One Nature

By: Dan Stone

There's a deep rut in the Christian faith, as most believers experience it. It's like a ditch that you run your car into and can't get out of. Unless God tows a believer out of the rut, he or she will never fully live out of their union with Christ.

The rut is this: most of us believe that in the depths of our being we are both good and bad. Or, to put it in theological terms, we are both righteous and sinful. Using a common illustration, we believe that we have within us both a white dog and a black dog, a good nature and a bad nature, that are fighting for control.

But that is not true. It is vital that we know it's not true, because if we believe that we are both righteous and sinful, it will be impossible to live out of our union with Christ and to rest, trusting that He lives through us moment by moment. Instead, we will be focused on ourselves, on getting our act together, on winning the war that supposedly rages within us, trying to suppress the bad part of us so that the good part will reflect the character of Christ. This endless self-effort is the complete opposite of what Paul wrote:

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God... (Galatians 2:20)

The only way out of this dilemma, of believing that we are both good and bad, is to understand that the realm of the spirit, above the line, is singular. It is one. The realm of appearances, below the line, is a duality. It is two.

In the realm of appearances, there is constant evidence of good and evil, both outside and inside us. If we judge by appearances, we arrive at the logical conclusion that we are both good and bad. That looks entirely valid. Christians have believed this for centuries. Except for a small minority who have come to know their true identity in Christ, the whole Christian world accepts the lie. Unfortunately, although something may not be true above the line, if below the line we think it is true, it still controls us. We must choose to live out of what is singular, rather than what is dual.

The realm of the spirit, the singular realm, is eternal reality. That is where our spirit being lives, and where our true identity is settled forever. The realm of appearance, although we must live in it in the here and now, is false as far as our identity goes. All of life depends on which realm is ultimate reality to you: the realm of spirit or the realm of appearances. That's going to determine what you believe and how you live.

Choosing to believe that you are not both good and evil can be difficult. All of the external proof, all of the apparent evidence, all of the sight, supports the opposite: that you have two natures. "You are good, yes, a little good, but boy, you are still wicked; you are still evil." Only the Holy Spirit can reveal to you that you only have one nature, not two. In the core of your being you are not both righteous and sinful; you are only righteous.

From: Stone, Dan, The Rest of the Gospel: When the partial Gospel has worn you out. Dallas: One Press. 2000. pgs. 89,90.

To be in Christ.....

"To be in Christ ­ that is redemption; but for Christ to be in you ­ that is sanctification! To be in Christ ­ that makes you fit for heaven; but for Christ to be in you ­ that makes you fit for earth! To be in Christ ­ that changes your destination; but for Christ to be in you ­ that changes your destiny! The one makes heaven your home ­ the other makes this world His workshop."


(W. Ian Thomas - The Saving Life of Christ. Zondervan Publishing 1972. pg. 19)

neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything!

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love." (Gal. 5:6)

You could replace the words circumcision or uncircumcision with the following:
1. tithing nor non-tithing.
2. reading the Word nor not reading the Word.
3. praying nor not praying.
4. fasting nor not fasting.
5. any rules or regulations nor no rules and/or regulations.

I think you probably get the point........look again at the first four words which begin this verse, "For In Christ Jesus...." that is our Hope of Glory.......not Law/Rules, but Faith working through Love, In-Christ!

Child of God, stand in the Freedom appropriated by the Cross, and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

The Prodigal Son

By Paul Rupe

Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:7

Remember the story of the prodigal son? We find it in Luke 15:11-24, which says,

A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to [his] father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth [to me]. And he divided unto them [his] living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put [it] on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on [his] feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill [it]; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

The prodigal knew that he had messed up and was certain that his father would accept him only as a hired servant rather than as his son, but what did the father do? He told his servants to put the best robes on him, put a ring on his finger, and to kill a fatted calf in celebration because his son had finally come home.

This earthly father in Jesus’ parable never changed his mind about the identity of his son and believer God never changes His mind about you.

The apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans,

For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. Romans 11:29

This simply means that God never changes His mind about the fact that He has made you His child.

Dear believer, the truth is regardless of what you may have done, you belong to God. God will never be satisfied with you being merely a servant because He has made you His son!

The passing away of "jot and tittle"

By Jim Minker

"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." (Matthew 5:18, KJV)

What meaneth the "jot and tittle"? A more modern version - the NASB - translates it "the smallest letter or stroke". I mean, we're talking meticulous here. But was Jesus really pushing a technical approach to the things of God? Oh, I have no qualms with the fact that he was holding these people to the "unalterable ... word spoken through angels" (Heb 2:2), after all, he WAS referring to the LAW.

To suggest that he was validating the 100% accuracy of the soon-to-be "completed written revelation of God" in order to establish it as the "supreme authority in every aspect of life" for those he came to set free only underscores a total disregard not only for what he actually said but also for the very freedom he came to bring. Do we not understand the CURSE of "unalterable" words inscribed in stone or written in ink? Or are we really so unaware of the downside of such accuracy? One only needs to consider the history of "God's people".

The state of affairs in Israel had reached the pinnacle of a self-righteousness based upon a massive system of loopholes specifically designed to get around God's "unalterable" commands while creating the appearance of a "Scriptural" godliness. Sounds much the same as the Christian marketplace today, doesn't it? If we were to take our religious-colored glasses off while reading this portion of Matthew's account we might realize that Jesus was nailing their collective religious butt to the wall.

Somehow though, we've been taught to completely overlook how all this plays into the why of what he said so that we often buy into the technical approaches of those who hold to the letter and yet disregard the life. I have no doubt that if I had been born in Jerusalem at that time and had been given half a chance I would have been standing right along side those Pharisees scoffing at everything Jesus said. How about you?

To get a fuller picture of the verse in question check out a bit more of the surrounding comments:

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven." Matt 5:17-20

If you get nothing else out of this passage, don't miss the most obvious contrast: Jesus fulfilled what religious men broke! You see, the religious leaders constantly followed Jesus around examining everything he did or did not do for the express purpose of condemning him. The fact of the matter is that these religious men endorsed a system that "abolished" or "nullified" the very same law they accused Jesus of breaking (see Matthew 15:6). Not only that, they twisted what they broke in order to justify themselves so that they appeared as "righteous" in the eyes of man! In contrast, Jesus - the righteous one - came to justify the unrighteous. For HIS is the righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees!

Jesus did not comment on the "jot and tittle" to establish a precedent, but to expose a religious game! "You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!" (Matt 23:24). Do we not recognize that THEY, not Jesus, were the ones examining every minute legality - every jot and tittle - in order to get around their own commandment-breaking? But Jesus demanded that the law would NOT justify, but judge them to the same meticulous degree they attempted to get around it. How is it that so many have twisted Jesus' statement regarding the rigidity of the law in order to validate a scriptural legalism that strains at every little pen-stroke? Have we not long-since discovered that such intense detail has brought nothing but sin and condemnation?

Yeah, but how does this fit with "Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law"? You know, the last time I looked the heaven and earth were still standing, and even though many have predicted "The End of the World" it somehow seems to hang on. But what if we're overlooking the most obvious connection - that the law itself is inextricably linked together with the elemental world? In other words, the law cannot be disentangled from the basic principles of a world that has an end ... meaning that which finds its life in the world, or the things of the world, cannot get around the fundamental operating principles of that world.

As to the passing of heaven and earth, why would we restrict its meaning according to an elemental viewpoint? Do we really think GOD is bound by the logic of a world that exists only because He holds it together? Listen, why would we suppose that the passing of the elemental world, as well as every jot and tittle, would be understood any differently than how we learned Christ ... or did we come to know God through all the wisdom of the world? No, knowing God comes despite human knowledge - for it cannot touch Him.

