ARE YOU A FRUIT TREE OR A CHRISTMAS TREE?
Under the Old Covenant it was IF you DO right God will bless you, IF you DO wrong you are under a curse. You had to EARN God's blessings. It was about what you can DO for God to react. If you draw close to God, He draws close to you. It was a master-slave relationship. It was a work based relationship. People were motivated by FEAR to live right. Human effort and performance was at the forefront. People were actors and the law was the script (you strive not to lie, steal, cheat, fornicate, etc, because the Law said so; righteous living was not an internal overflow but an outward discipline). Righteous living was all artificial; like hanging fruits on a Christmas tree. It was an "IF" relationship. Sadly a lot of Christians still live under this obsolete realm.
Under the New Covenant it is a complete opposite. It is no longer IF you DO this God will DO that; it is God has DONE this so BELIEVE and you will do that. Under the Old Covenant it was you Do for God to Do; but under the New Covenant God has Done, just Believe so you can do. Unlike the Old Testament, here God initiates the process. It is no longer give so that God Will bless you; it is God Has blessed you, so you give. You're now into a Father-son relationship. You don't do things for your Heavenly Father to bless you because all He has is yours. You're no more working for God; you're working with Him. It is no longer God will bless you; it is God has blessed you. And that blessing is not based on your performance but on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Here God does not react, He proacts. Under the New Covenant, believers are motivated by love and gratitude of all God has done to live right. Righteous living is now and outward flow of the inner life of Christ. You don't steal, lie, cheat, fornicate, etc because the written Law says don't; you don't do those things because the nature you now have in Christ does not have those tendencies. You're not guided by external rules and regulations, but you're now led by the inner working of the Spirit (you're not under law but under grace). The Law set a standard you could never keep, but grace brings you up to the standard Christ has kept. Under the New Covenant you're no longer a Christmas tree with its artificial fruits (dead works), but a fruitful tree bearing the fruit of the Spirit (good works). The New Testamennt is a covenant of Grace (you're no longer keeping the commandments of God in order to be righteous, rather you have received a righteous nature that's why you do the commandments). Under the Old Testament righteous living was foreign to you, so you struggle to meet the demands, but under the New Testament righteousness is your nature, so you live right naturally. As a believer with an understanding of this truth, sinning becomes an uphill task for you.
If as a believer you struggle with one sin or the other, it is not because you have a sin problem, it is rather because you don't Know that you no longer have a sin problem. Sanctification is not the process of taking away sin from your life; it is the process of acquiring knowledge that sin has been taken away from your life. Yes, you no longer have a sin problem; you have an ignorance problem. Stop trying to die to the "self" that was nailed to the cross; start living the new life that was delivered to you at the resurrection of Christ.
Your greatest prayer should be, "God, give me understanding of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ." The gospel (good news) is the truth that makes free. That gospel is not taught; it is caught. You can never search and find it; it searches and finds you.
D. Tambah
Under the Old Covenant it was IF you DO right God will bless you, IF you DO wrong you are under a curse. You had to EARN God's blessings. It was about what you can DO for God to react. If you draw close to God, He draws close to you. It was a master-slave relationship. It was a work based relationship. People were motivated by FEAR to live right. Human effort and performance was at the forefront. People were actors and the law was the script (you strive not to lie, steal, cheat, fornicate, etc, because the Law said so; righteous living was not an internal overflow but an outward discipline). Righteous living was all artificial; like hanging fruits on a Christmas tree. It was an "IF" relationship. Sadly a lot of Christians still live under this obsolete realm.
Under the New Covenant it is a complete opposite. It is no longer IF you DO this God will DO that; it is God has DONE this so BELIEVE and you will do that. Under the Old Covenant it was you Do for God to Do; but under the New Covenant God has Done, just Believe so you can do. Unlike the Old Testament, here God initiates the process. It is no longer give so that God Will bless you; it is God Has blessed you, so you give. You're now into a Father-son relationship. You don't do things for your Heavenly Father to bless you because all He has is yours. You're no more working for God; you're working with Him. It is no longer God will bless you; it is God has blessed you. And that blessing is not based on your performance but on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Here God does not react, He proacts. Under the New Covenant, believers are motivated by love and gratitude of all God has done to live right. Righteous living is now and outward flow of the inner life of Christ. You don't steal, lie, cheat, fornicate, etc because the written Law says don't; you don't do those things because the nature you now have in Christ does not have those tendencies. You're not guided by external rules and regulations, but you're now led by the inner working of the Spirit (you're not under law but under grace). The Law set a standard you could never keep, but grace brings you up to the standard Christ has kept. Under the New Covenant you're no longer a Christmas tree with its artificial fruits (dead works), but a fruitful tree bearing the fruit of the Spirit (good works). The New Testamennt is a covenant of Grace (you're no longer keeping the commandments of God in order to be righteous, rather you have received a righteous nature that's why you do the commandments). Under the Old Testament righteous living was foreign to you, so you struggle to meet the demands, but under the New Testament righteousness is your nature, so you live right naturally. As a believer with an understanding of this truth, sinning becomes an uphill task for you.
If as a believer you struggle with one sin or the other, it is not because you have a sin problem, it is rather because you don't Know that you no longer have a sin problem. Sanctification is not the process of taking away sin from your life; it is the process of acquiring knowledge that sin has been taken away from your life. Yes, you no longer have a sin problem; you have an ignorance problem. Stop trying to die to the "self" that was nailed to the cross; start living the new life that was delivered to you at the resurrection of Christ.
Your greatest prayer should be, "God, give me understanding of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ." The gospel (good news) is the truth that makes free. That gospel is not taught; it is caught. You can never search and find it; it searches and finds you.
D. Tambah
ARE YOU A FRUIT TREE OR A CHRISTMAS TREE?
Under the Old Covenant it was IF you DO right God will bless you, IF you DO wrong you are under a curse. You had to EARN God's blessings. It was about what you can DO for God to react. If you draw close to God, He draws close to you. It was a master-slave relationship. It was a work based relationship. People were motivated by FEAR to live right. Human effort and performance was at the forefront. People were actors and the law was the script (you strive not to lie, steal, cheat, fornicate, etc, because the Law said so; righteous living was not an internal overflow but an outward discipline). Righteous living was all artificial; like hanging fruits on a Christmas tree. It was an "IF" relationship. Sadly a lot of Christians still live under this obsolete realm.
Under the New Covenant it is a complete opposite. It is no longer IF you DO this God will DO that; it is God has DONE this so BELIEVE and you will do that. Under the Old Covenant it was you Do for God to Do; but under the New Covenant God has Done, just Believe so you can do. Unlike the Old Testament, here God initiates the process. It is no longer give so that God Will bless you; it is God Has blessed you, so you give. You're now into a Father-son relationship. You don't do things for your Heavenly Father to bless you because all He has is yours. You're no more working for God; you're working with Him. It is no longer God will bless you; it is God has blessed you. And that blessing is not based on your performance but on the finished work of Jesus Christ. Here God does not react, He proacts. Under the New Covenant, believers are motivated by love and gratitude of all God has done to live right. Righteous living is now and outward flow of the inner life of Christ. You don't steal, lie, cheat, fornicate, etc because the written Law says don't; you don't do those things because the nature you now have in Christ does not have those tendencies. You're not guided by external rules and regulations, but you're now led by the inner working of the Spirit (you're not under law but under grace). The Law set a standard you could never keep, but grace brings you up to the standard Christ has kept. Under the New Covenant you're no longer a Christmas tree with its artificial fruits (dead works), but a fruitful tree bearing the fruit of the Spirit (good works). The New Testamennt is a covenant of Grace (you're no longer keeping the commandments of God in order to be righteous, rather you have received a righteous nature that's why you do the commandments). Under the Old Testament righteous living was foreign to you, so you struggle to meet the demands, but under the New Testament righteousness is your nature, so you live right naturally. As a believer with an understanding of this truth, sinning becomes an uphill task for you.
If as a believer you struggle with one sin or the other, it is not because you have a sin problem, it is rather because you don't Know that you no longer have a sin problem. Sanctification is not the process of taking away sin from your life; it is the process of acquiring knowledge that sin has been taken away from your life. Yes, you no longer have a sin problem; you have an ignorance problem. Stop trying to die to the "self" that was nailed to the cross; start living the new life that was delivered to you at the resurrection of Christ.
Your greatest prayer should be, "God, give me understanding of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ." The gospel (good news) is the truth that makes free. That gospel is not taught; it is caught. You can never search and find it; it searches and finds you.
D. Tambah
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