Page 11 - lifeandgrace
P. 11
Christ” we do not focus any longer on sins. All our sins were dealt with forevermore by the precious
blood of Jesus. I do not have to center my attention on sins. I will never stop sinning by focusing on sins.
I will only stop sinning by focusing my entire life, every fibre of my being on Christ - in His strength and
with His power, not in my own strength or will power. When I do that, sins will diminish in my life.
The Old Testament economy was entirely based on Performance. If you did something, God
would do something. We even find this in Jesus' teachings because Jesus was under the Law and came to
preach to those under the Law (the Jews) since Jesus came to keep the law for us. So he magnified the
Law for one purpose: He wanted the Jews to see that it was impossible for them to keep the Law. For
example, adultery was not just having sex outside marriage; it was even entertaining such thoughts fully
in the mind and taking such thoughts into yourself (not just having a thought - that is not sin. Thoughts
are not sin unless we take them into ourselves and keep them or embrace them as it were.) Now He had
His listeners’ attention. No one hearing Jesus could possibly think anyone could keep such a stringent
law. Later when they heard the message of Jesus dying for their sins on the Day of Pentecost, they rushed
to Peter to be saved. This was Jesus' plan all along. For people to see that “we cannot save ourselves!!”
That “we need a Savior!!”
We must come to understand the gospel that Paul preached because the Lord left the gospel of Grace
primarily for Paul to preach. (Remember: When Jesus preached, the Old Covenant was still in place.)
And this is the economy of the New Covenant - the economy of Grace. It is all about God’s grace - Him
doing for us and not us doing for Him. It is not at all about our Performance. Do we do for God? Yes, but
not to get Him to love us or to think more of us or to forgive us. We do for God as Jesus lives out His life
through us but only because of our great love for God. I can do nothing - absolutely nothing - to get God
to love me more nor will any of my actions cause Him to love me any less. He loves me when I am
obedient, and He loves me when I sin. His great love for me is all based on the sacrificial death of His
dear Son and not on my Performance. And yet, in effect, I do perform as Jesus lives out His life in me,
through me, as me. But it is always Jesus in me - not Rene. I do only the things Jesus is doing in my life,
and I say the things Jesus is saying through me. Impossible? Not at all. We get there by giving ourselves
over to Him totally, completely and begin to see that He really is living in me and I am “in Him” just as
Paul taught. This is why He said to Thomas: (John 14:9-11 NKJV) "Jesus said to him, "Have I been with
you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how
can you say, 'Show us the Father'? 10"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does
the works. 11"Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of
the works themselves."
Now this was Jesus the man speaking. He did not say this by virtue of being God (though He was).
He left all the trappings of being God in heaven and came to us completely as a man. When He related to
the Father, He was showing us how we could relate to Him - He in us and us in Him - so that someone
could really see Jesus in us. Are we Jesus? Of course not and yet - it is Jesus in us who is doing the works
as I give myself to Him just as Jesus had given Himself over to His heavenly Father.
We keep judging our identity based on our actions. But Performance does not determine
IDENTITY!!! Identity is determined only by birth. I am a Brown because my father was a Brown. I can
never be otherwise because I was born into the Brown family (in the natural realm).
When I came into the world, I was born “in Adam” and I had a “dead to God” spirit which I inherited
from my forefather Adam. But now, in the Spiritual Realm, I have been born again and thus have a new
identity: My new identity is “saint,” and I have been born into a new family of “In Christ”. Now I am in
this new family. I may act like something else from time to time but I cannot change my identity. If I sin,
I am not a sinner - I am a saint who sins. I can come back to acting like my true identity. Gradually, more
blood of Jesus. I do not have to center my attention on sins. I will never stop sinning by focusing on sins.
I will only stop sinning by focusing my entire life, every fibre of my being on Christ - in His strength and
with His power, not in my own strength or will power. When I do that, sins will diminish in my life.
The Old Testament economy was entirely based on Performance. If you did something, God
would do something. We even find this in Jesus' teachings because Jesus was under the Law and came to
preach to those under the Law (the Jews) since Jesus came to keep the law for us. So he magnified the
Law for one purpose: He wanted the Jews to see that it was impossible for them to keep the Law. For
example, adultery was not just having sex outside marriage; it was even entertaining such thoughts fully
in the mind and taking such thoughts into yourself (not just having a thought - that is not sin. Thoughts
are not sin unless we take them into ourselves and keep them or embrace them as it were.) Now He had
His listeners’ attention. No one hearing Jesus could possibly think anyone could keep such a stringent
law. Later when they heard the message of Jesus dying for their sins on the Day of Pentecost, they rushed
to Peter to be saved. This was Jesus' plan all along. For people to see that “we cannot save ourselves!!”
That “we need a Savior!!”
We must come to understand the gospel that Paul preached because the Lord left the gospel of Grace
primarily for Paul to preach. (Remember: When Jesus preached, the Old Covenant was still in place.)
And this is the economy of the New Covenant - the economy of Grace. It is all about God’s grace - Him
doing for us and not us doing for Him. It is not at all about our Performance. Do we do for God? Yes, but
not to get Him to love us or to think more of us or to forgive us. We do for God as Jesus lives out His life
through us but only because of our great love for God. I can do nothing - absolutely nothing - to get God
to love me more nor will any of my actions cause Him to love me any less. He loves me when I am
obedient, and He loves me when I sin. His great love for me is all based on the sacrificial death of His
dear Son and not on my Performance. And yet, in effect, I do perform as Jesus lives out His life in me,
through me, as me. But it is always Jesus in me - not Rene. I do only the things Jesus is doing in my life,
and I say the things Jesus is saying through me. Impossible? Not at all. We get there by giving ourselves
over to Him totally, completely and begin to see that He really is living in me and I am “in Him” just as
Paul taught. This is why He said to Thomas: (John 14:9-11 NKJV) "Jesus said to him, "Have I been with
you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how
can you say, 'Show us the Father'? 10"Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?
The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does
the works. 11"Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of
the works themselves."
Now this was Jesus the man speaking. He did not say this by virtue of being God (though He was).
He left all the trappings of being God in heaven and came to us completely as a man. When He related to
the Father, He was showing us how we could relate to Him - He in us and us in Him - so that someone
could really see Jesus in us. Are we Jesus? Of course not and yet - it is Jesus in us who is doing the works
as I give myself to Him just as Jesus had given Himself over to His heavenly Father.
We keep judging our identity based on our actions. But Performance does not determine
IDENTITY!!! Identity is determined only by birth. I am a Brown because my father was a Brown. I can
never be otherwise because I was born into the Brown family (in the natural realm).
When I came into the world, I was born “in Adam” and I had a “dead to God” spirit which I inherited
from my forefather Adam. But now, in the Spiritual Realm, I have been born again and thus have a new
identity: My new identity is “saint,” and I have been born into a new family of “In Christ”. Now I am in
this new family. I may act like something else from time to time but I cannot change my identity. If I sin,
I am not a sinner - I am a saint who sins. I can come back to acting like my true identity. Gradually, more
