The Old Testament, or covenant, that God made with his people, the law which "can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect", was done away with two-thousand years ago, and the New Testament, or covenant, where God said he will put his "laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts," is now in force (Heb. 10:1; 8:10). When we "repent,...and believe the gospel", we enter into a covenant with God, a marriage contract with Jesus, we are "married" "as a chaste virgin to Christ" our "husband" (Mark 1:15; Rom. 7:4; 2 Cor. 11:2). Unfortunately, many modern-day Christians don't understand the difference between the old covenant "handwriting of ordinances that was against us", and the new covenant laws of God that he writes in our hearts (Col. 2:14; Heb. 8:10). The former was "the law of commandments contained in ordinances" which pronounced the penalty of sin and was "a witness against thee" (Deut. 31:24-26; Ezek. 18:4; Eph. 2:15; Jam. 1:15). The latter is the law of God's "everlasting righteousness" of "the ten commandments" "written with the finger of God" on the "two tables of testimony" and now written "upon the table of thine heart." (Ex. 31:18; Deut. 9:10; 10:4; Psa. 119:142-151; Prov. 4:20-22; 7:1-3). If you are a true born again Christian, having repented and forsaken your sins (Prov. 28:13; Mark 1:15; Luke 11:4; 13:1-5; 17:3; John 8:11; Acts 3:19; 8:22; 17:29; 1 John 1:9), placing your faith in Jesus Christ's sinless life, atoning death on the cross at Calvary and resurrection from the dead, and are "sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all", "preserved in Jesus Christ," "called to be saints," "born again....of the Spirit", "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God," then God has put "A new heart...and a new spirit...within you", and the laws of God contained in the ten commandments, even "the words of eternal life" which "are life unto those that find them," are written "with the Spirit of the living God" in the table of your heart (Prov. 4:22; Ezek. 36:26; John 3:3-7; 6:63,68; I Cor. 1:2; II Cor. 3:3; Heb. 8:10; 10:10; I Pet. 1:23; Jude 1:1).

      The apostle Paul said, "For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified." (Rom. 2:13). But then Paul said, "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight:" (Rom. 3:20). These two verses seem to be totally contradicting one another, unless there is more than one law that is being spoken of by the apostle. King David said that "The law of the LORD is perfect" (Psa. 19:7). But the apostle Paul said that "the law made nothing perfect" (Heb. 7:19). What? A perfect law that made nothing perfect? This seems to be another contradiction in the scriptures, unless there is more than just one law being referred to in the Bible. Paul said that "by grace are ye saved through faith; and...Not of works" (Eph. 2:8,9). But Paul also said "that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works." (Titus 3:8). Another seeming discrepancy in the Bible. So which is it, "maintain good works"? or "Not of works"? The apostle Paul said "that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ" (Gal. 2:16). But the apostle James said, "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." (Jam. 2:24). Another contradiction? Not if there is more than one law that is being spoken of in the scriptures.

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.” (I Thess. 5:21; I Tim. 4:13)

      Jesus said that “if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” (Matt. 19:17). What commandments? The ten commandments! Jesus said, “Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.” (Luke 18:20). The apostle James said, “For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill.” (Jam. 2:11). The apostle Paul said, “Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet;” (Rom. 13:9). The apostle John said, “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (I John 2:4). Paul said, “Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.” (I Cor. 7:19). In the book of Revelation we read where “the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” and, “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” (Rev. 12:17; 22:14).

“My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye.” (Proverbs 7:1,2). “If ye love me, keep my commandments....If a man love me, he will keep my words” (John 14:15,23).

      Yes, "by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph. 2:8,9). But there is a serious misunderstanding of the meaning of these verses among many of today's professing Christians. Most who quote these two verses don't understand the significance of the following verse that puts into context the preceding verses: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." (Eph. 2:10). It is God's grace that causes us to bring forth good works. It is not our own righteousness in and of ourselves, lest any man should boast. This is the context of Ephesians 2:8,9,10. The apostle James said that "by works was faith made perfect" (Jam. 2:22). Notice that it was not until after "Abraham believed God" and "offered Isaac his son upon the altar" that "it was imputed unto him for righteousness" (Jam. 2:19-24). The true Christian convert must and will bring forth corresponding fruit, or works. Jesus said that "every tree is known by his own fruit." (Luke 6:44). The concept of salvation "by grace alone" "through faith alone" is actually un-biblical. By adding the word "alone" to the words grace and faith, the meaning of the scripture is altered, allowing it to be so misconstrued as to permit those who profess to be Christians to continue "to bring forth fruit unto death" by believing that even the law of the ten commandments no longer apply to Christians (Rom. 7:5; Eph. 2:2). It is noteworthy to mention here that the only scripture verse in the entire Bible where the words "faith" and "alone" occur together are presented in a negative context: "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." (James 2:17).

"He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none.
Then said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why cumbereth it the ground?
And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:
And if it bear fruit, well: and if not, then after that thou shalt cut it down." (Luke 13:6-9)

      The apostle James said, "What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?" (Jam. 2:14). We read in John chapter twelve of many who believed on Jesus but refused to confess him before men: "Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God." (John 12:42,43). Then we read what Jesus said of those who believe only and do not confess him: "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matt. 10:32,33). You see, it is not merely believing on the Lord Jesus that brings about our salvation; we must also repent ("devils also believe," but devils are not saved (James 2:19)). Jesus said to "repent ye, AND believe" (Mark 1:15). Jesus said, "This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you." (John 15:12). He said, "If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him." (Luke 17:3) - "if he repent, forgive him." Jesus said, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent." (Rev. 3:19). Repentance precedes forgiveness. The Lord "now commandeth all men every where to repent" (Acts 17:30). Jesus said that "except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." (Luke 13:3,5). And God's own word defines "repent:" "confesseth and forsaketh" sins (Prov. 28:13). "And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men:" (Acts 19:18,19). We see throughout the New Testament that those who by faith turned to God's grace also turned from their sins and then began to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit – good works. Jesus said to "cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also." (Matt. 23:26). When your heart is cleansed by Christ, your life will reflect his holiness. Jesus said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life." (John 6:47). But "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;" (John 8:31). James said, "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" (James 2:19,20)

      As "children of the living God" we are to possess at least a basic knowledge of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith (Rom. 8:16; 9:26; 10:8-18; Deut. 30:11-14), and understand what Jesus Christ meant when he said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil." (Matt. 5:17). To destroy means "To take away; to cause to cease; to put an end to." (An American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1828). Jesus said that he did not come "to destroy" or "to put an end to" the law. To fulfil means "to accomplish; to complete; to carry into effect." (Ibid). And "To fulfil a law, or command, or will, is to obey it." (A Dictionary of The Holy Bible, John Brown, 1789). When Jesus Christ came to earth and honored his father and mother and kept the sabbath and did not kill or commit adultery, he never even remotely suggested that he had come to abolish the law of the ten commandments. When the Lord Jesus Christ took our sins upon himself and died on the cross he satisfied the requirement of "the law of sin and death" by dying in our place – "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23), and "all have sinned" (Rom. 3:23) – "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." (Ezek. 18:4,20). This is what was nailed to the cross at Calvary, not the ten commandments, but "that which is written in the book of the law of Moses" which is "the law of sin and death" which says that "every man shall be put to death for his own sin." (Col. 2:14; II Kings 14:6; Rom. 8:2). Jesus Christ said,

"Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am 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 be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 5:17-19)

      By his miraculous conception, virgin birth, perfect life, sacrificial death, glorious resurrection and triumphant reign, Jesus Christ fulfilled that which was written in the law of Moses and in the prophets concerning him (Luke 24:44). By his death Christ abolished the law of commandments contained in ordinances, the carnal law that could not take away sins (Heb. 7:16; 10:4). By his life Christ magnified the perfect spiritual law, the ten commandments that converts the soul: "The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul:" (Psa. 19:7; Heb. 9:12; Jam. 1:25); "all thy commandments are righteousness." (Psa. 119:172); "Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth." (Psa. 119:142); "he will magnify the law, and make it honourable." (Isa. 42:21). This is the perfect law of God's everlasting righteousness that Jesus Christ not only kept but also taught, as distinct from the imperfect law of Moses contained in ordinances that Jesus Christ fulfilled and "is ready to vanish away." (Heb. 8:13). The ordinances of animal sacrifices "offered by the law under "the Levitical priesthood" "can never take away sins" (Heb. 7:11; 10:8,11). This is the law Paul speaks about in Romans chapter eight, "what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh" (Rom. 8:3). It was the "carnal ordinances," "the law of commandments contained in ordinances" (Eph. 2:15; Heb. 9:10) that we were kept under" as "our schoolmaster" (Gal. 3:23,24) when we "were in bondage under the elements of the world....the weak and beggarly elements," wherein "Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years." (Gal. 4:3,9,10). This is "the law" that was "weak through the flesh" in that the sacrifices "which are offered by the law" could not take away sins (Rom. 8:3; Heb. 10:8,11).

"Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed." (I Peter 2:7,8)

      What "law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ" (Gal. 3:24)? The "law" that was "to bring us unto Christ" was not the ten commandments. The "law" that was "to bring us unto Christ" was the Abrahamic/Mosaic law with its rituals—ceremonial holy days, customary cleansings, sacrificial offerings—of which Jesus Christ is the very image of the shadow of things that were to come. Paul said, "For the law having a shadow of good things to come" (Heb. 10:1); "Which are a shadow of things to come" (Col. 2:17). The Abrahamic/Mosaic law, under "the Levitical priesthood," was "a shadow of things to come" and is "that which is abolished" (Heb. 7:11; II Cor. 3:13; I Cor. 7:19). The Abrahamic/Mosaic law of circumcision, animal sacrifices "which are offered by the law" (Heb. 10:8), ceremonial sabbaths, feast days, etc., were "carnal ordinances" (Heb. 9:10) made "after the law of a carnal commandment" (Heb. 7:16) and "imposed on them until the time of reformation" (Heb. 9:10) and was a representation and a shadow of the coming of the Saviour Jesus Christ who is the very image of the "shadow" and was the perfect sacrificial "lamb without blemish and without spot" (I Pet. 1:19). This is the law and the prophets that Jesus Christ fulfilled (Matt. 5:17).

      The ten commandments are the perfect law of love, a transcript of God's character, twice written with the finger of God on tables of stone, and now written with the Spirit of the living God in fleshy tables of the heart of every true believer (Ex. 34:1; II Cor. 3:3). Jesus Christ is our new covenant with God. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” empowers us to walk in His footsteps of obedience to God to “keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.” (Col. 1:27; Heb. 5:9; I John 3:22). We don't keep the commandments to be saved. We keep the commandments because we are saved (John 14:15,21; I John 2:4). This is “the law of the Spirit of life” that Jesus Christ came to “magnify...and make it honourable,” as distinct from “the law of sin and death” that Jesus Christ came “to fulfill” with his sacrificial death at Calvary and nailed it to his cross (Isa. 42:21; Rom. 8:2; Matt. 5:17; Col. 2:14).

      The ten commandments define our duties to God and man (II Cor. 3:3; I Pet. 2:21). Jesus said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” and “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matt. 22:37-40). The two great commandments are a summation of the ten commandments:

“I am the LORD thy God,...Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image,.. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God,...
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.... the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God:...” (Exodus 20:2-11)

“Honour thy father and thy mother:...
Thou shalt not kill.
Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Thou shalt not steal.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Thou shalt not covet... any thing that is thy neighbour’s.” (Exodus 20:12-17)

      This is what Jesus meant when he said, “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” (Matt. 22:37-40). The apostle James calls the ten commandments “the royal law” and “the perfect law of liberty” (Jam. 1:25; 2:8-12). The word liberty here means “Freedom from the ceremonial and broken covenant of works.” (A Dictionary of The Holy Bible, John Brown, 1789). When the apostle Paul said in Romans chapter 13 verses 8 and 10 that “he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law” and that “love is the fulfilling of the law” he plainly stated in verse 9 exactly what law it was to which he was referring — “Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet;” — he was referring to the fulfilling of the ten commandment law of God asserted by Jesus Christ and reasserted by the apostles.

      The ten commandments preceded and superseded the law of Moses because the ten commandment law, which the apostle Peter calls “the holy commandment,” is the everlasting righteousness of God's habitation (Psa. 97:2; 119:142,172; Heb. 1:8; II Pet. 2:21; Rev. 11:19). The old covenant was the “book of the law of Moses” written “with ink” and contained the ten commandments written “in tables of stone” (Deut. 4:13; II Kings 14:6). The new covenant is found in Jesus Christ and still contains the ten commandments, “written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.” (II Cor. 3:3). The law of carnal ordinances was abolished. The ten commandments remain in effect. The Mosaic priesthood with its accompanying rituals, “that which is abolished,” was made “after the law of a carnal commandment” (II Cor. 3:13-16; Heb. 9:10). The “spiritual” “law of God” in the “royal priesthood” of all New Testament believers is made “after the power of an endless life.” (Heb. 7:16; I Pet. 2:9; Rom. 7:14; 8:7). Moses' law was carnal and temporary (Heb. 7:16). God's law is spiritual and eternal (Rom. 7:14).

      Few professing Christians realize that the laws of God contained in the ten commandments were in effect prior to the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai. Consider Genesis 26:5, “Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.” What laws of God did Abraham obey centuries before Moses? Long before the Israelites arrived at Mt. Sinai they broke the fourth commandment seventh day sabbath that God commanded them to keep: “And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. And the LORD said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath... the seventh day.” (Ex. 16:27-29). The second commandment prohibits the worship of images and bowing before a statue. Long before Moses' time Genesis 31:19 records that Rachel, Jacob's wife, stole the graven images from the home of her idolatrous father. Genesis 35:2 is evidence the patriarchs knew idol worship was sin. Now, John said that “sin is the transgression of the law.” (I John 3:4). And Paul said that “sin is not imputed when there is no law.” (Rom. 5:13). Yet, when Cain murdered his brother Abel, God punished him for breaking the sixth commandment: “And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.” (Gen. 4:8-13). And in Genesis chapter 39, long before the law was given by Moses, adultery, which the seventh commandment prohibits, is recognized as “great wickedness, and sin against God” (Gen. 39:9). These Bible references are just a few of the many we could examine as evidence that humanity was aware of God's law well before He wrote it in stone. A prayerful and careful examination of Scripture, with a humble repented heart, will show that the ten commandments existed before the law was given at Mt. Sinai (see Gen. 4:3-5; 8-13; 9:22-27; 12:10-20; 18:20-21; 27; 31:19-34; 35:2-4; 37:28-35; 39:9; 44:4-10; 50:15-17 Ex. 5; 16:22-29;).

      Still, many people are confused about this issue, and are unclear about the Biblical meaning of faith and works, grace and wrath, mercy and judgment, sin and salvation. Some modern-day Christians have made the following comments concerning the blotting out of carnal ordinances and laws and keeping the sabbath day holy: “Weren't the commandments blotted out? Didn't Jesus nail the commandments to his cross? That's what it says in Colossians chapter 2 verse 14. And it also says that we're not supposed to keep the sabbath anymore in verse 16. Explain that!”

      To unravel the knots, which some otherwise well-meaning Christian have tangled, let us examine these verses and search the scriptures to see whether or not these things are so, “comparing spiritual things with spiritual”, comparing the scriptures with the scriptures, as Job said, “the cause which I knew not I searched out.” and as King David said, “the honour of kings is to search out a matter.” and as the apostle Paul said, “Prove all things” (I Cor. 2:13; Job 29:16; Prov. 25:2; Rev. 1:6; I Thess. 5:21; John 5:39; Acts 17:11). Starting at Colossians chapter 2 and verse 14, it says:

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

      Then in verses 16 and 17 it goes on to say:

“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.”

      Now, let us take these three verses of Scripture, brake them down, and then build them all back up again, and we are going to get an accurate picture of what God is telling us here in Colossians chapter two, verses 14, 16 and 17. Let's start back at verse 14, it says:

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

      Before we go any further, there are two things that we need to distinguish — in the scriptures there are two laws that are spoken of: the ten commandment law which was written by the finger of God on two tables of stone; and then also the book of the law which was dictated by the word of the Lord unto Moses and then Moses wrote them down in a book. Let us prove it, of course, from the scriptures. In Exodus chapter 31 and verse 18 the Bible says:

“And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.”

      Notice that God wrote the ten commandments with his own omnipotent finger. This is very sobering. And there is also something very interesting and very important about the ten commandments: and that is where they were located. In the book of Exodus, the 25th chapter, verse 21, it says:

“and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.”

      Where was the testimony placed? "in the ark" —

“And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.” (Ex. 25:21)

      Notice that the mercy seat which was symbolic of the very throne of God was placed above the ark into which was placed the ten commandments. So at the very foundation of God's throne was the ten commandments. This is very important. And then in verse 22 it goes on to say:

“And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.”

