Avoiding The Trap Of Holiness Theology
A Rock Of Offence Commentary
Every Christian should desire to live a Holy life. A simple definition of holiness is “without sin”. I’ve listened as some Christians enthusiastically defend their efforts to acquire “sinless perfection”, which is essentially a perfectly “holy life”. I believe our Heavenly Father placed this desire in all true Christian believers. However, a serious problem develops when we cross a dangerous spiritual line and think that we either need Jesus and His blood less because we live such a good life -- or that our attempt at “holy living” is God’s additional requirement so that we can continue to possess His gift of eternal life. Some of the most dangerous religious movements and sects in the Christian Church operate under these beliefs. They are always defended with the best of intentions. The apostle Paul struggled with sin in the same way many of us do. In his epistle to the Romans he said, "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). This troubling problem where “all of us sin” does not stop after we become a Christian believer. As long as we live in this fleshly human body we will continue to sin. No amount of self-discipline or attempts at “sinless perfection” (as good as those things are) will change that fact. In his epistles, the apostle Paul taught that reaching a state of “sinless perfection” (or holiness) in our bodies of flesh is impossible.
Later on in his epistle, Paul shares his personal struggles with sin.
"For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me." (Rom. 7:19-20)
"But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!" (Rom. 7:23-25)
Paul understood that the only way out of this situation was to stop trying to earn God’s acceptance by attempting to achieve some level of “sinless perfection”. The Bible tells us that this state of perfection cannot be obtained through our efforts, even though millions of Christians are trying their best to get there. Paul noticed that the harder he tried, the more he failed. He said, “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.” This should be a warning to all of us. The only real escape from this trap of spiritual bondage (Paul called it a “wretched” existence) is through the new covenant redemption of Jesus Christ. Attempting to earn or achieve our way into God’s favor by striving to attain a state of sinless perfection (also called “holiness”) is referred to by Paul as “spiritual bondage”. Under Christ's new covenant, God’s acceptance doesn’t come this way, even though millions of Christians are taught that it does. Why does Paul refer to this kind of religious activity as “bondage” in his epistles? You can never know when you’ve reached an acceptable level of performance, so you keep trying, just to be safe -- or worse, because you’re afraid you will lose your salvation. It’s very similar to a hamster on a treadmill. This poor creature constantly runs to “get ahead” but always seems to stay in the same place! Yet, he keeps running anyway. Paul said, “Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Jesus provides the only way of escape from this popular religious treadmill. Yet, millions of Christians are fooled into trusting a dangerous theology that puts them back under a similar system that brings failure and ultimately the unintended consequences of God’s rejection. This false theology strongly appeals to our inner desire to live holy and Godly lives. It harnesses this powerful motivational force in a deceptive way -- then uses it to lead us astray in our faith.
Conditional vs. Unconditional Salvation
The key to understanding many of these harmful teachings and false Christian movements is found in the common and popular practice of ignoring (or distorting) the context of the Bible. Strangely, a majority of Christians today are subtly taught by their church to ignore the fact that God divided His Word into at least two major sections, which are both based on an ancient institution called “a blood covenant”. Very few modern Christians know how covenants in the Bible operate because the subject is rarely discussed. They are commonly taught that God’s Word has only one “unified message”, despite the fact that the Bible warns us that this belief is dangerously wrong. Ignoring this cardinal rule of context is the core error of Holiness Theology and countless other similar, yet false Christian doctrines. Every time we open God’s Word, we see the two major divisions called “The Old Testament and the New Testament”. The Old Testament contains God’s old covenant with Israel. The New Testament and its transition into the “new covenant” is something radically different. The book of Hebrews calls it a “new and living way”. It is based entirely on Christ’s redeeming blood. Jesus called it “THE NEW COVENANT IN MY BLOOD” (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20, 1 Cor. 11:25, 2 Cor. 3:6). Israel’s old covenant with God offered a “conditional salvation” that required the believer to live according to a specified code of religious conduct, which included total obedience to the Law of Moses given to the Israelites at Mount Sinai. Christ’s new covenant salvation is declared to be a “better covenant established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). This “better covenant” is called "better" because it is unconditional (not dependent upon our performance and works) AND ETERNAL. It is based only on the believer’s confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, regardless of how deficient they are in good works and religious performance. Under the new and better covenant of Christ, the confession of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ acts as a key that unlocks the door, which is Christ (John 10:7-10) and allows us access to everything Jesus Christ possesses. This is why, under Christ’s new covenant, eternal life is called “the gift of God” (Rom. 6:23). Under the conditional salvation requirements of God’s old covenant with Israel, eternal life is not a gift.
This unconditional and eternal aspect of Christ’s salvation secretly enrages many religious people and their leaders in the Christian Church. For this reason, they work tirelessly to change it back into a theological system based on the model of Israel’s old covenant – along with its performance requirements for “conditional salvation”. During the ministry of Saint Paul, evangelists and other preachers who propagated this kind of old covenant theology were called “Judaizers”. Their good sounding “Biblical” doctrine led many astray because it was taught as God’s Word. Their teaching is still with us today and is very popular and mainstream in the Christian Church. I want to repeat and emphasize that this is not some kind of “fringe” effort being carried out by an obscure group in the Church. It involves “mainstream” Christian doctrine, which can be found in some of the most trusted denominations and evangelistic ministries. Since this theology removes Scripture from its context to support its position, many well-meaning Christians are led astray in their faith by thinking that these teachings, based on “out of context” Scriptures, are a true representation of God’s Word.
It is important to understand that Christ’s new "unconditional" covenant is not saying the same thing as the popular doctrine of “universal reconciliation”, which claims that Jesus automatically saves everyone today because God is love and, for that reason, will never send anyone to hell. While eternal life under Christ’s new covenant is generally unconditional as GOD’S GIFT (a gift requires no merit or performance on our part to obtain and keep it), there is one simple requirement that everyone must satisfy to initially enter into this enormous blessing. You must believe in your heart that God, our Heavenly Father, resurrected Jesus Christ from the dead AND you must confess with your mouth that JESUS IS LORD as outlined in Romans 10:8-16. This simple requirement that any sincere person (and even young children) can satisfy, destroys the argument for universal reconciliation. Today, we use the term "receiving Christ" to describe this act of faith. By meeting this one simple condition, which is activated by the confession of your mouth (Saint Paul called this confession “the Word of faith), you are eternally sealed by the Holy Spirit until Jesus Christ returns at a future time, to redeem your physical body (Eph. 1:13-14). This “sealing” is called “the guarantee of our inheritance”. God deliberately uses the word “guarantee” so that the reader can clearly understand the eternal nature of Christ’s salvation. It is GOD’S GUARANTEE that once you enter the new covenant by putting your trust in the gospel of Christ, you remain saved (that’s what “sealed” means) regardless of how deficient you are in good works or religious performance (this is what “Grace” means). Strangely, this characteristic of Christ’s gospel is rejected by much of the Christian Church. Many try to discredit this message by giving it names like, “easy believism” or “greasy grace”. I even heard one angry preacher refer to it as “the grace cult”. Yet, Christ’s Gospel of Grace is true whether your church approves of it or not. Having a life full of good works should always be the goal of the Christian believer. All of us should try to avoid sin. Our success in these efforts determines how our Heavenly Father rewards us after we get to heaven. Yet, these works are not a condition for possessing or keeping eternal life under Christ’s new covenant (Romans 4:4-8, Titus 3:5). Saint Paul repeatedly told the early Church that good works are necessary and right. He said that these works honor Jesus Christ and that a lack of good works dishonors our Lord. However, he also made it clear that these works have no value in obtaining or keeping God’s gift of eternal life. Here are a few Scriptures that all believers should seriously consider.
