Salvation: God alone makes Christians (Part 10)
We continue from last week's teaching. See Part 9.
Job 33:26 "He shall pray unto God, and he will be favourable unto him: and he shall see his face with joy: for he will render unto man his righteousness."
Where God’s wrath used to abide in a man before he was born again, God now sees his face with joy because of the word of God that abides in him.
Ephesians 5:25-27 "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; 26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish."
Where before his soul was unclean, the moment a man was born again, Jesus (the Word) cleansed it with the washing of water by the word, and as a result, his soul was made holy and without blemish.
Luke 8:11 "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God."
The substance of the new man is the word of God. The presence of the new man in a born again believer means that his soul is constantly being washed by the word, as a fountain of living water that springs forth from within.
John 4:10-14 "Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life."
The new man in every born again believer is the reason why his soul is always holy and without blemish. It is never about what you do that gets you righteousness with God, but salvation is the gift of God. The new man in you is proof of God’s work in you.
Proverbs 16:6 "By mercy and truth iniquity is purged…"
By God’s mercy he saved us. By God’s truth our iniquity is purged. The word of God is truth and the substance of the new man. The presence of the new man in a born again believer is the reason why iniquity is purged from his soul. The act of purging, as we have seen earlier, will involve fire, and this means that the new man present in every born again believer will attract hate from the world.
Matthew 5:10 "Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
The world will persecute you because you are not their own, and they know it.
John 15:19 "If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you."
The new man in you will attract tribulation in your life as a born again believer, but God will use the fire of tribulation to separate the dross from the silver. In the process, God will purify your faith and cause you to bring forth more fruit, as a husbandman that purgeth the fruitful branches.
Matthew 3:11-12 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."
There is a baptism by water, as well as a baptism by fire. Born again believers are buried with Christ by water and are risen with him unto a newness of life, but we are also baptized with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. God will use the fire of tribulation to purify the precious substance call “faith” that is in the earthen vessel of every born again believer.
Luke 8:15 "But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience."
Truly born again believers will patiently endure the trial of faith by fire, and in the process, they will bring forth much fruit. These are the ones who shall be gathered as wheat into the garner.
Job 23:10 "But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold."
The colour of wheat at harvest is golden. Many people may not know this, but tares and wheat look very similar before the harvest period. It is only until harvest time when the wheat takes on a golden appearance while the tares still retains its greenish appearance so that they are now easily distinguishable.
There are the Christians who are only Christians in name. False converts who beareth no fruit will be gathered to be burned as chaff with unquenchable fire. This ties in with the parable of the tares and the wheat, as in:
Matthew 13:30 "Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn."
The new man in every truly born again believer is like the fourth person together with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego bound and cast into the burning fiery furnace.
Daniel 3:24-25 "Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. 25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God."
The fountain of living water that springs forth from within a born again believer ensures that he is not consumed by the fire. He will pray unto God the Father and God the Father will hear his prayers and will be favourable unto him (Job 33:26).
Matthew 18:19-20 "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them."
This verse is a reference to the fourth man in the midst of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego. The church is the coming together of born again believers, wherein is the hidden man of the heart. It makes no difference whether it is the congregation of Old Testament believers, or the congregation of New Testament believers. Dispensationalism is a Jesuit lie.
John 8:25 "Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning."
The gathering together of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego was the church which the gates of hell could not prevail against, because Christ was in the midst of them. God was their refuge and strength, and a very present help in times of trouble (Psalms 46:1).
Genesis 32:27-28 "And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob. And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed."
As a prince, a born again believer has power with God and with men. At the core of his prayer is faith, and God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him in the word of God, as in:
Hebrews 11:6 "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
God will even give him a new name, even as he changed the name of Jacob to Israel.
Revelation 2:17 "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it."
Next week, we will still continue our studies in Job 33.
Job 33:27 "He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not;"
We will look at this verse in Part 11 of this series of messages.