Salvation, Doctrine and Rightly Dividing - MAD

[S.T. Ranger]

On 3/18/2018 at 6:33 AM, patrick jane said:

Would anyone that's viewing this thread give me some input on the font size? Is it better when larger like a some previous posts, or smaller like the lat post?

I think the font size is fine. Makes it easy to read.

God bless.

[patrick jane]

On 4/16/2018 at 12:17 PM, patrick jane said:

Differences Between the Old Covenant, New Covenant, and the Fellowship of the Mystery


By Justin Johnson

The old covenant, new covenant, and the fellowship of the mystery all describe different ways in which people receive God’s blessings.


Ignoring the differences causes people to claim blessings or curses belonging to someone else, miss blessings belonging to them, and resort to sundry religious behaviors they think invoke God’s blessing.


What are the differences between the old covenant, new covenant, and the fellowship of the mystery?


Old Covenant


The easiest place to start is with the old covenant, or the Law of Moses. This law was intended to be a blessing to the world through Israel’s separation and obedience.


The law was declared to be their righteousness if Israel performed all that God instructed. It would also be a curse if they disobeyed, and it was this latter lesson that Israel would learn. They could not keep the law, and required a multitude of sacrifices to cover their sin.


Israel as a channel of God’s blessing was not done away by their failure to keep the law.


God had made promises to the fathers of Israel to make Israel the nation through which the world would be blessed. The promises of God cannot be revoked because Israel did not fulfill them by their own power.


Old Covenant
Israel is a nation separate from the Gentiles
The law given to obey
Covenant to make Israel the channel of blessing to the world
 

New Covenant

Israel was given promises from God to be the nation through which the world would be blessed. The old and new covenants were both intended to fulfill this promise. This is why both the old and new covenants are made with the house of Israel and Judah (Jer 31:31; Heb 8:10-11).

Both the old covenant and the new covenant include the law, priests, a kingdom, and sacrifices for sin. Both were intended to provide the blessing of the world through Israel.

Both are the subject of prophecy, and were not part of God’s mystery kept secret since the world began.

The new covenant was made better for Israel in that God would perform all that they could not do on their own. He would be the better priest, he would give the Spirit to cause them to keep the law, and he would send Christ to establish the kingdom.

The new covenant is merely the old covenant blessing, the promises to the fathers, made possible through the provision of God (John 1:17).

Whereas the old covenant emphasized man’s performance, the new covenant was God performing for Israel what they could not. The old failed to fulfill the promises, but the new would not fail (Heb 8:7-10).

More about the new covenant found here.

The Fellowship of the Mystery

Since the new covenant described God’s performance on behalf of Israel, many are confused by the difference between the new covenant and the fellowship of the mystery thinking they both require God’s grace and so must be talking about the same thing.
 

The difference here is critical.

The new covenant is God’s blessing of grace through Israel, their covenants, and their law written in their hearts. The fellowship of the mystery is God’s grace given to all freely without Israel, without their earthly covenants, and without their law written in hearts.

Whereas under the old covenant God was the law giver, and under the new covenant God in Christ was the law keeper, under the fellowship of the mystery God in Christ is the law remover (Rom 6:14; Col 2:14).

Whereas the old covenant was given to Israel, and the new covenant was given to believing Israel, the fellowship of the mystery is for all that believe the gospel of Christ: Jew or Gentile (2 Cor 5:17; Eph 2:15; Col 3:11). There is no place in the one body of the mystery for a separation between Israel and Gentile.

Whereas the old and new covenants are the subject of prophecy to fulfill God’s promise of blessing through Israel, the fellowship of the mystery was not revealed in any promise from God since the world began (Rom 16:25).

The fellowship of the mystery is not the fulfillment of any covenant, prophecy, or promise given to Israel. The dispensation of grace was hid in God until revealed to the apostle Paul for the church today (Eph 3:1-2; Eph 3:9-11).

New Covenant Fellowship of the Mystery
God’s grace for Israel to perform by the Spirit God’s grace to all without Israel
Israel is a nation separate from the Gentiles Israel is fallen; no Jew nor Gentile in the Body of Christ
The law written on their hearts to obey Blessing without the law; Not under the law; walk by the Spirit
Covenant to make Israel the channel of blessing to the world All spiritual blessings in Christ without covenants for a kingdom, nation, circumcision, or priesthood.
A Word about 2 Cor 3:6

Despite the clear differences between the covenants and the mystery, Paul’s statement in 2 Cor 3:6 is often used to place the new creature back under Israel’s new covenant.

There is no reason to do so, especially since doing so robs the church of spiritual blessings not found in Israel’s covenants.

When Paul says he is an able minister of the new testament, it is because of what the new testament and the fellowship of the mystery have in common, namely, they both concern God’s gracious provision (sufficiency is the word used in context).

