CAN A CHRISTIAN FALL AWAY?

Hello beloved,

Recently, I addressed the doctrine of election. I hope that many of you had the time to read over that article and to search the Scripture and see, for yourself, that what I was saying is true. Now, I find it necessary to address one of the doctrines of grace called “perseverance of the saints”. You might have heard it referred to as “once saved, always saved”. The basic teaching behind it is that none who are truly saved can be condemned for their sins or finally fall away from the faith.

In this article, my intention is to let the Bible speak on this doctrine. In doing so, another teaching needs to be addressed. That is the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Without going over this, you will never understand, fully, what the Bible says about whether or not a believer can fall away. Unfortunately, a majority of the church misunderstands the truth about the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I assure you, though, that when you hear this, you will realize that this is the only way to interpret the truth behind it.

Let us start by visiting the book of Ezekiel. This is a very clear passage on God’s dealing with those who, at one time, are in right-standing with God, and then fall away from that. Let’s look at chapter thirty-three, verses twelve through twenty.

12 “Therefore, son of man, say to your countrymen, ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not save him when he disobeys, and the wickedness of the wicked man will not cause him to fall when he turns from it. The righteous man, if he sins, will not be allowed to live because of his former righteousness.’ 13 If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but then he trusts in his righteousness and does evil, none of the righteous things he has done will be remembered; he will die for the evil he has done. 14 And if I say to the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ but he then turns away from his sin and does what is just and right- 15 if he gives back what he took in pledge for a loan, returns what he has stolen, follows the decrees that give life, and does no evil, he will surely live; he will not die. 16 None of the sins he has committed will be remembered against him. He has done what is just and right; he will surely live.

17 “Yet your countrymen say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But it is their way that is not just. 18 If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and does evil, he will die for it. 19 And if a wicked man turns away from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he will live by doing so. 20 Yet, O house of Israel, you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But I will judge each of you according to his own ways.” (Ezekiel 33:12-20)

It is very clear, in this passage, that a righteous man, if he sins, will not be allowed to trust in his former righteousness on the day of wrath. Likewise, if an unrighteous man repents and turns to God, none of his former sins will be counted against him.

Now let’s go to the book of Hebrews.

“4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.” (Hebrews 6:4-6)

The first question you should ask when studying this passage is, “Who is the writer addressing?” He is addressing Christian Jews in Rome who were facing persecution under Nero. Over and over, the Christians in Rome are warned not to fall away, for many of them were facing that temptation. They were constantly under pressure to confess that Caesar was lord. Being that Christians are the ones addressed, who do you think the writer meant when he said, “if they fall away”? He was talking about those who had once been enlightened. They had the veil removed and could see the truth. He was talking about those who had tasted the heavenly gift. What gift? Salvation, of course. He was talking about those who had shared in the Holy Spirit. Is it possible to share in the Holy Spirit without being born again? No. And he was talking about Christians who had tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age. Then, not only did the writer say that these Christians could fall away, he said that if they did fall away they could never be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. How could it be possible that they would never come to repentance? Simple. You’ll never repent if you think you are right. And there in lies the danger of the teaching of “once saved, always saved.”

To see another pericope addressing the fact that a Christian can fall away from the faith, let’s visit the tenth chapter of Hebrews.

“26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?” (Hebrews 10:26-29)

I would just like to point out that if you go back to verse nineteen you will see that the writer is addressing Christians, when he says “Therefore brothers”. This is backed up by verse twenty-nine saying that this man had once been “sanctified by the blood of the covenant”. But what I want to focus on is that verses twenty-six and twenty-seven show us that there is no sacrifice left for a Christian who deliberately continues in sin, and will be judged as an enemy of God. Beloved, don’t think you can just continue in sin and trust that your sins are covered. No! You had better repent! For “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31) But, unfortunately so many will never come to repentance because they are convinced that they are right.

With that thought in mind, we must address the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. This teaching has been horribly maligned by Arminians and Calvinists alike. A widely agreed upon teaching of this is that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is an act you commit by giving the devil credit for a work of the Holy Spirit. Now, I could spend time addressing that, but I think that, when you see the accurate teaching, there will be no need for me to even address it. The aforementioned teaching is simply not parallel to God’s character. So, let’s turn to Matthew chapter twelve.