"In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, WHO IS THE GUARANTEE OF OUR INHERITANCE UNTIL THE REDEMPTION OF THE PURCHASED POSSESSION, to the praise of His glory." (Eph. 1:13-14)
"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)
[NOTE: For an important insight, read the next two Scriptures together]
"For the wages of sin is death, but THE GIFT OF GOD IS ETERNAL LIFE IN CHRIST JESUS OUR LORD." (Romans 6:23)
"FOR GOD'S GIFTS AND HIS CALL ARE IRREVOCABLE. [He never withdraws them when once they are given, and He does not change His mind about those to whom He gives His grace or to whom He sends His call.]" (Romans 11:29 Amplified Bible)
"...BEING JUSTIFIED FREELY BY HIS GRACE through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." (Rom. 3:24-26)
"Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. BUT TO HIM WHO DOES NOT WORK BUT BELIEVES ON HIM WHO JUSTIFIES THE UNGODLY, HIS FAITH IS ACCOUNTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man TO WHOM GOD IMPUTES RIGHTEOUSNESS APART FROM WORKS: "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; BLESSED IS THE MAN TO WHO THE LORD SHALL NOT IMPUTE SIN." (Romans 4:4-8)
"AND IF BY GRACE, THEN IT IS NO LONGER OF WORKS; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work." (Romans 11:6)
"But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, NOT BY WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH WE HAVE DONE, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS MERCY HE SAVED US, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that HAVING BEEN JUSTIFIED BY HIS GRACE we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life." (Titus 3:4-7)
"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." (Gal. 2:16)
"God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, WHEN HE HAD BY HIMSELF PURGED OUR SINS, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high...." (Heb. 1:1-3)
"But this Man, AFTER HE HAD OFFERED ONE SACRIFICE FOR SINS FOREVER, sat down at the right hand of God...." (Heb. 10:12)
Holiness Theology and the countless variations of this dangerous doctrine skillfully attack the eternal and irrevocable aspect of the new covenant, while appearing to be completely devoted to Jesus Christ. It’s apparent dedication and commitment to Christ and His Word fools a lot of church-going people. Under this illusion, it attempts to move the Christian believer back under the principles of “conditional salvation” found in Israel’s Mosaic Law-based covenant (the old covenant). Many of their leaders and followers will quote Scripture by saying “this is what the Bible says”. However, the Bible records two radically different covenants within its pages (Read Galatians 4:21-26, Hebrews 8:7). Religious cults and other false Christian movements commonly use this clever deceptive tactic against the opposition. They say, “this is what the Bible says”, but they don’t tell you which covenant in the Bible they’re quoting from. Actually, they don’t care because it doesn’t matter to them. Why? They ignore the context of the Bible because they believe it’s all “one unified message”, when the Bible itself clearly says there are two different covenants (actually there are more than two) to consider. The apostle Paul warned his disciple Timothy to “rightly divide” God’s Word in order to correctly teach its truths (2 Timothy 2:15). To do what Paul instructed and apply the rules of Biblical context to this discussion would immediately expose the false foundation of all forms of Holiness Theology.
Holiness Theology And End Time Events
The Second Coming of Jesus Christ and the New Testament teaching about the rapture of the Church is described as the believer’s “Blessed Hope”. However, when you apply Holiness Theology to the discussion, this tremendous blessing quickly changes into a living nightmare for Christians. Something called “partial rapture theology” is the unfortunate result of popular Holiness doctrine that is spread like tares across the entire Christian Church. Suddenly, instead of eagerly watching and waiting for the blessing of Christ’s return, we become fearful that maybe Jesus didn’t provide a complete salvation. We are told that we have an incorrect understanding of God’s Grace and that it’s actually different than what we read in the New Testament. This causes us to think that we aren’t devoted enough, or that we failed to do enough good works to be counted worthy to escape the soon-to-occur Tribulation period. Suddenly, salvation rests on our works, conduct, devotion and religious performance instead of Christ’s cross -- where “Jesus, as the Lamb of God, took away the sins of the world”. We are told that for some “disobedient” or “luke-warm” Christians, additional purification is needed. Why is this taught? They do not believe that Jesus provided all the necessary purification from sin. They claim that God leaves some “saved” Christian believers behind, so that they can receive additional purification by the Tribulation on earth. For those of us who understand the rules of context in the New Testament, all of this is religious nonsense that, unfortunately, produces horrible forms of spiritual bondage. Millions of believers all over the world are struggling with these fears. When you hear these things, you’re listening to old covenant “conditional salvation” (recorded in the Bible) and not the new covenant redemption of Christ (also recorded in the Bible). There are so many variations of this fear-inducing doctrine that we can’t cover them all here. It angers me to see the “Blessed Hope” of so many Christians ruined through this kind of false teaching (Saint Paul called it a “perverted gospel” -- read Gal. 1:6-9). Paul constantly warned believers in the early church not to allow these preachers to cheat them out of the blessings of Christ (Col. 2:8). Why would he say that if the danger didn’t exist?
Smoke And Mirrors
Christian believers and their leaders who are devoted to Holiness Theology go to great lengths to discredit and disprove a belief they call OSAS -- also known as “once saved always saved”. Yet, this divisive argument is only a smoke screen to mask their real intentions. Jesus finished all the work necessary to eternally deal with human sin (past, present and future) and pay the total price for our salvation. Christ’s new covenant does not require us to add anything to finish or maintain the benefits of His salvation. Before dying on the cross, Jesus cried with a loud voice “It is finished!” Jesus finished everything and left no additional works for us to do. This is why Saint Paul constantly warned the early church that our good works do not secure, add to or allow us to keep eternal life under the new covenant (Romans 4:4-8,Titus 3:5). Jesus grants eternal life as “the gift of God” because He did all the work Himself and freely gave us the fruits of His labor. What Jesus did for us is a holy and glorious thing. Our job is to receive His finished work and glorify Him for the sacrifices He made so that we could FREELY possess the blessing.
