Learning To Cut It Straight

A Study In Pauline Theology

Lesson Five

PAUL’S DISTINCTIVE DOCTRINES ABOUT BELIEVERS

The sum total of Paul’s teaching concerning true believers constitute the “mystery of the believer”.

Col 1:27 For to them God would make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the nations, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory,

All of these things that belong to us count as “riches of the glory” or lit. “glorious wealth” and are ours by virtue of the indwelling Christ, Who inhabits the believer. I am saved by partaking of His Life, or by His entrance “He that hath the Son hath Life.

I have victory or triumphant Christian experience by having His life fully

manifested in me, “For me to live is Christ.” Some day I shall be transformed into His very Image when He shall appear (I Jn. 3:1-3). I have all when I have Him indwelling me. Paul sums it up in entirety in Col. 2:9, 10 “For in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in Him.” (Gr. “filled up”). All of the great doctrines of the fullness God has promised, and which we shall study through the rest of the year in Pauline Theology are ours, because of this “great mystery,” “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Certainly this is a “mystery” to the world, and “none of the princes of this world know,” and all too seldom recognized, if known at all by the believer, himself, because of ignorance of “those things freely given us of God.”

A.Paul’s Doctrine of Free Grace – Gr. “Charis”

The doctrine of grace, apart from the person of Christ, is Paul’s most elaborate.

He devotes more time, space, and argument to grace than any other subject.

The word “grace” occurs in the New Testament 130x .

Paul used it 98x times.

The word is not in Matthew nor Mark, only 1x in Luke, and 3x in the Gospel of John.

Grace is the doctrine Paul wrote in Romans and Galatians to defend from admixture to Law by Judaism and in Colossians against heathen philosophy, and human boasting of wisdom. Paul links it with every subject as the motivating force behind all that God has ever done, is doing, or ever will do for us.

It forever robs man of any grounds of human boasting, either of this salvation, sanctification or perfection at glorification

To give a complete study of grace would be to give a commentary on all Paul’s Epistles. If ever there was a chord that resonated with the pure sound of heaven it would be the chord of grace. Paul used this chord in the strumming of his theological guitar more then any other.

Eph 2:8 For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

It places man as a perfectly helpless, hopeless, worthless beggar before God’s great free grace.

No wonder proud, arrogant man hates it, and all man-made religions miss it entirely.

This great doctrine of Free Grace, Paul defends from the ceremonialists who would mix “as a means of grace” some observance, some rite, some human addition or ritualism as a basis for salvation, or the Galatianists who “having begun in the Spirit think to be made perfect in the flesh,” or help complete salvation. Each is pernicious, and if allowed of God would “frustrate grace” (Gal. 2:21 “I do not frustrate the Grace of God – render it useless, make it void – for if righteousness came by the Law, then Christ is dead in vain,” died unnecessarily.)

How jealously we saints should defend the pure doctrine of Free Grace, both for salvation, and the life of the saint. WITH ALL YOUR GETTING, GET HOLD OF FREE GRACE, IT WILL FREE YOU OF ALL SELF-DEPENDENCY, AND BOASTING. You may say with Paul, “I am what I am by the grace of God.”

1.The Definition of Grace

Like so many words in the Bible used by Christians, and so little understood, the word “grace” carries little meaning to most folks, and yet it is one of the very richest words in the whole Bible. It is the love of God in action, pouring out itself upon the unlovely recipients without stint or reward, and endowing those recipients with its own riches. God so loved, is the origin, but Grace is the channel of His fullness, pouring itself out, in unbounded kindness, just because “GOD IS LOVE

Tit 3:4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that being justified by His grace, we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

(kindness – Gr. “Philanthropeia” ) Our English word, philanthropist is derived from this Greek word, and equals “love of man,” but it is more than that; it is “love in action,” kindness always equals that, not just sentiment or love in word only, “but in deed, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.” Then “which He poured out on us abundantly (without stint) through Jesus Christ, our Saviour (the only Channel), and vs. 7 “that being justified by His Grace.”

2. The two aspects of Grace as in all Paul’s writings:

Positive and Negative

First – Positive - God’s abounding mercy poured out in kindness and love toward us, just because He is what He is.

Second – Negative - because of nothing in us, no merit or works of righteousness which we have done. Read again the verse with this in mind and see it clearly.

Eph 2:7 so that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

First – Positive - The riches – yea, “exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness ( philantropeia.) toward us,” “and that through all the ‘oncoming ages,” God’s

Second –Negative - Nothing in us to merit or earn it “not of works” but the “GIFT OF GOD” (Sometime look up how many times Paul calls Salvation, “the gift of God” as Rom. 5:15 to end; 3:24; etc.).