22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”

24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”

25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house.

30 “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” (Matthew 12:22-32)

Now I would ask that, if you have any presuppositions to the teaching I mentioned early, to check them at the door for a minute. There is only one correct interpretation of Scripture and this is the one for the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I am sure of that. The minute I learned this it clicked. I have had children come to me thinking they have committed some sin that has written them off from ever being saved. Does that really sound like the character of God? Absolutely not. But, this teaching will set so many people free.

So, when reading this pericope, it is vital to know what is going on. Jesus healed a demon-possessed man. There was no one that could deny this miracle. The people were astonished. Since the Pharisees could not deny the miracle, what did they do? They accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of the devil. Many students of the Word get caught up there. But, before we move on, you have to see that the reason the Pharisees were saying these things is because of their hard hearts. They were full of pride, and the last thing they would ever do is admit that Jesus might be who He says He is. The Pharisees were so convinced that they were right that there was absolutely nothing Jesus could do that would convince them otherwise. So, you have to see that, in the following verses, Jesus is not addressing the words of their mouths, but He was addressing the state of their hearts(Luke 6:45). And you’ll see that again, if you visit verses 33-37 and key in on verse 34b.

It’s easy to see here that the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not a particular action you can commit against the Holy Spirit. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is when you are dead wrong, yet you are convinced that you are right. It is when you have sinned against God, yet you believe that you have done nothing wrong. Remember this, the only sin that cannot be forgiven is the sin that is not confessed. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Beloved, it is vital that you grasp this. It is such a tragedy that so many people are walking around with the guilt of thinking they have committed a sin that cannot be forgiven. If you are convicted of it, that is evidence enough that you have not committed it. We must preach this truth so that they can be set free. Anyone can foolishly say, “That’s of the devil” about a work of God, and almost immediately be sorry about it and repent. But the unpardonable sin is when a person deliberately hardens himself against the Holy Spirit, and the convicting power of that Spirit. Usually, such people become deceived (Hebrews 3:13) early in this process, but later willfully choose to continue in their actions until they destroy both their conscience and any further desire to repent. One of these deceptions would be that you can’t lose your salvation.

Shall I make an application, for you, of someone blaspheming the Holy Spirit. Most commonly, a person guilty of blaspheming the Holy Spirit is one who has been saved by the blood of Christ, who has then fallen into a lifestyle of continual sin, and thinks they can continue in this lifestyle, based on the fact that they believe they cannot fall away from the grace of God.

The argument against this would be that this person was never saved in the first place. Really? Then how do you deal with Hebrews 6:4-6 and 10:26? Both of these pericopes explain that you can be soundly saved and, then, fall away from the faith. I have heard Hebrews 6:4-6 taught from the perspective of those who believe in the doctrine of perseverance. The only thing they can do with those scriptures is to explain them away; making them say something they do not say. These same teachers will say that you cannot make a doctrine out of just a few scriptures. I perfectly agree with that statement. However, the one who brought this to my attention needs to apply it. There are many scriptures that back up the fact that a believer can fall away. I will give you a list of them at the end of this article. However, those who teach that you cannot fall away always use the same scriptures, usually either John 10:28 or 1 John 2:19.

John 10:28 says that “no one can snatch them out of my hand”. Of course no one can snatch you from his hand. The scripture says so. But you can surely choose to leap from his hand. The verse does not, at all, address that.

Let me also address 1 John 2:19, briefly. This is where people come up with the argument that if someone has engrossed himself in continual sin, that it is simply evidence that he was never saved in the first place. The verse says, “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.” Now, where does this verse talk about belief? It doesn’t. “Us” is referring to the fellowship, not the faith.

To finish this article, I would like to form a hypothetical based on the teaching that if someone, who professes to be a Christian, falls into continual sin, it is evidence he was never born again. I’ll use a fictitious character named John Doe. John is forty years old. At the age of ten, he gave his heart to the Lord and was baptized. It was a sound conversion. Throughout high school he witnessed anytime he had the chance, he read his Bible regularly, he sang in the choir, etc. All of the other youths, and even the adults, looked up to him as a wonderful example of a Christian.

