BETH EZRA TEACHING

..............................he that has ears to hear, let him hear...............................

Volume Three, Issue 2 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Autumn 1999

Grace Rules

Eph. 2:8 For by 'Grace' are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Something dreadful has happened to our understanding of the concept of 'Grace'. Paul's eloquent, succinct explanation (above) that salvation is by faith through 'Grace', not achievement, is the capstone of the wonder of God's benevolence toward us. God had revealed Himself in the Law to the flesh and blood descendants of Abraham. Since then, Israelites have borne the brunt of trying to please God by obeying that Law. As they soon found out, the Law is a hard taskmaster. Breaking the Law required the drastic exercise of killing an animal and interposing its blood for that of the law-breaker's, lest the law-breaker be forfeit from the commonwealth of Israel and the blessings God promised to the faithful.

Along with the Law however, came the increased temptation to disobey. Until there was a specific code of Law for rebellion to react against, sin didn't have as much power, even though it held all Adam's offspring in its deadly grip (Rom. 5:14). Once the Law became written, and a way to oppose God became obvious, sin had a revival over humanity. Prior to the Law, sin was a nebulous thing; disobedience to God was a 'gray area'. But once the Law-- God's minimum standard of righteousness-- became codified, Satan and his minions had something with which to dupe mankind into defying God. Thou shalt not covet? Suddenly my neighbor's possessions

look very desirable. Thou shalt not steal? Suddenly there are so many things which I can't afford. Cease from doing my own ambitions on the Sabbath, honoring the Lord only? Suddenly there are so many necessary things to accomplish on 'my day off'.

The Law, instead of making it easier to obey God, because of the satanic forces aligned against humanity, rendered pleasing God an impossibility. The more I know what is required, and the more I endeavor to do what is required, the harder it is to remain consistent in my pursuit of righteousness. I know what is right in my conscience, but find no power within me to obey what is right. The Law is a good thing, having come from God, but because of the weakness of my flesh Satan makes the Law a snare for me (Rom.7). A frustration sets in, and a rebellious attitude asserts itself, and rationalizations occur to my mind excusing me from obedience. This is because Satan is given a focus with which to assault man's sensibilities. Attacking with an inundation of thoughts from the invisible realm, mankind is rendered defenseless against his 'suggestions'. Humanity at large doesn't even know the source of the thoughts flooding its collective mind. People assume the barrage of feelings and desires assaulting them are their own, but when they follow the delightful, rebellious path, they are left with apprehension and

guilt. Then more feelings, rationalizations and rebellious actions suggest themselves as an antidote, and the vicious cycle spins out of control.

To cope with the spiraling cycle of sin, guilt and condemnation, man attempts to do one of two things. He must either invalidate God and His Law, or convince himself he is capable of keeping it. The Gentiles have done the former, and Jews the latter. For Gentiles the simplest way to deal with their violated conscience is to convince themselves that God is not the righteous, holy God as revealed in the Bible, and there will be no final reckoning. This, in effect, excuses them from changing their lives in order to please God and be in right relation to Him. This lets them live any way they please, making up their own rules and lifestyles (with corresponding gods), and are only accountable to themselves and their imaginary deities. This of course, will only last until they stand before God at the Judgment Seat, and their lives are displayed openly as wicked, deceitful and selfish, and all their notions of how God 'ought to have been' are exposed as efforts to excuse themselves from God's righteous requirements. With great shame and in utter terror they will be cast into the hopeless eternity of God's punishment.

Jews on the other hand, because they have rightly perceived that they hold a special place in God's eyes as receivers of the Law, make the mistake of thinking that knowing the Law is the same thing as obeying the Law. They have so watered down the precepts of the Law, that symbolism, for them is the essence of reality, making the reality unnecessary as long as one has a right intention about it. Whether or not God actually meant what He spoke, or even if He really spoke at all, is no longer the issue to Jewry, but whether one identifies with the good intentions of the Law. Thus they no longer have to offer sacrifices on the Temple Mount to appease an offended God, but merely adhere to some notion of Jewishness, and the Law will be counted as fulfilled for them. The Pharisees of Jesus' day even modified God's Law, which requires repentance and obedience from the heart, to a list of do's and don'ts which they could perform with only minor inconvenience. In fact, they often used their laws to undermine the very precepts God was trying to teach them through the Law (Mk. 7:6-8). It became so absurd that Caiaphas could decline to enter Pilate's house lest he be defiled for the holy days, even as he was condemning a man to death that he knew to be innocent. In Caiaphas' understanding, as long as he kept the manmade rules, he was still in good relation to God, even though he had just arranged the murder of a just and innocent man.