      Now there was also a book of the law. Let us search the scriptures and find out if this is true. In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 31 starting at verses 24-26 the Bible says:

“when Moses had made an end of writing the words of this law in a book, until they were finished, That Moses commanded the Levites, which bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD, saying, Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.”

      Now let us go further with this, because it also says here that it has ordinances. So we are looking for the law that contains ordinances. Does the ten commandments contain ordinances? or does the book of the law contain ordinances? Well, the book of the law does contain the feast days. We can see this in Leviticus chapter 23, where it talks about different feast days, like the Passover, the feast of unleavened bread, the Pentecost, the feast of trumpets, the feast of tabernacles, the day of atonement. Let's talk about passover and the ordinances that were connected to that one. In the book of second Chronicles chapter 35 starting at verse 6 it says:

“So kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.”

      The word of the Lord given by who? Given by Moses. In verses 11 through 12 of that same chapter it goes on to say:

“And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them. And they removed the burnt offerings, that they might give according to the divisions of the families of the people, to offer unto the LORD, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so did they with the oxen.”

      Listen closely to verse 13:

“And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance:”

      Wait a second: the passover was contained where? In the book of Moses which is the book of the law, the one that was written by the hand of Moses. It also said that it contained ordinances, because the passover had ordinances contained in it. That's why they had to burn the passover lamb with fire because that was the ordinance. That's the way it was ordained to be done.

      So, what was blotted out on the cross? It was the book of the law. But if you are not yet convinced, let us go to Colossians chapter 2 and verse 16 which says:

“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:”

      Now, we're looking for a law that contains meat, drink, holy days, new moons and sabbath days. Once again, it is the book of the law. In Leviticus chapter 23, verse 37, it talks of the feast days that were in the book of the law, these ceremonial laws. It said:

“These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:”

      Notice that the feast days and the meat and the drink offerings, all these things were connected together, and the feast days were holy days.

      But some might say, “What about sabbath days?” Alright, lets look at the sabbath days. Was not the day of atonement a sabbath day? The Bible tells us that the day of atonement was a ceremonial sabbath day. In the book of Leviticus chapter 16 starting at verse 29 and into verse 31, it says:

“And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you,”

      So they were told clearly that the day of atonement was a ceremonial sabbath day. We are also told the same thing in the book of Leviticus chapter 23. Also in Leviticus chapter 23 verses 23 and 24 we are told that the feast of trumpets was a ceremonial sabbath day:

“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.”

      So the feast of trumpets, which was the day they blew their trumpets, was a ceremonial sabbath day. It was also connected to the new moon, because in Psalms chapter 81 and verse 3 it says:

“Blow up the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day.”

      So here we have a feast day, which was a new moon, and also a ceremonial sabbath day. That is what we are talking about in Colossians chapter 2 starting at verse 16 when it tells you, “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy-day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:” We are talking about the ceremonial ordinances contained within the book of the law. In second Chronicles chapter 8 verses 12 and 13 it says, “Then Solomon offered burnt offerings unto the LORD... according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts....” We are talking about the ceremonial ordinances according to the commandment of Moses and contained within the book of the law. This is what was blotted out at the cross.

      Let us finish this part of our study by looking at Colossians chapter 2 starting at verse 17:

“Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.”

      Now a question: Which law was a shadow of things to come? Let's find out in Hebrews chapter 10 starting at verse 1:

“For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.”

      Question: Which one of the laws — either the ten commandments, or the book of the law — contained continual sacrifices offered year by year? Because if we can answer this question accurately, then we can find out which law was a shadow of things to come, but not the very image of those things which was Christ. That's right, the book of the law. The book of the law was the one that contained continual sacrifices. Those ordinances in the book of the law foreshadowed the very coming, life, death and ministry of Jesus Christ. But when Jesus Christ came, lived, died and ministered unto us, he exemplified everything that was contained within the ceremonial law of the book of Moses, the book of the law. That is what was blotted out at the cross. Those ceremonial laws contained within the book of the law. Not the ten commandments.

      The ten commandments can never be done away with. They are everlasting. They are eternal. And we can prove it. In the book of Psalms chapter 119 verse 142 it says:

“Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the truth.”

      Remember, God's righteousness is everlasting. Then in Psalms chapter 119 verse 172 it says:

“My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.”

      Therefore, if God's commandments are righteousness they are everlasting, because God's righteousness is everlasting which makes the commandments everlasting. That is important to know because in Psalms chapter 97 verse 2 it says:

“Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.”

      That word habitation means the foundation. So at the very foundation of the throne of God is righteousness and judgment. Well, God's righteousness is everlasting; that's why his throne is everlasting. But, God's righteousness is also contained in his commandments. That means that at the very foundation of the throne of God are his ten commandments which are as eternal as the throne of God. In the book of Hebrews chapter 1 verse 8 it says:

“But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.”

      God rules his kingdom with a sceptre of righteousness, meaning that the commandments are the very standard by which he rules the subjects of his kingdom. God has a kingdom, he has a government; so he has to have a constitution. And that is what the ten commandments are: the constitution of the kingdom of God. Are you going to try to overthrow God's constitution? It is everlasting. It is eternal.

      Then in the book of Revelation chapter 11 verse 19 it says:

“And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament:”

      Remember, in the ark of the testament were the two tables of testimony, the ten commandments. The ten commandments will be in effect forever and ever. That means you not only have to keep eight, not only nine, but all ten of God's commandments, including the fourth commandment which is the sabbath commandment. Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy — “the seventh day is the sabbath” (Ex. 20:10; Deut. 5:14) (See APPENDIX Below).

      In the book of Matthew, Jesus said, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:” (Matt. 7:13). Many people think they are on the strait path that is leading to life. But they are on the broad path that leads to destruction: “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matt. 7:14). The way of life is not difficult, but narrow; and like a narrow road, most people simply avoid it or overlooking it altogether.

“Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.” (Jer. 6:16)

      Many people are “turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness”, believing that “the perfect law of liberty” gives us a license to commit sin, “not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance” (Gal. 5:13; Jam. 1:25; Jude 1:4; Rom. 2:4). And there are others who are “giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats”, teaching *“blasphemous fables, and dangerous deceits”, preaching “another Jesus” of “another gospel”, “even denying the Lord that bought them” (I Tim. 4:1-3; II Cor. 11:4; II Pet. 2:1; *Book OF Common Prayer of the Episcopal church in America, 1953, Article 31, p. 609).

      Proverbs chapter 16 verse 25 says, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Why? because God said, “Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.” (Prov. 4:4). Not a single one of God's ten commandments has ever been repealed or revised. Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” (Matt. 5:17); and, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15); and, “if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” (Matt. 19:17); and, “If a man love me, he will keep my words:” (John 14:23). Read the following scriptures, all found in the New Testament, under the new covenant:

“Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.” (I Cor. 7:19).
“And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.” (I John 2:3).
“He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (I John 2:4).
“And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.” (I John 3:22).
“By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.” (I John 5:2).
“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” (I John 5:3).
“And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it.” (II John 1:6).
“And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Rev. 12:17).
“Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” (Rev. 14:12).
“Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” (Rev. 22:14).

      Some people think that they can run around here and commit adultery, steal, lie or commit other sins and they are still in good standing with God. It is true that "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death." (Rom. 8:2); but this does not give us freedom to commit sin. Jesus told the woman who was taken in adultery to "go, and sin no more." (John 8:11). Jesus said to the man which had an infirmity thirty and eight years to "sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee." (John 5:14). The apostle John said, "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not." (I John 2:1). The apostle Paul said, "Awake to righteousness, and sin not" (I Cor. 15:34). The prophet Samuel said that "to obey is better than sacrifice" (I Sam. 15:22). Paul said that Jesus Christ is "the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him" (Heb. 5:8). Our freedom "from the law of sin and death" is not freedom to commit sin; it is freedom to "be forgiven" – "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (Mark 4:12; Luke 5:23; I John 1:9). "IF" we confess our sins, we'll be forgiven.