All through high school, John lived a life dedicated to the Lord. Then, at the age of eighteen, he went off to college. John was a great football player and got a full ride to NC State. For the first semester, or so, he did great. He even led a guy to the Lord at his dorm. Then, one night after the win at the Orange Bowl, John got introduced to alcohol. He got drunk and had sex with one of the cheerleaders. Well, he felt horrible about it the next day. He went to his parents and confessed the sin. He repented…at least for a while.

A few weeks later some teammates invited him to a party. He knew he shouldn’t go(conviction), but he went anyway. Again, John got drunk. The next day, he felt bad again. But, that did not stop him from going to a party the next weekend.

By the end of his freshman year, John Doe was getting drunk every weekend and regularly having sex with his girlfriend. He had fallen into continual sin. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 says that there won’t be drunkards or fornicators in the kingdom of God. John had become both.

Here is where many would say that this young man had obviously never been truly born again. I strongly disagree with that. Let me use yet another scripture to refute that. Ephesians 5:3-8 says, “3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them. 8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light…” Paul states here that you are not to become partners with those that practice sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed. Paul was writing this letter to the church(the believers) in Ephesus. His warning for them to “live as children of light” was to keep them from falling back into darkness. That’s exactly what happened to John. He was surrounded by children of darkness and gave in. He became partners with them and lost his salvation.

But there is a flip side to this coin. John was raised in a church that taught you could never lose your salvation. He knew he was soundly saved at age ten(because he was). Therefore, he trusted in the fact that all of those sins he committed in college were “covered by the blood”. He never came to a place of repentance because he didn’t think it was necessary. Beloved, do you see, now, why this “once saved, always saved” teaching is so dangerous? At any point, John could repent, but he won’t because he thinks there is no need for it. Now, he is married, with children, to the same girl he was fornicating with in college. They have both put those days behind them now…but God hasn’t. They still need to repent. For without repentance they cannot be forgiven.

Beloved, I encourage all of you to really search the scriptures to see if what I am saying is true. It is so easy to clutch to beliefs simply because that is what you were taught. But, the fact that someone you respect taught you that doesn’t, necessarily, make it true. It must line up with the Word of God. I am including a list of scriptures that will help you in your search. I ask you to read them, in context, and see if I am telling you the truth. I would like to know if you can prove to me otherwise. And it is obvious that the number of scriptures listed would disprove any who might say that a doctrine has been created using just a few scriptures. The truth is that this rings true throughout the Bible.

In Christian love,
Adam Tennant

Ezekiel 3:20
Ezekiel 33:10-30
Ezekiel 18:24-29
Matthew 7:21-23
Luke 15:23-24
Romans 11:22
1 Corinthians 9:27
1 Corinthians 15:2
2 Corinthians 6:1
Galatians 5:4
Ephesians 5:3-8
Colossians 1:22-23
1Timothy 1:18-20
1Timothy 2:4
1Timothy 3:6
1Timothy 4:1
1Timothy 4:16
1Timothy 5:8
1Timothy 6:10
1Timothy 6:20-21
2Timothy 2:16-18
Hebrews 3:6, 12, 14
Hebrews 4:4-6
Hebrews 4:14
Hebrews 10:26
2 Peter 2:1, 15, 20-21
2 Peter 3:9
2 Peter 3:17
1 John 2:18, 19, 24
2 John 1:8
Jude 1:6
Revelation 3:5
Revelation 22:19

OBJECTS OF WRATH

Hello beloved,

Recently, I was discussing an interesting verse. Romans 9:13 says, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” If you do not properly exegete this scripture, it would be very easy to think that this points toward the “unconditional election” teaching, which Calvinists hold on to. This teaching says that before God created the world, he chose to save some people according to his own purposes and apart from any conditions related to those persons. Let’s take a look at the Scriptures to see what they have to say about this.

In the first seven verses of the ninth chapter of Romans, Paul is explaining that the only way to be a child of God is through faith in Christ. Verse eight says that being born a Jew doesn’t make you God’s child. You must be a child of the promise. So let’s pick up at verse nine.

