Scripture or Myth?

SCRIPTURE OR MYTH?

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There are many myths being taught today in Christian churches. When we turn to the Scriptures the myths disappear like dew when the sun rises. For example:

God sees Christ and not us.
The commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels do not apply to Christians.
The warnings of the Apostle Paul do not apply to Christians.
The believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ will not receive the evil he has done.

Introduction
God Sees Christ and Not Us

The practical consequences of this belief
The Scripture teaches otherwise

The Commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels Do Not Apply to Christians
The Warnings of the Apostle Paul Do Not Apply to Christians
The Believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ Will Not Receive the Evil He Has Done
Conclusion

SCRIPTURE OR MYTH?

Introduction

The Christian theology of today is a mixture of truth and error, fact and fiction.

The foundation of Christian theology is the atoning death and triumphant bodily resurrection of the Son of God and Son of Man, the Lord Jesus Christ.

On this sure foundation has been erected a structure composed of both truth and error.

There are several errors mixed together with the truth of the Divine program of salvation. We shall limit ourselves to the four that may be the most destructive of the Kingdom of God:

God sees Christ and not us.
The commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels do not apply to Christians.
The warnings of the Apostle Paul do not apply to Christians.
The believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ will not receive the evil he has done.

It may be noted that the four errors have the same result: they suggest to the Christian that godly living is not an essential, critical aspect of salvation. This is a very harmful suggestion given the demonic oppression of the day in which we live. The truth is, godly living is the only sure sign of salvation. In fact a godly character and life are the intended product of the Divine redemption.

Since God’s purpose under all covenants is to produce people who live righteously, love mercy, and walk humbly with God, the four prominent doctrines listed above are seen to be destructive of God’s intention and will.

The four deceptions are preached and taught day after day in churches, seminaries, and Christian schools—wherever there are Christian people. Yet the four not only are not supported by the Scriptures, they are contrary to what is expressly taught in the Scriptures.

When the Scriptures are placed against these four ideas, the ideas vanish like dew before the rising of the sun.

It is not scriptural that God sees Christ and not our personality and behavior.
It is not scriptural that the Words of the Lord Jesus recorded in the Gospel accounts do not apply to the believers.
It is not scriptural that the warnings found in the Epistles do not apply to Christians.
It is not scriptural that the believers at the Judgment Seat of Christ will not receive the evil they have practiced while in the world.

The Christian churches have lost their lampstand, the Divine testimony, because of the four errors. The Lord is coming to His churches in the present hour and is fighting against us with the sword of His mouth—with the Word of God! If we do not repent we may suffer much chastisement.

Because the Christian churches have lost their testimony the secular governments are staggering about in moral filth, having minds void of judgment, not understanding God, humanity, or the proper use of the environment and natural resources.

The duty of secular government is to regard sin (as defined by the Scriptures) as crime and to punish the offenders. Numerous governments of our day are not defining sin as crime nor are they punishing the offenders. Therefore they shall be removed by the Lord in the near future.

The government carries the sword in order to punish evildoers.

For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. (Romans 13:4)

Because of the four errors we are discussing the Christian churches are not furnishing the secular governments with moral guidelines. How will the governments punish evil if the Christian churches themselves do not know what evil is? If the Christians are not required to walk in righteousness, how can they expect the secular governments to practice righteousness? It is a ridiculous, horrible state of affairs!

We Christians are to be going to all nations, teaching them to observe Christ’s commandments. We are not doing it because of our confusion concerning whether or not we ourselves are bound by Christ’s commandments. We are building churches instead of teaching Christ’s commandments. The great commission is not to build churches, it is to teach Christ’s commandments.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
“teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matthew 28:19,20)

The fault is ours. We are crying for the governments to humble themselves and repent. God is crying for the churches to humble themselves and repent.

Shall we repent? Perhaps we shall as soon as we realize our theology is off course.

God Sees Christ and Not Us

How often do we hear ministers of the Gospel tells us God sees Christ and not us. We have nothing to fear because God is not seeing our behavior but is seeing Christ’s righteousness.

The concept that God is blind to the actual personality and behavior of the Christian is expressed in different ways, such as, God sees us only through Christ; Jesus accomplished the entire work of redemption and we are only to believe this; the Lord Jesus is the Overcomer, the Righteous One, and we also are an overcomer and righteous by identification with Him.