"When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right;... None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live. Yet the children of thy people say, The way of the Lord is not equal: but as for them, their way is not equal." (Ezek. 33:13-17)

      You see, we can't just say we're sorry for our sins; we have to also turn from them: "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out" (Acts 3:19). "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." (Prov. 28:13). "And many that believed came, and confessed, and shewed their deeds. Many of them also which used curious arts brought their books together, and burned them before all men:" (Acts 19:18,19). "Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye." (Ezek. 18:30-32). Paul, the "apostle of grace," said, "Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God." (I Cor. 7:19). What commandments of God? The everlasting commandments engrafted on the "two tables of stone written with the finger of God" and now "engrafted" "in fleshy tables of the heart" of the believer (Deut. 9:10; Jam. 1:21; II Cor. 3:3; Heb. 8:10; 10:6): "for all thy commandments are righteousness." (Psa. 119:172), and "Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness" (Psa. 119:142). Paul said, "Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (Rom. 13:9). Why? "That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." (Rom. 8:4). The prophet Isaiah said, "The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness’ sake; he will magnify the law, and make it honourable." (Is. 42:21). Yes, our works and "our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6), but to keep the commandments that God has written in the believers' heart is not a works-based salvation, it is God's righteousness working in us. Paul said to "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." (Phil. 2:12,13).

"Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God." (Rom. 6:13)

      The apostle Paul said, "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature." (Gal. 6:15). "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (II Cor. 5:17). "For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures" (Titus 3:3). The sinner who has truly repented of his sins and is truly converted "from the error of his way" (Jam. 5:19,20) has "put off the old man with his deeds" (Col. 3:9) that were committed "in times past in the lusts of our flesh" (Eph. 2:3) and is "purged from his old sins" (II Pet. 1:9). Notice the past-tense context: "old sins" "in times past." Paul, "Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious:" said "that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief." (I Tim. 1:13,15). Now certain professing Christians, in order to justify their sins, will take Paul's sayings out of context. They contend that when Paul said, "I am chief" he was admitting that he was a big sinner continuing to live in his past sins. But Paul said that he "was before", not that he is now still committing sins.

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” (Romans 6:1-6)

“The seed is the word of God. Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.” (Luke 8:11-13)

      Now, there are certain groups of people who believe that once you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior you can never fall away and lose your salvation, no matter what future sins you commit. This belief, common among some Baptists, is referred to as “once saved always saved” (OSAS) or the doctrine of “eternal security.” Among some branches of Protestantism, Calvinism in particular, the “eternal security” doctrine is referred to as the “Perseverance of the Saints.” What is meant by the term “eternal security” by the promoters of this doctrine is that once a person “makes a decision” to “ask Jesus to come into their heart” such persons are guaranteed everlasting life on an unconditional basis. The phrase “eternal security” is un-biblical and is never alluded to anywhere in the scriptures. An interesting and revealing aspect of the OSAS doctrine is how its advocates react to any sound Biblical doctrine that is against sin in favor of keeping the commandments of God. “Eternal security” proponents become very defensive and hostile and will falsely accuse those who preach against sin of promoting a works-based salvation. But to equate keeping the ten commandments with being justified by our good works, shows a complete lack of understanding the difference between the carnal law of commandments contained in ordinances written “by the hand of Moses”, and the royal law of commandments contained in the two tables of testimony “written with the finger of God” (II Chron. 35:6; Deut. 9:10). Such “unholy” “false accusers” are “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (II Tim. 3:2-7). Most OSAS advocates will go so far as to ostracize commandment keepers, while at the same time they themselves have little or no problem with continuing in the works and sins of the flesh (Gal. 5:19-21). This alone should be enough of a warning to show just who is really behind this flesh appealing doctrine (John 3:8; 8:44).

      Many modern-day Baptists believe in the “once saved, always saved” doctrine of “eternal security.” However, their early Baptist predecessors did not believe in this dogmatic formula for disaster. It is not known exactly when the name Baptist was first used to describe a group of believers, but Baptists, or Anabaptists, can be traced back in time even before Martin Luther and John Wycliffe. The following quote is from the 1527 Schleitheim Confession of Faith, the earliest known written Baptist Confession of Faith. It is an admonition to fellow Baptists regarding false converts who were twisting the scriptures “unto their own destruction” (II Pet. 3:16), carnal minded “believers” who were using the law of grace as a license to sin:

“Scandal has been brought in among us by certain false brethren, so that some have turned from the faith, because they have presumed to use for themselves the freedom of the Spirit and of Christ. But such have erred from the truth and are given over (to their condemnation) to the wantonness and freedom of the flesh; and have thought faith and love may do and suffer all things, and nothing would injure or condemn them as long as they thus believed. Mark, ye members of God in Christ Jesus, faith in the Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ does not thus prove itself, does not work and deal in such way as these false brethren and sisters do and teach. Take heed to yourselves; be warned of such; for they serve not our Father, but their father, the devil. But ye are not so, for they who are of Christ have crucified the flesh, with all lusts and longings. You understand me well, and the brethren whom we mean. Separate yourselves from them, for they are turned away. Pray the Lord for their acknowledgment unto repentance and for our constancy to walk in the way we have entered, for the honor of God and his Christ. Amen.” (A History of The Baptists, Thomas Armitage, 1887, p. 949)

      John Wesley, the famous eighteenth century Anglican preacher and founder of the English Methodist movement, also preached against this dangerous “once saved, always saved” heresy. In his published sermon “The Lord our Righteousness” Wesley said,

     “[W]hat we are afraid of is this; lest any should use the phrase, "The righteousness of Christ," or, The righteousness of Christ is "imputed to me," as a cover for his unrighteousness. We have known this done a thousand times. A man has been reproved, suppose, for drunkenness, "Oh," said he, "I pretend to no righteousness of my own: Christ is my righteousness." Another has been told, that the extortioner, the unjust, shall not inherit the kingdom of God. He replies with all assurance, "I am unjust in myself, but I have a spotless righteousness in Christ." And thus though a man be as far from the practice as from the tempers of a Christian, though he neither has the mind which was in Christ, nor in any respect walks as he walked, yet he has armour of proof against all conviction, in what he calls the righteousness of Christ.
     It is the seeing so many deplorable instances of this kind, which makes us sparing in the use of these expressions. And I cannot but call upon all of you who use them frequently, and beseech you in the name of God our Saviour, whose you are, and whom you serve, earnestly to guard all that hear you, against this accursed abuse of them. Oh warn them (it may be they will hear your voice) against continuing in sin that grace may abound! Warn them against making Christ the minister of sin! Against making void that solemn decree of God, Without holiness no man shall see the Lord, by a vain imagination of being holy in Christ. Oh warn them, that if they remain unrighteous, the righteousness of Christ will profit them nothing! Cry aloud, (is there not a cause?) that for this very end the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us, that the righteousness of the law may be fulfilled in us, and that we may live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.” (Sermons On Several Occasions, John Wesley, Vol. V, 1788, pp. 120,121)

      It is noteworthy to mention that most, if not all, OSAS proponents are also promoters of Dispensationalism, the idea that God deals with mankind in major dispensations or periods of time. It was John Nelson Darby, known as The Father of Modern Dispensationalism, who added to the Jesuit's anti-Protestant Futuristic interpretation of prophecy, and began promoting a Secret Pre-Tribulation Rapture followed by a one-man Antichrist. Modern-day promoters of Futurism are apparently unaware of the origins of this doctrine. During the Counter-Reformation in the 1500's the Roman Catholic church commissioned Francisco Ribera and Robert Bellarmine, Jesuit scholars, to develop a scheme to undermine the preserved English scriptures and to formulate a new interpretation of prophecy to counter the prevailing view which identified the papacy as antichrist. However, the basic structure of Futurism was formed in the early days of church apostasy when certain Ante-Nicene Church Fathers such as Irenaeus, Hippolytus, Justin Martyr and Clement of Alexandria began to turn away their ears from the truth and were influenced by fables, teaching Biblical truths mixed with Apocryphal errors. “For I know this,” said Paul, “that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.” (Acts 20:29,30). And as for the doctrine of “eternal security,” the idea that a believer can never lose his salvation, it was never taught in the early Christian church. OSAS proponents, like Dispensationalists, see the scriptures through a prism of Jesuitical propaganda, and are thus misinterpreting many scriptures pertaining to salvation and godliness, i.e., repentance, conversion, denying ones self and taking up his cross daily, etc. Now, all of this was said to show that the same spiritual forces responsible for the corrupting of the scriptures are also behind the false doctrines of Futurism and eternal security. Promoters of the OSAS doctrine have not done their homework, and are not only deceiving themselves, but are also misleading those who adhere to their teachings.