So, both Jews and Gentiles are bound under lawlessness, and are condemned, and in great eternal danger, even though they refuse to recognize it. Finding it impossible to keep the law as given to Moses, Jews and Gentiles alike have found a salve for their alarmed consciences. Nevertheless, both types of deception, though calming in the short run, will result in calamity forever.

God, in giving the Law, never intended to bring man to righteousness through it, but rather to reveal how unrighteous and powerless to do right man already was. But the pride of both Jews and Gentiles forbade them to admit the obvious. Instead, they either call God a liar by rejecting His evaluation of man's state( I Jn. 1:10), or insist they are as obedient as can be expected (1Jn.1:8).

Enter Jesus Christ into these prevailing but erroneous mindsets. Suddenly there is a man who exposes the fallacies of both deceptions by demonstrating a close relationship to God through His obedience from the heart. He went beyond demonstration and teaching by becoming the sacrifice for both Jews and Gentiles, making us acceptable to the Father in Himself. No longer are the sacrifices of Judaism to be observed, for the perfect sacrifice has come, once and for all. Any further offering of animal blood is abominable to God, for it insinuates the blood of His Son was not sufficient. No longer do Gentiles have to be separated from God because they do not have the Law. In Jesus Christ the maximum (as opposed to the minimum of the Mosaic Law) requirements of righteousness have been met, and man can be at peace with God the Father simply by believing the Father's word that Jesus' sacrifice is sufficient for all mankind. This is the issue Paul addressed when he wrote to the Ephesians. What a 'Grace' that God has made salvation available to all mankind, no longer just Jews. And what a 'Grace' to the Jews that righteousness comes not by observance of the Mosaic law, but is fulfilled in Jesus. Thus 'Grace' is defined as 'God's unmerited (i.e. I couldn't ever earn it or be worthy of it) favor extended to me', and certainly finds expression of this in Eph. 2:8-9.

The dreadful mistake many believers go on to make about 'grace' is thinking that this is the fullest expression of 'Grace', when in fact, it is only the beginning of the marvels of 'Grace'. God saved me from a hideous fate, though I don't deserve it. When I heard about Jesus, and the blood sacrifice He made on my behalf, I was given the ability to believe, whereupon I seized the momentous concept with all my heart, and knew it to be true (I Jn. 5:10). But, if, as so many believe, that is where 'Grace' begins and ends, why does Paul include in his letters the prayer for more 'Grace'? Is there more to 'Grace' that the apostles taught ? Is there more than our present day Churchianity surmises?

To the many church goers, 'Grace' means there is nothing I have to do anymore to work out my own salvation. Jesus has done it all, I need only sit back, live my life in relative comfort, and let Jesus call me home when He's ready for me. In effect, to such Christians 'Grace' means-- No More Rules! I can live any way I want and still go to heaven, because I'm under 'Grace'. I can have sin in my life that never gets conquered because I'm under 'Grace'. I don't have to obey clear commands of New Testament Scripture, because they are legalistic and I'm under 'Grace', not legalism. I can have unforgiveness toward others, because I'm under 'Grace' (but those I have a grudge against better not think they're under 'Grace' for what they did to me). Many Christians have been confused by the babble of many preachers parroting the freedom of 'grace' chant, and have been robbed of the blessings inherent in properly living under 'Grace'.

Contrary to the popular concept that 'Grace' means No More Rules, 'Grace' comes with a whole new, and higher set of rules. The difference is that 'grace' supplies the power to obey those rules, as well as obey the spirit of the former rules (The Law). Whereas the Law only gave the command, but left the person powerless to obey, 'Grace' reveals what God wants from an individual and then supplies him with the power to perform it. Jesus gives us His victory over Satan, so in 'Grace', we can resist the Devil and have him flee. Jesus gives us His victory over temptation, so in 'Grace', we can overcome sin and guilt by His life's blood applied to our consciences. Jesus gives us His conquering the world and its allurements and systems, so in 'Grace', we can live by the Spirit whom He sheds abroad in our hearts, rising above the world to live in the Spirit.

