THE EXHORTATION THREAD (For Christians Who Love Jesus)

[4LdKHVCzRDj2]

4 minutes ago, naominash said:

Why is there hostility between those who emphasize grace and those who emphasize obedience. Aren't they both pillars of the faith?

Satan does not like seeing people obeying the Gospel, hearing and trusting in the Lord. Because people are saved if they do so.

The problem is there are people who use the grace as an excuse to remain in disobedience, and those same people are the one who discourage obedience.

 

Glory to God! Amen.

[4LdKHVCzRDj2]

1 minute ago, naominash said:

I think they are trying to warn against trying to attain righteousness in our own strength.

Anyone who is sincere will find out that this is not possible.

"If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth." - 1 John 1:6

 

Those who are trying to attain righteousness in their own strength are currently being completely dominated by the flesh and its evil desires.

"For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin." - Romans 7:14

"For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice." - Romans 7:19

 

Repent, and surrender to the Lord Jesus Christ, before it is too late.

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." - Matthew 11:28

 

4 minutes ago, naominash said:

Sanctification and right relationship with Christ requires obedience. But it is not simply a matter of trying harder but fixing our eyes on Christ.

It is a work of the Spirit, and the more obedient we are the better.

"for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." - Philippians 2:13

"Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth." - John 17:17

[Wayne222]

We have to walk in the spirit. We have to live by the spirit. Why??? Because the the spirit gives you the desires of the spirit. The flesh gives you the desires of the flesh. If you walk in the flesh the desires of the flesh will be in you. So walk in the spirit so that the desires of the spirit will be in you.  Keep your mind on things above and not on earthly things. 

[Wayne222]

2 hours ago, frienduff thaylorde said:

You never came against me till I warned out against that catholic religion and how dangerous it is.   That is when you began to see me as the enemy wayne.

You know it and I know it .    We had agreed , we had even exchanged emails.  but the more I warned against rome the more you began to come against me .

the rest you now just misunderstand .    Many letters , me and others have constantly said its by grace alone .   But you either don't read that

or your mind is so made up , you just aint seeing it .    Now please ,   stop with false assumptions .   

I am telling you I KNOW its soley by grace we are saved, by grace we are kept , by his power alone , 

that we must be born again .   That its in HIM we have the new desire , the new heart .     So from now on stop accusing me falsely.

IF you don't like how grave I am .    THEN attack that .  but stop with the false hoods about me .    I am saying it loud and clear .  WE must be born again

HE causes us to walk in his ways,    That the seed of GOD IS IN a born again person.   SO YEAH we already know this .    

So at least come after me for being grave or serious and warning .   But don't falsely assume .   that will get us no where .  IF you keep on

accusing people of something they aint guilty of , and even when they come and say they agree ,   HOW on earth is anything ever going to get solved or fixed .   it wont . 

Frienduff please read the book of 1 John over not by but. You will gain insight. Thanks brother. Peace to all who love Jesus.

[brakelite]

2 Peter 1:3-4

3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue....so His divine power has provided us with all things that pertain to life and godliness (no excuse for sin there) and this godliness comes to us through our knowledge of Him.  (See John 17:3...this is a salvational issue). What is this divine power? It is creative power. It is that power which makes us new creatures in Christ. It is the power which raised Christ from the dead...the same power that raises us from self-replicating moral viruses into the righteousness of Christ...
Ephesians 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.....what is Paul suggesting here? In Romans he says sin shall no longer have dominion over us, and above we see that the same power that gave Jesus dominion over all things, is the same power that works in us, that we, through partaking of the divine nature and believing the promises of God, may have dominion over sin! Sadly, many people do not believe this possible. We hear constantly that whilst in this flesh, we will continue to sin until Jesus comes...maybe even beyond that!! How can anyone overcome if their faith cannot grasp the wonderful promises that guarantee victory?

.....

4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust....however, our partaking of that divine nature (which separates us from the world) comes by way of promises, therefore nothing is automatic...promises are received by faith. Now where else may we see a similar promise?

