Grace, Faith, and Obedience - Understanding the Relationship - 119 Ministries (Remastered)

[Music] [Music] hello and welcome to another teaching by 119 ministries our ministry teaches that the whole Bible is true and applicable for our lives today if you would like to know more about what we believe in teach please visit us at test everything net we hope that you enjoy studying and testing the following teaching [Music] [Music] [Music] what is grace faith and obedience and how do they all work together are some of these concepts pitted against each other or do they work together in perfect harmony do they change and evolve or does God have a consistent plan and Method throughout all the time even though an understanding of these concepts are critical to even a basic scriptural understanding there's often too much confusion surrounding the biblical meaning and relationship of these terms if you have ever heard someone saying that listening and obeying that commandment of God is also rejecting His grace or if you believe that as well then this teaching should serve well as always we encourage you to test the study to his word this study will define the terms discuss the relationship and then bring in scripture to offer additional clarity definition and support so let's define the terms grace in any dictionary grace is often defined simply as unmerited favor it is the receipt of something in which you did nothing to earn God's grace is simply God extending his unmerited favor on his undeserving people there is nothing we can do to earn Yahweh's grace grace by its own definition means that it is freely given by God through no action of our own God owes us nothing we are all undeserving of any blessing and only deserved a curse death because we have all failed at keeping God's law perfectly God's ultimate act of grace is his gift of salvation saving us from the second debt faith faith is the foundation and source of all of our behavior faith is the believing committing and trusting in God and His word God is defined as his word and Jesus his Hebrew name Yeshua is defined as the word made flesh having faith in God and Yeshua is the very same as stating one has faith beliefs commits and trusts in God's Word it is simply not possible to state that one has faith in Yeshua and then conclude that something in scripture is to no longer be true as Yeshua is the word and the word is Yeshua if your schewe is true then God's Word is completely true even today there should be nothing in scripture that we should conclude is no longer true God's Word and God Himself are inseparable and scripturally one in the same Yeshua walked and practiced God's Word perfectly and thus is defined as the Word made flesh in the book of John therefore faith in God faith in Yeshua and faith in the word are all one and the same obedience and works obedience is the result of our true faith it is the resulting output of believing committing and trusting in God's Word after faith and Trust has already been established the more faith one has in God's Word the more that faith will manifest in their observed behavior as obedience and a doing of God's Word and will obeying God is simply a matter of obeying his instructions his instructions are outlined by his Commandments in his word the summary of all Commandments are often referred to as his law in Hebrew the Torah which simply means instructions God's holiness and righteousness are defined by his own law and has existed since the beginning we are commanded to be holy as he is holy holy simply means being set apart when one believes with all the heart soul and mind that something is true consequently one behaves and acts is so it is true by completely applying it in their life to the best of their ability let's define the relationship of these terms we have all fallen short of God's perfect righteousness as defined by his law the instructions for men God's law was given to us to bless us if we obey and curse us if we disobey which is sin God's instructions His Word has existed since the beginning does nothing in God's Word is ever new we are always just in the state of trying to understand his word better which is actually the same thing as understanding God himself better we have all broken God's law and thus we are all under their curse Paul calls this the law of sin and death the breaking of God's law is sin and the consequence of sin is eternal death once under grace through faith we are no longer under the law of sin and death as was written by Paul in Romans chapters 5 through 8 God offered man a way to eternal life if we have faith if we believe and we commit and trust in him God did not have to offer this to us for any reason whatsoever he owes us nothing and we can do nothing ourselves to escape what we rightfully deserve which is eternal death does anything got extends as a benefit to us is an act of grace or unmerited favor his plan of salvation is an extension of His grace out of his love for us God's Word outlined a plan for our salvation from God's wrath that plan was manifest in Yeshua our Messiah at the appointed time you should dine on the cross abolish the curse that resulted from our disobedience to God's law the finished work on the cross is the ultimate act of God's grace we certainly did not deserve to be saved from the second death and did nothing to earn it Yeshua is God's ultimate act of grace for mankind God's grace is a demonstration of his love for us the finished work on the cross eliminated the curse the law of sin and death for all those having faith and all of the instances of our failures at keeping God's law sin will not be held against us like those that will be judged and experienced the second death we will not be present at the great white throne judgment that leads to the second death it is those who have faith believe commit and trust in him and his word that will have eternal life when we keep God's law we still receive the blessings as originally prescribed but not the curse of the second death when we fail when we fail it is covered by grace through the work on the cross when we are obedient we still receive the blessings we still receive all the blessings of our obedience in this life and the blessings also extend into eternity as part of our rewards or crowns that we will receive at the Lord's return this is the Bema seat judgment in which all believers will experience which is different than the great white throne judgment or the second death at our judgment it will be determined whether will be least or great in the kingdom for all of eternity what we do in practice and His Word as believers now will echo into eternity on that day we know for certain that we are saved from the curse when we realize a continuous desire to keep God's commandments no fate equates to no desire to keep God's commandments there are