Grace on the positive side, according to Paul, is God’s abounding kindness poured abundantly upon us without limit as to quantity or quality or time limitation.

Grace on the negative side comes to humanity undeserved, apart from all “works of righteousness which we have done.” In its negative aspect, it is always unmerited, unearned, the free gift of God. Put one iota of legalism, works, law principle; human merit, and it ceases to be grace, and grace is frustrated.

2.Works and grace absolutely will never mix

a. It will not mix for Salvation

Read carefully Rom. 4:4,5 and 11:6 to see that the two cannot mix.

Rom 4:4 But to him working, the reward is not reckoned according to grace, but according to debt. 5 But to him not working, but believing on Him justifying the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.

Rom 11:6 But if by grace, then it is no more of works; otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it is of works, then it is no more of grace; otherwise work is no more

work.

This definition of grace must be kept in mind as it runs throughout all Paul’s Epistles as the basic foundation for all His distinctive doctrines. Deep-rooted in the very grain of all humans, unless they get grounded in the grace of God, is the legalistic tendency to try and add to Christ’s finished work their own efforts.

They find it impossible to accept without any qualifications Christ’s statement, ‘IT IS FINISHED BEFORE SALVATION.” They will struggle for years to be good enough for God to save them, to become worthy, to clean up their lives first before handing the joy over to God to reform themselves. They will even cry a lot to try to wash away the guilt, throw themselves into religious work and worship. They forget that bad people are the only kind God saves, i.e., “the ungodly” (Rom. 4:5). The unworthy are the only worthy recipients of grace. Since any other kind is merited, earned, and therefore, not grace, but debt (Rom. 4:4).

b. It will not mix for Sanctification.

Gal 3:2 This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?

AFTER SALVATION, the believers seemingly all become Galatians. Having begun in the Spirit, they think to be made perfect in the flesh (Gal. 3:3). They seek sanctification, and Christian perfection by means of all kinds of “Christian works” legalism, keeping of Law principles, observance of religious days and rites and duties, even Sunday-keeping for merit, and church-going. THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER IS THAT MAN WANTS A PART IN HIS OWN SALVATION, AND IF HE CAN’T HAVE THAT, AT LEAST IN HIS OWN SANCTIFICATION (or perfection, completing). He wants a finger in the pie, at least. His self-righteousness and pride wants to help God so as to share the glory, the boasting, (God would exclude all human boasting – Rom. 3:27; Eph. 2:9; I Cor. 1:29-31; Rom. 4:2).

Man would like to walk down the golden street of the New Jerusalem saying, “Look what we did,” “The Lord and I,” I did the best I could, He added what was lacking, and between the two of us, here it is.” Is it to be wondered at that such a one Paul says, “Frustrates the grace of God?” There will be no such discordant voice in the heavenly choir, but only one Name in Emmanuel’s land, “Worthy is the Lamb.”

B.The Relation of Grace to Law

From our definition, we can plainly see that there can be no mixture of the two, law and grace, as they are diametrically opposed the one to the other. At least half, and maybe more of the Church today is under bondage to the Law in one form or another.

Paul enumerates many of them of his day, Gal. 4:10 “Ye observe days” (sabbaths) and months (new moons and 7th months) and times (feasts, periods) and years (such as Jubilee). Then in Col. 2:9, 16, 17, all these are but shadows, and not the Body which is Christ.

First note then, the definition of law throughout Paul’s Epistles. When Paul says,

“We are not under law, but under grace (Rom. 6:4) what “law” is he talking about?

The Adventists and most believers say, “It is the ceremonial Law of Moses that is meant,

not the moral Law in the Decalogue.”

No, when Paul speaks of the Believer as, “not under Law, but under grace,” he is speaking of the principle of law or works as a means of acceptance before God. The seeking of righteousness by law (cf. Rom. 9:30-32). For 2,500 years, the believers had lived under grace before the Law was given to Israel (Gal. 3:17-18) under the various dispensations, especially of PROMISE to Abraham. In Ex. 19:8, Israel entered into solemn obligations to keep the law, and do it as a covenant of works, but failed miserably.

Why was the law given? - Positive
1. To show sin as exceedingly sinful (Rom. 7:13)

2. To give the knowledge of sin (Rom. 3:20; Gal. 3:19)

3. Because of the transgression (Rom. 5:12) i.e. to give to sin the character of a

direct transgression of a known law, that sin might see its sinfulness, and sin

may be laid to their account.