Romans 8:29

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren....God has predetermined that those who come to Him in faith, grasping the promises, will be conformed into the image of His Son!!! This folks is not about appearance. This is about character. The divine nature Paul is referring to is not omnisience or omnipresence or any other omni...it's about righteousness. 

Let me take you somewhere else for a moment...in Revelation another promise is that the Father's name will be written in our foreheads. Now don't think for a moment that we are all going to be literally tattooed on our brows with YAHWEH or any of His numerous other names or titles, no. I love Exodus 33 and 34, where Moses was talking with God and pleaded with God that He would go with them. Then Moses had the audacity...faith and confidence...to ask God ....

Exodus 33:18-23

18 And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory...
19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.
20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
21 And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.

Exodus 34:5-8
5 And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord.
6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.
8 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.

I truly hope you can make the connections here. We are promised the divine nature...His character...His righteousness. God's glory is His character. His character is found in His name. 
John 17:4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

Now let's go back to that promise in Revelation concerning the Father's name in our foreheads. Elsewhere is the promise of the seal of God in the forehead. While it is true that the sealing is integral to the character and a settling into truth by the Spirit of God, both spiritually and intellectually, a seal in human terms is bound up in law...it is a guarantee that a law has been approved/ratified by the reigning monarch/president/minister. The laws of God are transcripts of His character. We are informed elsewhere that God shall write His laws in our hearts and on His mind...I strongly suggest, though I know this is unpopular, that the mark of the beast is not a literal mark on the skin but an attitude of mind...a state of mind that has accepted the same mindset as the beast; that agrees with the beast power on matters of spiritual truth and doctrine. Where is the mind? Is it not in our forehead? Are we not sealed by the Spirit in our foreheads? Is not the name of the Father written in our forehead? Are we not promised that we may be partakers of the divine nature...the righteousness of Christ? Is not our character first established in the mind?
I also strongly suggest that the divinity we are promised is bound up in the laws of God and the character of God. This character of the divine, is promised and available today. It means dominion over sin which is transgression against the law. It means that by faith and the sure knowledge of the one who has promised, we may overcome, in this life!!! 
John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.....
.....21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Now you may be wondering what the above has to do with the gospel. 

Romans 1:16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
17  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Revelation 14:6-7

6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

The whole gospel is bound up in obedience to God's commandments and reflecting His character of love to mankind. We are called, as an integral part of that same everlasting gospel, to fear God, give Him glory, but notice which God we are called to honour...in Revelation 14:7 it is the God who made...the Creator God  who made heaven and earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters. Where else do we find such words? 

Revelation 4:8  And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
9  And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,
10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
11  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power:

Why is God worthy of glory and honour which the everlasting gospel requires of us???

for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Now, how can we fully give God that glory due Him when we ignore this??

8  Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.....

11  For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

How can we fully honour the Creator when we ignore that which completed creation? Was not the Sabbath also created by God for man to enjoy and through its blessing honour Him who made it? How is the law complete...how is the character of God honoured...how can we give all glory to Him as He deserves when we sell ourselves short of complete revelation? 

Final thought. The seal spoken of in Revelation is not just an intellectual and spiritual settling into truth, but can also be a literal seal pertaining to God's law. Without the 4th commandment identifying the Creator as the God of that law, whose law would it be? Any man, angel, or group or institution could come up with a set of laws similar to the ten commandments. But like the seal of POTUS, which gives the laws of the land an official stamp of approval from the ruling authority, identifying his name, rank, and territory over which he resides, so also does the 4th commandment act as God's seal on His holy law. To set it aside is to rob the law of its authority and power.

 

 

[frienduff thaylorde]

28 minutes ago, Wayne222 said:

Frienduff please read the book of 1 John over not by but. You will gain insight. Thanks brother. Peace to all who love Jesus.

By grace I read it often .     I know the difference between what man sees as love and true love that comes only from God.

most are under a delusion of a love that just aint even the Love that is from God .    We got to feast on all the letters as a whole .   see the pattern JESUS first set and taught

then see the identical pattern the apostels set and taught .   then look at the God of the holy scrips and  read revelations .   