only two paths the narrow path leading to the narrow gate and the broad path that leads to destruction few will take the narrow path if we have faith we will then have a desire to keep God's commandments and the greater the faith the greater the desire our faith is evidenced by our obedience because of our faith we strive to be obedient obedience is the keeping of God's commandments disobedience is defined as breaking God's commandments which is sin grace is God demonstrating his love for us our obedience is us demonstrating our love in return that is the relationship of love scripture declares we have with God here's how scripture defines the law the law blesses and curses it blesses us when we obey and we are cursed when we disobey Deuteronomy chapter 11 see I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse the blessing if you obey the commands of Yahweh your God that I am giving you today the curse if you disobey the commands of Yahweh your God the law defines sin if we break the law of God that is sin if we observe the law of God we stay out of sin first John 3 for every one who sins breaks the law in fact sin is lawlessness the law is perfect perfect means it cannot be made better perfect means that if you take any of it away it is no longer perfect psalm 19:7 the law of yahweh is perfect reviving the soul the statutes of Yahweh are trustworthy making wise the simple the law is Liberty it is freedom psalm 119 verses 44 through 45 so I will keep your log continually forever and ever and I will walk at liberty for I seek your precepts that means if you walk in the law of God you are free but free from what free from sin remember how Yeshua walked he walked the law of God remember how Christ said to walk how John said we should walk walk like he walked that is why Christ is freedom remember it is the truth that sets us free what is truth the law is truth psalm 119 verse 142 says it best your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness and your law torah is truth the law is the way Exodus 18 teach them his decrees and instructions and show them the way that they are to live and how they are to behave the law is life proverbs 6:23 for this command is a lamp this teaching is a light and correction and instruction are the way to life the law is light again proverbs 6:23 for the commandment is a lamp and the law a light reproofs of instruction are the way of life the law is Yeshua or Jesus the Word made perfect flesh he is perfect he is freedom he is the way the truth he is the life he is the light the law equals Yeshua revelation 19:13 he was clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God the law is also for those who are once Gentiles the foreigner or the alien but are now grabbed it into Israel there is no such thing as the law is just for the Jews numbers 15 one ordinance shall be for you of the Assembly and for the stranger who dwells with you and ordinance forever throughout your generations as you are so shall be the stranger before Yahweh one law and one custom shall be for you and for the stranger who dwells with you the law is God's instructions and how to love God and how to love others and how to not love yourself first John chapter 5 by this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his Commandments for this is the love of God that we keep his Commandments and His commandments are not burdensome so we need to do now is pull in Scripture to support and expand on a definition of and the relationship between grace faith and obedience first we will start with grace and second we will cover obedience and there are at least eight points to cover about obedience obedience is our purpose obedience is the evidence of our faith obedience is loving God and loving others obedience is the same as not sinning obedience to his law makes us his peculiar people obedience is to be our delight obedience is righteousness obedience leads us to blessings and eternal rewards throughout all of this we will discuss how faith plays a role in both grace and obedience grace grace is not just a New Testament concept God has always been a God of grace he does not change Malachi 3:6 the Lord has extended his grace since the garden by offering us grace through faith to keep us from experiencing the alternative the second death when God extended grace to his people it was always to those who had much faith which was evident in their behavior as obedience to God's law Noah was a preacher of righteousness he taught God's law 2nd Peter chapter 2 and he spared not the old world but saved Noah the eighth person a preacher of righteousness bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly and Noah received God's grace Genesis chapter 6 but Noah found grace in the eyes of Yahweh Moses received God's grace Exodus 33 then Moses said to Yahweh see you say to me bring up this people but you have not let me know whom you will send with me yet you have said I know you by name and you have also found grace in my sight those who walk upright are those who walk in their faith in obedience and does receive as Grace walking upright simply means striving to keep God's commandments Psalm 84 for Yahweh God is a Sun and shield Yahweh will give Grace and glory no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly the giving of Yahshua the Messiah was when God poured out in full the Spirit of His grace though God had been extending his grace from the beginning Yeshua is the ultimate act of grace for those who have faith in God and His Word it is through his work that enabled our salvation in the end this is why there is so much excitement and emphasis on Grace and the New Testament this is not because grace was a new thing but because God's promise active ultimate Grace and his love for us was just fulfilled Zechariah 12 and I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace and supplication when they will look on me whom they have pierced yes they will mourn for him as the one who mourns for His only Son and grieve for him as one grieves for a firstborn God shows his unconditional love by his ultimate act of grace through Yeshua to those who have faith believe commit and trust in his word 2nd Thessalonians 2 now may our Lord Yeshua HaMashiach himself and our God and Father who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace a summary of grace God's grace is not something that is new in the New Testament Scriptures God's grace through Yeshua is the primary way on how God revealed his love for us in full recipients of God's grace are those who place faith and trust in God His Word and Word made flesh obedience once a person has faith and has entered into God's plan of salvation then the concept of obedience plays a role in that person's life thus obedience is not a means to salvation but actually a direct result of our faith scripture defines