The old and new covenant are both made to Israel, but in the new covenant God performs where they could not.

It makes perfect sense, then, that the apostle of grace would be an able minister of the new covenant, since grace is what sets the new covenant apart from the old, and it is grace which sets the mystery apart from everything (Israel, the law, the covenants – 2 Cor 5:17).

More is written about this here, and here, and here.

Conclusion

Once the differences between the old covenant, new covenant, and the fellowship of the mystery are understood, then the riches of God’s grace according to the revelation of the mystery will be better appreciated.

Grace and faith were always necessary to receive blessings from God, but today grace stands alone in the fellowship of the mystery without Israel, the law, or covenants as the way God blesses the world.

Grace can stand alone because of the fellowship of the mystery of Christ which is different from the old and new covenants.

Top of the Page
Article Index
Published: February 6, 2016
Last Modified: February 6, 2016
Related posts:
 

1. 
   -Did Gentiles In the Old Testament Get Salvation? 
   -Without Israel, Without Covenants, Without the Law 
   -Are We Under Any Covenants? 
   -Peter Taught Gentiles. Yawn. 
   -Promise in Christ or in a Covenant 
   -What Is the New Covenant / Testament? 
   -Abraham’s Seed of Promise

Are We Under Any Covenants?

By Justin Johnson - Are We Under Any Covenants?

When the Bible speaks of covenants in the specific sense, it is speaking of the covenants given to God’s chosen nation Israel. No one today in the dispensation of Grace is a partaker of the covenants which are made between Israel and God.

Hebrews 8:7 speaks of the first covenant and the second covenant given to Israel. The first covenant describes the Law as given to Israel at Horeb:

“The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.” – Deuteronomy 5:2

The second covenant, or ‘better covenant’, is the ‘new covenant’ also given to Israel (Heb 8:13, 12:24).

“For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord;…” – Hebrews 8:10

And again in Jeremiah:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:” – Jeremiah 31:31

Knowing that the covenants were given to Israel and Judah, Paul stated concerning his brethren according to the flesh, Israel,

“…to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;…” Romans 9:4

Gentiles and the Body of Christ

The covenants were between God and Israel regarding their future redemption as spoken of by the prophets since the world began. However, Gentiles in time past as well as those in the body of Christ today are not a part of the covenants.

Paul says,

“That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:” – Ephesians 2:12

In order for a Gentile in time past to get the blessings of God they had to follow the provisions of the covenant. (See “Did Gentiles in the Old Testament get saved?” for more.) However, they were estranged from the covenants given to Israel.

During the dispensation of Grace, believers receive the benefits of the redemptive work of Christ on the cross outside of any covenant relationship. It was purely by God’s grace that we receive eternal life and the blessings associated with salvation. Otherwise grace would not be grace (Romans 11:6).

Today there is neither Jew nor Gentile. There is no special status before God for any nation today.

“For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.” – Romans 11:32

Instead of a covenant providing the necessary terms of redemption, believers today are of the same body and partakers of the promise in Christ by the gospel of the grace of God (Eph 3:6, Titus 1:2-3). We receive the mercy and the grace of God apart from our adherence to any covenant given in time past, we receive it by faith (Romans 5:1, 8-10).

 

Top of the Page

Topical Index Page

Published: Tuesday, February 21st, 2006

Last Modified: March 29, 2016

Related posts:

1. -Without Israel, Without Covenants, Without the Law
   -Written in Their Hearts
   -I Am Not a New Testament Christian
   -30 Reasons We do not Operate Under the New Testament
   -No More Strangers and Foreigners
   -A Strange Teaching on the New Testament
   -What Is the New Covenant / Testament?

[patrick jane]

Link:

How To Be Saved From Death To Life

How To Be Saved From Death To Life

By Justin Johnson

The Bible speaks about things for which many people are searching. For example it tells us of the creation of the world; the cause of evil in the world; and man’s purpose of existence.

The Bible also speaks about the cause of death. It says, ‘Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned’ (Romans 5:12). The Bible tells the story of how the first man, Adam, was disobedient towards God and introduced sin and death into the world.

As a result there are two things we can be sure of in life, ‘it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment’ (Hebrews 9:27). Every person will die because of their sin, and then their every word, deed, and thought will be judged by God’s righteous standard.

How will the judgment turn out? Well, ‘‘to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil” (Romans 2:8-9).

The evil will be punished for eternity with anguish and wrath, the righteous will be rewarded with eternal life. Yet, there is a problem: There is none that are righteous. We are all headed for eternal damnation in hell!

How can we make such a harsh and absolute statement? How can we know that we are not good enough to get into heaven? We can determine our fate on Judgment Day by using God’s standard of judgment.

Read ‘Am I good enough to go to heaven?‘

God’s Act of Salvation

This life is only for a moment, and yet our eternal destiny lies in the balance of what we do in this brief moment.