If you carefully examine the actual teachings of Holiness Theology, it suggests that Christ’s work is not finished, nor is it eternal as the new covenant teaches. For this reason, they tell us that we must walk in “holiness” (an unspecified code of conduct) and perform “devoted religious works” in order to obtain and keep what the New Testament calls, "God’s gift of eternal life". Since you can’t know when you’ve performed enough good works, you can’t really have any assurance of salvation if you believe this doctrine. It is a stealth attack on Christ’s salvation,which is given through the unmerited favor of Grace taught in the new covenant. This assault dishonors the finished work of our Lord and takes away His glory by teaching that we must somehow complete His work by holy and devoted living in order to ensure that eternal life remains in force. In other words, the responsibility of keeping eternal life is placed on your shoulders. When you consider the logical end of this kind of reasoning, eternal life can never be called "the gift of God" under these rules. Of course, they never actually state their beliefs this bluntly. It's this kind of skewed doctrine that upset some of the early apostles. Peter warned that such teachings come from a theology (he called them “damnable heresies”), which denies the Lord that bought us (Read 2 Peter 2:1). The phrase "the Lord that bought us" indicates that we are "paid in full" with no other payment due. In other words, we are "the purchased possession of Christ" (Ephesians 1:13-14). Peter's words give us a powerful and offensive warning that all Christians should consider. This is why we must closely examine the foundational doctrine of every church that claims to serve the Lord Jesus Christ and preach His Word. Those that support Holiness Theology fervently believes that they are devoted to Jesus Christ and are following the true teachings of the Word of God, while those of us who preach the grace of Christ are not. Don't mistake their sincerity for truth. Devotion to Christ always looks sincere, but is, many times, based on an interpretation of the Bible that will not lead you in the way of truth.
Like so many other teachings in the Christian Church, Holiness doctrine has countless different “flavors” and expressions that cross all denominational lines and may not necessarily have the word “Holiness” in its name to tip you off. Since these doctrines that subtly attack the salvation of Christ all commit similar errors, we tend to repeat the same things in our commentaries. Some independent and non-denominational congregations are committed to this belief to varying degrees. Holiness teachings and principles are also found in both Catholicism and some mainline Protestant congregations. Churches that teach various forms of Christian Fundamentalism are also involved. It is not my desire to single-out any particular church. Yet, the greatest concentration seems to be in Pentecostal and various Church of God groups. Most “Holiness Pentecostal” churches embrace this doctrine. However, not all Pentecostal congregations are affected. There are a number of excellent Pentecostal churches that correctly preach Christ’s new covenant. Yet, the stealth nature of this teaching should warn us about the seriousness of the problem.
Holiness Theology travels under countless different names and is both complicated and confusing when trying to explain it to others. Those that defend this doctrine can be extremely dogmatic, legalistic and confrontational. We have dedicated a whole teaching entitled, “The Stealth War Against The Truth Of The Gospel” that goes into far more detail. You can read it at:
http://www.rockofoffence.com/stwindex.html
Protestant Purgatory And Other Toxic Doctrines
Recently, I’ve been reading about a relatively new doctrine popping up in various Christian congregations. It’s not really a new doctrine, but an old heresy. Some concerned preachers refer to it as “Protestant Purgatory”. In its most simple form, Christians lacking zeal and devotion to Christ are told that they will be sent to a place of suffering (not necessarily hell) so that their sins can be purged. This teaching is very similar to the Catholic teaching about purgatory. In Catholicism, your time in purgatory is determined by the seriousness of your sin. In Protestant circles, some holiness preachers go as far to suggest that your stay might be permanent. As we said earlier, the soon-to-occur Tribulation period is used by some preachers as a type of purgatory for under performing Christians, or ones that live a “carnal” lifestyle. This teaching is many times connected to Scriptures such as Rev. 3:15-16, where Jesus says,
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth."
In this case, being “lukewarm” is interpreted as a life deficient of good works and religious performance, which demonstrates a lack of devotion to Jesus Christ. Being “vomited” out of Christ’s mouth” is understood to represent His total rejection and loss of salvation.
Other Scriptures, such as ones from Matthew’s Gospel, are also used to support the “Purgatory” doctine.
"But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 8:12)
"The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 13:41-42)
“But his lord answered and said to him, You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents. For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 25:26-30)
"Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ “For many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:13-14)
“Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’" (Matthew 25:1-12)
Note: A good alternate commentary on the “ten virgin” parable can be found at:
http://gracethrufaith.com/ask-a-bible-teacher/more-on-the-parable-of-the-10-virgins/#more-17547
The question and answer links provided on this web page are also a good source of insight that will clear up many popular misconceptions about this parable and the end-time rapture of the Church. Our inclusion of this link should not be understood as complete agreement with all beliefs of the author, who also may not agree with everything we teach.
The purgatory teaching in both the Protestant and the Catholic denominations is a direct result of failing to observe the context of the Bible. In some cases, ignoring context is a deliberate practice used by falsely religious people and theologians in order to deceive and dominate others. Whether it is done in ignorance or deliberately, it is spiritually disastrous for the Christian believer. In Protestant congregations, it is the result of various forms of Holiness and Reformed Theology, which also has context abuse issues in its foundational principles. The abuse of Bible context (or denying that any context exists in the Bible at all) is an extremely difficult practice to address because bad habits and wrong religious traditions do not change easily. These divisive issues have their expression in a spiritual war, which has divided the Church for nearly 2000 years. This war will not be resolved here. Again, we will be repetitive in our comments to keep this discussion on track.
We previously covered the fact that the Bible contains two different “covenants” and the different set of laws that govern each one. The first was God’s old covenant with Israel, which provided a “conditional” salvation based on religious works and performance. The second is Christ’s new covenant, established on His own blood, which didn’t officially begin until after the crucifixion. The new covenant wasn’t fully understood or preached until God called Saint Paul on the scene over 7 years later in Acts chapter 9 and gave him what Bible theologians call “The Pauline Revelation”.
Tragically, most Christians are never taught that the Pauline Revelation, recorded in Paul’s epistles, contain the operational rules for the New Testament Church under Christ’s new covenant of grace. However, a different revelation was given to the apostle John (the book of Revelation) for Israelites under the authority of the old covenant with its conditional performance-based salvation. Remember that Israel, as a nation, rejected Jesus as their Messiah. Peter went so far as to accuse them of murder (Acts 5:29-32). As a result, they also rejected the new covenant that Christ came to establish with them. At a future time toward the end of the Tribulation period, the Bible tells us that national Israel will repent and receive Jesus as their Messiah. Yet, when Jesus made His comments in Revelation 3:15-16, this event had not occurred and for Israel (also called “the circumcision” in the New Testament) the old covenant remained in force.