and describes obedience in many different ways as mentioned earlier obedience is our purpose obedience is the evidence of our faith obedience is loving God and loving others obedience is the same as not sinning or obedience to Islam makes us his peculiar people obedience is to be our delight obedience is to be our righteousness obedience leads to blessings and eternal rewards so here we go obedience is our purpose the whole purpose of man is to obey God by striving to keep his Commandments Ecclesiastes chapter 12 verse 13 let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter fear God and keep his Commandments for this is the whole duty of man therefore our Purpose Driven Life is exactly what is written and commanded by God in Scripture deriving any other purpose for our lives other than what is written in scripture is deriving our purpose from man instead of from Yahweh God simply wants his people to be obedient because in that his will is and will be accomplished God does not want us deciding what our purpose is for ourselves and he does not want others deciding what our purpose is for us if our purpose is not coming from God himself then something or someone else has become our Lord we cannot serve two masters we already covered how scripture defines the law of God now watch how that definition answers why obedience defines the whole purpose of man our be D&C owes the world how God blesses us our obedience shows the world how not to sin our obedience shows the world that his ways are perfect our obedience shows a world that his ways are freedom our obedience shows the world that he is the only way our obedience shows the world that he is the only source of truth our obedience shows the world that only he can give life our obedience shines his light on the darkness of the world our obedience points them to Christ as the Savior our obedience shows the world true love our obedience is our witness to the nation's the next time we hear someone speaking negatively about God's law his instructions we can now see the absurdity of such a statement once we establish faith obedience is everything our obedience is what God uses to accomplish his will for mankind and He pours out his spirit on those who want to be an increasing part of the Father's will as noted in Ecclesiastes 12:13 fearing God is another part of our purpose fearing God is often associated with keeping his Commandments and gaining wisdom for example Psalm 111 the fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom all who follow his precepts have good understanding job 28 and unto man he said behold the fear of Yahweh that is wisdom and to depart from evil is understanding when we have great reverence or fear for Yahweh we are motivated to keep his Commandments to depart from evil which then leads to wisdom thus not keeping God's commandments is showing a lack of fear to God and disrespecting his ways disrespecting God's ways is the same as disrespecting God himself number 2 obedience is the evidence of our faith occasionally in Scripture it seems like obedience is what leads to salvation for example Hebrews 5:9 and being made perfect he became the author of eternal salvation unto all that obey Him and Matthew nineteen and behold one came and said unto Him good master what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life so he said to him why do you call me good no one is good but one that is God but if you want to enter into life keep the commandments and Acts chapter five we are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him we know for certain that obedience cannot earn us God's plan of salvation and doesn't negate God's grace and love for us if we were to trust in her own works for God's salvation then who are we placing our trust and faith in God or ourselves Ephesians chapter 2 for by grace you have been saved through faith and that is not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast that is as clear as day salvation is by grace through faith and not by works so in reality obedience is just the resulting output of our faith in God's Word when we have faith in trusting God and His Word it will manifest his obedience to God and His Word in our lives if one is not striving to obey God's Word out of a response to God's love his grace then that individual does not have faith romans chapter 1 through him and for his name's sake we received Grace and Apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith Romans 16 but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God so that all nations might believe and obey Him James chapter 2 but someone will say you have faith and I have works show me your faith without your works and I will show you my faith by my works in John 3:36 John wrote he who believes in the son has eternal life but he who does not obey the son shall not see life but the wrath of God abides on him it is unfortunate that this verse is not as well-known as John 3:16 do you not see the significant point in the passage the words believe and obey are put in positions of equality the writer is using that technique a repetition of the opposite as means of emphasis he who believes but he who does not obey the person who does not obey Christ does not truly believe in Christ another good illustration is found in acts 16 verses 30 through 33 the conversion of the Philippian jailer and reply to the question what must I do to be saved paulla Silas told the jailer to believe many like to read this verse and stop and then say he was only told to believe in order to be saved please read on however and observe that the other things were told the man the word of the Lord after which he was baptized which he could only have learned when they spoke to him God word look especially at verse 34 the jailer rejoiced greatly having believed in God what it is believing include and included obedience to the word of the Lord an included baptism a third example is in Hebrews chapters 3 and 4 verses 18 through 19 and to whom did he swear that they should not enter his rest but to those who were disobedient and so we see they were not able to enter because of unbelief compare this with Hebrews chapter 4 verse 2 where the Israelites fell in the wilderness because the word was not united by faith and also verse 6 which says they fail to enter the promised land because of disobedience please note that in these passages faith and obedience are used interchangeably their disobedience was a manifestation of their unbelief the point of course is that we must take care to not follow the same example of disobedience it should be also noted that we have not yet entered into that rest but we are still striving to enter it this is why Scripture teaches us that true belief is more than just intellectual ascension belief is the act of committing and trusting because of your belief that is true