But this 'Grace' will not take effect unless we come humbly to Jesus, confessing our sin and seeking deliverance from the world, the flesh, and the Devil. We must apply the principles of this marvelous 'Grace', in effect, we must follow its rules. God is not about to forgive us of our sins so we can be free of guilt and fear, to go out and sin some more. Our attitude must be one of earnestly seeking deliverance from the corruption that is in the world through sin. With too many believers, the attitude is one of seeking to be free from the restraints of godliness, not sin. They want to throw off the strictures that are intended to keep them safely on holy ground, so they may drift closer to the 'fun' of the world. Such believers rankle against what they perceive as legalism in the Scripture, proclaiming that 'Grace' supersedes and sets them free from such activities. Such an attitude is folly. Titus 2:11 For the 'Grace' of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Paul knew no such 'easy, casual grace' as we see exhibited in this age. Writing to Titus, the apostle assigned to bring order to the Cretan churches, Paul reiterates what 'Grace' is really all about. The 'Grace'... that bringeth salvation... teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts. The implication is that any other type of 'grace' will not bring salvation. The true 'Grace' that is from God will continually lead us away from the defilement of the world and the flesh, not let us move closer to them. True 'Grace' will have the effect of making us soberly aware of the dangerous temptations in the world around us and move us away to a place of holiness (separation), unlike Lot who vexed his righteous soul by exposing it to the corruption in Sodom, and suffered irremediable loss. True 'Grace' will render us more and more obedient to righteousness, like Jesus who, when John balked at baptizing Him, insisted that it was necessary for them to fulfill all righteousness. How much more righteous could Jesus be? Wasn't He the Word of the Father? Yes, nevertheless, He too had to learn obedience from the things which He suffered, including being baptized at the initiation of His public ministry, fulfilling the type of a high priest being washed before the congregation of Israel at his inauguration. True 'Grace' will call us to perform even scriptural symbols representing greater spiritual realities, such as water baptism or head-covering, as a witness against the world with its rebellious principalities and powers. A simple, symbolic activity such as water baptism or head covering is an indicator of being in order, not rebellion. It is true that people can perform the motions of water baptism, head covering, foot washing, men only teaching men, communion, etc. with all scriptural correctness, yet still be rebellious in heart. But it is also true that a church cannot be a demonstration of submission to the will of God unless it obeys the things He requires. To be under 'Grace' requires both a proper heart attitude, and the external obedience illustrating that attitude. As James so aptly says, "Faith without works is dead." Conversely, works without faith is also dead. But works in conjunction with faith is a lively representative of God's glory.

It is an attempt to do an end run around obedience when believers, rallying under the banner of 'Grace', defer complying with the traditions of the early church which the apostles established as things to be done. The greatest preacher of 'Grace', Paul, is the same one who specifically detailed to converted Gentiles what traditions were to be observed whenever the church met. Can it be that he didn't really mean for the recipients of his letters to perform the traditions he mentioned because they were under 'Grace'? Or, did he fully expect them to comply with his orders? 'Grace', far from being 'without rules', entails rules of a different character. Note how the book of the 'Acts begins: Acts 1:1 THE former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: and compare with what Paul also says: 2Th.2:15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

Jesus, before returning to His Father, gave commands to the apostles, to in turn, give them to the churches they were to found. It's not as if Jesus told them "Okay men, all you need to tell them is to believe in Me." Rather, He gave his apostles explicit instructions on how and what the Church was to do, among which were certain traditions. Much of the hue and cry against tradition is rightly deserved, for men have made traditions that replace the commands of God (Mk 7:7). But these scriptural traditions which Jesus gave to His apostles are not manmade, but God-given. They are ignored at great loss.

A tradition is a visible, acted-out commemoration of a special event or Truth kept intact from the ravages of time and the changes of men. For instance, communion commemorates the Last Supper Jesus had with His disciples, His crucifixion, and the truth of the New Covenant in Christ. In strict keeping of the tradition of the bread and the cup the vital truth of His broken body and blood spilled on our behalf would be passed from generation to generation without suffering decay. The precious truth Jesus communicated to His disciples that night would not be lost as long as the tradition was faithfully kept as given. Water baptism is another classic case in point. As long as it is practiced the way it was originally given to the Church (immersion) it demonstrates death, burial and resurrection; as well as identification with what Jesus did on our behalf. When the tradition is misunderstood and changed to a mere rite, such as sprinkling infants, the truth it represents gets lost in the shuffle, as is obvious by the churches that have perverted this tradition. Traditions were given by the Lord Jesus to His Church through the apostles, in order to keep error out of the basic beliefs of the Faith, and to remind us of the precious founding truths the Church is built upon. And this is all a part of 'Grace'. The Faith that operates on the basis of 'Grace' is the same Faith that incorporates the usage of certain, God-given traditions to keep the Church in remembrance and in the truth. Alter or do away with the traditions, soon the events and truths they commemorate will be altered or forgotten, as is presently the case with most of what calls itself Christianity.