These viewpoints sound so scriptural, so devout, so glorifying to Christ—but there indeed is “death in the pot.”

Let us look first at the practical consequences of this morally destructive idea, and then show the true scriptural doctrine and how it has been twisted into error.

The practical consequences of this belief. If it is true that God does not see me or my actions but only Christ, then the following is true:

When I commit adultery the Lord does not see my action but only the moral purity of Christ.
When I lie the Lord takes no notice but perceives only the truthfulness of the Lord Jesus.
When I steal the Lord does not know this because He is not seeing me but only the honesty of Christ.
If God directs me to go to the mission field and I refuse, God sees only the perfect obedience of Jesus.

Of course we could go on and on.

Now think about this. If the above is true there never can be an occasion for a Christian to repent. If God does not see our conduct but only the righteousness, holiness, and obedience of Christ, of what are we to repent? Of the righteousness, holiness, and obedience of Christ?

Do you believe we can sin, wallow in moral filth, disobey Christ, and God sees only the righteousness, holiness, and obedience of Christ? If you do not, then you do not agree with one of the principal tenets of current Christian teaching.

Now let us apply the blazing sun of the Scriptures to the concept that God does not see the personality and behavior of the believer but only the righteousness of Christ.

The Scripture teaches otherwise. Error often is unbalanced truth. What basic truth has been perverted into the idea that God does not see the behavior of the believer?

The Lord Jesus made an atonement for us on the cross of Calvary. His holy blood was offered to appease the wrath of God concerning the sins of mankind, especially of the believer. By His wounds we were healed. Christ was offered in our place, the Innocent on behalf of the guilty.

When we receive the Lord Jesus, God forgives our sin, accepting as payment the sacrifice of His Son. Christ went to the cross. We go free. Our unrighteousness is covered by the atoning blood and we now through prayer can enter the Most Holy Place in Heaven and receive forgiveness, wisdom, and strength to help us in our struggle against worldliness, sin, and self-will.

It is this concept of our being covered by the atoning blood of the cross that has been twisted into the doctrine that God does not see the behavior of the believer but only the righteousness of Christ.

The idea that God does not see the character and actions of the believer but only the Virtue of the Lord Jesus is totally contrary to the intention of God as well as to the entire New Testament. A device more effective in destroying the work of righteousness in the believer could not be imagined.

The very verse that speaks of healing by Christ’s wounds informs us that the purpose of our healing is that we shall proceed to live righteously!

who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. (I Peter 2:24)

We were forgiven and healed so we should “live for righteousness.” This means we should practice righteous behavior. It does not signify that Christ is righteous and therefore we are righteous. This one verse alone does away completely with the doctrine that God does not see our behavior but the righteousness of Christ.

There are hundreds of other verses that teach the same doctrine of righteousness.

Ephesians 2:8,9 is a favorite passage and often is memorized by fervent believers:

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
not of works, lest anyone should boast. (Ephesians 2:8,9)

But what does the next verse state?

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

God has ordained that we should walk in good works. We are saved by grace so we should walk in good works.

Is there a verse that reveals clearly that God sees our behavior and not merely the righteousness of Christ applied to us?

But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. (I Corinthians 11:32)

We are judged by the Lord and chastened by Him when our behavior is unacceptable to Him. The purpose of the chastening is to change our behavior.

There are hundreds of passages in the New Testament that invalidate the doctrine that God sees the righteousness of Christ rather than our behavior. But the verse above is sufficient for the honest inquirer.

God would never judge us and never chasten us if He did not see our behavior. On what basis would He chasten us if He did not see our behavior but only the righteousness of Christ? Why would we be in danger of being condemned with the world if God sees only the righteousness of Christ?

There was a man in Corinth who had committed incest. Paul did not exclaim there was no problem because God saw only Christ in him. Paul delivered him to Satan in the hope that his spirit would be saved in the Day of the Lord.

God did not see Christ’s righteousness in Ananias and Sapphira when they lied to the Holy Spirit.

To respond that the sinner in Corinth and Ananias and Sapphira were never true Christians is to willfully distort the clear, consistent teaching of the New Testament and to prepare one’s self and one’s hearers to experience destruction at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

Since today’s theologians get around such scriptural warnings by claiming that the individual never was actually saved to begin with, let us think about this. Was the man in Corinth ever considered to be a member of the assembly of Corinthians saints?