faith what matters is whether your belief is evidenced in your behavior and actions that is when we know the belief is real this is also known in Scripture as obedience or disobedience just before James stated that without works faith is dead he said verse 19 you believe that there is one God you do well the devil's also believe and tremble the demons also believe and apparently fear God but we do not see them committing and trusting in God and His Word do we that is the difference that is what scripture is trying to teach us if we truly believe in God then we would also believe the Bible and when we truly believe in the Bible then we would do what the Bible tells us do how could we not if we do not then we are no better than demons what happens if we decide to continue to be intentionally disobedient after we have already been sanctified by the blood of Christ that is a good question there is a situation of sinning accidentally you know making a mistake or sinning in complete ignorance of his word in contrast willfully and habitually sinning is the same as thumbing one's nose at God and still expecting to stay in his offerings of grace let me ask this question if one is willfully sinning even in secret is there really faith evident in the sense of believing committing and trusting God's word I would expect the answer to be no once we have been exposed to the truth we have a choice to either react to it appropriately in faith or continue to try to hide in the false coverings of men's doctrines instead of applying God's true doctrine we are afforded grace if we are truly deceived we are to be judged in the end to be either least or great in the kingdom regardless if we were deceived when we receive the truth and choose to ignore it that is a different story we are then insulting the spirit of grace and that results in God's wrath we are then destroying our faith in his word and thus faith and God himself for example hebrews chapter 10 if we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth and remember how we define truth earlier no sacrifice for sins is left but only a fearful expectation of judgment of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God so at that point you're considered an enemy of God anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses how much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the Covenant that sanctified him and who has insulted spirit of grace for we know Him who said it is mine to avenge I will repay and again the Lord will judge his people it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God there will be many that thought that they would be excited about the return of the Lord on the day of the Lord but scripture says many will be ashamed those who are covered by the truth of God's Word will not be ashamed those hiding behind a covering to the doctrines of men contrary to the truth will be ashamed just like in the garden the knowledge of sin exposed their nakedness and all they had was fig leaves there will be many just wearing fig leaves on the day of the Lord hiding from the Lord in shame instead of wrapped in clothes in the Word of God it is not possible to have faith and at the same time not strive to be obedient to God's Word James chapter 2 even so faith if it hath not works is dead being alone for as the body without the Spirit is dead so faith without works is dead also habitual and intentional sin breaking God's law is a symptom of something seriously wrong in a person's fate after they have been sanctified by the blood of the Covenant this is why faith is called the evidence of things not seen and the substance of things hoped for Hebrews chapter 11 now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen obedience is how we observe faith in ourselves and others it is how we will know them by their fruit it is the substance and it is the evidence in fact if one is not keeping the commandments in the best way that he knows how then he does not know God nor does he love God that sounds like a rather harsh statement to make but that is what Scripture clearly teaches we know that we have God's Spirit when we strive to keep his Commandments first John chapter 3 and he that keeps his Commandments dwells in him and he and him and hereby we know that he abides in us by the spirit which he has given us first John chapter 2 verses 3 and verse 5 and hereby we do know that we know him if we keep his Commandments verse 5 but if anyone obeys his word God's love is truly made complete in him this is how we know we are in him whoever claims to live in him must also walk as Yeshua did by keeping his Commandments we know whether we know God and at the same time we are observing a perfect way to love God even Abraham you know before Moses kept God's law the Torah as evidence of his faith Genesis 26 because that Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge my commandments my statutes and my laws in Hebrew Torah see how obedience is intimately connected to faith and knowing God all the scripture we have mentioned is just a sample of a theme that runs from Genesis to Revelation in the Bible these concepts are inseparable if faith exists then so must works otherwise it is not true faith if works exist they must be supported by faith in God and His Word in order to be true salvation resulting by faith just to be clear this is not declaring a works based salvation model it is faith that produces both works and salvation thus works cannot produce salvation in summary the extent of your faith in God can be directly measured by how much you desire to keep his Commandments as having faith is evidenced by our keeping of his Commandments by not keeping his Commandments we were demonstrating our lack of faith and we doubt God and His Word this is the same as not knowing God and also the same as not loving now number three obedience is loving God and loving others now remember as established earlier grace is God's demonstration of his love for us scripture also says first John chapter four we love Him because He first loved us so we are to love God back because he loved us first by His grace the question then becomes how do we love God are we to invent our own way to love God or does God tell us how he wants to be loved scripture says in 1st John chapter 2 verses 3 through 6 and hereby we do know that we know him if we keep his Commandments he that says I know him and keeps not his Commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him but whoso keeps his word in him verily is the love of God perfected here by know that we are in him he that says he abides in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked and first John chapter 5 verse 3 for this is the love of God that we keep his Commandments and His commandments are not Grievous thus keeping God's commandments is that means God gave us to