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, WHEN I WILL MAKE A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH – NOT ACCORDING TO THE COVENANT THAT I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS IN THE DAY THAT I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, AND THEIR SIN I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah preached, hundreds of years before Jesus Christ appeared on earth, that there would be a future “new covenant” that would be different than the old covenant that God made with Israel at the time of their exit from bondage in Egypt. Why is it that so many professing Christians live in a state of denial concerning the existence of these two different covenants?
The rejection and criminal execution of their Messiah is one reason Jesus is dealing with Israel in the book of Revelation under the harsh principles of the old covenant. The book of Revelation is about God’s future dealings with the nation of Israel and the unbelieving world following the conclusion of the Church Age (also known as “The Age of God’s Grace) during a time known as “Jacob’s Trouble”. End Time Bible students understand this period as “The Tribulation”. The book of Revelation is “Jewish centric” and was not generally directed at the mostly gentile Church, which is exclusively under the new covenant of Christ that they gladly received and accepted as God’s gift to them. God did not call John (the author of the book of Revelation) as an apostle equipped to reveal the mystery of Christ’s new covenant. Only Paul had this distinction and special call (Romans 11:13, Ephesians 3:1-9). John was called, by God, as an apostle to Israel, which is a major key to understanding his writings in Revelation. Many Christians are never taught that the new covenant exempts The Church from the judgments of the Tribulation period, which is the main subject of John’s Revelation account.
This is why it seems, to the casual Bible reader, that Jesus is basing His acceptance or rejection of the new covenant Church on their performance -- or whether their devotion to Him is hot, lukewarm or cold (Revelation 3:15-16). Yet, there is no contradiction between what Paul taught in his epistles and what Jesus is saying here. The key that unlocks the true interpretation of this passage is discovering which group Jesus is speaking to. In the New Testament section of our Bible Jesus says one thing to the Jews as their Messiah under the old covenant -- and something totally different as the Lord of the Church under the new covenant. The reason is that each covenant has different principles and laws. One covenant provides conditional salvation based on works and Law, which also results in punishment and judgment -- and the other (Christ’s new covenant) provides an unconditional salvation based on the unmerited characteristics of God’s Grace, which allows God to forgive and forget all our sin. The new covenant is called “a new and living way” (Hebrews 10:19-22) and a “better covenant established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6-7). Christ’s new covenant is radically different than the old covenant religious system. Covenants are legal institutions, initiated with blood, which God uses to interact with the human race. God’s covenants change, but God Himself does not change. The new covenant is called “a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22, Hebrews 8:6) because it’s different than the previous one. A vast majority of Christians do not consider this important fact.
The new covenant is called “a mystery”, which is why few Christians today understand its truths (Ephesians 3:1-12, Colossians 4;2-3). YOU CANNOT MIX THESE COVENANTS TOGETHER. It is a common practice among Christians and their leaders to merge the old and the new covenant into “one covenant” that has only “one message”. This is the main error of the Protestant Purgatory teaching and the many variants of Holiness Theology. Much of what’s known as “Christian Fundamentalism” is also involved in this error. Religious practices like these do violence to the context of God’s Word and results in a flood of false and misleading types of theology that many congregations are convinced are a true representation of God’s Word. The reason we can know that Jesus is not addressing the new covenant Church in Rev. 3:15-16 is that His rejection or acceptance of his audience is clearly not based on new covenant grace found in the Pauline Revelation, but on the old covenant conditional salvation requirements of religious performance and works. If you examine Christ’s words from Rev. 3:15-16, you can clearly see this difference. In these Scriptures, Jesus is not forgiving and “forgetting” sin, which is something both the prophet Jeremiah and the apostle Paul said was a characteristic of the new covenant. Jesus is condemning their lack of works and pronouncing His judgment against this failure, which is a known characteristic of the old covenant. Few believers discern or honor this important issue concerning the context of the Bible.
Unlike Israel’s old covenant, Christ’s new covenant is not based on our devotion, works, or obedience to Old Testament Law. It is based entirely on God’s Grace, which is defined as “the unmerited favor of God”. This is the reason eternal life is given to the Christian as “the gift of God”. If our lack of devotion and failure to do enough works truly results in being sentenced to “purgatory”, then our salvation can never be considered God’s gift. It also means that nearly half of the New Testament Scriptures that teach Christ’s new covenant are in question. This contradiction alone should be enough to alert most Christians that something is terribly wrong with popular holiness and purgatory teaching. These teachings are part of a direct attack on New Testament faith established on the grace of Christ and represent a “stealth spiritual war” that has been raging in the Christian Church for nearly 2000 years. These doctrines are specifically and skillfully designed for this nearly invisible assault, which is hidden behind efforts to encourage Christian unity found in the popular ecumenical and church-growth movements.
Let’s look at some new covenant Scriptures once again.
“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. BUT TO HIM WHO DOES NOT WORK BUT BELIEVES ON HIM WHO JUSTIFIES THE UNGODLY, HIS FAITH IS ACCOUNTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man TO WHOM GOD IMPUTES RIGHTEOUSNESS APART FROM WORKS: "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; BLESSED IS THE MAN TO WHO THE LORD SHALL NOT IMPUTE SIN." (Romans 4:4-8)
"AND IF BY GRACE, THEN IT IS NO LONGER OF WORKS; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work." (Romans 11:6)
"But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, NOT BY WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH WE HAVE DONE, BUT ACCORDING TO HIS MERCY HE SAVED US, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that HAVING BEEN JUSTIFIED BY HIS GRACE we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life." (Titus 3:4-7)
IF YOU WRONGLY BELIEVE, LIKE MOST CHRISTIANS, THAT THE NEW TESTAMENT IS GIVING US ONLY ONE MESSAGE, it is easy to think that these Scriptures contradict what Jesus says in Rev. 3:16. If you find yourself in this unfortunate group, you are immediately faced with a horrible decision: Either Saint Paul or Jesus is lying. Many Christians take the position that Jesus is right because He is the Lord -- and Paul is wrong because he is just an ordinary man. If you decide to agree that Jesus’ words in Rev. 3:16 applies to believers under the new covenant, then you must conclude that Paul’s epistles to the Church, which accounts for nearly one-half of the New Testament canon, are false and misleading. Sadly, some major Christian denominations quietly doubt Paul’s writings for these reasons. Now we can understand where some of this bad mainstream Christian doctrine comes from. Several years ago I listened to a television program on “The Bible” (I think it was on the Discovery Channel) produced by a group of theologians associated with the National Council Of Churches. They “floated” the idea that Paul was possibly a “rogue apostle” and that his writings should not be taken literally because they disagreed with some of Christ’s teachings. These were the Biblical “experts” of our day that possessed many impressive seminary degrees. Most Christians think that these “experts” must be right because of their great knowledge and educational qualifications. If you’re in this group, this is a spiritually deadly mistake.