This punishment which was inflicted by the majority is sufficient for such a man,
so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow. (II Corinthians 2:6,7)

Is there any scriptural indication that this man had not been saved while he was practicing incest and now that he had repented he had become a true Christian? This is the argument currently employed to prove that a true Christian cannot come under the judgment of God no matter what he does. The idea is that a genuine Christian would never commit incest. The truth is, the churches of today are filled with sinning believers. Are we to claim that none of them are true Christians?

There is absolutely no indication whatever that the man was not considered to be a genuine member of the assembly. The inference is that he was a believer who had lapsed into sin.

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife! (I Corinthians 5:1)

“There is sexual immorality among you.” This means there was a believer in the assembly in Corinth who was practicing sin. Paul did not say, “It doesn’t matter if the man is practicing incest because God sees only Christ’s righteousness covering him.”

Rather, Paul responded in the following manner:

For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. (I Corinthians 5:3)

Paul did not state that the man was not a believer. Paul declared that the individual needed a severe chastening that his spirit might be saved in the Day of the Lord.

Those who avoid the truth by vain reasoning, claiming that a true believer would never act like the man in Corinth or Ananias and Sapphira, actually are supporting our argument that the only reliable proof of salvation is a godly life—not godly because God regards us as godly but godly because our personality and behavior are godly.

It is not true that God sees Christ and not our personality and conduct. This is a fantasy, and when it is examined in terms of practical consequences and judged by what the Scriptures state it is seen to be completely without foundation.

Currently it is stated that since Christ is God’s Conqueror, having overcome every temptation of the world, the flesh, and Satan, we too can be a conqueror by identifying with Christ’s victory. We do not actually overcome any temptation, rather, we are an overcomer by identifying with the One who did overcome while He was in the world.

This sounds so reverent, so devout, so lofty! But it is utterly false. How the Lord Jesus must groan when He witnesses the deceptions that abound in His churches!

Do we or do we not have to overcome through Christ’s Virtue the world, the flesh, and our self-will? What do you think?

“To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. (Revelation 3:21)

Is the Lord Jesus saying we are to overcome as He overcame, or is He stating that we overcome by identifying with His victory?

Let us consider the promises to the overcomer, in Revelation, Chapters Two and Three. The rewards to the overcomer are those spiritual endowments, opportunities for service, and closeness to God that we expect every Christian to receive upon his death.

Christ speaks to each of the “seven churches which are in Asia” and mentions the “deeds” He has found acceptable. After this He warns them concerning the practices among them that He does not find acceptable.

Christ never once advises the churches they need not be concerned over the sin found among them because God is not beholding their conduct. Neither does He ever comfort them with the concept that by identifying themselves with Him they are viewed as overcomers by the Father.

The opposite is clear. The Lord Jesus warns the churches of the consequences of their unsatisfactory actions and at the same time promises them eternal life and glory if they will overcome the problems in their midst.

“I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. (Revelation 2:23)
“And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations— (Revelation 2:26)

What we are teaching here is so obviously scriptural, that to ignore it and continue to believe we are righteous because Christ is righteous is to willfully reject the love of the truth. God will send strong delusion upon those who turn away from the teaching of godliness (II Thessalonians 2:11).

And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie,
that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (II Thessalonians 2:11,12)

“Who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” The reason we do not love the truth is that we take pleasure in unrighteousness. Divine judgment falls on us when we make an excuse for our ungodly behavior instead of repenting and turning to the Lord for forgiveness and cleansing. Rejecting light and embracing unrighteous behavior brings spiritual blindness upon us.

The Lord Jesus is walking among the lampstands today. Those whose ears have been opened will hear the Lord and follow Him out of the present babylonish confusion.

The Commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels Do Not Apply to Christians

Here is an abominable teaching indeed! How such a perversion could gain any ground among Christian believers is a mystery.

Are we to say the Sermon on the Mount, that venerable portion of Christian literature, does not apply to Christians? Do you believe this? I certainly do not! This horrid viewpoint proceeds from the fantasy that there is an abstract spiritual endowment termed “grace” that removes the believer from the world of reality and deposits him in a beautiful mansion in the spiritual Paradise. He is brought into the Presence of God, the saints, and the holy angels independently of any change in his personality and behavior.

The concept of a supreme, sovereign, unconditional grace that brings man into God’s Presence independently of the individual’s personality is a lofty idea that invades the mind. This concept runs through much Christian theology. It is utterly, utterly false!