Will we continue to live, even seemingly good lives, knowing that we will still be found guilty by God? Or do we seek for salvation from the wrath to come and seek for the righteousness that can gain eternal life for us.

 

Because of God’s love towards us, and his unwillingness that we should face eternal damnation, He provided for us a way of salvation through Jesus Christ (John 14:6).

 

Knowing that we are all sinners, and that there are none righteous (Romans 3:10), God sent Jesus Christ to take your place on the cross (Romans 3:25). The wrath and judgment of God was poured out upon His perfect Son, who did not deserve death or punishment.

 

This righteous sacrifice was made sin for us so that we could gain his righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). Now we can receive righteousness apart from the law of God, which is the righteousness that comes by faith of Jesus Christ (Rom 3:21-22). Though we did not deserve any rescue from our own sinful condition, God showed his love for us by dying for our sins:

 

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8

 

The gospel of God’s Grace

Grace is a gift received but not deserved. The Bible says that when we put our faith in what Christ did on the cross by His grace then we are saved from the wrath of God (Eph 2:8). We are justified [made righteous] freely by the redemption in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24).

 

If we put our faith in the Lord Jesus and his propitiation on the cross, then we can stand before God on judgment day and know that Jesus has provided a complete payment of our sins. Therefore we are saved not by how well we act or perform, because we are all guilty of God’s righteous standard, instead we are saved by what Christ did and performed on our behalf (Eph 2:9, Titus 3:5).

 

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” – Romans 3:23

 

Yet we have been graciously given an opportunity to participate in the glory of God through our trust in the gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16).

 

If you are not sure if you are going to heaven, reread this page, then determine in yourself how you will fare on judgment day. Will you be guilty when God judges you by his righteous standard? The Bible says we all have fallen short.

 

Are you saved from God’s wrath?

Do you see the need for salvation from sin and death? If so, then read the gospel of the grace of God on this page again or in your Bible in Romans 3:19-26, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, or Titus 3:3-7.

 

Do you trust and believe that Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, is able to perform that which he promised for you, eternal life? Trust in him, as you would a life preserver on judgment day.

Your faith is rewarded by eternal life:

 

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. ” – Romans 6:23

 

The Bible says that if you have heard of the gospel of your salvation and you have trusted in Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection, then you have been given the Holy Spirit as a seal and a promise of what God will give you for eternity – which is life everlasting.

 

If you have trusted in the gospel, you may not feel like much of anything has changed. But know, by faith in the word of Truth, that you are now forever changed from a child of sin and disobedience to one of God’s children who will reign and rule with Him for eternity in heavenly places.

 

You are saved from the wrath of God, and have been given eternal life by the grace of God!

 

1. -Now That I Am Saved By Grace, May I Sin? 
   -Does God Punish Sin After I’ve Been Saved By Grace? 
   -What Is Sin? 
   -God is Always Right 
   -Can We Lose Our Salvation By Grace? 
   -How Do I Know I Am Saved? 
   -Are There Many Ways To Salvation?

[patrick jane]

Does God Punish Sin After I’ve Been Saved By Grace?

 

By Justin Johnson

 

Sin is the same in any dispensation. Sin is always rebellion and disobedience against God (See ‘What is sin?’ for more on this.) Sin will always face God’s justice in righteous judgment and wrath. Yet, it was not until the revelation of the mystery given to Paul that it was explained how

 

God could be just and the justifier of those who are disobedient to his commands. The answer lies in the payment for sin made by Christ on the cross (Romans 3:21-26).

 

It is easy for most of us to assess how God deals with sin according to his just law. Anyone who disobeyed God’s command was considered a sinner and deserved the just punishment according to the law. Yet, the wages of all sin is death, and no amount of good behavior can annul the penalty that we have all incurred. James wrote:

 

“For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all” – James 2:10

 

Under the Jewish dispensation of the Old Covenant, God provided a system of personal sacrifices which could be offered in response to sin. When offered by faith, these sacrifices would show repentance of sin, and an appeal for forgiveness toward God. The heathen and Gentiles had no sacrifice for sin, except what was offered on their behalf by the mediators of God’s blessing – the Jews.

 

Under the current dispensation of Grace, the nation Israel has fallen from their privileged state under the Old Covenant. When given miracles, laws, blessings, and even a Messiah, Israel failed to obey righteousness even as the Gentiles. Now, their failure proves that despite help from God, every person is under the influence of sin, as Paul writes:

 

“…for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin; As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” – Romans 3:9-10

 

And in another place,

 

“For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.” – Romans 11:32

 

The most self-righteous do-gooder is considered no better than the most vile wicked heathen, they are both unrighteous and deserving of

God’s punishment (see if you are good enough to go to heaven). In this dispensation there is no system of sacrifices or behavior that can prevent the indignation and wrath that God has against sin in this world. As a result, God’s wrath is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of every man (Romans 1:18).