The Context Of The New Testament
Most of the writings in the New Testament covering Christ’s earthly ministry before the cross, especially the writings found in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, occur under the old covenant with it’s “conditional” salvation requirements. Many (but not all) of the comments Jesus made during this time were under the authority of the old covenant and were directed at Israel -- not the current “blood-bought” New Testament Church, which is under a radically different covenant with God (read Hebrews 8:6-7). Some Christians view Christ’s words as proof for the existence of a “purgatory”, or even the loss of salvation for the New Testament believer who does not meet certain performance standards. Yet, it is actually a serious and grievous failure to discern which audience Jesus is speaking to. These types of failures commonly result in the religious cult-like activity we see in the Christian Church today. In these Scriptures, Jesus is speaking to the Jewish nation as their Messiah. During this time, Israel was still under old covenant laws and principles, because Christ had not yet paid the price to establish the new covenant, which allowed the birth of the present New Testament Church to take place. The new covenant had to be in force before the New Testament Church could come forth. Jesus had to first be crucified before the new covenant could begin. Everything Jesus said about the failure of the Jews to completely obey God’s Law (known as “lawlessness”) and the consequences of their disobedience WERE CORRECT FOR THE SPECIFIC GROUP HE WAS SPEAKING TO.
Many modern-day Christians and their leaders continue to apply Christ’s warning in these accounts to the wrong group. The result of ignoring context is “Protestant Purgatory” and all the countless and tragic variants of “Holiness Theology”. It fools believers because they are told the teaching is from God’s Word. However, the doctrine is actually based on Scripture that is skillfully removed from the context where our Heavenly Father originally placed it. In this confusing situation, the teaching ceases to be God’s Word and becomes another religiously vexing church doctrine created by man. We try to address the improper way most modern-day Christians handle the Holy Scriptures. Yet, this warning usually falls on deaf ears.
Answers To Some Important Questions
Question: Didn’t John write the book of Revelation after the new covenant began? Doesn’t this prove that you are wrong and that the words of Christ from Rev. 3:15-16 are actually directed at the New Testament believer today?
As we said earlier, we do not expect that our comments in this article will change very many minds that are already made up to the contrary. Most Christians avoid the topic of Bible context like the plague because it’s too emotionally painful; challenging our most cherished and trusted beliefs and traditions. Also, religious traditions don’t change overnight without a lot of work. In this situation, we must leave one intense doctrinal war being fought over the differences between a covenant of Law and Christ’s new covenant of Grace -- and enter another intense war being fought over the true meaning of end-time events. Unfortunately, we cannot address any part of the book of Revelation without making this transition, at least in part. The problem with wrong forms of theology is that they are skillfully and deliberately designed to be difficult, or even impossible to refute. This is why we can hear the frustration in Peter’s words when he refers to some of these wrong doctrines as “damnable heresies”. He considered them “damnable” because it’s nearly impossible to give believers a concise “air-tight” defense. When context is ignored in the Bible, you can make it say just about anything you want. In this painful situation, all you can do is watch as these wrong teachings destroy good people for whom Christ died. Most Christians will not want to endure the detail required for this Biblical research effort. At some point, we must trust the Holy Spirit, as the teacher of the Church, to guide the reader into all the truth as He promised.
There are some Bible interpretation ground rules that must be understood in order to properly answer these questions. Some things are repetitious and were discussed earlier in this article.
1. The Bible is a “divided” book. It is not “one book” with only “one message”, as a majority of Christians are taught. The Bible is divided into two general parts: God’s old covenant with Israel (Judaism) and God’s new covenant with the mostly gentile Church. Paul told Timothy that to properly teach the Scriptures he must “rightly divide” God’s Word. The phrase “rightly divide” means to “correctly divide” and to properly discern the different rules and principles that exist between these two major covenants that make up our Bible. Most Christians cannot accept this truth. If that happens to be you – stop here and look elsewhere for your answers.
2. Christ’s new covenant did not start at the beginning of the Gospel of Matthew, where the New Testament section of our Bible begins. The preaching of the new covenant began a few years following Christ’s crucifixion. The New Testament opens with the Gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. These books provide the TRANSITION from Israel’s old covenant with God -- to Christ’s new covenant with the Church, which the Bible calls “a better covenant established on better promises” (Hebrews 7:22, Hebrews 8:6). Most, but not all, of the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John (especially Matthew), which contains the earthly words of Christ, were under the authority of God’s old covenant with Israel, which provided a “conditional” salvation based on works and religious performance. This is yet another truth that most Christians cannot accept, but it’s true anyway.
3. The New Testament ends with John’s revelation of Jesus Christ (the book of Revelation), which begins with Jesus Christ addressing and confronting the 7 churches. It continues with an account of how God confronts and judges Israel for rejecting their Messiah, judges the remaining unbelieving nations of the world that hates God and His Christ and brings the six thousand year rule of mankind to an end. Since the new covenant Church is not under God’s condemnation that brings judgment (Romans 8:1), Saint Paul teaches that she is removed from the earth BEFORE this intense time of judgment, understood as the Tribulation period. The Age of Grace, or the Church Age that is ushered in by Christ’s new covenant, comes to a close when the Church is removed. This event is commonly called “the rapture”, which is an English word derived from a Biblical Greek word that means “departure, removal or to snatch away”. The word “rapture” is not found in the Bible. But, the Greek word that carries its root meaning (departure) is in the Bible. The Tribulation period lasts for 7 years. When Christ’s new covenant Church is removed and the Age of Grace ends, the final 7 years on earth will be ruled, once again, by the old covenant. Why? Israel rejected the new covenant and crucified their Messiah. God gave them a chance to repent and participate in the new covenant that provided complete and total forgiveness for this horrible sin, but they refused (Read Acts 13:45-46). Think about that. This stubborn act of unbelief left our Heavenly Father no other choice. For this reason God will go back to the point where this serious sin occurred and pass judgment on them according to the harsh laws governing old covenant conditional salvation they were under at that time.