love him back the way to love God is through keeping God's commandments as also said in John 14 if you love me keep my Commandments all love is defined through the keeping of God's commandments thus if we find a commandment from God in the Bible God intends that to be a means to love God and or love others second John chapter one and this is love that we walk after his Commandments this is the commandment that you have heard from the beginning you should walk in it this is nothing new God's law has always been about loving God and loving others since the beginning this is what the believers walk should be the same Commandments Yeshua walk are the same Commandments we should walk we should not walk differently than you sure himself if you walk differently than Yeshua are you really following him many forget that Yeshua or Jesus was a Sabbath keeping kosher eating feast observing and tassel wearing Jew you do not see many believers following those Commandments Jesus walked sometimes it is wise to stop and pause and ask the question why why do I walk differently than my Savior do I follow at different Jesus first John chapter 2 whomever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did how did you shoe a walk what was your shoe ax obedient to Yeshua kept God's commandments perfectly he showed his love for the father and love for others perfectly and his perfect obedience to God's law are we to not at least strive for the same yes it is true we are unable to walk perfectly like he did and we will fail but that is what the whole purpose of His grace is for we are still commanded to walk and follow him the best that we can with the spirit leading and supporting us the whole way is because of God's grace that we should want to love God back and scripture defines loving God back as a keeping of all of his Commandments not just some of them this is why it is such a tragedy if anyone remotely suggests we should focus more on God's grace which is God loving us instead of obedience which is loving God back who in their right mind would want to tell you when he returns that it was more important for us to focus on God loving us than us loving him back in obedience what type of relationship would that be would you tell your spouse that you're not interested in loving them back but it is more important that they should love you our relationship with God is intended to be a two sided relationship with grace and love and obedience as love that is a one-sided relationship or just grace now what is more important to you Grace or obedience what is more important loving back or being loved do you not see why scripture says many will be ashamed at his return he will ask many why didn't you love me scripture says that his coming many will be ashamed and we are called to be obedient to him so that we will not be ashamed this is why issue is said Matthew 22 Jesus said unto him you should love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul with all of your mind this is Yeshua quoting Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 5 as written in the law of God as written by Moses the Torah this is the first and Great Commandment and the second is like unto it you should love your neighbor as yourself this is Yeshua quoting Leviticus chapter 19 verse 18 and the law of God the Torah on these two Commandments hang all the law and the prophets Yeshua stated the most important commandment in God's law as written by Moses is love your God with all of your heart it was all of your soul and with all of your mind as it was just reviewed scripture clearly declares that loving God is accomplished by observing and practicing all not just some of God's commandments if obedience is the act of loving God then it logically follows that what scripture is teaching is that we should strive to be obedient to his Commandments to love God with all of our heart all of our soul and with all of our mind as was covered earlier it should be our whole purpose Ecclesiastes chapter 12 verse 13 this should not be a surprising conclusion to arrive at but to make it even easier Yeshua draws the conclusion for us in the very next verse in verse 40 he does not even force us to know the rest of Scripture and draw the correct conclusions he tells us the exact same thing Yeshua teaches us this principle which was not a new principle in the very next verse verse 40 when he just stated it all not just some of the law and prophets hangs off of these two Commandments this means that not having idols is an important way to love God likewise keeping his Sabbath is also just as important in loving God if you assure himself say that all of the law and prophets is the way to love God and to love others then why in the world would we begin to believe that some commandments no longer have any thing to do with love imagine two strings at the top of one string it says love God and on the top of the other string it says love others and at the end of both of these strings is every single other commandment found in God's Word all of the law and prophets this is why every commandment of God is important because loving God and loving others is important the law prophets is just another way of saying what we know today as the Old Testament in summary how you love God can be directly measured by how much you desire to keep his Commandments as loving God is defined by keeping his Commandments if we are to love God because He first loved us and loving God is defined by keeping his Commandments then disobedience is simply being ungrateful for His grace disobedience is the exact opposite of loving God in his eyes every time we sin we might as well look at our Lord and stay to him that we do not love him yes he forgives us in His grace but nonetheless this is what our sin means to him this is the same God who sent his son to die for us for no other reason than to express his love for us number four obedience is the same as not sinning Yeshua taught us to go and sin no more John chapter five afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him see you have been made well sin no more lest a worse thing come upon you John chapter 8 she said no one Lord and jesus said to her neither do i condemn you go and sin no more is it a fair thing to say that God does not want us to sin for anyone who has read even a portion of Scripture it does not take long to learn that guy does not want his people to sin every believer should understand already that God does not want us to sing that we are to avoid sin at every opportunity John said it well we are to strive to not sin but if we do sin then the grace of Jesus Christ covers us in our faith first John chapter 2 my little children these things I write unto you that you sin not and if any man sin we have an advocate with the father Jesus Christ Yeshua HaMashiach the righteous the question then