 

Yet, we see so much ungodliness and unrighteousness in the world that goes unpunished. Where is his wrath poured out? Is God ignorant of the evil in this world? The Scriptures tell us he is not.

For instead of pouring out his wrath upon the world nearly two thousand years ago, he ushered in the age of Grace.

 

God put the sins of the entire world upon Jesus Christ when he died on the cross. This propitiation satisfied the demand for justice from God (Romans 3:26).

 

Since God was in Christ ‘reconciling the world unto himself’, he does not impute trespasses to any man today. Instead the entire world is reconciled to God, so that we can preach reconciliation to every man without distinction (2 Cor 5:19-20). The whole world is given a period of grace paid by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in order for men to come to salvation.

 

This payment for sins reconciled the entire world, but will justify only those who believe.

 

“Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:” – Romans 3:22

 

For every man that believes, we are not only reconciled, but declared righteous and worthy of the gift of eternal life (Romans 6:23). For every man who does not believe, they are reconciled as by God’s grace, but do not receive righteousness worthy of eternal life.

 

Those who do not accept the grace of God or his free justification by faith will end up facing the wrath of God at the judgment for their ungodly rebellion against God’s grace in this age.

 

At the end of this age of unprecedented grace, God will return ‘in flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ’ (2 Thessalonians 1:8).

 

For the believer, sin is placed upon Christ and we are declared righteous by his grace. For the unbeliever, sin is not imputed in this age because of Christ, therefore there is no immediate punishment. However, he will have to answer for his own unrighteousness at the great white throne judgment of God (Rev 20:11).

 

God’s punishment for sin was taken by Christ on the cross, who was made sin for us so that we can be made the righteousness of God in him (2 Cor 5:21).

 

Therefore, for us who are justified by faith are at peace with God, and do not live in fear of judgment or punishment (Romans 5:1). The lives we live now we live by faith in the Son of God, following after the righteousness for which we were ordained to walk (Gal 2:20, Eph 2:10, Phil 3:12-14).

 

Top of the Page

Topical Index Page

Published: Monday, September 21st, 2009

Last Modified: July 1, 2016

Related posts:

1. -Now That I Am Saved By Grace, May I Sin? 
   -What Is Sin? 
   -How To Be Saved From Death To Life 
   -What Is the Function of the Law? 
   -God is Always Right 
   -Can We Lose Our Salvation By Grace? 
   -Are There Many Ways To Salvation?

[patrick jane]

Israel is God's chosen nation, His chosen people. Now, in this present dispensation, the gentiles were brought in, the Body Of Christ - BOC. 

 

Isaiah 46:13 KJV

I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry: and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.


Zechariah 8:23 KJV

Thus saith the Lord of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.



Isaiah 2:3 KJV

And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.


Micah 4:2 KJV

And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.



The LORD God will bless all on-Jews through the nation of His own creation Israel. Israel is created as God’s chosen people, His "elect" for service(holy/sanctify=to be set aside, separated, "severed" for God's use/purpose). God created the nation Israel to have a privileged status before Him as a "peculiar", "different", separated("holy"=sanctified) people:

"But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel." Exodus 11:7 KJV

"Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: ..." Exodus 19:5 KJV

"For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth." Exodus 33:16 KJV

"But I have said unto you, Ye shall inherit their land, and I will give it unto you to possess it, a land that floweth with milk and honey: I am the LORD your God, which have separated you from other people." Leviticus 20:24 KJV

"For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations." Numbers 23:9 KJV

"For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth." Deuteronomy 7:6 KJV

"Only the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and he chose their seed after them, even you above all people, as it is this day." Deuteronomy 10:15 KJV

"For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth." Deuteronomy 14:2 KJV

"Thou hast avouched the LORD this day to be thy God, and to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his judgments, and to hearken unto his voice: And the LORD hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people, as he hath promised thee, and that thou shouldest keep all his commandments; And to make thee high above all nations which he hath made, in praise, and in name, and in honour; and that thou mayest be an holy people unto the LORD thy God, as he hath spoken." Deuteronomy 26:17-19 KJV

"And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem for a people to himself, and to make him a name, and to do for you great things and terrible, for thy land, before thy people, which thou redeemedst to thee from Egypt, from the nations and their gods." 2 Samuel 7:23 KJV/2 Chronicles 17:21 KJV

"And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant." 2 Kings 5:15 KJV

"For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure." Psalms 135:4 KJV

"He sheweth his word unto Jacob, his statutes and his judgments unto Israel. He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD." Psalms 147:19-20 KJV

"You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities." Amos 3:2 KJV

 

[patrick jane]

God does not put mistakes in the Bible. However, different contexts create contradictory verses in the Bible. These contradictions make it impossible to obey every instruction in the Bible. It is necessary to rightly divide the Lord’s instructions for us today from the instructions in time past or for those in the ages to come.

