Buzz

Recently, Trent suggested that I sign up as an Internet resource where people ask questions about Christianity and Jesus and the the Christian life ... you get my drift ... applying the love and grace of Christ to the hearts of people.

During the email interview process they asked me a question, that I hadn't been asked for a long time. It seemed to take no time at all to finish and only needed a couple of edits, instead of the 100 or so as usual.

What I wrote surprised me, even shocked me, not because it was eloquent prose, or I solved the unified field theory. What stunned me was the simplicity of each thought and the impact of what all of those thoughts together meant to me, personally.

I get the impression that this is a crossroads of sort for me, where the Lord got my attention in a big way through an unexpected way. I guess I really needed to know where my heart was at that moment. So here goes ...

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