Therefore “Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you.”
“I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty.” (II Corinthians 6:17,18)

Can you see that the above passage completely demolishes the notion of a supreme, sovereign, unconditional grace that operates independently of the individual’s personality and behavior?

“Grace” is sovereign and unconditional, it is supposed, and since the Lord Jesus commanded us to live righteously, and warned us of the consequences if we did not, it must be that “grace” has superseded the Words of the Lord in the Gospels. The Lord’s commandments do not apply to Christians because we are “saved by grace.”

The truth is, the Christians of today have a very perverted understanding of what the Apostle Paul meant by “grace”!

If we will examine the commandments of the Lord in the Gospels we will discover that the commandments found in the Gospels are found also in the Epistles. On what basis, then, do we claim that the Words of the Lord are not binding on Christians? Or do we claim that the commandments of the Apostles in the Epistles are not binding on Christians?

For example:

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3)

The Apostle James says the same thing.

But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6)

Again:

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. (Matthew 5:5)

Paul commands the same.

Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. (Galatians 6:1)

Again:

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. (Matthew 5:7)

The Apostle James warns us of the consequences of being unmerciful.

For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. (James 2:13)

Again:

“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, (Matthew 5:44)

Are believers required to love their enemies or are they “saved by grace”?

Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” (Romans 12:20)

Again:

“If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. (John 15:6)

Is the dreadful warning concerning the barren branch confined to the Gospels?

For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing from God;
but if it bears thorns and briars [neglectful Christians], it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned. (Hebrews 6:7,8)

We see, then, that the teaching that “grace” supersedes the Word of Christ in the Gospel is without foundation. Whether the Lord spoke on earth or through the Apostles, the laws of the Kingdom of God are identical. How could it be otherwise?

Some of today’s Christian teachers, perhaps in order to please their worldly, humanistic audiences, are not adhering faithfully to the Scriptures.

The Warnings of the Apostle Paul Do Not Apply to Christians

The epistles of Paul contain many stern warnings to the believers, informing them that if they do not continue to press forward in righteous, holy behavior they will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But we have made the Word of God of no effect by our fanciful traditions and myths.

Let us think about one of Paul’s several admonitions.

Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness,
idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies,
envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)

“Will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Nothing is said about grace, or God seeing us through Christ, or Jesus did it all and all I have to do is believe and be identified with Christ.

Either the passage is speaking to believers or it is not. Which is it?

First of all, to whom is the Book of Galatians addressed?

and all the brethren who are with me, to the churches of Galatia: (Galatians 1:2)

“To the churches of Galatia.”

The Book of Galatians is Paul’s answer to those who would bring the Gentile Christians under the various observances of the Law of Moses, such as circumcision.

If the above passage is not speaking to the Gentile believers to whom Paul was writing, the “churches of Galatia,” then Paul has suddenly changed audiences. This is not likely!

Paul had just advised the Gentile believers that if they would walk in the Spirit they would not fulfill the lusts of their flesh.

I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (Galatians 5:16)

Our passage under consideration (Galatians 5:19-21) is Paul’s warning to the saints of Galatia that if they did not choose to walk in the Spirit, and pursued their fleshly appetites instead, they would not inherit the Kingdom of God.

We notice further along, keeping in the context, that Paul is admonishing the Galatian Christians to put to death the deeds of their flesh.

And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. (Galatians 5:24)

But let us for a moment pursue the current fantasy that Paul was not warning Christians that they would not inherit the Kingdom but was speaking to the unsaved.

According to our fable, Paul has now turned aside to the unsaved and is telling them: “they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” The implication is, if you cease sinning you will inherit the Kingdom of God. We know this is not true. The unsaved Gentiles cannot inherit the Kingdom by refraining from evil works.

Is Paul saying to the believers in Galatia that they once had practiced such things and would not have inherited the Kingdom of God as a result?

Is he saying to the believers that they can still practice the works of the flesh and inherit the Kingdom of God by grace?

Is Paul saying they do not do these things any longer and will inherit the Kingdom on the basis that they are living a holy life?

We do not believe, from the context, that the Apostle Paul was doing anything other than warning the Galatian Christians that if they chose to walk in the lusts of the world and the flesh they would not inherit the Kingdom of God.

The Book of Galatians was written to inform the believers in Galatia that they no longer were under the statutes of the Law of Moses. Nevertheless this did not mean they could continue to sin, for if they did so they would not inherit the Kingdom of God.