 

It is usual to separate the Old from the New Testaments. However, both of the Testaments are the subject of prophecy to Israel. The mystery information given to Paul demands another division separate from that which was prophesied.

 

We can reconcile the contradictions below by identifying who is speaking, to whom, and under what dispensational context.

 

DOWNLOAD THIS VERSE LIST: PDF

1. Gospel contradictions
   
   1. Is the gospel the cross or the kingdom? – Mark 1:14-15 & 1 Cor 15:1-4
   2. Was the cross glorious or shameful? – Acts 3:13-15 & Gal 6:14
   3. Was the gospel made known or kept secret? – Rom 16:25 & Acts 3:21
   4. Did the twelve understand the gospel or not? – Luke 9:2 & Luke 18:34
   5. Do we preach gospel of the kingdom or of Grace? – Luke 9:2 & Acts 20:24
   6. Justification with or without works? – Rom 4:5 & James 2:24
   7. Was Christ’s blood shed for many or for all? – Mat 20:28 & 1 Tim 2:6
   8. Do animal sacrifices atone for sins? – Lev 16:27 & Heb 10:4
   9. Is God imputing sins against us? – Acts 5:1-10 & Rom 4:8
   10. Do we need works for righteousness? – James 2:24 & Titus 3:5
   11. Is salvation not of works or by our behavior? – Eph 2:8-9 & Luke 10:25-29
   12. Was Abraham justified by works or not by works? – James 2:21-23 & Rom 4:2-3
   13. How are sins forgiven? – John 20:23 & Col 1:14
   14. Is forgiveness conditional or not? – Mat 6:14-15 & Eph 4:32
   15. Does grace abound or is their an unforgivable sin? – Mark 3:29 & Rom 5:20
   16. Is the gospel believe or repentance and baptism? – Acts 2:38 & Acts 16:31
   17. Are we at peace with God? – Mat 3:7 & Rom 5:1
   
   Baptism contradictions
   
   18. Are we sent to baptize? – 1 Cor 1:17 & Mark 16:16
   19. Does the gospel include water baptism? – 1 Cor 15:1-4 & Mark 1:4
   20. One baptism or more? – Eph 4:5 & Mat 3:11
   
   Commission contradictions
   
   21. Go to ‘all men’ or just to Israel? – Mat 10:5-6 & Titus 2:11
   22. Should they carry money or not? – Luke 10:4-5 & Luke 22:35-36
   23. Should the disciples go to all nations or only circumcision?–Mat 28:19 & Gal 2:9
   24. Was Paul sent to baptize? – Mat 28:19 & 1 Cor 1:17
   25. Are they baptized by Jesus or into Jesus? – John 4:1 & Rom 6:3
   26. Are we to witness Christ’s earthly ministry? – 2 Cor 5:16 & Acts 1:22
   27. Should Peter take a sword? – Luke 22:36 & Matt 26:52
   28. Should we meditate about what to speak? – 1 Tim 4:15 & Luke 21:14
   29. Does the Holy Spirit give utterance or do we? – Acts 6:9-10 & Col 4:6
   30. Are the gainsayers able to resist? – Luke 21:15 & Titus 1:9
   31. Is Paul or Peter the masterbuilder upon Christ? – Mat 16:18-19 & 1 Cor 3:10
   32. Is Paul the least or the ‘chiefest’ of the Apostles? – 2 Cor 11:5 & 1 Cor 15:9
   33. Was Paul the first or the last? – 1 Cor 15:8 & 1 Tim 1:16
   34. How do we know what to say and believe? – Mark 13:11 & 2 Tim 3:15-17
   
   Contradictions about the Law
   
   35. Are we under the law or not under the law? – Mat 5:19 & Rom 6:14
   36. Is Sabbath observance required? – Exo 20:8-10 & Col 2:16
   37. Is circumcision necessary? – Gen 17:10-14 & Gal 5:2-6
   38. Is the law for righteous men? – Mat 5:17-18 & 1 Tim 1:7-8
   39. Are we dead to the law or should we follow it? – Mat 23:1-3 & Rom 7:3
   40. Does righteousness come by the law? – Deut 6:25 & Rom 10:3-6
   41. Is the law a sign of strength or weakness? – Josh 1:7 & Gal 4:9
   42. Should we tithe? – Mat 23:23 & 2 Cor 9:7
   43. Is giving (tithing) a punishable requirement? – Mal 3:8 & 2 Cor 9:7
   44. Should Sabbath laws be enforced? – Numbers 15:32-36 & Gal 4:10-11
   45. Liberty or bondage of the law? – Mat 23:1-2 & Gal 5:1
   46. Do we need a temple? – Acts 2:46 & 1 Cor 3:16
   47. Are the laws of abomination still effectual? – Mat 24:15 & Gal 4:9-11
   48. Are we secure in Christ or our continued behavior? – 2 Tim 2:13 & Heb 10:26-27
   