Rome and many other churches and peoples know neither GOD nor Love , only what the minds of men gone wrong think and see as love today.

No part of the scrips omit or twist any other parts .    And the love most preach today , omits a lot of scrips , it warns none , its not serious

it does not rebuke , it does not correct error ,  it leaves people n sin , it leaves them in darkness, it allows leaven to rise to the full, because it corrects nothing

does not do the pattern for correction .   It preaches a false unity , its just death wayne .     Go back , read over for yourself ,  pray hard ,  just start over .  

[Wayne222]

19 minutes ago, frienduff thaylorde said:

By grace I read it often .     I know the difference between what man sees as love and true love that comes only from God.

most are under a delusion of a love that just aint even the Love that is from God .    We got to feast on all the letters as a whole .   see the pattern JESUS first set and taught

then see the identical pattern the apostels set and taught .   then look at the God of the holy scrips and  read revelations .   

Rome and many other churches and peoples know neither GOD nor Love , only what the minds of men gone wrong think and see as love today.

No part of the scrips omit or twist any other parts .    And the love most preach today , omits a lot of scrips , it warns none , its not serious

it does not rebuke , it does not correct error ,  it leaves people n sin , it leaves them in darkness, it allows leaven to rise to the full, because it corrects nothing

does not do the pattern for correction .   It preaches a false unity , its just death wayne .     Go back , read over for yourself ,  pray hard ,  just start over .  

      You change the subject back to the Catholic church. You have nothing to say. You need to read the new testament for your own sake. I see your problem. You are trying to use worthy to promote disunity. You call it interfaith and claim it's bad. But not all is bad.  You never speak against the Islamic fascist. But the Catholic who are at peace you attack relentlessly. You need to read the bible very seriously. 

[Wayne222]

29 minutes ago, brakelite said:

2 Peter 1:3-4

3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue....so His divine power has provided us with all things that pertain to life and godliness (no excuse for sin there) and this godliness comes to us through our knowledge of Him.  (See John 17:3...this is a salvational issue). What is this divine power? It is creative power. It is that power which makes us new creatures in Christ. It is the power which raised Christ from the dead...the same power that raises us from self-replicating moral viruses into the righteousness of Christ...
Ephesians 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.....what is Paul suggesting here? In Romans he says sin shall no longer have dominion over us, and above we see that the same power that gave Jesus dominion over all things, is the same power that works in us, that we, through partaking of the divine nature and believing the promises of God, may have dominion over sin! Sadly, many people do not believe this possible. We hear constantly that whilst in this flesh, we will continue to sin until Jesus comes...maybe even beyond that!! How can anyone overcome if their faith cannot grasp the wonderful promises that guarantee victory?

.....

4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust....however, our partaking of that divine nature (which separates us from the world) comes by way of promises, therefore nothing is automatic...promises are received by faith. Now where else may we see a similar promise?

Romans 8:29

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren....God has predetermined that those who come to Him in faith, grasping the promises, will be conformed into the image of His Son!!! This folks is not about appearance. This is about character. The divine nature Paul is referring to is not omnisience or omnipresence or any other omni...it's about righteousness. 

Let me take you somewhere else for a moment...in Revelation another promise is that the Father's name will be written in our foreheads. Now don't think for a moment that we are all going to be literally tattooed on our brows with YAHWEH or any of His numerous other names or titles, no. I love Exodus 33 and 34, where Moses was talking with God and pleaded with God that He would go with them. Then Moses had the audacity...faith and confidence...to ask God ....

Exodus 33:18-23

18 And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory...
19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.
20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
21 And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a cleft of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.

Exodus 34:5-8
5 And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord.
6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth,
7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.
8 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.