“What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.” (Rom. 6:15-18)

      Jesus said that “Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” (John 8:34); and “No servant can serve two masters” (Luke 16:13). The apostle John said, “He that committeth sin is of the devil;” (John 3:8). Jesus said, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” (John 3:5-7). Now, it is argued by some who say that “Since Jesus Christ is the only one who can change a person from being the spiritual child of the devil into an adopted child of God, a Christian can never fall away from his, or her, adopted status.” But, they fail to understand what Jesus Christ himself said to the lukewarm un-holy disciples in the Christian church in Revelation: “I will spue thee out of my mouth.” (Rev 3:16,22). Jesus said, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.” (Rev. 3:19). If you have repented of your sins and are a true born again Christian you were “graffed in among” the family of God “and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear:” exclaimed the apostle Paul, “For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.” (Rom. 11:17-21).

“Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.” (Rom. 11:22)

      Jesus has “graffed in” the repented sinner (Rom. 11:17); and Jesus can “cut off” the un-repented un-holy Christian and “spue thee out” of his mouth (Rom. 11:22; Rev 3:16). Again, it is argued by some who say that a born again Christian cannot become “un-born.” But, they fail to see the carnal nature of such reasoning. This is the same type of carnal reasoning that hindered Nicodemus' understanding when he said, “How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?” (John 3:4). Nicodemus was comparing spiritual re-birth to natural birth by flesh-and-blood parents. The argument that a born again Christian cannot become “un-born” is a misnomer. It would be like publishing your 98 year old grandfather's obituary saying, “John Smith was un-born at 10 o'clock Monday evening after losing a long battle with pneumonia.” A carnal Christian whom God has “cut off” is not called “un-born,” he is called “twice dead, plucked up by the roots” (Jude 1:12). Some advocates of the OSAS doctrine will argue that a saved person cannot become “un-saved.” This would be like saying, “After a heart-attack stopped grand-paw's heart for several minutes and the doctor revived him and saved his life, a fatal stroke just one week later un-saved his life.” This type of phraseology is not only absurd, it is also dangerously misleading. OSAS proponents will often use un-biblical terms such as “un-born” or “un-saved” as a distraction to divert attention away from simple scripture explanations, such as “lest he also spare not thee” and “thou also shalt be cut off” (Rom. 11:21,22), referring to “them who draw back unto perdition;” (Heb. 10:39) and “counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing,” (Heb. 10:39) “Having damnation, because they have cast off their first faith.” (I Tim. 5:12). For a Christian to “neglect so great salvation” “being led away with the error of the wicked” and “fall from” his “own stedfastness,” he would not become “un-saved,” he would become “dead” and “lost” (Heb. 2:3; II Pet. 3:17; Luke 15:24,32).

“For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.” (Luke 15:24)

      Now, the OSAS advocate will say, "The prodigal son was not dis-inherited. The father still called him his son." Yes, only because the son came to his senses before it was too late and repented (v. 18) and "arose, and came to his father" (Luke 15:11-32). If a "dead" and "lost" Christian will turn "from the error of his way" before it is too late "and repent" and return to his "first love," God will revive him and he will become "alive again" (Jam. 5:19,20; Rev. 2:4,5; Luke 15:24,32). Bear in mind also that the prodigal son did not commit the un-pardonable sin (Matt. 12:31,32). Not all sins are the same, as the apostle John tells us, "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death." (I John 5:16,17). Beware of OSAS advocates who will take James chapter 2 verse 10 out of context and try to deceive you into believing that all sins are the same. Remember, "There is a sin unto death.... and there is a sin not unto death." Jesus himself said that "All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven.... whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come." (Matt. 12:31,32). The apostle Paul said, "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14). Without living a holy life "no man shall see the Lord". Holiness doesn't bring salvation. Salvation brings holiness (Incidentally, new bible versions are systematically omitting the word "holy" from a number of key verses in their texts.). Keeping the commandments of God will not save your soul. But breaking the commandments of God will ultimately destroy your soul: "whoso committeth adultery... destroyeth his own soul." (Prov. 6:32).; "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." (Ezek. 18:20); "LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee." (Psa. 41:4).

"Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.” (Ex. 32:33)
“And...God shall take away his part out of the book of life" (Rev. 22:19).

      Jesus said, "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book," that "if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life" (Rev. 22:18,19). Jesus did not say "every un-saved man", but "every man". It is argued by some who say that "Since Jesus Christ said of his sheep 'I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.' then this must mean that a believer can never lose his salvation." (John 10:28). But they fail to understand who "they" are to whom Jesus was referring. Go back and read verses 3, 4 and 27 of the same chapter and you'll see that Jesus was referring to "the sheep" who "hear his voice" and "follow him" and "abide in him" (John 10:3,4,27; 15:1-7; I John 2:28); "these which hear the word of God, and do it." (Luke 8:21); these sheep are "they" which follow Jesus, "they" no longer follow their own heart nor the works of the flesh. But just as the Pharisees of Jesus' day "understood not what things they were which he spake unto them," (John 10:6) the modern-day advocates of the so-called "eternal security" doctrine fail to understand the scriptures by NOT "rightly dividing the word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15). In John 3:16 when Jesus said "that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." we must go back and search the scriptures to put this verse into context: "Except a man be born again,... of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." (John 3:3,5). So, it's not just believing, it's also being born again. Jesus said, "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life:" (John 5:39). When the apostle Paul said that "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom. 10:13), we must search the scriptures to understand the proper context of this verse. Paul said "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved." (Rom. 10:9). So, it's not just calling on the name of the Lord, but confessing and believing also. Jesus said, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." (Rev. 3:20). Again, it's not those who just "hear his voice," but those who also "open the door" of their heart and "abide in him" (I John 2:28). Jesus said that "they" which "hear his voice" and "follow him" will not be plucked out of his hand: "IF ye continue in my word" (John 8:31), and "IF ye abide in me" (John 15:7), and "IF ye do whatsoever I command you." (John 15:14).

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.... I am the vine, ye are the branches:... If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." (John 15:1,2,5,6)

      IF you remain "IN Christ," you cannot lose your salvation. And "If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled," you will never fall away (Col. 1:23; II Pet. 1:10). "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith;" (II Cor. 13:5). "Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:" (II Pet. 1:10). IF you do these things: "add to your faith virtue... knowledge... temperance... patience... godliness;" you shall never fall (II Pet. 1:5,6): "If ye continue in the faith" (Col. 1:23); "If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you" (1 John 2:24); "if thou continue in his goodness" (Rom. 11:22); "if we keep his commandments" (1 John 2:3); "If ye endure chastening" (Heb. 12:7). Jesus said, "If ye abide in me...If ye keep my commandments" (John 15:7,10); "If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death." (John 8:51). "But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end....For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;" (Heb. 3:6,14): "he that endureth to the end shall be saved." (Matt. 10:22).

      The apostle Paul said, “I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life,.. nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom. 8:38,39). What are the clauses in this scripture that most people tend to overlook? The words “us” and “in Christ” are either misunderstood or altogether ignored by those in the easy-believism movement. Paul said, “To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ” (Col. 1:2); “to the faithful in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:1); “all that will live godly in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:12) -- these are the “us”, “the faithful in Christ”, the “us” “who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Rom. 8:4), the “us” who “lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us” (Heb. 12:1) these are the “us” who will not be separated from the love of God. Only those who “abide” “in Christ” and “have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts” and remain “faithful unto death” and “endure unto the end” will receive “a crown of life.” (Matt. 24:13; John 15:6; Gal. 5:24; Rev. 2:10). This is where the advocates of the doctrine of “unconditional eternal security” become confused. What they fail to understand is that God never took away anyone's choice or free-will when he saved them. We are not blood-bought zombies destined for heaven whether we want it or not. We can reject Christ and walk away from God, loving the pleasures and sins of this present evil world (Gal. 1:4; John 17:15). But know this: we will be rewarded “every man according to his works.” (Matt. 16:27).

“Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.” (Psalms 37:27)

      Nowhere in the Bible is eternal life said to be unconditional. Jesus said, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 18:3). Speaking of the sinners who suffered tragic deaths, Jesus said that “except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3). Speaking of not voiding the law and breaking the commandments, Jesus said “That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:18-20). The apostle Paul said, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers,.. shall inherit the kingdom of God.” (I Cor. 6:9,10). “Now the works of the flesh are... Adultery, fornication,.. Idolatry,.. heresies,.. drunkenness,.. and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal. 5:19-21). Now to show how biblically un-sound the eternal security doctrine is, the OSAS advocate will totally ignore the clear meaning of the above scriptures and mis-use Ephesians 5:5 to mis-interpret the Bible. The OSAS advocate will say, “A Christian adulterer will not be denied entrance into ‘the kingdom of heaven;’ he will only be denied entrance into ‘the kingdom of God.’” But Jesus himself said that “the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 19:23) and “the kingdom of God” (Matt. 19:24) are one and the same. The OSAS advocate will say, “A Christian adulterer will not lose his salvation; he will lose only an ‘inheritance in the kingdom’ of God.” But Paul said that NO adulterer has “ANY inheritance in the kingdom of Christ” (Eph. 5:5). Paul said that such people “shall not inherit” “any” part of the kingdom. Christian adulterers and adulteresses who continue practicing sin will not lose a certain “inheritance” or “reward” in the kingdom of God; they will lose the very kingdom of God itself: “they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (I Cor. 6:9,10; Gal. 5:19-21). Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions:” and “I go to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:2). Where is the “Father’s house” and the “place” Jesus prepared? In God's kingdom. Jesus said, “I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” (John 14:3). So, if adulterers and fornicators will not have “any” inheritance in the kingdom of God, Christians who continue to commit “adultery,” “fornication” or other “works of the flesh” will lose their very “place” in the kingdom of God, the very “hope which is laid up for you in heaven” (Gal. 5:19-21; Col. 1:5). Jesus said that only those sheep that hear his voice and obey his commandments, these which hear the word of God, and do it, will enter into the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 19:17; Luke 8:21; John 14:15,21; I Cor. 7:19). “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand,

Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:” (Matt. 25:34)

      Jesus said, “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matt. 5:48). He then said, “Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.” (Rev. 3:2). The apostle Paul said that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” (II Tim. 3:16,17). Paul said to “let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us,.. striving against sin.” (Heb. 12:1,4); and “let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (II Cor. 7:1). “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;... For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” (I Thess. 4:3,4,7); “for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.” (Rom. 6:19). The apostle Peter said “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (I Pet. 1:14-16).

“And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.... but the redeemed shall walk there:” (Isa. 35:8,9)

      Paul said to “walk worthy of the Lord” (Col. 1:10). Jesus told the church in Sardis that “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.” (Rev. 3:4). It is only reasonable to conclude that if a few “are worthy”, then some have defiled their garments and are “not worthy.” Jesus said, “And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.” (Matt. 10:38). How do we “walk worthy of the Lord” if we cannot lose “our salvation” (Rom. 13:11)? How do we “walk worthy of the Lord” if we cannot lose our “crown of rejoicing”, our “crown of righteousness”, our “crown of glory”, our “crown of life” (I Thess. 2:19; II Tim. 4:8; I Pet. 5:4; Jam. 1:12)? Jesus said to “hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (Rev. 3:11). A Christian can most certainly walk “unworthily” and lose his crown of life. Paul said, “For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself” (I Cor. 11:29). Damnation means “The state of being excluded from God’s mercy, and condemned to the everlasting punishment of the wicked.” (American Track Society Bible Dictionary, 2001). Webster's 1828 dictionary defines damnation as, “Sentence or condemnation to everlasting punishment in the future state; or the state of eternal torments.”

“And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:... Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:” (Matt. 25:32,33,34,41)

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

      But the carnal mind of the ‘eternal security’ advocate will argue thus, “Since the blood of Jesus Christ is stronger than sin, if you continue to live in sin after you receive Jesus in your heart you can't lose your soul.” But what about the word of God? Surely the word of God is stronger than man, yet Jesus tells us that hypocrites “honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.... Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition” (Mark 7:6,13). What? man's traditions are stronger than God's word? the word that spoke all things into existence (John 1:1-3; Eph. 3:9; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:3)? whereby “the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (II Pet. 3:7)? The blood of Jesus Christ is stronger than sin as much as the word of God is stronger than the traditions of men; but, just as hypocrites make “the word of God of none effect through your tradition,” our sins can make the blood of Christ on none effect through willful disobedience, “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins” (Mark 7:13; Heb. 10:26). The apostle Paul said, “He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?” (Heb. 10:28,29). Paul said “wherewith he was sanctified,” “he” being a Christian who has taken for granted “the blood of the covenant”. It is not the power, or lack of power, of the blood of Jesus that is the issue. What is at issue is the efficacy of the blood of Jesus by proper application through repentance and faith, or the lack of efficacy of the blood of Jesus by abuse through willful disobedience and neglect. Paul said, “Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.” (Heb. 10:38,39). Perdition means “The utter loss of the soul or of final happiness in a future state; future misery or eternal death. The impenitent sinner is condemned to final perdition.” (Webster's 1828 Dictionary).

“The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;” “So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,” (Matt. 13:41,49)

      Jesus assured us, saying, "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." (John 6:37). But if one falls back into "his old sins" and continues therein, he "hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace", and Jesus said of that person, "I will spue thee out of my mouth." (II Pet. 1:9; Heb. 10:29; John 5:29; I Tim. 5:6,7,8,12,15; Rev. 3:16). Jesus said tht "the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matt. 8:12), "when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out." (Luke 13:28). The apostle Paul said, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Rom. 10:13). But Jesus said, "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Matt. 7:21-23). Jesus said, "knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" (Matt. 7:7). But Jesus also said, "When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:" (Luke 13:25). "Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not." (Matt. 25:11,12).

      Now, it may be argued by the "eternal security" proponents that those persons in Matthew 7:21-23 were never saved to begin with, to whom Jesus said, "I never knew you". But it is undeniable that the five foolish virgins in Matthew 25:11,12 were saved at some point, to whom Jesus said, "I know you not." Jesus is their "bridegroom" and their "Lord" (Matt. 25:1-12). In this scripture virgins mean "pure," "separated," or "sanctified" persons. The five wise virgins are those who "endure chastening," but the five foolish virgins are those who "have refused to receive correction:" "Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:" as the prophet Jeremiah said of the children of Israel, "their backslidings are increased" (Heb. 12:7,8; II Pet. 2:14; Jer. 5:3,6). The apostle Paul said, "I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." (II Cor. 11:2). A "chaste virgin" is one who is rebuked and receives correction (2 Cor. 11:2-4; Heb. 12:1-11; Rev. 3:19,22). "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.... that we might be partakers of his holiness." (Heb. 12:6,10). And it is also undeniable that the disciples who confessed Jesus Christ as their "Lord" in Luke 13:23-28 were saved at some point. These persons confessed Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, but they either continued to walk in the "desires of the flesh," or they turned back to their "old sins" (Eph. 2:3; II Pet. 1:9). Jesus said to "depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity." (Luke 13:27).

"Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart.” “Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart.” “I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart.” “I cried with my whole heart; hear me, O LORD: I will keep thy statutes.” (Psa. 119:2,34,69,145); “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments." (I John 2:3)

      Jesus said, "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” (John 15:14). It is true that we “are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation" "whereby ye are sealed" with "the holy Spirit of God" "unto the day of redemption", "waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body." (I Pet. 1:5; Eph. 4:30; Rom. 8:23). However, Galatians chapter two says, "But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid." (Gal. 2:17). Hebrews chapter 10 says, "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment" (Heb. 10:26,27). Psalms chapter 89 verses 31 and 32 says, "If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes." Jesus said, "And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required:" (Luke 12:47,48). Had the thief on the cross lived, the thief whom Jesus forgave, he would have been required to "deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow" Jesus, "and be baptized...in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins," and "live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;" and "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" and "keep the commandments." (Luke 9:23; Acts 2:38; Titus 2:12; II Pet. 3:18; Matt. 19:17; I John 2:4).