   Jew/Gentile contradictions
   
   49. Is there a distinction between Jew and Gentile? – Mat 15:26 & Gal 3:28
   50. Jews saved ‘in due time’ or ‘out of due time’? – 1 Pet 5:6 & 1 Cor 15:8
   51. Salvation of the Jews or the Gentiles? – John 4:22 & Rom 11:11
   52. Gentile blessing through Israel’s rise or fall? – Acts 3:25 & Rom 11:11
   53. Will the Gentiles receive salvation? – Acts 28:28 & Rom 1:28
   54. Did the Lord tell the apostles to go to Jerusalem first? – Luke 24:47 & Gal 1:17
   55. Christ is at the right hand for whom? – Acts 5:31-32 & Eph 1:19-23
   56. Who is the audience for the gospel? – Mat 10:5-7 & 2 Tim 1:11
   57. Are we saved into one nation (Israel) or one Body? – Isa 60:3 & Eph 2:16
   58. Are we a part of the seedline or adopted? – Gen 9:9 & Gal 4:5
   59. Jesus ministry to circumcision or Paul’s ministry to Gentiles? Rom 15:8 & 15:16
   60. Did Paul have mutual faith with uncircumcised Romans or with Jesus ministry to the circumcision? – Rom 1:12 & Rom 15:8
   
   Prophecy/Mystery contradictions
   
   61. Were the mysteries revealed before the death of Christ? Mat 13:11 & 1 Cor 2:7-8
   62. What was prepared before/since the world began? – Mat 25:34 & Eph 1:3-4
   63. Was the work of Jesus prophesied or kept hidden? – Luke 24:44 & Eph 3:9
   64. Was the message for today known by the prophets? – Acts 3:24 & Col 1:26
   65. Can we understand the things God has prepared? – Isa 64:4 & 1 Cor 2:10
   66. Was the book of Acts the end or the beginning? – Acts 2:17 & 1 Tim 1:16
   
   Contradictions about our service to God
   
   67. Who is responsible for our soul? – Heb 13:7 & Rom 14:12
   68. Do we get the Holy Spirit upon belief or baptism? – Acts 2:38 & Eph 1:13
   69. Do we need to confess sins to get forgiveness? – 1 John 1:9 & Col 2:13
   70. Do we eat animals? – Gen 1:29 & Gen 9:3
   71. Which animals do we eat? – Deut 14:3 & 1 Tim 4:4
   72. Are we to keep unity or honor separation? – Eph 4:3 & Rom 16:17
   73. Be like the ant or the raven? – Prov 6:6-8 & Luke 12:22-24
   74. Should we work for food or not? – Mat 6:25-26 & 1 Tim 5:18
   75. Should we sell all or provide for our family? – 1 Tim 3:5-6 & Mark 10:17-22
   76. Should we judge? – Mat 7:1-2 & 1 Cor 2:15
   77. Should ministers work for food? – Luke 10:4-5 & 2 Thess 3:8-11
   78. Is having a child a good or bad thing? – Mat 24:19 & 1 Tim 5:14
   79. Does the Holy Spirit stay or leave when we do wrong? Psalm 51:11 & Eph 4:30
   80. Do we need a teacher? 1 John 2:27 & 2 Tim 2:2 & Eph 4:11
   
   Future events contradictions
   
   81. Peace on earth or not? – Luke 2:14 & Luke 12:51
   82. Do the Jews have a special standing before God? – Deut 7:6 & Col 3:11
   83. Do we inherit the earth or heaven? – Mat 5:5 & Col 1:3-5
   84. Is the coming of the Lord a time of terror or comfort? –Joel 2:1-11 & 1Thess 4:16
   85. Looking for earthly dominion or heavenly? – Phil 3:20 & Mat 6:10
   86. Will we endure through the wrath or be delivered? – Mat 24:13 & 1 Thess 1:10
   87. Plowshares or swords? – Joel 3:10 & Micah 4:3
   88. Physical blessings or spiritual blessings in heaven? Luke 12:32 & Eph 1:3
   89. Future or present atonement? – Acts 3:19 & Rom 5:11
   90. Future or present grace? – 1 Pet 1:13 & Rom 5:2
   91. Will we reign in heaven or on earth? – Luke 22:30 & Eph 2:6
   
   Prayer contradictions
   
   92. How often do we need to pray before it is answered? – Isa 65:24 & Eph 6:18
   93. Do we get anything we ask in prayer? – Mat 21:22 & 2 Cor 12:8-9
   94. Should we know how to pray or not? – Luke 11:1 & Rom 8:26
   95. Do we get what we ask or more than we ask? – Mat 21:22 & Eph 3:20
   96. Do apostles have the power to heal? – Mark 16:18 & 1 Tim 5:23
   97. Can we expect a healing from God? – Isa 53:5 & 2 Cor 12:7-10
   
