Overview of Grace

A Quick overview part I

Sinner

1. Sinner
2. Saved
3. Backslider
4. Sanctified
5. Glorified

1. Sinner.

When a man sins, he is recognized as a “sinner.”

 He is not a sinner, because he sins.   That would imply his sinful actions is what made him a sinner.

He is a sinner because he was born a sinner.  (Because of Adam and Eve long ago).  His actions of sinning, is the outward manifestation of the sinful condition of his heart. He can not stop sinning. He still has the fallen nature of sin, in his heart.

Christ did not come to give us more laws or rules. He came to change our hearts, so that living up to the laws, would spring up naturally from a pure heart!

Mat 9:13  But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. 

Rom 5:8  But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 

Gal 2:17  But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.

Jas 4:8  Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. 

2. Saved.

1. spiritual Saved: (Also called Justified) to be forgiven by the blood and death of Christ.

     We are saved from our sin. Spared from Gods wrath, delivered from sins power, and preserved by Christ.

2. Physical Saved: to be spared, preserved, or delivered from a condition or situation here in this life.

            To be saved, is to be forgiven by the blood and death of Christ.  Sin separates us from God. When those sins are forgiven, it brings us into a beginning relationship with God the father, and Jesus the Son. We become Babes (children) in Christ! We are a Christian, but a very young and immature Christian! We have a lot to learn!

Salvation, (getting saved), makes us pure. It does not make us mature!  A budding apple is pure, a pure apple!  But it has a long way to go before its is mature and ready to be used!

 The blood of Christ forgives us of all our past and present sin. I John 1:9

  The death of Christ delivered us from the power of sin! Romans chapter 6

 The Resurrection of Christ, give us new life! John 11:25, Romans 6:5, I Peter 1:3

3. Backslidden.

Eze 18:24  But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. 

2Tim_4:10  For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica;

To Backslide:

• Is to forsake God and his ways. And to return to a life of sin.
• It can also mean to compromise the things of God, to water it down in its meaning, or to twist the scriptures to alter the meaning.
• To cool off, from the love you once had for your Saviour, and become cool or lukewarm.
• To carry on a profession of Christian, while committing deliberate sin.  Normally by lying to yourself, and making excuses for why you sinned.

There are many reasons why someone would backslide.  The most common is to slowly cool off in your Christianity, normally by being to busy or to rushed.  The word of God takes a backseat in your life, you are doing the driving now. But that road always runs downhill (easier) and ends in hell.  See 2 Peter 2:1-22 it has a lot to say about those who knew better!

2Pe 2:15  Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; 

Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 

2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 

(light= the knowledge about the things of God. Including the times when your conscience bothered you about sin.)

 The more light a person has; the more is expected of him. If that person backslides, then his damnation is equal to the light he had. The deepest part of hell, is reserved for those who once knew the truth, but turned away from it!

Check this out!

Mar 9:42  And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea. 

Mar 9:43  And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 

Mar 9:44  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 

Mar 9:45  And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: 

Mar 9:46  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. 

            This is a powerful portion of scripture! Jesus is showing his disciples how important it is to remove out of their lives, anything that causes them to backslide. It does not mean to actually cut off you hand or foot, or to gouge out your eye.

But whatever you backslide over, will cast you into the flames of hell forever. Get those things out of your life! Be as serious about it, as the fear of being dismembered!

“The worm that dieth not” is their conscience.

“Worm’ can also mean: remember those things you did, that you knew were wrong? Those action or words that you said or listened to?  When in hell you will hate them with an unearthly bitter hatred. But also, the “worm” comes back! You will re-enact those wicked things, while in the throes of the flame! You sowed those seeds, and in hell you will reap them!   OH What horror they will bring you then!

Heb 10:28  He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 

Heb 10:29  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 

Heb 10:30  For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 

Heb 10:31  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. 

            Notice that  Eze 18:24  But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. 

                Some people think the good deeds they have done, will somehow help them at the judgment of God. They foolishly think their good deeds will cover their sin, or lesson their punishment. But the scripture here says those good deeds wont even be mentioned. They will still die the wretched death of the wicked. We are not saved by works! Good deeds, sincerity or falsehoods.