Paul informed them that their flesh was weak and that if they lived in the flesh they would sin.

For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. (Galatians 5:17)

However, God has given us His Spirit so we can crucify our flesh with its lusts. As long as we are being led by the Spirit we do not have to worry about the regulations of the Law of Moses.

But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. (Galatians 5:18)

The end of the matter is that we are to be crucified with Christ until He is living in us. When Christ is living in us we will not walk in sin. Circumcision is of little value and uncircumcision is of little value as far as the Kingdom of God is concerned. The Kingdom of God is the new creation that results from Christ being formed in us and dwelling in us. The new creation does not live according to the lusts of the adamic nature. The true Israel of God is the new creation. It is Christ in us, the hope of glory to come.

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.
And as many as walk according to this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God. (Galatians 6:15,16)

The warning remains in full force: “The believers in Christ who do not choose to follow the Spirit of God but who continue in a life of sinful behavior will not inherit the Kingdom of God.” There is no immorality, no strife, no drunkenness in the Kingdom of God, and we are not permitted to bring immorality, strife, and drunkenness into the Kingdom of God by grace, mercy, faith, or any other mental attitude, belief, or legal device.

The Believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ Will Not Receive the Evil He Has Done

One of the most effective motivations toward godliness is the fear of God.

“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. The Christian churches of our day as well as the unsaved people of the affluent “Christian” nations have lost the fear of God, choosing instead to talk about “reverence” and “positive thinking.” As a result the churches, as well as the unsaved people of the so-called “free nations,” have lost their wisdom and have become as foolish, weak, silly children. They soon may be under the control of more disciplined cultures. They may be about to lose their so-called “freedoms.”

When speaking of the Judgment Seat of Christ Paul mentions “the terror of the Lord.” Paul persuaded people to receive the Lord Jesus and live righteously because he knew the terror of the Lord—what it would be like to face an angry Christ. Modern theologians have sought to prove that no believer need have any fear of the Judgment Seat and are not to be terrified by the thought of it.

What does the verse itself say?

For we [Christians and everyone else] must all appear [be revealed, manifest] before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are well known to God, and I also trust are well known in your consciences. (II Corinthians 5:10,11)

“Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord.”

It is generally admitted that “we must all” includes Christian believers.

Does the New Testament teach that believers will be judged by the Lord? Yes, it does.

who “will render to each one according to his deeds”:
eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality;
but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, (Romans 2:6-8)

The above verse obviously includes Christians. Otherwise we would be claiming that the unsaved could gain eternal life by patient continuance in well doing.

But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world. (I Corinthians 11:32)
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.
For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. (Galatians 6:7,8)
For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God? (I Peter 4:17)
“I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts. And I will give to each one of you according to your works. (Revelation 2:23)

Now, what does the verse itself (II Corinthians 5:10) say?

For we must all appear [be made manifest].
Before the judgment seat of Christ.
That each one.
May receive.
The things done in the body.
According to what he has done.
Whether good.
Or bad.

Every person who has been born on the earth must one day be revealed before the Judgment Seat of Christ. The Father judges no person. He has given all authority of judgment to His Son, Christ. The Judgment Seat of Christ is a great white throne (Revelation 20:11). The Lord Jesus sits on that throne. At the end of the age His conquering saints, after they themselves have been judged, will join Him on that throne; for the task of judging the world has been assigned to them.

Every individual will receive what he has practiced while on earth in his material body. The statement that he will receive what he has practiced is a special expression. We might interpret the expression to mean he will receive the consequences of what he has practiced, or a punishment for what he has done, but not the deeds themselves. This, however, is human reasoning.

The unchangeable Scripture states he shall receive what he has done. He shall reap what he has sown. This may mean something more profound than merely receiving the consequences of what he or she has done.

The idea may be that the doctor who has performed abortions will be surrounded with visions of the fetuses he has aborted and of what they would have become had they lived—visions that he cannot escape for a long, long time—maybe for eternity! Perhaps the spirits of the fetuses, now grown persons in the spirit realm, will be pointing the finger at him.

God is as severe as He is loving!

The liar may be clothed in his lies, the thief in his thefts.

The person who has idolized music may not be able to escape the sound of the music though he holds his hands over his ears and races from one end of the universe to the other.