   General contradictions
   
   98. Was creation good or bad? – Gen 1:31 & Gen 6:6
   99. Were the Jerusalem saints poor or not? – Acts 4:34 & Rom 15:26
   100. Do we need to teach ‘Know the Lord’? Jer 31:34 & 1 Tim 4:10-11
   101. Are we washed by water or the Spirit? – Acts 22:16 & 1 Cor 6:11
   102. Is it greater love to die for your friends or enemies? John 15:13-14 & Rom 5:10
   103. Are angels teaching us or are we teaching them? – Zech 1:9 & Eph 3:10
   104. Jesus was the stumbling stone or cornerstone? – Rom 9:18-33 & Eph 2:20

Editor’s note:

This is not an exhaustive list. This list is not intended to engender doubt about the truth of the Bible. Mid Acts Pauline right division resolves every contradiction above.

[patrick jane]

Complete In Christ

By Justin Johnson
When Paul writes that we are complete in Christ he is in the same context warning us about vain deceit and the tradition of men (Col 2:10).

When it comes to salvation, Christ has done it all for you. There is nothing else that needs to be added to him.

It is not uncommon for churches to wrongly teach that you need to perform a membership ritual in order to be counted among God’s people. They teach that it is a custom or tradition required by God.

At one time circumcision functioned as the token of entry into God’s people. But Paul says that Christ circumcised you without hands from the body of your sins (Col 2:11).

Likewise people are confused about the need for water baptism in order to be saved.

Yet, Paul makes it clear that our baptism as well as our resurrection is through the faith of the operation of God (Col 2:12). We are baptized into Christ’s death, not a pool of water, in order to be saved (Rom 6:1-3).

Most common is the teaching that although Christ did so much at the cross, we now need to submit to at least a few ordinances of the law in order to prove that we are saved.

Sadly, many are vainly deceived that their church-going, tithing, or good behavior keeps them in the body of Christ.

About this Paul strongly writes that Christ blotted out the ‘handwriting of ordinances that was against us’.

“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:” – Col 2:16

It was on the merits of Christ’s shed blood on your behalf that you are saved from God’s wrath. Neither circumcision, baptism, nor ordinances can add one ounce more to what Christ has already accomplished for you.

What will make you complete and finish the work of salvation is the shed blood of Christ on your behalf. Put your faith in this and nothing else and you will be complete in Christ!

“But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” – Romans 4:5

Top of the Page
Article Index
Published: September 2, 2008
Last Modified: May 4, 2016
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1. 
   -Following the Lord in Baptism 
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[patrick jane]

What Is the New Covenant / Testament?

 

By Justin Johnson  -  http://graceambassadors.com/prophecy/what-is-the-new-covenant-testament

Sometimes called the New Testament, the new covenant is a fulfillment of the promise God made with Israel to bring them back to the land and to help them obey the law. As a result this better testament would allow Israel to reap the blessings of God’s covenant made with their fathers (Luke 1:72-75).

The beginning of this New Testament can be found in Deuteronomy 30:1-9, where God promises that he will:

• Have compassion on them (30:3)
• Gather them together from among the nations (30:3-5)
• Allow them to dwell in the promised land (30:3-5)
• Circumcise their heart so they can obey the commandments (30:6-8)
• Make their work plenteous (30:9)

This testament would finally provide for the redemption of the nation Israel and institute what was needed to begin God’s strategy for blessing the ‘kindreds of the earth’ through their priesthood (Gen 12:3, 22:18, Acts 3:25).

What Israel would fail to accomplish on their own accord under the old covenant, God would provide for them under the new.

 

New Covenant prophesied

The prophets also reminded the Jews of the promised new covenant:

“Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:” – Jeremiah 31:31

 

Jeremiah goes on to describe how God will ‘put my law in their inward parts’ and will ‘remember their sin no more’ (Jeremiah 31:33-34).

Ezekiel also describes the supernatural empowerment that will accompany the new covenant as he writes:

 

“And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. “ – Ezekiel 36:27

 

The description given by Ezekiel also mentions how God will:

• Gather them from all countries (36:24)
• Allow them to dwell in the Promised Land (36:28)
• ‘Multiply the fruit of the tree’ (36:30)

New Covenant confirmed

In Romans, Paul says that Jesus was a minister to the circumcision to ‘confirm the promises made unto the fathers’ (Romans 15:8).