becomes what is sin if God wants us to avoid sin he should at least define it for us so that we do not need to play the guessing game on these matters right sin is simply defined in Scripture as the breaking of God's law breaking his instructions it's not that complicated first john 3 for whosoever commits sin transgresses also the law for sin is the transgression of the law Romans 3:20 therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in the sight for by the law is the knowledge of sin thus being obedient to God's law is the same thing as avoiding sin Yeshua also taught us that it is our inward heart that either breaks or keeps God's law if we hate a brother then we might as well have committed murder if we are lost we might as well have committed adultery thus not only is there written code to be obeyed but this spirit or premise behind the law is to be obeyed as well you should taught us that is just not our actions that break God's law but our heart does as well in fact it is from the heart soul and mind that derives all of our behavior this is not a new teaching because this is exactly what the Old Testament clearly teaches however in the first century leadership had completely lost a purpose of God's law and their doctrine and teachings Yeshua was simply re teaching them and bringing them back to the basics now is it not clear why scripture commands us to love God you know to keep his Commandments with all of our heart soul in mind it is the inward heart that matters to God and it is all that is matters since the beginning because whatever we believe in wordly with all of our heart all of our Sol and with all of our mind is what we will express outwardly but he wants a new heart that is for his commandments not against them so not only do we want to understand and practice the law as it is written but we also want to understand the premise or spirit behind the law in our heart soul and mind and thus practice that understanding outwardly in our lives this is precisely why obedience is evidence of our faith and trust in God and His Word the reverse is also true disobedience is evidence of our lack of faith and trust in God asking ourselves the question do we want to avoid sin or not is the same as asking ourselves do we want to be obedient to God's law or not when we have Mitchell II and continuously sin by not being obedient then we enter the state of being rebellious this is what scripture teaches will happen to us if we practice such acts of disobedience Hebrews chapter 10 if we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth no sacrifice for sins is left but only a fearful expectation of judgment and raging fire that will consume the enemies of God anyone who rejects the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses how much were severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot who is treated as an unholy thing the blood of the Covenant that sanctified him and who has insulted the spirit of grace for we know him who said it is mine to avenge I will repay and again the Lord will judge his people if they dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the Living God number five obedience to his law makes us his peculiar people Exodus 19 verse 5 now therefore if you will obey my voice indeed and keep my covenant then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people for all the earth is mine Deuteronomy 26 verse 18 also today yahweh has proclaimed you to be his special people just as he promised you that you should keep all his Commandments Paul also stated that obedience is associated with being the Lord's peculiar people Titus chapter 2 verse 14 who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works Peter also wrote that not being disobedient and being in the light meaning walking in the law is what makes us the lord's peculiar people 1st Peter chapter 2 verses 8 through 9 and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense even to them which stumble at the word being disobedient we're in two also they were appointed but you are a chosen generation a royal priesthood an holy nation a peculiar people that you should show forth the praises of him who had called you out of darkness into his marvelous light the world finds obeying God strange and peculiar we are called to follow God's ways not the world's ways number 6 obedience is righteousness all scripture is for instruction and righteousness even the commandments that some teach have been supposedly abolished if it is in Scripture then according to his word anything scripture commands is instructions for righteousness for us no matter what men might tell us and their invented doctrines that certainly destroys most mainstream theological paradigms but truth is often not what is common just ask Noah just ask ancient Israel just ask the Pharisees the leaders and teachers of the day just ask end times prophecy shame on us for being so arrogant to believe that we could not make the same mistake in our fleshy bias and pride in reality it happens to be the cyclical pattern in the Bible with God's chosen people 2nd Timothy chapter 3 verse 16 all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction and righteousness John stated that whoever does righteousness is righteous first John 3:7 little children let no one deceive you he who practices righteousness is righteous just as he is righteous John also taught that if we decide not to do righteousness that not only are we not of God but we do not love others as well first John 3:10 and this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God nor is he who does not love his brother in fact Peter states that it is better to not have known the way of righteousness than to turn from it after we understand it on the day of judgment for believers we will be judged more harshly by what we should have known through the reading of his word and also by what we have taught others 2nd Peter chapter 2 4 it would have been better for them to not have known the way of righteousness than after they had known it to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them unrighteousness is sin first John 5:17 all unrighteousness is sin James 4:17 to know to do right and not do it is sin and as defined earlier sin is transgression of the law thus unrighteousness is the breaking of God's law and righteousness is obviously obedience to God's law however our own righteousness by keeping God's law will never be righteous enough to save us it takes their righteousness that we receive in faith in Christ who was the perfect righteousness on our behalf because we all fall short that is the righteousness we need first Philippians chapter 3 and be found in him not having mine own righteousness which is of the law but that which is through the faith of Christ the righteousness which of God by faith the whole letter to