To Backslide is the most horrible thing anyone can do to their own soul! 

Does God ever forgive the backslider? YES!

Eze 18:27  Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. 

when the wicked man (the backslider)

which is lawful and right, (repentance) 

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

When a sinner repents from his sin, he becomes saved. Saved from what? saved from his unforgiven sin!

When he gets saved, the power of sin is broken in his life.  “The old man/carnality” is crucified and dead! (Rom 6.)   BUT: sin is still alive and well in this world!  The saved person will discover temptations such as evil desires, notions, motives, and bad attitudes are there tempting him!  Before he was saved, the old man of sin, was in his heart. And as such, the sinner wanted to do them! The power of sin, was in the power of his desires, and the lying deceits he told himself, as to why he should commit sin! Here we see the hearts desires and the minds blindness, to accept sin. Not only did the sinner want to do them, but he found reasons why he should do them!  The power of sin was in our desires to sin. This condition is known as in darkness.

After salvation, the heart of the Christian may still be tempted. Jesus was tempted. However, Those desires, (however strong they may be), are not the final say-so! Jesus has the final say do. And he says stop sinning the lie’s of sin are exposed by the light of Gods word, or the promptings of the Holy spirit.  Now we have an option! We do not have to yield to the desires of sin! We can call out to God, who will strengthen us or drive the tempter away.  And/or, give us the power to say no! This is why we can say: we are free! Free from the power of sin to control us! WE are in control! Our heart may struggle at times, but the victory can always be found in Christ!

The old man may have been kicked out, but now he has a become a cruel tempter! We are no longer making excuses for him, we are fighting back with the power of Gods word, and the holy spirit helping us!

As a Christian, we have access to God and his throne of Grace. (Grace means power.) When the tempter comes around, we can call out to God for safety, and the tempter will flee for his life!   Thus, is brought to pass, Death (sin) is swallowed up in victory!  Also, when we die, our soul and spirit is carried into heaven! No longer under the trials of this life. then the scripture is again fulfilled, “death is swallowed up victory”!

            Eventually, the saved person will realize, the tempter attacks him through the desires of the heart. desire and motives that are very wrong. Such things will separate the Christian from God! (That is why the tempter is tempting him! He WANTS to separate you from God!) It is then the Christians realizes something is wrong inside of himself!  He may wish to be set free from such dark thoughts and motives that trouble him so much. It causes him a lot of doubt and confusion about his relationship with God or Jesus! This brings us to the next step: Sanctification!

4. Sanctified!

Act 20:32  And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. 

Act 26:18  To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me. 

Rom 15:16  That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost. 

1Co 6:9  Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 

1Co 6:10  Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 

1Co 6:11  And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 

2Ti 2:21  If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work. 

 Jude 1:1  Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called: 

1Th 4:3  For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: 

1Th 4:4  That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; 

Being Sanctified, is being filled with the Holy Spirit! This “filling”, changes our spirit and our heart! When the tempter comes around, he will suggest almost ANYTHING!

but, there is nothing inside of us anywhere, that wants to do it!

the things that we struggled with earlier, are now embarrassing to us!

they may even be repulsive! It isn’t that we are not capable of sinning, but the unbelievable joy we have, gives no place for backing up!

its then, the scripture is brought to pass, “the joy of the lord is my strength!”

Act 2:1  And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 

Act 2:2  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they                    were sitting. 

Act 2:3  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 

Act 2:4  And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

Act 4:31  And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. 

Act 13:52  And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost. 

Eph 5:18  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; 

It is sad to say, but in our generation, the experience of being filled with the spirit, has come under attack as never before!

It is no wonder that it is! Satan knows the experience empowers the Christian to be victorious over sin! Over Satan! Over death, over hell, over the grave! and sends them into the battle front, against satan and all his darkness!  The saints are winning! The devil is driven backwards, and latterly flees for his life!

 What is Satan’s response to counter-attack?  Send out false teachers and preachers, pushing everything but the truth!

 Until the experience is so little heard of, it is almost impossible to find the real meaning or the real experience!

The next attack was to make the experience so confusing; people do not want it!

 I have heard some say, speaking in tongues is proof of the holy spirit. That is twisting scripture! It was not the tongues that proved it! It was the fire/power of the holy ghost on their lives!  That fire of the holy Ghost that sat on each of them!The tongues movement is quick to read acts chapter 2, and tell you the speaking in tongues was the proof. But that is not the case. Act 2:3 says, And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 

   It was the fire of the holy Ghost that Jesus used to signify his presence and power!

   I have heard it said, they all spoke in an unknown tongue. That is not true! The Bible tells us plainly what was said, and who said it!

Peter was doing the speaking, this is what he said, and there was no unknown language in it!

 Act 2:14  But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: 

NO UNKNOWN TONGUES HERE! How obvious can it get?

            The miracle of tongues, and what it meant, is recorded clearly in verse :8 Act 2:8 And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? 

Peter was speaking normally! BUT everyone heard his words in their own language! That’s tongues!

There was no gargling or growling, or talking like he had a mouth full of marbles, then trying to convince everyone it was special language from heaven! Peter was not jumping around, or rolling on the floor, hoping around on top of the pews, trying to look like he was some kind monkey!  I simply cannot mentally process the extreme level of foolishness; people are willing to fall for!    Or why they think acting or talking like a madman, is supposed to convince you, they have God!  Just the opposite!

A certain tongues preacher, told this guy (someone I knew from work) to go to the alter and start saying Coca-Cola as fast as you can! That will be proof, you can speak in tongues!  Then you will know, you have God! I do not know to laugh or cry over such nonsense!

Revival in a certain tongues church, involved barking like dogs, laughing like madmen, and rolling on the floor! The only one who is really laughing is Satan!

I gotta get off this subject, before I get sick! I’m already disgusted.

So, What is the real proof of being filled with the spirit?

  Romans Eight! 8:1-17 it is a beautiful chapter! But look closely at verse 16!

Rom 8:16  The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God!

• That inner witness of the holy spirit, to you, will reveal the truth! Its more than a still small voice! it is more like getting hit with wave after wave of immeasurable Joy!  Nobody will have to tell you when it happens. Your radiance and happiness will do all the announcing you need!
• Your spirit and entire life will so change, people won’t believe it! Your happiness will be like a well of water, springing up from inside of you!
• Peace and praise will replace doubt and fear!
• The bible will become so alive and powerful to you!
• Your own countenance will be changed for the good!
• Temptations will seem so foolish, if not sickening.
• Prayer will be communion, not a one-sided conversation.
• Being a true Christian is a wonderful spiritual romance. There is great joy in the race! Not just the finish line!
• Being sanctified brings you so close to God and Jesus! Their presence will be felt every day.
• You will see nominal Christianity as a religious tomb.
• Love will replace criticism.

I think it best to remind the reader, there is no position in life, where you will not be tempted. Jesus himself was tempted. But being filled with the spirit, makes you the victor every time. it is not that you cannot backslide, because you still have a will. God will never take away your will, or turn you into a robot! Backsliding can happen if you try to coast along, without feeding your heart and mind on God’s word every day! You still have to make decisions, make choices, learn to say no, and stay humble to follow Jesus. If you start letting up, you will also start cooling down. The fires of God will burn high in your life, but you have to keep feeding the fire.

There is no substitute for daily bible reading, daily prayer, living righteously, witnessing,  and keeping your guard up against sin, and learning to say no to people and the devil!

Last of all!

5. Glorified.

 Being Glorified can be hard to grasp. A good example is found in the book of Revelation

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. 

John was given a tour of heaven. There he was shown what the end of the world was going to be like. A mighty angel took him from place to place. It explained each scene and event. John even described the majestic angel.

               Then in 19:10 John discovers it was not an Angel! The “Angel” says “I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus” WHAT! Fellow servant! Have the Testimony of Jesus!  This Angel was a saint, that had been glorified in heaven!

Just think what that must have been like! Taking John all over heaven, and knowing. You used to be like him!

Then think what John must have thought!

Co 15:51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 

Sleep= die or be dead when Jesus comes back.

Changed= GLORIFIED!

Corruptible= fleshly earthly body.

Incorruption= perfection!

Immortality= eternal life!

1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.