4. To fill the interim, “until the seed should come” (Gal. 3:19).

5. To act as a “Schoolmaster to bring us to Christ” (Gal. 3:24,25)

Not that the law was defective or evil – but holy and perfect (Rom. 7:12-14) good, and spiritual, and the end of it life (7:10). The inadequacy of man as “carnal, sold under sin, “needing not a perfect standard to imitate, but an all-sufficient Savior Who could impart the very life demanded, for the carnal mind cannot subject itself to the law of God, nor keep it (Rom. 8:7).

Why the law was not given. - Negative

1. It was not given to give life - (Gal. 3:21), but contrariwise, it slays (Rom. 7:10;

2 Cor. 3:6-18 – which shows the killing letter is MOSES)., to make righteous,

to make us love God, but to show our lack of it, and to “bring us to Christ,”

who could do all that.

2. It was not given to make one righteous. (Gal. 3:21; See 2:21 – then Christ

would be dead in vain.) The Law justified no one (Rom. 3:20; Acts 13:29;

Gal. 2:16; 3:11. Since Justification is only by faith, and the Law is of works as

Paul in these portions so plainly shows.)

3. It was not given to perfect man. (Heb. 7:18, 19, and neither did the ceremonial

law of Sacrifice 9:9, since it was impossible that the blood of bulls and goat

should take away sin, Heb. 10:4, but Christ’s sacrifice idd, 10:14).

Why, then, should a Christian deliberately put himself back under such an inadequate “yoke of bondage, which neither we, nor our fathers could keep?” Is it to be wondered at that Paul stood amazed at such a one in Galatians, and rebuked them harshly, both in the epistles to the Galatians and Hebrews. “Fallen from Grace, “Gal. 15, and frustrate Grace, making Christ of none effect.

C.To Whom The Law Was Given.

  • It was never given to the Gentiles.

Rom 2:14 (for when Gentiles that have not the law do by nature the things of the law, these, not having the law, are the law unto themselves;

When, then, did the Gentiles ever have the Law laid upon them? Paul says not in His day, and Moses said not in His “Deut. 4:7,8. The Psalmist said, “Not in my day,” Ps. 147:19,20 (Which text shows emphatically as does Paul that God never gave the Law to any other nation. It is a definite covenant with Israel alone (Deut. 5:1-3).

  • God Gave the Sabbath and Law to Israel as a sign and covenant.

Deu 5:1 And Moses called all Israel and said to them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, so that you may learn them and keep and do them. 2 Jehovah our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.

3Jehovah did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, all of us here, alive today.

Eze 20:12 And also I gave them My Sabbaths to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am Jehovah who sets them apart.

Gal 3:17 Now this I say: A covenant confirmed beforehand by God, the law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, doth not disannul, so as to make the promise of none effect.

  • The Jews and the Gentiles in the Millennial Kingdom will keep the law universally.

Isa 2:2 And it shall be, in the last days the mountain of Jehovah's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow into it.

Isa 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come, and let us go to the mountain of Jehovah, 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 out the Law, and the Word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.

D. Law and Grace Contrasted

(a)The Law says, “Do and live;” Grace says, “Believe and live.” The Law brought a work to do; Grace brought a Word to Believe. Law was the best man can do; Grace the best God can do.

(b)Law was the ministration of death and judgment (2 Cor. 3:7-9), but Grace brings life.

(c)Law says, “Cursed is everyone who continueth not in all things written in the Law to do them.” Under Grace, Christ took the curse of the broken Law for us (Gal. 3;13; 4:5-7).

(d)Under the Law, man was a servant, under Grace, adoption of Sons, and the “liberty of the Sons of God (Gal. 4:4-7).

(e)The Law required perfection, and holiness, but couldn’t impart it; Grace gives it through Christ Jesus, and rewards us for having it (Rom. 8:3,4).

(f)The Law justified none; Grace through Jesus Christ, “Freely justifies us from all things (Rom. 3:20; 21:24).

(g)The Law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did (Heb. 7:19, 10:1).

(h)The Law was a yoke of bondage (Gal. 5:1; Acts 15:10).

(i)The Law was but the shadow, Grace is the substance (Col. 2:16, 17; Heb. 10:1).

“God’s appointed place for the tables of the Law was within the Ark of the Testimony with the manna (a type of Christ,) our Wilderness Bread, and Aaron’s rod that budded (a type of resurrection,) both speaking of Grace, and all covered from sight by the golden Mercy Seat, upon which was sprinkled the Blood of the Atonement. The Eye of God could see His broken Law only through the Blood that completely vindicated His justice, and propitiated His wrath (Heb. 9:4-6). It was reserved to modern nomolators to wrench these holy and just, but deathful tables from underneath the Mercy Seat, and the atoning Blood, and erect them in Christian churches as the rule of Christian life.”

D.The Annulling of the Law Under Grace

Col 2:14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.