"He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him." (I John 2:4)

      Ecclesiastes chapter twelve says, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." (Eccl. 12:13,14). The apostle Paul said, "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God." (Rom. 14:12); "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." (II Cor. 5:10). Who are the "us" in Romans 14:12 and the "we" in 2nd Corinthians 5:10? "the church of God," "the saints," "the called of Jesus Christ" (II Cor. 1:1; Rom. 1:6). Everyone in the world, including Christians, will be judged "according to his deeds" (Rom. 2:6). Paul said, "But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons." (Col. 3:25). Jesus said, "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." (John 5:28,29). And then in the book of Revelation, Jesus said, "And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works." (Rev. 2:23)

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” (Rev. 3:22)

“Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” (James 4:17)

      There is some doing going on in the believers' lives. Jesus said that "whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:33). There is definitely "forsaking our old life," "denying our fleshly lusts," "striving against sin," "resisting the devil," and "escaping temptation" in the Christian's walk (Heb. 12:4; I Cor. 10:13; Jam. 4:7). The apostle Paul said, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." (I Cor. 10:13). Paul said "that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works." (Titus 3:8). Repentance and faith is absolutely necessary to serve God, and "without faith it is impossible to please him" (Heb. 11:6), but the apostle James said that "by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.... so faith without works is dead" (Jam. 2:24,26). Not our works of righteousness to obtain salvation (for "all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags" Isa. 64:6); but the works of the Spirit of God unto sanctification and holiness in the believer's life, which is what we are called unto (Eph. 2:10; I Thess. 4:7; II Thess. 2:13; I Pet. 1:2; 2:12). The apostle Peter said, "add to your faith virtue" (II Pet. 1:5). Virtue is "Moral goodness; the practice of moral duties and the abstaining from vice, or a conformity of life and conversation to the moral law." (Webster's 1828 American Dictionary). James said, "Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." (Jam. 1:21,22).

“According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;” (II Pet. 1:3-6)

      The apostle Paul said that “godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.” (I Tim. 4:8). Paul said of those who are saved by grace through faith, trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ's “one sacrifice for sins for ever” for their complete redemption (Heb. 10:12; Col. 2:10), “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise” (Eph. 1:13; 2:8), “whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Eph. 4:30), “the redemption of our body” (Rom. 8:23). Paul said that “the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” (II Tim. 2:19). Now we have already seen that the ten commandments are at the very foundation of God's everlasting throne (Psa. 119:172; Heb. 1:8). And here Paul is telling us that “the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal,” that “every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” To be sealed with “the seal of the living God” means that we are to “depart from iniquity” and “keep the commandments of God” (Rev. 7:2,3; 9:4; 12:17; I Pet. 1:5; II Tim. 2:19; I John 2:4). The word sealed here does not mean “hermetically sealed” as many OSAS proponents mis-use it. The word sealed here means “To mark with a stamp” for a sign of identification as in Revelation where God's servants have his “name written in their foreheads.” (Webster's Universal Dictionary, 1904, p.1497; Rev. 7:2,3; 14:1; 22:4). Abraham “received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith” (Rom. 4:11). God has “sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.” (II Cor. 1:22). This is “the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:” (Col. 2:11); empowering us to “walk in newness of life.” (Rom. 6:4). The Lord said that he will never leave us nor forsake us; he will also never be responsible for his seal being removed (Heb. 13:5; Psa. 89:34). But just as we can break the commandments of God, we can also “grieve” the holy Spirit of God and cause the Lord to spue us out of his mouth, and we will be responsible for his seal being removed if we don't receive his “rebuke” and “repent” soon and “return” to our “first love” (Eph. 4:30; Rev 2:4,5; 3:16,19). God cannot lie; but we sure can (Titus 1:2). God cannot break his covenant with us; but we sure can break our marriage contract with Him “if we neglect so great salvation” and forget that we were purged from our old sins and “hold the truth in unrighteousness” by continued wilful disobedience (Isa. 24:5; Rom. 1:18; Heb. 2:3; II Pet. 1:9).

“If ye love me, keep my commandments.... If a man love me, he will keep my words” (John 14:15,23)
“And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.” (I John 2:3)

      OSAS proponents like to quote Acts 16:31, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved", but they conveniently omit verses 32 and 33 which says that after the keeper of the prison was saved by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, Paul and Silas had him and his family "baptized" and "spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house." (Acts 16:25-33). So here we have Paul, the “apostle of grace”, teaching water baptism (Paul himself was baptized) (Acts 9:18; 16:25-33; 20:24; Eph. 6:19). Why? because he was teaching "the commandments of God". Jesus said, "Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you:" and "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." (Matt. 5:19; 28:20; Mark 16:16). Don't misunderstand: water baptism is not a means of salvation and re-birth; it is a part of the outward expression and confession of our faith. Paul said, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (Rom. 10:9,10). Paul was teaching the very same gospel that Peter, John and James taught, "how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." (James 2:24). True faith and works are outward manifestations of being "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:24). We are justified by faith and works; not the works of the carnal law of Moses, the "handwriting of ordinances that was against us" which were written by Moses and placed in the "side" of the ark of the covenant; but the works of the spiritual law of God, "the commandments of God" which were "written with the finger of God" and placed "in" the ark of the covenant, and now written in our hearts (Col. 2:14; Heb. 8:10; Deut. 10:2; 31:26; Ex. 25:21; 31:18). Jesus said:

“Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt. 5:19)

      The true born again disciple of Jesus Christ is saved “by grace” “through faith;” and grows daily “in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour” (Eph. 2:8; II Pet. 3:18). The apostle Paul said in Colossians chapter one, “To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ... we... do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;” (Col. 1:2-10). “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (II Tim. 3:15). The apostle Peter said, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:” (I Pet. 2:2). If inadequately fed, a newborn baby will suffer malnutrition or even death. The same is true spiritually for a babe in Christ. Jesus said to “strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die:” (Rev. 3:2). The brother or sister in Christ who is not growing “in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” is in grave danger of falling from his “own stedfastness” and “being led away with the error of the wicked” (II Peter 3:17).

"Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death" (James 5:19,20).

"Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren." (James 1:15,16)

      The scriptures are clear and “are all plain to him that understandeth” (Prov. 8:9): every sin that we do is committed in our hearts. We can use our bodies to outwardly manifest that sin, but it was first conceived and committed in the heart. We can suppress our sinful nature and not allow our sins to be openly manifested in the flesh, but sin is already being committed in the heart, and there it will remain, unless and until we “confess our sins” “and forsaketh them” (I John 1:9; Prov. 28:13), and “through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body” (Rom. 8:13), laying “aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us,.. striving against sin.” (Heb. 12:1,4), crucifying “the flesh with the affections and lusts” (Gal. 5:24), cleansing “ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit” (II Cor. 7:1), “By the word of truth, by the power of God” (II Cor. 6:7). Paul said, “I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Thess. 5:23). “Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.... Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid.... Flee fornication.... What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (I Cor. 6:13,15,18,19,20). “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” (I Cor. 3:16,17). The clear meaning of the scriptures are unpopular for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that it bursts the bubble of the doctrine of “eternal security” wide open.

“And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.” (Mal. 3:15)

      The apostle James said, “Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh.” (Jam. 3:11,12). Jesus said, “Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt:” “For every tree is known by his own fruit.” (Matt. 12:33; Luke 6:44). Yes, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,” “and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” (I John 1:7,9). However, any self-righteous double-minded hypocrite can claim to trust in the blood of Jesus Christ for his salvation. But, are his deeds contradicting his words? Do his words conform to godliness? or worldliness? or is he double minded? Jesus said that “those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.” “for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” “for the tree is known by his fruit.” (Matt. 12:33,34; 15:18). In Revelation the disciples overcame Satan “by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony;” (Rev. 12:11). Jesus said, “If a man love me, he will keep my words:” (John 14:23). James said, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (Jam. 1:22). The Lord warned us that “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked:” (Jer. 17:9), and, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool:” (Prov. 28:26).

“There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” (Proverbs 14:12). “I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” (Jeremiah 17:10)

      The Bible warns us of “a falling away” from the true faith of Jesus in the perilous times of the last days when many “will not endure sound doctrine”and “they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” and “by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” (Acts 14:22; II Cor. 13:5; I Tim. 5:12; II Tim. 4:3,4; II Thess. 2:3; Rom. 16:18; Rev. 14:12). The apostle Paul said, “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud,.. disobedient to parents,.. unholy,.. incontinent,.. despisers of those that are good,.. heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.” (II Tim. 3:1-5). The unsound doctrine of “eternal security” is a “form of godliness” that denies “the power thereof.” The doctrine of “eternal security” is a fable that promotes a “form of godliness” but denies “the power thereof” to convert and transform the sinner into a genuine new creature in Christ (Mark 4:12; II Tim. 3:5; II Cor. 5:17; Rom. 12:2). The power of godliness is the power that enables the repented sinner to:

      There is a real spiritual warfare taking place daily in the lives of true born again Christians (Eph. 6:11-17; Jam. 1:21). There are spiritual battles to be faught daily, and God gives us the weapons needed to fight those battles if we remain faithful and “hold fast the profession of our faith” “stedfast unto the end” (Heb. 3:14; 10:23): “For which cause we faint not;” Paul said, “but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” (II Cor. 4:16). This is the spiritual warfare and the battles that Paul wrote about in the books of Romans and Galatians and elsewhere. “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.” (II Cor. 10:3-6).