4. It is impossible for judgment to be exercised against sin while the new covenant is in authority. When we re-examine what the prophet Jeremiah said, we learn that the new covenant has the following characteristic:
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, WHEN I WILL MAKE A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH . . . For I will forgive their iniquity, AND THEIR SIN I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
Contrary to a majority of popular Christian beliefs, under the new covenant, God doesn’t judge sin – HE IMMEDIATELY FORGIVES AND REFUSES TO REMEMBER IT. Some Christians wrongly believe that this means God refuses to remember the minor sins -- but those willful, habitual and major sins -- He’s going to remember and punish us for those. HOWEVER, THAT’S NOT WHAT IT SAYS! JEREMIAH IS SAYING THAT GOD REFUSES TO REMEMBER ALL OUR SIN. Saint Paul taught that when a Christian commits sin under Christ’s new covenant, it is not imputed to the sinner’s account (Romans 4:7-8, 2 Cor. 5;18-19). Why? Jesus paid the price for all our sin -- past, present and future. After Jesus paid the entire price for sin, using His own blood to do so, it is now illegal for God to hold them against us. That’s why He says that He refuses to remember them anymore.
Both Jeremiah and Paul are giving us an accurate picture of God’s amazing Grace. Sadly, the leaders who secretly oppose the totally free nature of the new covenant today cheat many professing Christians out of this incredible truth. This is the reason we know that the new covenant cannot be in force during the judgments of the Tribulation. The “conditional” nature of the reestablished old covenant is what allows the harsh and destructive judgments to take place during this time on earth. These events have absolutely nothing to do with the Church, which is why she is removed before all of these horrible things occur (1 Thess. 4;16-18). It is impossible for the Church, which is birthed by the new covenant, to be subjected to the authority and condemnation (Rom. 8:1) of the old covenant during the Tribulation period. Once again let me repeat, “It is impossible”. Anyone teaching otherwise is not giving you the truth. At the conclusion of the Tribulation, Jesus Christ will physically return to the earth and officially end the rule of all human government. At the physical return of Christ, the old covenant will permanently end and the millennial reign of Jesus Christ begins.
Based on these facts, here is our answer to the above questions.
When Jesus is pronouncing these judgments against those He calls “lukewarm” in Rev. 3:15-16, His words are being directed to people under the old covenant with its conditional salvation requirements and not the New Covenant Christian (or what Paul calls the Church, the body of Christ), who is securely under God’s Grace and His clearly stated refusal to remember our sin. How can we know this? In Romans 8:1 Paul tells the new covenant church that they are not under condemnation (God’s wrath and judgment). Paul repeats this truth in other Scriptures:
"Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, WE SHALL BE SAVED FROM WRATH THROUGH HIM." (Romans 5:9)
"For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, EVEN JESUS WHO DELIVERS US FROM THE WRATH TO COME." (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10) Note: The wrath to come is the Tribulation period (also known as “The Day of the Lord”) that the apostle John documents in the book of Revelation.
"FOR GOD DID NOT APPOINT US TO WRATH, BUT TO OBTAIN SALVATION THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, WHO DIED FOR US, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him." (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10)
However, the very nature of old covenant conditional salvation, which demands obedience to a system of laws, is to condemn and judge all disobedience, failure and sin. Paul tells us this by saying . . .
"BECAUSE THE LAW (THE OLD COVENANT) BRINGS ABOUT WRATH (JUDGMENT); for where there is no law there is no transgression." (Romans 4:15)
Jesus is using condemning and strong judgmental language in Rev. 3:15-16 for His audience’s failure to produce devoted works, which He calls being “lukewarm”. The language Christ uses here clearly tells us that the seven churches He’s speaking to is not under the new covenant. This is not a minor issue. It’s one of the keys to properly understanding the book of Revelation.
What Is “The Church”?
In Matthew 16:18, Jesus makes a statement of great importance:
". . . I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18, Words of Jesus Christ)
Notice, at this specific time during His earthly ministry, Jesus uses the phrase “I will”, which indicates that this is something He’s going to build in the near future. He didn’t say, “I have built My Church”. He didn’t say, “I am currently building My church and I’ll soon have it completed”. The kind of church Jesus was referring to was not in existence at the time He made this statement. Shortly, we will better understand why this is important.
In the book of Acts we see something that confuses a lot of Bible readers. What we know as “The tabernacle in the wilderness” that housed the presence of God where the “congregation of Israel” gathered to worship, is referred to as “the church in the wilderness”. This occurred under the authority of the old covenant in the Old Testament.
"This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us" (Acts 7:37-38)
We should discern that this isn’t the same church that Jesus said He would build in the future. This causes us to discover that there are least two different definitions of the world “church” in the Bible.
In the book of Revelation, we are introduced to the “seven churches”:
"John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come" (Rev. 1:4)
"I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.” (Rev. 1:10-11 Words of Jesus Christ spoken to John)
What do these churches of John’s Revelation represent? Many Christians assume or are taught by their pastor that they represent the New Testament “church”, which exists today. As you can see, there can be lots of confusion and opinions about these things.
Most of us would agree that whenever we hear the word “church” used in normal conversation, it would be foolish to assume that it means the same “church” that Jesus spoke about in Matthew 16:18 or the one Saint Paul wrote about in his epistles. In our society, this word is applied to almost any religious institution, regardless of their doctrine or beliefs. In the occult, Satan has his own church. Did you know that? In most people’s mind the word “church” means a building where people gather to worship God (or a “house of worship”). Some people believe it’s “God’s house”. Whatever definition is assigned to it, our understanding of the word “church” directly influences our ability to properly interpret many important teachings of the Bible. There are a lot of different emotional beliefs that surface whenever we begin to discuss this topic. Every religious group (interestingly, many of these groups are called a “church”) has their own definitions and “spin”. The Catholics believe one way -- the Protestants another – the Pentecostals another – the Charismatics another, and so on. Christ’s apostles understood it differently than some of the English Bible translators expressed it in the versions of the Bible most of us read, which involves yet another complex and emotional layer of discussion.
Many years ago as a new Christian, I couldn’t wait to go out and purchase my own copy of an exhaustive Greek and Hebrew concordance. I chose Strong’s Analytical Concordance of the Bible. This is a huge hard-backed reference book about 3 inches thick. The sheer volume of information in this book is awesome. Today, we have computer software that gives us instant access to this data. Many of the Christians I knew at the time were convinced that their English translated Bible was accurate enough. Yet, something always bothered me. If this is true, why did men like Dr. James Strong and Dr. Robert Young (along with many others) spend most of their lives designing a literary tool that allowed Bible students to cross-reference English Bible words with their Greek and Hebrew counterparts? Why did many seminaries require courses in these same languages? The reason is, like it or not, that God chose to preserve His Word in the ancient languages of Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic. James Strong and Robert Young (and others) understood that our English language is imperfect compared to these ancient languages. They were afraid that easy access to only an English translation of the Bible could cause a misunderstanding of critical Bible truths. As a result, these dedicated men spent decades (they didn’t have computers in those days) putting together a tool that would allow serious Bible students to cross-reference English Bible words in order to uncover the true meaning of the ancient languages behind them. The problems we struggle with concerning the true definition of the English word “church” can be traced back to some of these “English Bible translation” issues. Unfortunately, Holiness Theology and the Protestant Purgatory teachings take full advantage of this confusion involving Bible translation. Most Christians never think about these problems because it’s just too complicated and confusing.