It is time to restore the lost traditions of the Faith to the Church, and the doctrines and events they represent. The Lord did not burden us (indeed if such things seem a burden, we are not utilizing 'Grace') with numerous traditions as He did the Jews in the Law. Rather, He desires us observe just a minimum of traditions that, if kept joyfully, will serve to remind us of our precious heritage in Him, and simultaneously bear witness to the world of what they are missing. If such things are the command of God (and they are) can we truly be said to love Him if we know these things and do not do them (1Jn. 2:4-6)?

The question arises, "Should we defer keeping these commanded traditions if we do not feel the joy of it?" Many think this a good excuse, but to have such an opinion is to disregard 'Grace'. 'Grace' is the power to obey God-- even when we do not feel like it! In fact, as Titus 2:12 above states, 'Grace' will be moving us toward observation of whatever is pleasing to the Lord and away from whatever is displeasing to Him. A soul operating in 'Grace' will be combing the Scriptures eagerly looking for simple, little gestures that can be obeyed, gladdening the Lord's heart. A soul not operating in 'Grace' will be excusing itself from those observances He desires, denying Him the glory due. When a believer doesn't 'feel' right about taking communion, is it allright for them just to pass the bread and cup by, or are they to rectify the situation so they may freely and in good conscience take the communion? Obviously we are not to pass up the bread and cup, but to realign our hearts, repenting of whatever defiles, and then rising up in 'Grace' to partake. This rule applies to all the traditional expressions of the Faith, we are to get our heart and mind right and obey, rather than defer obedience.

The Church of the New Testament is built of the rules of 'Grace'. It is 'Grace' to bar an unrepentant adulterer from fellowship until he/she properly repents (I Coe. 5:11). It is 'Grace' to prohibit lazy brothers from eating from the community pot if he is able-bodied but not working (II Thess. 3:10). It is 'Grace' for wives to submit to their husbands, husbands to love their wives, and children to obey their parents, employees to satisfy their bosses and bosses to take good care of their workers. It is 'Grace to examine those who call themselves apostles, pastors, messengers etc. of God (I Jn. 4:1). It is 'Grace' to present ourselves as living sacrifices to God (Rom. 12:1). Having a hard time doing this? Then apply 'Grace' to it! Believers are not excused from obedience to these things because of lack of feelings of sincerity. 'Grace' covers our lack of feelings so we can obey in faithfulness despite our emotional state. It is 'Grace' to wash each other's feet (John 13:14-17).

Is footwashing something so degrading, so repugnant that you can't bring yourself to do it? Then apply 'Grace' to it, and you will find the power to glorify the Lord in your humility. Head-covering, communion, men as authority in church and home, foot-washing, immersion baptism, honesty in all matters social and private, non-belligerence, caring for one another, evangelizing, etc. all are rules of 'Grace' that must be obeyed if we are to be the Church that glorifies our Lord Jesus.

Opponents of obedience to God's commands often try to make it look like those who observe the traditions are 'earning' their salvation. Were that the case, it would be legalism to keep the traditions. But since the traditions of 'Grace' only indicate that salvation is already come, it is rather working out our salvation with fear and trembling (obedience), and not a matter of being saved, but showing that we are saved. The Deceiver tries to make obedience to the traditions look like legalism, and many immature, or still worldly believers fall for the lie. But legalism is adding to what God has said. For instance: making water baptism necessary for joining a church is legalism, because nowhere in Scripture is immersion and church membership linked. Wearing a head-covering to be able to speak in church is legalism. On the other side of the argument is the concept that baptism is unnecessary, or that head-covering during the meeting is unnecessary (for women). These concepts are lawlessness. To follow the purveyor ofthese unscriptural ideas is to fall from 'Grace', fall from Law, falling into lawlessness. The rules, commandments (yes, the apostles gave commandments: ICor7:10; 2Thes. 3:4,6,12; I Tim. 4:11) and traditions given by the servants of God correlate to the commands, statutes and testimonies given to the Jews in the Old Testament.(Deut. 8:11). Keeping them helped the people keep before their eyes the truths and events commemorated. Keeping the traditions of 'Grace' intact helps keep error out of the Body of Christ.

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