the Galatians teaches us that we cannot be saved by our keeping of God's law complete righteousness cannot come from our own obedience we have all failed and can do nothing to redeem ourselves Galatians 3:21 is the law then against the promises of God God forbid where if there had been a law given which could have given life verily righteousness should have been by the law Paul teaches us that through God's grace we receive perfect righteousness because of Christ's finished work on the cross our complete righteousness comes from the work on the cross by grace through faith Galatians 2:20 one I do not frustrate the grace of God where righteousness came by the law then Christ is dead in vain but Paul also taught that there is a righteousness that comes from obeying the law this almost seems contrary to what he just taught in the previous scripture Romans 10:4 Moses describes their righteousness which is of the law that demand which does those things shall live by them Romans 10:4 for Christ is the end a Greek word meaning goal of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth Romans 6:18 being then made free from sin you became servants of righteousness Romans 6:16 do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey you are the one slaves whom you obey whether of sin leading to death or obedience leading to righteousness so if we are to practice righteousness and do righteousness as obedience to the law to not sin but Christ is also a righteousness how does this work exactly why was Paul teaching on what seems to be two types of valid righteousness just like those previous verses jime stated we are to not sin righteousness according to God's law but when we fail the righteousness of Jesus Christ Yeshua HaMashiach advocates for us to the Father 1st John chapter 2 my little children these things I write unto you that you send nut and if any man sin we have an advocate with the father Jesus Christ Yeshua the Messiah their righteousness thus we are to strive to practice and do righteousness obedience to God's law but when we fail we are covered by grace in our faith this is exactly what Paul taught us about God's law and Romans 3:31 do we then nullify the law by this faith not at all we uphold the law we uphold the Torah just because Christ covers all of our sin our unrighteousness and grace it does not mean that we can sin or be unrighteous we want to continuously strive to be obedient and God's grace picks up where we fail we do not send just so grace abounds we are to avoid sin and live their righteous life as defined by God's law number seven obedience is to be our delight we have learned that obedience is the act of loving God avoiding sin evidencing our faith and is our whole purpose in life how then should we feel about being obedient it sounds like a strange question but the answer is simple we are to delight in his law anyone who complains about God's law or speaks about it in a negative is certainly failing to realize a biblical worldview in fact anyone who claims God's law is bondage or a burden etc is holding to a worldly perspective that would be the same perspective as Satan himself and sadly that is where that perspective comes from Satan calls God's ways bondage and the world's ways freedom guide calls his law freedom and the world's ways bondage examine the Scriptures we provided already and you'll find that to be true now keep that in mind the next time you hear someone calling god's sabbath bondage and realize whose side they are speaking for in that moment Psalm chapter 1 verse 2 but his delight is in the law Torah of Yahweh and in his law Torah he meditates day and night psalm 119 verse 35 make me to go in the path of your Commandments for in them I do delight proverbs 29 where there is no vision the people perish but he that keeps the law Torah happy is he we are to find happiness in our obedience Paul also found his delight in being obedient to God's law his Torah Romans chapter 7 for I delight and the law Torah of God after inward man even if we are persecuted because of our righteousness we are to still be happy 1st Peter chapter 3 but even if you should suffer for righteousness sake you are blessed and do not be afraid of their threats nor be troubled amazing isn't it the way that some teach about God's law you would think that God's law is a horrible construct now we can see that is not a biblical view at all but just a result of what is in their heart the irony is that the whole point of the New Covenant is where the law to be written on our heart for the Torah to be written on our heart that is when we want to be obedient instead of disobedient Jeremiah 31 the holded days are coming says Yahweh 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 Yahweh but this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days says Yahweh I'll put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts and I will be their God and they shall be my people new covenant same law new covenant same Torah number 8 obedience leads to blessings and reward obedience does not grant us salvation but is what we do once we have faith as evidence of our faith God's law blesses us when we obey it and curses us when we disobey it Christ removed the curse the second death of the law on the cross for all those who have faith leaving only the blessings and obedience to God's law it is not to say that sinning cannot still have negative effects in this life but we are at least saved from the second death the curse and our faith Deuteronomy chapter 11 behold I set before you this day a blessing and a curse a blessing if you obey the commandments of Yahweh your God which I command you this day and a curse if you will not obey the commands of Yahweh your God but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day to go after other gods which you have not known it is interesting to note that God considers that anytime we disobey his Commandments it is just the same as going after other gods this is because if we are not listening and doing his instruction then we are doing whatever we please or someone else's instruction as a side note this is why Jesus was orally tested by the teachers of the law several times according to Deuteronomy chapter 13 and 18 if a prophet or teacher taught anything other than the commandments that were written by Moses then they were considered a false prophet and leading God's people after other gods both Jesus or Yeshua and Paul were tested in this way several times in Scripture and they always passed the test this is just another reason what is absolutely certain that Jesus and Paul taught and practiced nothing that was against God's law as written by Moses some do actually teach that observing God's law is a curse they have it backwards obeying God's commandments is a blessing it is the disobedience to them that is a curse here