The controversy and strife will not be resolved until Jesus returns to set the record straight. It certainly won’t be resolved in these writings. Yet, some of us can find the truth about this subject now, if our desire is strong enough.
It is not our goal to provide an in-depth study of the word “church” and its Greek root meanings. For this reason, we will restrict our comments to several major points and attempt to keep things “generalized”. Yet, many of the problems connected to Holiness Theology result from an improper understanding of “church”, especially the way the translators of our English Bible interpret the writings of John in the book of Revelation. We must briefly address this area of fierce controversy because it affects the way we understand the old and new covenants. If we possess a flawed understanding of this subject, it can cause all kinds of confusion related to the context of the Bible.
The English word “church”, as used in our modern Bibles, generally has two different root meanings in the original Greek language from which they were translated. There are actually more than two root meanings, but we will limit this discussion to keep the complexity of this discussion from spiraling out of control. Unfortunately, our English translated Bible uses the same word, “church”, for each different root meaning. The Bible translators did the same thing with the English word “salvation”. In this situation, there are three totally different root meanings associated with the Greek word “sozo” (meaning salvation) – but the same general word “salvation” is used in most all situations, despite the differences. Here is an example:
"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling . . ." (Philippians 2:12)
Most casual Bible readers rely only on the English word “salvation” in this Scripture, not realizing that there are at least three different specific forms of this general word in our English Bible translations. For this reason, many Christians are led astray in their faith by assuming that Paul is saying that our “salvation”, which they wrongly interpret in this case to mean “eternal life”, is acquired by earning it, or through “working it out” by performing good works. If that’s true -- and they believe it is -- it causes them to draw the conclusion that eternal life can be lost if we don’t perform these devoted works. Yet, Paul repeatedly and sternly warned believers that salvation, understood as “eternal life”, is never acquired or kept in this way.
These problems lead many believers into the serious error of legalism and the popular Holiness Theology teachings when they depend only on the English translations of the Bible and don’t research the Hebrew and Greek root words from which they were translated. Dr. Robert Young and Dr. James Strong were correct to be concerned about this serious problem. What they feared is now happening all over what we understand as “The Christian Church”. Yet, thanks to the efforts of these men, any devoted Bible student can use a Hebrew-Greek concordance to do this research. However, most of us just believe what we hear in a church service and trust that it’s the truth because it comes from seminary-trained people. This is why much of the heated controversy that divides the worldwide Christian Church will never be resolved until Jesus returns at the end of the age.
The Dual Meaning Of The Word “Church”
One of the early versions of the popular Smith Bible Dictionary suggests that the different derivatives of the word “church” used in our English Bibles are unclear. I’ve read various Bible research commentaries that attempt to address this uncertainty. However, to accomplish this massive task, they write lengthy and complicated explanations that go into the details of the ancient Greek language of the Bible in such a way that nobody, except for a few serious Bible students, would attempt to read them. There are at least 7 different Greek root words in the Bible that are understood to mean “assembly” or “congregation”, which are then translated into the general English word “church”. We will not examine these words in this commentary. A congregation is simply a gathering (or assembly) of God’s people. The Jewish congregation we read about in the Old Testament was directly connected to the “Tabernacle in the wilderness” (made out of various tents, which were designed to be portable) and later on . . . with the Temple (as a permanent building made with stone) located in Jerusalem. This congregation of God’s people in the Old Testament and the tabernacle in the wilderness was referred to in Acts 7:37-38 as “the church in the wilderness”. Yet, this church appeared thousands of years before the unique church that Jesus said He would build in the future (Matthew 16:18). The same English word is used in both situations, yet each one has a totally different meaning.
Some Bible students refer to “the tabernacle in the wilderness” as a “type and shadow” (something symbolic) of what Jesus would do in the future. The presence of God dwelled in the “Holy of Holies” of this Old Testament tabernacle and pointed to a future time where God’s presence, the Holy Spirit, would dwell in the earthly tabernacles (physical bodies) of Christ’s new covenant people. This is why Paul calls us (the church ekklesia) “The Temple (or Tabernacle) of the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 6:19, 1 Cor. 3:15-17). The Israelites in the Old Testament did not have God’s presence dwelling in their physical body. Yet, Christ’s new covenant people do. It is this “indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit” that makes the church, which Jesus said He would build, totally different from the congregation (also translated as “church”) of Israel in the Old Testament.
The church that Jesus builds comes from the Greek word “ekklesia”, which means, “Called out ones”. In this unique situation, these “Called out ones” are a special group of people and not a church building, as many Christians choose to believe. Under the new covenant, the church (ekklesia-people) may meet in a building, yet the building itself is not the church. Referring to a building as “a church” reveals a serious problem where most Christians are actually not living under the mindset of Christ’s new covenant, but under the old covenant where a building was the tabernacle or church.
At the time Christ said that He would build His church in Matthew 16:18, four major things needed to happen before it could take place.
- First, Jesus had to offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins on the cross to initiate the new covenant (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20, 1 Cor. 11:25, 2 Cor. 3:6).
- Second, His Father had to raise (or resurrect) Him from the dead (read 1 Cor. 15:3-4).
- Third, Jesus had to ascend back to His Father in Heaven (John 16:7-11, Acts 1:11).
- Fourth, the Holy Spirit had to arrive on earth to indwell believers (John 14:16-17).
All these things had to happen before Christ could “build His church”, which is why He indicated, during His earthly ministry before the cross that this special group called “the church” (ekklesia) was yet future. All these things happened according to God’s plan and we are now in the Age of Christ’s Church (The Ekklesia) or, the Age of Christ’s “called out ones”. Paul also calls the church (ekklesia), “the body of Christ” (1 Cor. 12:27). Both terms refer to the same group. The English word “church” (ekklesia) is radically different than the general word “church” (a congregation, gathering, tabernacle or building) used in other places in the Bible. Yet, our various English Bible translations do not make this distinction. This is one reason preachers and theologians who teach Reformed Theology insist that “the church” wasn’t birthed on Pentecost following Christ’s crucifixion as many Christians believe, but has always existed since the days of “the church (congregation) in the wilderness”, which was the early nation of Israel. To casual readers of the Bible, this teaching looks correct -- yet it’s false and misleading. It is the result of confusing these different definitions of the English word “church”. Unfortunately, this kind of distortion is found in many foundational Christian doctrines.
The Pauline Revelation Reveals The True
Nature Of Christ’s Church, The Ekklesia
On the night before His crucifixion, at what we call “The Last Supper”, Jesus told His disciples that His blood (represented by the communion cup) initiates a new covenant (Matthew 26:28, Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20, 1 Cor. 11:25, 2 Cor. 3:6). The church (ekklesia) is built upon Christ’s new covenant -- not the previous old covenant and its conditional salvation requirements under Judaism required by Old Testament Law. That means the salvation of the church (ekklesia) is based on something totally different. Again, the book of Hebrews calls it “a new and living way” (Hebrews 10:19-22). Previously, we read the words of the prophet Jeremiah, who said that under a future “new covenant”, God forgives all sin AND REFUSES TO REMEMBER THEM ANYMORE (Jeremiah 31:31-34). This was an Old Testament prophetic glimpse into the incredible freedom and liberty that Christ’s church (ekklesia) would enjoy thousands of years later. Even though Jeremiah was directing this future promise at Israel, we now understand that the new covenant includes both Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 2:11-22).
Christ’s new covenant and the church (ekklesia), which was established upon its promises and principles, represent what Scripture calls “a mystery”. Saint Paul said that God gave him the full revelation of the new covenant, which he called “The Mystery of Christ”. No one else was given this revelation before Paul arrived on the scene. No one else was ordained by God as an apostle to oversee the preaching of its unique truths. Contrary to some popular teaching, Saint Paul exclusively held this office. This is why you don’t see Christ’s new covenant taught in very many places in the New Testament, other than Paul’s epistles to the church.
"For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles -- if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him." (Ephesians 3:1-12)
Because of the massive failure of the worldwide Christian Church to respect the context of the Bible, few Christian believers today properly understand this mystery. Most think the death of Jesus on the cross for our sins is the sum total of this revelation. While Christ’s crucifixion initiated the new covenant and is critically important, it is only part of the entire story. The mystery of Christ reveals a Divine new covenant, based entirely on the blood of Jesus that does not condemn the church (ekklesia) for sin because Jesus paid the entire cost “for us” by using His blood as payment. Many of the mainstream attacks in the modern worldwide Christian Church against Christ’s new covenant of grace attempts to place sin back on the believer after Jesus paid the price to eternally remove it.
The Church, As The Ekklesia Of God
Is The New Temple Of The Holy Spirit
The church (ekklesia) is a blood-bought group of “called out ones” that have, for the first time, God’s very own Holy Spirit dwelling inside them (1 Cor. 6:19-20, 1 Cor. 16:9, 1 John 4:4). Under the old covenant of the Old Testament, God dwelled in the “Holy of Holies” of the Jewish Tabernacle or Temple. Under Christ’s new covenant, God dwells inside the body of the Christian believer. Except for some “types and shadows”, nothing like the ekklesia existed before the cross. These special “called out ones” are referred to as “new creatures in Christ” (2 Cor. 5:17). Someone once said that they are a “species of being that has never existed before”. I like that. Here’s what Paul had to say to this special group -- the ekklesia.
"Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s." (1 Cor. 6:19-20)
"Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are." (1 Corinthians 3:16-17)
"But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." (Romans 8:9-11)
Except for this special group call the church (ekklesia), no other gathering or congregation, which is also called “a church” in the Bible was indwelled with God’s Holy Spirit. This “indwelling” of God’s Spirit is one of the special characteristics of “the church” that Jesus said He would build.
Under the new covenant, God does not condemn the members of the ekklesia for a failure to perform enough works (Romans 8:1), even though good works are declared to be important. Also, unlike the old covenant, the new covenant does not impute sin to the ekklesia’s account (Romans 4:3-8, 2 Cor. 5:18-21). This radical new benefit agrees perfectly with what Jeremiah said hundreds of years earlier -- that under a future new covenant, God will refuse to remember our sin.
This is why we know that Jesus is not speaking to the church (ekklesia) in Rev. 3:15-16, even though the English words “church and churches” are used to identify them. Anytime we see Jesus judging His audience for their sin, we can safely conclude that the group He is speaking to is not the blood-bought church (ekklesia), but a congregation of people (also called “the church” in the Bible) that are outside the authority and blessing of the new covenant. Again, it’s unfortunate that many Christians are taught to reject these truths.
Conclusion
The “Spiritual Parenthesis” -- A Characteristic
Of “The Mystery Of Christ”
The Age of Grace (or the age of Christ’s new covenant) represents something that theologians call “a spiritual parenthesis”. In the Old Testament, we start out with the Age of Law, also called “the old covenant”. Jesus, as the Jewish Messiah, is born of the Virgin Mary, and His own people (Israel) later rejects and crucifies Him.
"He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:10-14)
The spiritual parenthesis begins at Christ’s crucifixion. When Israel “cut off Jesus their Messiah”, they also temporarily cut themselves off. As a result of this horrendous act, God temporarily suspends his old covenant dealings with Israel and focuses his attention on the new covenant Gentile Church (the ekklesia), which is founded on the Grace of Christ. After the crucifixion, God begins what many believe will be a period of 2000 years called “The Church Age of Grace” under the apostleship of Saint Paul. At an undisclosed future time, God will remove the new covenant Church from the earth at the rapture, which also closes the spiritual parenthesis and ends the Age of Grace. He then re-establishes the old covenant and deals with Israel again -- at the exact point where they rejected and crucified (cut off) His Son nearly 2000 years ago. The process involves 7 years of intense judgment that restores a remnant of Jews who recognizes their error and eagerly receives Jesus as their Messiah. This entire end-time event covering 7 years (the last week of years of Daniel’s 70 week prophecy, also known as “Jacob’s Trouble”) concludes at the physical Second Coming of Christ.
All of this is a brief snapshot of the plan of God covering thousands of years of human history. It may sound as if we’re teaching a “private interpretation” of the Bible in this commentary. However, there are other preachers and teachers that hold the same view as our own. The differences usually occur between those who respect the context of the Bible and those who do not. Both groups claim that their teaching is God’s Word. One group is wrong. Christian believers need to become a student of the Bible and arrive at their own conclusions. Just casually reading the Bible is not enough. There’s a reason that the apostle Paul warned about being tossed about by “every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14). The worldwide Christian Church is currently under a deluge of false and misleading Christian teachings masquerading as “The Word of God”. Spiritually speaking, it’s a very dangerous time to be alive. We are still in the Age of God’s Grace. But, the door is about to shut. May the Lord of the new covenant open the eyes of our heart while we can still freely receive God’s total forgiveness and experience the freedom created by His refusal to remember our sin as taught by both Jeremiah and Saint Paul.
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