Conversely the individual who has given his life to bring others to righteousness may be surrounded for eternity with love flowing from those whom he or she has guided into God’s blessings.

Notice that when we are revealed we receive our deeds—the things we have done. Many times the Lord brings us into situations so what is buried in our heart may come forth in speech or action. It is the actual speech or action that the Lord judges. We will receive the things done in our body.

“Whether it be good.” Those who have given their lives in the service of the Gospel will be rewarded by a grateful King. We cannot imagine the glory that is to be bestowed on the faithful.

“Or evil.” In the same manner, those believers who have not chosen to walk in the Spirit but have followed the world, the lusts of their flesh, and their self-will, cannot in the present hour imagine the horror, the agony of remorse they will experience as they see the great gates of the Kingdom closing while they themselves are forced to remain in the darkness, surrounded with selfish, lazy, faithless souls like themselves.

Indeed, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth!

Conclusion

Let us think once again about the four myths that are so common in Christian teaching—so common in fact that most believers assume they are found everywhere in the New Testament:

God sees Christ and not us.
The commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels do not apply to Christians.
The warnings of the Apostle Paul do not apply to Christians.
The believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ will not receive the evil he has done.

There could not be a deadlier concept, in terms of the victorious Christian life, than the idea that God does not see our behavior. All necessity for godly living is thus removed. The believer is left in a moral environment without restraints. It is easy to understand why the churches are in moral confusion, supposing that their behavior is covered by the righteousness of Christ.

The doctrine that God does not see us except through the righteousness of Christ is intended to give the believer confidence that God receives him even though he keeps falling into temptation. It is absolutely true that God stands ready to assist every struggling soul and does keep on forgiving him even though he falls many times a day. The powerful hands of God are always present to lift the saint in the time of conflict.

However, this continuing forgiveness is not intended to give aid and comfort to the believer who is not seeking to press forward in Christ but who is assuming that God is continually forgiving his conduct even though he is lazy and careless concerning the Kingdom of God. This is the great heresy of our day—that our redemption operates independently of our efforts to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.

Comforting and building up the weak believer is one matter. Continually overlooking the indifference of the lukewarm believer is a totally different matter. The former will be helped as long as his heart is tender toward God. The latter will be vomited from the Lord’s mouth.

To hold that the commandments of the Lord Jesus found in the Gospel accounts do not apply to Christian believers is so wrong in spirit and letter that it is a marvel any sincere believer would be deceived to this extent. How it must sadden the Lord to watch His beloved saints be led away by such teaching. What spirit is it that enters otherwise intelligent, devout Christian people that they would warp God’s Word until the Lord’s commandments have been made invalid? It certainly is not the Holy Spirit of God?

Let us flee at once from the spirit of today that would give us the feeling we are free from moral restraint, that no matter how we behave the Lord Jesus is ready to bring us to Paradise by “grace,” there to fellowship with the Father, the saints of old time, and the holy angels. We believe the angel of the churches is coming up before God for judgment. We believe further that the Lord Jesus has come to us and is fighting against us with the sword of His mouth because of the abominable teachings that we have allowed into our midst.

To say the warnings of the Apostle Paul, found in several of the Epistles, do not apply to Christian believers is to cast aside every principle of sound biblical interpretation. Of course they apply to Christian people! However, because of our twisted interpretation of Paul’s doctrine of grace we cannot understand how Paul could tell us on the one hand that no matter what we do God does not see our behavior, and then on the other hand warn us that if we walk in the flesh we will die spiritually.

The fact is, we do not understand Paul—that Orthodox Jew who was seeking the righteousness found only in Christ. We suppose Paul is saying we are free to live without moral restraint because the grace of God covers our behavior. What confusion!

But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;
neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. (Ephesians 5:3-5)

The teachers of today claim the above commandment could not possibly apply to Christians because they are saved by grace. They declare we shall not surely die even though God’s Word states we shall surely die (Genesis 3:4).

Paul warns that believers who practice these behaviors have no inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and of God.

As for the doctrine that no believer has any reason to fear the Judgment Seat of Christ, the contrary is expressed with utmost clarity in the Scripture. Each person shall receive the good he has done. Each person shall receive the bad he has done. Paul persuaded people to live as always being in the Presence of the Lord because he knew the terror of the Lord Jesus the Judge.

and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. (II Corinthians 5:15)

The teaching of today is that the Christian will not receive the evil he has done because he is saved by grace.

The original lie was, “You shall not surely die.”

The preachers of today are saying to the Christians, “You shall not surely die.”

Our position is that if the believer does not seek Christ until he is able to cease walking in the flesh, he shall surely die spiritually. He shall slay his eternal life.

For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:13)

It is not scriptural that God sees Christ and not our personality and behavior. This is a myth.

It is not scriptural that the words of the Lord Jesus recorded in the Gospel accounts do not apply to the believers. This is a myth.

It is not scriptural that the warnings found in the Epistles do not apply to Christians. This is a myth.

It is not scriptural that the believers at the Judgment Seat of Christ will not receive the evil they have practiced while in the world. This is a myth.

If we understand the Scriptures correctly, the Christian churches are in urgent need of repentance. Otherwise our generation of believers will face an angry Christ and destruction in the Day of the Lord.

* * *

Since we wrote the above article, it has come to our attention that some of the Messianic Jews are going back under the Law of Moses. This is not surprising. If the Jew is seeking for the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, he is not going to find it in the current lawless-grace-rapture teaching that is found in many churches.

The new covenant brings forth a new creation, not a modified old creation. God is making man in two stages. The first stage is the uncrucified adamic creation. The second stage is in two parts, which take place simultaneously. The first part is the birth and growth of Christ in the personality. The second part is the crucifixion of the adamic creation and its transformation to life by being exposed to the Glory of Christ.

The end product of the two stages of development is a son of God and son of man, fit to be a brother of Christ.

The Law of Moses has jurisdiction only over the uncrucified adamic creation. Once the adamic creation is crucified the Law has no more jurisdiction over it. The believer, now having counted the adamic creation dead and having Christ born in it, is free to walk in the Spirit of God, looking always to Christ for righteousness instead of to the observance of the Law and statutes of Moses.

The Apostle Paul, an Orthodox Jew, was able to make the transition from the works of the Law of Moses to faith in Christ.

The Jew or Gentile who would return to the Law and statutes of Moses has chosen to live as an uncrucified adamic creation, as though he were a Jew under the old covenant. He is not walking in the Spirit of God because the Spirit of God will not lead him in the observance of feast days or dietary laws. He is not gaining his righteousness from faith in Christ but from his faithfulness in keeping the Law.

There are not differing obligations placed on the Christian Jew and the Christian Gentile. The first five chapters of the Book of Romans, the foundation of the theology of salvation through Divine grace, are addressed both to Jews and Gentiles, as an examination of the verses themselves will reveal clearly. Paul makes no difference as to religious obligations when speaking to Jews and Gentiles.

How could he? The two parts of the second stage in the development of man, which constitute salvation and the Kingdom of God, are free of race. The second-stage Jew and the second-stage Gentile are no longer recognizable as such. The racial identity persists only as long as the adamic nature is alive. When the adamic nature is crucified, racial identity as well as the Law of Moses have vanished for eternity.

The compassionate believer, when he or she is with someone who is observing the tenets of Judaism, will refrain from flaunting his or her freedom. The observances are entwined in the culture and faith of the Jew. The Scripture teaches clearly that we are not to place obstacles in the path of someone for whom Christ died.

But for him who can receive it, when we walk in the Spirit of God, looking steadfastly to Christ for our thoughts, our words, and our deeds, we no longer are bound by the tenets of Judaism. We are playing under the rules of a different game. The Law, the Torah, is being created in us.

Christ Himself is the full expression of the eternal moral law of God. Christ is the moral law of God made flesh, and He is being formed in us. Christ is not the expression of the statutes of the Law of Moses but of the eternal moral Torah of God, of which the Ten Commandments and all other commandments are a shadow.

How did Paul express it?

What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. (Galatians 3:19)

The Seed, Christ, has come. Let us continue in the Spirit, looking always to the Lord Jesus. Then God will be pleased with us and impute to us the righteousness that would be ours if we had kept the Law of Moses perfectly.

that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:4)

(“Scripture or Myth?”, 3988-1)

SCRIPTURE OR MYTH?

Table of Contents

SCRIPTURE OR MYTH?

Introduction

God Sees Christ and Not Us

The Commandments of the Lord Jesus in the Gospels Do Not Apply to Christians

The Warnings of the Apostle Paul Do Not Apply to Christians

The Believer at the Judgment Seat of Christ Will Not Receive the Evil He Has Done

Conclusion