“9 For this was how the promise was stated: “At the appointed time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.” 10 Not only that, but Rebekah’s children had one and the same father, our father Isaac.”

Of course, in verse nine, he is talking about the birth of Isaac. From Isaac and Rebekah, came Jacob and Esau. And here’s where some get confused. Verses 11-13 say “11 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: 12 not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” Does this say that neither Jacob nor Esau had anything to do with the fact that God loved one and hated the other? It would appear so at first glance. But, to answer that question, we have to first ask the question, “Why did God hate Esau?” For that answer we need to visit Genesis 25.

Genesls 25:23 says, “The LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” So, who is in Rebekah’s womb? Two nations. These are two kinds of people. You have to take hold of that. All through the Bible you see these two kinds of people. One of which God loves, the other he hates.

Let’s keep going. We’ve got to find out why God hated Esau. “24 When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. 25 The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. 26 After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them. 27 The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents. 28 Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob. 29 Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!” (That is why he was also called Edom. 31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?” 33 But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.”

What did Esau do to deserve God’s hatred? He sold his birthright for a mess of pottage. God hates that. The birthright was to take responsibility for the family. Jacob sought after this. And God loved Jacob because of his faith and willingness to pick up the birthright. Does that sound like unconditional love or hatred to you? Of course not. Beloved, you have to remember something a good friend of mine says: “God always predestines the way, but he never predestines the person.”

So let’s go now, to Hebrews 12:15-16, which says, “15 See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.” Again, it is stated that Esau sold his birthright for a meal. God hates that. He is actually referred to as “godless”.

Let’s visit one last scripture on Esau. Malachi 1:2-5 says, 2 “I have loved you,” says the LORD. “But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’ “Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” the LORD says. “Yet I have loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.” 4 Edom may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild the ruins.” But this is what the LORD Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the LORD. 5 You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great is the LORD -even beyond the borders of Israel!’ Again, God states that he loves Jacob and he hates Esau. God crushed Esau. Why? Because he was desiring that Esau come to repentance. But, instead of confessing his sin and repenting, Esau decided to rebuild. Does that sound familiar? God is sending his judgment on this nation and we just keep trying to rebuild and bail ourselves out. A good friend of mine says it this way, “God has more disaster than our federal government has relief.” How timely is that word? Too bad no one wants to hear it.

I would like to point out a very important statement in verse four, “They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord.” We had better realize that if we are going to be like Esau, than we are going to be under the wrath of the Lord. That’s not because God predestined it. That is because we sell our birthright for a mess of pottage. Instead of confessing and forsaking our sin, we decide to do things our way. We think that we can save ourselves, or work our way to salvation. Beloved, their is only one Way. That’s Jesus Christ. “In repentance and rest is our salvation” (Isaiah 30:15) Any other way will only lead to the wrath of God.

Speaking of God’s wrath, it’s time to go back to Romans, chapter nine. Remember what we’ve learned. Jacob, by faith, wanted the birthright. God loved him. Esau despised his birthright. God hated him. Keep that in mind as we go on. Verse fourteen says, “What then shall we say?” Is God unjust? Not at all!” Beloved, if the teaching of unconditional election is true, God is unjust.

Verse fifteen says, “For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” On whom does God have mercy and compassion? Those who repent and come to Him in faith.

Verse sixteen says, “It does not, therefore, depend on man’s desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.” So, no one can work their way to God. We are only saved by grace through faith in Christ.  Those who hold to the doctrine of unconditional election would say that those who do not believe the way they do are promoting a works-based religion.  But, that is not the case, at all.  That’s just a red herring.

Verses 17-18 say, “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.” Beloved, Pharoah hardened his heart three times. God hardened his heart nine times. If you decide to ignore God and harden your heart, God will harden your heart for you.