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

      Two often mis-quoted verses by the “once saved, always saved” “eternal security” advocates are Romans 7:25 - “So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.” and 8:2 - “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” They miss the plain context of Romans 8:1 - “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” It is those who “walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” that are not condemned. Paul was explaining the difference between walking in the Spirit and walking in the flesh. And this is the same thing the apostle John was speaking about: “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not:” (I John 3:6). Paul said, “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Gal 5:25). John said, “Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning.” (I John 3:7,8). In Romans 7:23,25, and elsewhere, Paul is illustrating the difference between walking in the flesh verses walking in the Spirit.

      Question: When Paul said, "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels,... and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." did Paul in fact speak with the tongues of "angels"? and did he in fact give his body to be "burned" (I Cor. 13:1,3)? When Paul wrote this he had never given his body to be burned. Paul was beaten with rods, stoned once, five times received forty stripes save one; but up to that time he was never "burned" (II Cor. 11:24,25). Paul said these things as an illustration to make an important point — the necessity of charity. Carnal-minded people take out of context many of Paul's writings where he uses analogies and examples. In Romans chapter seven Paul was dealing with the issue of his sinful nature as a human being; not that Paul was a "big sinner" living in sin or practicing sin back and forth. "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." (I Cor. 13:11). It was the corrupt "flesh" Paul was talking about, which we all have until the end of the world when we are resurrected by Christ "Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body" (Philp. 3:21). But until we are resurrected we must strive against sin and crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts (Heb. 12:4; Gal. 5:24). Like Paul said, "But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection:" (I Cor. 9:27). Paul said "that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;" (Col. 3:9), "Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world... Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind;" (Eph. 2:2,3). But now every Christian is given direct and equal access to "the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" "when ye fall into divers temptations" to "overcome" and "endure unto the end" (Matt. 24:13; Luke 8:13; Rom. 3:4; 12:21; I Cor. 10:13; Heb. 4:16; Jam. 1:2-16; II Pet. 2:20). Read these scripture passages and pay close attention to Paul's explications to understand these verses in their proper context:

“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.” (Romans 7:23)

      Question: Was Paul held captive to the law of sin which was in his members? No! “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” (Rom. 8:2) How? Paul explains: “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” (Gal. 5:16,17). This is what Paul is explaining, that you CANNOT “walk in the Spirit” if you are being brought “into captivity to the law of sin” by yielding “your members servants to uncleanness” and “the works of the flesh,” and you CANNOT “walk after the flesh” and expect “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” to make you “free from the law of sin and death.” Paul said, “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Gal. 5:19,21). Paul said, “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” (Rom. 8:13); “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication,... seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;” (Col. 3:5,9). Paul said, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection:” (I Cor. 9:27), “I am crucified with Christ:” (Gal. 2:20), “I die daily” (I Cor. 15:31), “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” (Gal. 5:24).

      The apostle Paul said, “I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:... if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator,... put away from among yourselves that wicked person.” (I Cor. 5:9,11,13). And Jesus said that at the end of the world the angels shall come forth and “sever the wicked from among the just” (Matt. 13:49): and he “shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity” (Matt. 13:41). Paul calls a fornicating Christian brother a “wicked person.” This is the same thing that the apostle James said in chapter 5 verses 19 and 20. The prophet Nahum said, “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked:” (Nahum 1:3). And then Paul said, “If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.” (I Cor. 14:37). Not advice, not suggestions, but the commandments of the Lord. The Bible calls a fornicator a “wicked person.” Eternal security proponents call a fornicator a “clean person.” What God calls “wicked,” eternal security proponents call “clean.”

“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)

      The carnal fleshly mind of man will see only the scriptures that it wants to see in order to justify the sins of the flesh. And the carnal fleshly mind of man will overlook the scriptures that expose the sins of the flesh and the scriptures that instruct us to forsake the sins of the flesh. For example:

It will SEE 1st Timothy 1:15 “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”
But it will OVERLOOK Galatians 2:17 “But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.”  

It will SEE Romans 7:14 “For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 8:13 “For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.”  

It will SEE Ephesians 5:8 “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord:”
But it will OVERLOOK verse 11 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”  

It will SEE Romans 5:20 “But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 6:1,2 “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?”  

It will SEE Romans 6:14 “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 6:15,16 “What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”  

It will SEE Romans 7:20 “Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 6:12 “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.”  

It will SEE Romans 7:25 “So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 13:14, 2nd Corinthians 7:1 and Colossians 3:9 “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.” “let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit,” “seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;”  

It will SEE Galatians 5:1 “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free,” and the first half of verse 13 “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty;”
But it will OVERLOOK the second half of verse 13 “only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh,”  

It will SEE Galatians 5:4 “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”
But it will OVERLOOK 1st Corinthians 7:19 “Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.”  

It will SEE Ephesians 2:1 “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;”
But it will OVERLOOK verses 2 and 3 “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.” 

It will SEE 1 Thessalonians 5:9 “God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,”
But it will OVERLOOK 1st Corinthians 3:17 “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.”  

It will SEE 2nd Corinthians 12:9 “My grace is sufficient for thee:”
But it will OVERLOOK 1st Thessalonians 4:7 and Hebrews 12:14 “God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness” “without which no man shall see the Lord:”  

It will SEE Hebrews 13:5 and Romans 8:38,39 “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life,.. nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God,”
But it will OVERLOOK Romans 11:21,22 “For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.... otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.”

      Notice that every scripture referenced above was taken from the apostle Paul's writings. The apostle Peter, speaking of Paul's writings, said, “in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.” (II Pet. 3:16). This is the wide and broad way that “leadeth to destruction,” and Jesus said “many there be which go in thereat:” (Matt. 7:13).

“There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness.” (Proverbs 30:12)

      Carnal minded Christians often take scriptures out of context in order to justify their fleshly desires (I Cor. 3:3; II Pet. 3:16). The apostle Paul's writings, in particular, are often quoted out of context and twisted and contorted to make them agreeable to our carnal nature. We hear people quote, for example, Romans chapter 6 verse 14, “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.”, as if this, and other scriptures, actually give them permission to commit sin, “understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm” (I Tim. 1:7); “teaching things which they ought not” (Titus 1:11); “While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption” (II Pet. 2:19). But, if we would carefully read Romans chapters 6 through 8 with a humble and repented heart, we would understand that Paul was not giving us permission to sin: “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” (Rom. 6:12). Paul was telling us how to be “led by the Spirit of God”, and explaining to us that we cannot walk in the Spirit if we are doing the works of the flesh (Gal. 5:19). “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like” (Gal. 5:19-21). Paul said to “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith” (II Cor. 13:5), and “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” (Philip. 2:12). Are you walking “in the Spirit” or “in the flesh”? Are you doing any of the aforementioned “works of the flesh”: a little “Adultery” or “fornication” here and there? or a little “drunkenness” or “Envyings”?

“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:5)

      Christians are charged before God to “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” (II Tim. 4:1-4). The apostle Paul said that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (II Tim. 3:16). But the time has come “when they will not endure sound doctrine” “but after their own lusts” they are “turned unto fables”. A popular fable among carnal minded apostates is the belief that a Christian cannot fall from grace. The Bible clearly shows us that the doctrine of “eternal security” is a faulty theology. Paul said that “whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.” (Gal. 5:4).

      Now, what law is Paul talking about when he says, “whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”? Paul is talking about the Abrahamic law of circumcision (Gal. 5:2). Paul was not referring to the law of God in the ten commandments. Paul said so himself: “Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.” (I Cor. 7:19). It would be folly to believe that Jesus Christ blotted out the ten commandments on the cross only to turn around and write them in the believers' hearts. Paul said, “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” (Gal. 3:10). Again, what “book of the law” is Paul referring to? Paul is referring to “the book of the law of Moses” (Josh. 8:31), “the book of the law of God” (Neh. 8:18) which is the “book of the law of the LORD given by Moses” (II Chron. 34:14). If we read the whole chapters, and not just cherry-pick select verses, we'll know exactly what Paul was writing about: “Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.” (Gal. 5:2-4).

      Now, “fallen from grace” means “fallen from grace”, regardless of the reason (Jam. 2:11; I John 3:4; Ezk. 18:4,20). Jesus said, “They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.” (Luke 8:13). