The Bondage Of Tredmill Religion
A Rock Of Offence Commentary
Every Christian should desire to live a Holy life. A simple definition of holiness is a life “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 “holy living” is God’s additional requirement that must be satisfied 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. Their beliefs are 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.
Paul shares his personal struggles with sin -- and the solution.
"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 knew 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 condition 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 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. However, millions of Christians are taught by their churches that it does. Why did 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 God will take your salvation away. 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. But, 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, the confession of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ acts as a key that unlocks the door (Jesus Christ is called "the door" in John 10:7-10) and allows us access to everything He 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.
Important: Christ’s new "unconditional" covenant does not say 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 clever 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
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