So, here are the verses that confuse many. Verses 19-23 say, “19 One of you will say to me: “Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?” 20 But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?'” 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?” 22 What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath-prepared for destruction? 23 What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory”

Did Paul actually say that God bore us as “objects of wrath”. Wait a minute! That would mean that God actually prepared in advance that we would be objects of wrath. We were born, unconditionally predestined to be objects of wrath. What? Is that really true? Yep. It sure is. Beloved, we were all born “objects of wrath”. (You can blame that on Adam) But, here is what is so awesome about it. God can’t display is mercy any other way. You see, if we aren’t born objects of wrath we would never be able to repent, therefore becoming “objects of mercy”. Oh, beloved, we must praise the Lord for His mercy!

What a God! Just to sure that one up, let’s go to Ephesians 2:1-10 “1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Beloved, if we take a verse here and a verse there, we can get really confused. And that’s what had to be done to form this teaching on unconditional election. We’ve seen that God’s wrath and His mercy are conditional. If you decide to do things your way, forsaking the birthright, you will receive the wrath of God. But, if you repent and put your faith in Christ, you will receive His mercy. Though you were predestined an object of wrath, you can turn to Christ and become an object of mercy. Oh, what a God!

In Christian love,
Adam Tennant

UNDER THE BLOOD

Hello beloved,

I would like to talk about an issue we all have dealt with, or are currently dealing with. Un-forgiveness. But not the un-forgiveness you hear about most of the time where you are harboring a bitter, unforgiving spirit against someone. No, I’m talking about not being able to forgive yourself. This is a serious problem and it will keep you from living in the promise land. It will cause you to continue living a defeated life, usually spiraling into depression and spiritual deadness.

You have to come to a point in your Christian life where you realize that the blood of Jesus washed your sins away and that you are forgiven. Period. There is nothing else you can do to make God love you more. In fact it is impossible for God’s love to increase or decrease. The only way I know how to explain this is that while we were still sinners, God killed his only begotten Son that we wouldn’t have to pay for our sins with an eternity in Hell. You have to realize that it is impossible for God to love you more than that. It is also impossible for God to forgive you for the same past sin twice. Once you confess it, God no longer remembers it. So quit reminding him about it. He doesn’t want to hear it. In fact, when you go to God and confess the same stuff over and over, you are defaming the blood of Christ. You are saying that His blood was not enough; that you need some kind of extra assurance that you are forgiven.

Beloved, we need to quit dwelling on the past. When you dwell on the past, you are actually pleasing the enemy. God showed me that, yes, I was a filthy, rotten sinner and one of his enemies; but more importantly He extended his grace and mercy to me and now I am one of his children. He showed me that when I finally offered him all I had…me; he made me his child. And he is entrusting me with His Kingdom. So I had better act like it.

1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:1-5)

So, we were all once dead in our transgressions and sins. We were all once followers of the ways of this world. We all followed Satan. Basically, we were all once horribly, wretchedly, wicked. Even the sweetest, kindest, gentlest Christian you know was once an enemy of Almighty God. James 4:4 says that “Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” And we all fall short of God’s glory. Romans 3:23 says that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.

Not only were all of us so bad, but there was absolutely nothing we could do about it. No matter how much we went to church, how many times we walked an old lady across the street, we would never even come one step closer to being saved. Salvation comes only by God’s grace through faith. So, we need to realize that once we confess and repent of our sin, God has forgiven us. Leave it alone after that. If you bring it up again, Satan will be the only one pleased with it. Paul explains in Hebrews chapter 10 that all of our sacrifices could never save us. They could never atone for sin, but only the by Jesus Christ doing the will of God can lead to our right-standing with a Holy God. When, following the will of His Father, He laid down His life and become the Perfect Sacrifice for all sin…for all mankind. Look at Hebrews 10:1-18.

1 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, 4because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; 6 with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. 7Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, O God.’ ” 8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” (although the law required them to be made). 9Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. 13 Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, 14because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: 16 “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” 17Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” 18And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. (Hebrews 10:1-18)

We Christians like to think we are doing a humble thing, when we tell God how unworthy we are. But, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. Jesus sat down at the right hand of God. He is finished. Your sin is forgotten by God. So you, too, must let it go. There is nothing more you can do. Your past is your past. Dwelling on your past will lead you into a defeated life. We have to stop feeling like we’ve blown it and are unworthy of God’s grace. Forget that! We are to have boldness to enter the Most Holy Place by the Blood of Jesus. Look at verses 19-23.