Hebrews tells us that Jesus came as the mediator of the new covenant. Jesus testifies to this during the Passover supper with the disciples. In describing the symbolism of the meal he says:

 

“For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” – Matthew 26:28

 

During his ministry, Jesus was preparing his followers for the coming kingdom and new covenant when he taught them about obeying the law, and told them about the supernatural empowerment he would send from heaven (John 14:26, Matthew 6:24-33).

 

The sign to all that men were part of the New Covenant blessing was if they bore fruit, were protected from harm, and spoke of the law written in their hearts. Therefore Jesus taught that,

 

“Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them” – Matthew 7:20

 

“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them…” – Mark 16:17-18

 

“And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and unto magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say: For the Holy Ghost shall teach you in the same hour what ye ought to say.” – Luke 12:11-12

 

The New Covenant enforced

Hebrews tells us that the new covenant was not in force until after Christ died.

 

“For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.” – Hebrews 9:17

 

So then, after Jesus died he sent down the ‘Comforter’ who would prepare the saints with the new covenant power to enter the kingdom (John 14:26).

 

It is this ‘better covenant’ that the author of Hebrews describes while quoting Jeremiah 31:

 

“But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.” – Hebrews 8:6

 

It was for this reason that Christ died for Israel so that their past transgressions under the old covenant would be redeemed and they could partake of the promise of the new covenant (Hebrews 9:15).

 

The enforcement of this covenant relationship with God was exclusive and severe. All of those who were part of the covenant were accompanied by the blessings of the covenant, while those who rejected or fell away from the covenant were denied salvation:

 

“For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.” – Hebrews 10:26-27

 

The New Covenant never realized

During Saul’s rebellion in Acts, God’s strategy for implementing the New Covenant was halted in order to implement a different strategy for a purpose that had never been previously revealed. This revelation of the mystery dispensed to Paul was information about God’s plan for heavenly places and a heavenly people.

 

As a result the New Covenant promises have yet to be realized. Paul explains how those promises would be realized after the future ‘fulness of the Gentiles be come in’ (Romans 11:25-27).

 

“And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:” (Romans 11:26)

 

Although the new covenant has been confirmed and established as a result of Christ’s death, the results of that covenant with Israel are yet to be realized. Israel has not assumed the promised kingdom, nor is God’s plan for the earth complete.

 

Instead, what pervades is the interim dispensation of reconciliation to all the world, where Christ is offered apart from any covenant or special people status or nationality (2 Cor 5:19).

 

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Topical Index Page

Published: Thursday, May 4th, 2006

Last Modified: March 29, 2016

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1. -30 Reasons We do not Operate Under the New Testament 
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   -Written in Their Hearts 
   -A Strange Teaching on the New Testament

[patrick jane]

Let us remember that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ felt the full weight of the sins of billions upon billions of sinners. I can barely handle the weight of my own sins. Praise God for Christ Jesus !!!

[patrick jane]

Are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John Old Testament Books?

http://graceambassadors.com/prophecy/mmlj/are-matt-john-old-testament

Most every casual Bible student would know that the New Testament section of the Bible begins with the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. We may also know that the origin of this division comes from the different languages from which they were translated.

However, naming the Greek portion of Scripture as the New Testament could possibly be the origin of many problems people have in understanding Jesus’ earthly ministry. For according to the Scripture, the majority of these four narratives of the life of our Lord Jesus are indeed Old Testament.

Hebrews 9:15-17 says:

“And for this cause he is the mediator of the New Testament that BY MEANS OF DEATH, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where a testament is, there must also OF NECESSITY BE THE DEATH OF THE TESTATOR. For A TESTAMENT IS OF FORCE AFTER MEN ARE DEAD: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.”

Hebrews 9:15-17 explains that it was after Jesus’ death that the New Testament took force. Galatians 4:4 explains:

“…when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, MADE UNDER THE LAW,…”

The Mosaic Law was the order of the Old Covenant. According to Galatians 4:4, Jesus was born and lived under the Old Covenant. It was not until his death that the New Testament could be made available. Since the large majority of each book and Jesus’ entire earthly ministry occurred before his death then it should be considered that these four books are still in the context of the Old Covenant.

This would explain why Paul wrote that Jesus ‘was a minister of the circumcision to confirm the promises made unto the Fathers’ (Romans 15:8).

This would also explain why Jesus operated according to the Old Testament:

• Was circumcised (Luke 2:27)
• Water Baptized (Matt 3:15)
• Taught Conditional forgiveness (Matt 6:14)
• Taught Levitical Sacrifice for Healing (Matt 8:4)
• “Follow the commandments” (Mark 10:17-19)
• “Obey the Pharisees” (Matt 23:2-3)
• Observed feast days (Matt 26:17)

In order to better understand the Scriptures we need to understand the context of the passages we read. Therefore it is important to realize that the events leading up to the cross in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are under the Old Testament.

Top of the Page
Topical Index PagePublished: Saturday, June 18th, 2005
Last Modified: August 9, 2012

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