is a sample of verses that teach obedience is actually a blessing and who wouldn't want blessings Psalm 112 praise Yahweh blessed is the man who fears Yahweh who delights greatly in his Commandments psalm 119 blessed are the undefiled the way who walk in the law of Yahweh the Torah of Yahweh blessed are those who keep his testimonies who seek him with their whole heart Psalm 128 blessed is everyone that fears Yahweh that walks in his ways proverbs chapter 8 now therefore listen to me my children for blessed are those who keep my ways Isaiah 56 blessed is the man who does this and the son of man who lays hold on it who keeps from defiling the Sabbath and keeps his hand from doing any evil for those who mistakenly distinguish a difference between the old and new Testament as if the Old Testament is not Scripture here is a sample of verses in the New Testament stating the exact same thing Matthew chapter 5 blessed are those which do hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled Matthew chapter 5 blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the kingdom of heaven Luke chapter 11 but he said more than that blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it this shoe is referring to the whole Word of God and that includes Leviticus 11 and Leviticus 23 James chapter 1 but he who looks into the perfect law of Liberty and continues in it and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work this one will be blessed in what he does first Peter 3 but even if you should suffer for righteousness sake you are blessed and do not be afraid of their threats nor be troubled revelation 22 blessed are those that do His commandments that they may have a right to the Tree of Life and may enter through the gates into the city in the end all believers will be judged and how well they understood and practice God's Word obedience is rewarded when he returns and we will either be least or greatest in the kingdom as a result revelation 22 and behold I come quickly and my reward is with me to give every man according as his work shall be if we teach that any of God's law has been abolished and we practices such then we will be least in the kingdom of heaven at best it is only those who teach all of God's commandments and practice them that will be great in the kingdom of heaven if you teach that God has abolished his Sabbath for example and perhaps really believed that God would abolish his eternal sign of his covenant it does not matter who you are or what else you did you will still be saved but beliefs in the Kingdom of Heaven for all of eternity your eternal rewards are compromised Matthew chapter 5 think not that I come to destroy the law the Torah or the prophets I do not come to destroy but to fulfil for verily I say unto you till heaven and earth pass one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law till all the law and prophets be fulfilled whosoever shall break one of these least Commandments and shall teach men so he shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven but whosoever shall do and teach them the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven we will receive reward for our works on the day of judgment at his return for some there will be so little works that they will be saved but basically have no eternal reward first Corinthians 3 for every man's work shall be made manifest for the day shall declare it because it shall be revealed by fire and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is if anyone's work which he has built on it endures he'll receive a reward if any man's work shall be burned he shall suffer loss but he himself shall be saved yet so as by fire all of our works are to be judged whether it be good or bad and all are factored into the formula resulting in our eternal rewards 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad again everyone will be judged Romans 14 but why do you judge your brother or why do you show contempt for your brother for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ port is written as I live says Yahweh every knee shall bow to me and every tongue shall confess to God at this judgment we will give an account of everything we did in our life to the Lord Romans 14 so then every one of us shall give account of himself to God those who strive to practice righteousness like Paul will receive the crown of righteousness 2nd Timothy chapter 4 I have fought a good fight I have finished my course I have kept the faith finally there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness which the Lord the righteous judge will give to me on that day and not to me only but also to all who have loved his appearing so this is not the judgment of salvation or their great white throne judgment summary of obedience in scripture obedience is our purpose obedience is the evidence of our faith obedience is loving God and loving others obedience is the same as not sinning obedience to his law makes us his peculiar people obedience is to be our delight obedience is righteousness obedience leads to blessings and eternal rewards disobedience is the opposite of all those things it was said that years ago a man is about to push a wheelbarrow across a tightrope over Niagara Falls he asked the crowd how many believed he could make it many held up their hands then he asked them how many had faith in out their ride and the wheel barrel no you do not need to cross Niagara Falls in a wheel barrel to please God but you do need the kind of faith that leads you to act in obedience to His commandments in closing here are some additional verses to consider proverbs chapter 10 the wise in heart will receive Commandments but a parading fool shall fall first Peter for for the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God and hit first begin at us what shall the end of them that obey not the gospel of God revelation 22 blessed are they that do His commandments that they may have a right to the Tree of Life and may enter in through the gates into the city acts 5:29 then Peter and the other apostles answered and they said we ought to obey God rather than men we hope that this teaching has blessed you and remember continue to test everything Shalom it is because of you our generous supporters who make it possible to offer these high-quality teachings completely free of charge if you feel led to support 119 minutes late so that we can continue this effort please visit test everything dotnet and click on the support 119 tab learn how you can partner with us to take the whole Word of God to the nation's [Music] you [Music]

Channel: 119Ministries

Views: 41,508

Rating: 4.8466196 out of 5

Keywords: grace, faith, obedience, relationship, 119 ministries, hebrew roots, law, torah

Id: qapwg5b461E

Length: 69min 15sec (4155 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 27 2017