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. (Hebrews 10:19-23)

You can have confidence when you go to God in prayer. You don’t have to take time to explain to him how sorry you are. No! You’re not sorry anymore. You are a child of God. You have been forgiven for your sins. You have been cleansed of your guilty conscience. 1John 1:19 says that “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Don’t you know that GOD IS FAITHFUL!! That’s right, so hold fast. God is faithful! You are forgiven! Your sins have been washed away! You are a child of God! God doesn’t want you to live a defeated life. It’s very important that every Christian figure this out. Let me share with you how I figured this out. Better yet, how God revealed it to me.

A short time before getting married, Paige(my wife) and I were talking. Something that was brought up from time to time was my past. Needless to say, it was not Paige that brought it up. Paige was aware of my past before we started courting and had forgiven me. She said to me that “if God has forgiven you, I forgive you.”

Forgiveness from God was not a problem, neither was Paige’s forgiveness. I was the one that was unwilling to let go of my past. I often thought “How could someone like me ever deserve such a special person like Paige, more precious than the finest jewels?” If I still looked at myself, now, as I did at that time, my answer would still be that I could never deserve Paige. Some of you might say the same thing. But, as I got on my face before God, he showed me that I was looking at it all wrong. He showed me that I had to realize that the old Adam had no business with such a woman as Paige. The old Adam didn’t deserve her at all. He deserved death. The old Adam deserved an eternity in Hell. But, the old Adam died on February 23, 2005. God made a new Adam. A new creation. And as I stand here today, I can boldly tell you that I deserved Paige. His blood cleansed me of all my sin. He has forgotten my past. I have been born again and the only time I will give my past the time of day is when I am overcoming my accuser by the blood of the lamb and the word of my testimony. Praise God. God showed me that I could never do enough works to make my past any more forgiven than it already was. It was God and God alone, who in his rich mercy, made me alive in Christ. He transformed me. He forgave me. He died for me. He sat down at the right hand of God. He said “It is finished.” Therefore, it is finished.

When I came to this realization, I realized that my duty as a child of God was to act like a child of God. God not only made Paige for me, but he made me for her. And His will for me is to be the man of God he has called me to be; the husband he has called me to be. God has miraculously healed me of the unnecessary guilt I carried on my back. He clearly told me to drop that stuff. I wasn’t going to let myself bring it into our marriage. Well, I dropped it and I can’t even explain the weight that was lifted.

God wants all of us to check our baggage at the door. We have to realize that the only thing we can give him is ourselves. That is all he wants…just us. Jesus painted a perfect example of this in Luke chapter 15.

11 Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

13 “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. 14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. 16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! 18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.’ 20 So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

21 “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

22 “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. 24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

25 “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 27 ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’

28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’

31 ” ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ” (Luke 15:11-32)

It was, of course, a good thing for the son to realize how sorry he was and that he was unworthy of grace. But look at the father’s response. He gave him his best robe. Surely, he was covered in filthy rags. We too, are covered with filthy rags. Our righteous acts are like filthy rags(Isaiah 64:6). So it’s time to get rid of those rags and let God clothe us in the robe of righteousness(Isaiah 61:10).

So as I come to a close, I want you to think about some things that you might be dwelling on. Maybe even recently you’ve done some things that you know was wrong. If you haven’t repented of it, you’d better do that first.  But, if you have, than know, this moment, that God wants you to quit living that defeated life. Just like the prodigal’s father, our heavenly Father wants to embrace us and just love on us. Maybe you’ve recently been saved and you just can’t get past your past. Maybe you’ve got someone like the prodigal’s brother pointing out your past mistakes. Well, just like the prodigal, you need to look past that and run into the arms of your heavenly Father.

But, he doesn’t want to restore you and make you the kind of child that calls every once in a while and might drop in from time to time. No, now you’ve got the responsibility of  apprehending a kingdom. So, you’ll have to follow him, by first reading his word and obeying what you read. And, yes, that means every day.

In Christian love,

Adam Tennant