I truly hope you can make the connections here. We are promised the divine nature...His character...His righteousness. God's glory is His character. His character is found in His name. 
John 17:4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

Now let's go back to that promise in Revelation concerning the Father's name in our foreheads. Elsewhere is the promise of the seal of God in the forehead. While it is true that the sealing is integral to the character and a settling into truth by the Spirit of God, both spiritually and intellectually, a seal in human terms is bound up in law...it is a guarantee that a law has been approved/ratified by the reigning monarch/president/minister. The laws of God are transcripts of His character. We are informed elsewhere that God shall write His laws in our hearts and on His mind...I strongly suggest, though I know this is unpopular, that the mark of the beast is not a literal mark on the skin but an attitude of mind...a state of mind that has accepted the same mindset as the beast; that agrees with the beast power on matters of spiritual truth and doctrine. Where is the mind? Is it not in our forehead? Are we not sealed by the Spirit in our foreheads? Is not the name of the Father written in our forehead? Are we not promised that we may be partakers of the divine nature...the righteousness of Christ? Is not our character first established in the mind?
I also strongly suggest that the divinity we are promised is bound up in the laws of God and the character of God. This character of the divine, is promised and available today. It means dominion over sin which is transgression against the law. It means that by faith and the sure knowledge of the one who has promised, we may overcome, in this life!!! 
John 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.....
.....21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Now you may be wondering what the above has to do with the gospel. 

Romans 1:16  For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
17  For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

Revelation 14:6-7

6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

The whole gospel is bound up in obedience to God's commandments and reflecting His character of love to mankind. We are called, as an integral part of that same everlasting gospel, to fear God, give Him glory, but notice which God we are called to honour...in Revelation 14:7 it is the God who made...the Creator God  who made heaven and earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters. Where else do we find such words? 

Revelation 4:8  And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.
9  And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,
10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
11  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power:

Why is God worthy of glory and honour which the everlasting gospel requires of us???

for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Now, how can we fully give God that glory due Him when we ignore this??

8  Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.....

11  For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

How can we fully honour the Creator when we ignore that which completed creation? Was not the Sabbath also created by God for man to enjoy and through its blessing honour Him who made it? How is the law complete...how is the character of God honoured...how can we give all glory to Him as He deserves when we sell ourselves short of complete revelation? 

Final thought. The seal spoken of in Revelation is not just an intellectual and spiritual settling into truth, but can also be a literal seal pertaining to God's law. Without the 4th commandment identifying the Creator as the God of that law, whose law would it be? Any man, angel, or group or institution could come up with a set of laws similar to the ten commandments. But like the seal of POTUS, which gives the laws of the land an official stamp of approval from the ruling authority, identifying his name, rank, and territory over which he resides, so also does the 4th commandment act as God's seal on His holy law. To set it aside is to rob the law of its authority and power.

 

 

The SDA doctrine has been disprove. 

[brakelite]

1 hour ago, Wayne222 said:

The SDA doctrine has been disprove. 

Regardless of whether it is Adventist teaching or not, if you can show me from scripture where my post above is wrong, then fine. I will accept my error. Most claim that SDA teaching is unbiblical. I have shown above that it is Biblical. It is not the figment of anyone's imagination. You don't have to agree with it, but it is neither whimsical or heretical. 

[LightShinesInTheDarkness]

Just to make a few things clear here:

Being born again means that the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ has come to live in a person's spirit and has made him or her a new creation (spiritual regeneration), giving him or her the desire to do what pleases God and the ability to know Him in truth, as well as eternal life, provided that that person continues in Christ by obeying Him. (The faith by which we stand in Christ is completed by our actions. Simply believing in Jesus and trusting in God's promises while disobeying Him is not standing firm in your faith. Please bear in mind that when the Scriptures are talking about Christian faith, there is more than words and mental belief or agreement involved. Believing in Jesus and trusting Him for salvation while choosing to disobey Him is not standing firm in Christ, but rather, putting your salvation in jeopardy.)

While the Holy Spirit certainly convicts our hearts of God's judgments and His will and gives us the desire to do what pleases Him, He does not FORCE Christians to do what pleases God against their own will. Prompt yes, force no. Christians can say "No" to God if they want to. And there are of course consequences for doing this, such as the chastening of the Lord and not receiving various spiritual blessings that the Christian would otherwise receive if he or she did what Jesus said to do and chose to deny him or herself to do whatever it is that God wants him or her to do. And making a habit of saying "No", which gets easier to do the more one chooses to do it (unfortunately for the Christian), can potentially be spiritually deadly. This is what Hebrews 10:26-31 is about: Those verses are not speaking about unsaved people but people who have been born again.