Consider the scenario presented by Paul in Romans 7:1-3

"Or do you not know, brethren (for I am speaking to those who know the law), that the law has jurisdiction over a person as long as he lives? For the married woman is bound by law to her husband while he is living; but if her husband dies, she is released from the law concerning the husband. So then, if while her husband is living she is joined to another man, she shall be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from the law, so that she is not an adulteress though she is joined to another man."

Under law, a man and a woman were joined until separated by death. If one partner died, the other was freed from that specific law. This is ELEMENTAL - and the flesh understands it - for some have even opted for murder to avoid adultery (No one ever said the logic of the flesh was particularly smart). So, according to the law, in order to LEGALLY marry another your spouse has to die first. But this is NOT how we were joined to Christ! Watch how Paul uses the elemental truth of the law as a NEGATIVE comparison to the miraculous life we have in Christ.

"Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God." (7:4)

No, He didn't kill your spouse - He killed YOU. In other words, YOU were removed from the jurisdiction of the elemental world ... and the principles by which it operates!! The heaven and earth, along with the jot and tittle of the law, have passed away because YOU have been taken out of IT, even though IT still stands. It has no power or control over YOU who have been made alive!! In Christ, everything has been accomplished, and this is the "word of the cross".

"For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1 Cor 1:18). You see, it makes no difference what the world around you demands, for it cannot know what the Spirit of God within you reveals. We have been removed from out of the world and yet we still reside here ... but as strangers and aliens!! Even our bodies are dead because of sin - as they are connected to the death of the earthly - but God's Spirit is life to those very members so that life oozes out of us despite the decay of dying bodies.

My friends, in Christ all has been fulfilled, the law has passed away even down to the jot and tittle!! We have been removed from the realm of nitpicking!! What is it that we are looking for as we studiously pore over the writings of the Bible: hints of sin, fear, guilt, shame, condemnation ... what? Are we still looking for commands that can be broken? Are we still trying to validate our worth by comparing ourselves to its "standards"? If so, we are only caught up with legal technicalities of an existence done away with! If we truly hear the living witness found in the pages of the Book we will hear testimony to the one and only reality, the one and only LIFE ... CHRIST.

A NEW CREATION

By: Bob George

Being made into a new creation is like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly. Originally an earthbound crawling creature, a caterpillar weaves a cocoon and is totally immersed in it. Then a marvelous process takes place, called metamorphosis. Finally a totally new creature - a butterfly - emerges. Once ground-bound, the butterfly can now soar above the earth. It now can view life from the sky downward. In the same way, as a new creature in Christ you must begin to see yourself as God sees you.

If you were to see a butterfly, it would never occur to you to say, "Hey, everybody! Come look at this good-looking converted worm!" And it was "converted." No, now it is a new creature, and you don't think of it in terms of what it was. You see it as it is now - a butterfly.

In exactly the same way, God sees you as His new creature in Christ. Although you might not always act like a good butterfly - you might land on things you shouldn't, or forget you are a butterfly and crawl around with our old worm buddies - the truth of the matter is, you are never going to be a worm again!

This is why the usual New Testament word for a person in Christ is "saint," meaning "holy one." Paul for example, in nearly all his letters addressed them to the "saints." Yet all the time I hear Christians referring to themselves as "just an old sinner saved by grace." No! That's like calling a butterfly a converted worm. We were sinners and we were saved by grace, but the Word of God calls us saints from the moment we become identified with Christ.

Some people ask, "But I still commit sins. Doesn't that make me a sinner?

I answer, "It depends on whether your identity is determined by your behavior what you do ­ or by who you are in God's eyes." Do you see how we have continued to do as Christians what the world does by determining a person's identity based on his behavior? The only way to get free of this is to do what Paul wrote in Colossians 3:1-3:

'Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.'

From: Classic Christianity. Eugene: Harvest House Publishers. ©1989.

Covenant

But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel: After those days, says the Lord, I will put My law within them, and on their hearts will I write it; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. And they will no more teach each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they will all know Me [recognize, understand, and be acquainted with Me], from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will [seriously] remember their sin no more.
(Jer. 31) amp.