Jesus' promise to never leave us nor forsake us is within the context of our doing what He said to do to remain in His love, not regardless of it. He did not say or mean that He would never leave us nor forsake us no matter what we do, and it's obvious by reading the Scriptures that speak about these things that there ARE things Christians can do to be broken off of Christ and not to remain in Him, and for Jesus to leave them, the Lord's warnings to the churches in Ephesus, Sardis, and Laodicea being just a few examples. (And yes, He was addressing true Christians in those passages, and not unsaved people among true Christians.)

Grace is the power of God to obey God, and the God-given desire to do the same, without which we would not and could not obey Him. All true Christians have this, and have access to it, but that doesn't mean they can't choose not to use it. God doesn't COMPEL Christians to obey Him against their will, or to repent when they sin against Him. He does influence our free will so that we want to obey Him, but there are plenty of times that we won't want to obey Him, and we have to choose to put our own desires to death in order to do what is unpleasant to us but pleasing to Him. And if and when we make that choice, we experience the grace of God in having joy in doing what pleases Him, and in having greater affection for Him and devotion to Him. But the opposite is true if we choose not to.

Christians can receive the grace of God in vain. His grace is for the purpose of doing His will, not living for ourselves. So if we are saying "No" to God in our hearts and choosing ourselves rather than Him, we are receiving His grace in vain---which has consequences. See Hebrews 6:7,8, which is the same thing Jesus was talking about in John 15:1-6. 

And obviously, keeping in step with the Spirit is a choice, not a mindless, automatic action. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25) That's our choice to do; and we can choose to do otherwise, for which there are consequences. (Unsaved people have no such choice, as they do not have the Spirit of Christ in them.)

So take care that you, if the Spirit of God lives in you, are making the right choices and not the wrong ones, and are keeping in step with Him. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 is what results from choosing not to obey the Lord and to keep in step with the Spirit as you ought. If you're not living according to the teachings and commandments of the New Testament, and you're doing your own will and living for yourself rather than for Jesus, all you will have in God's sight is a form of Godliness, and not genuine Godliness which results from obedience to God. Plenty of Christians have a form of Godliness, but they're living for themselves and in love with themselves and this world, because they are making the wrong choices. (Of course there are plenty more people who claim to be Christians but aren't genuinely born again who are this way also, but I'm not speaking about them.) What Jesus said to the church in Sardis agrees with and explains this also. All the "good works" and "Christian" activity in the world is no replacement for obedience. That's the only fruit, the only works, and the only Godliness that God desires, accepts or recognizes. So if you're doing all sorts of things 'for Jesus' while disobeying Jesus, you're like those Christians in Sardis and in 2 Timothy 3, having a form of Godliness and a reputation of being alive but actually (potentially) near to death.

The power of Godliness is grace. If you've cast off various commands of the Lord and are despising Him, you're denying the power of His grace by your unGodly attitudes and behavior, because grace is given us to obey God and to live for God, and not to live for ourselves and according to our sinful nature's desires. If you choose to despise God's commandments, and not to keep in step with His Spirit, your fruit will be rotten, regardless of the fact that His Spirit lives in you. And it doesn't matter how much stuff you're doing "for Jesus" or how much Christian flair you wear: Your robe is threadbare, and your sinful nature is showing through it, because of your lack of Godliness. You're not showing Christ but your sinful nature to God, however men may be praising you for your good deeds or your words, and God is not pleased with what He sees.

Now with all of that having been said, please re-read these Scriptures, bearing in mind that they are written to and pertain to people who have been born again (Christians) and not to unsaved people who claim to be Christians:

2 Peter 1:3-12; 2:20-22; 3:1-3

James 2: 14-26; 4:4-10; 5:19,20

Revelation 22:14

God is indeed able to make all grace abound to us for every good work, and to keep us from stumbling, but we can choose not to utilize His grace. Our fruitfulness and security as Christians depends not merely on what God is able to do, but also on what we ourselves choose to do.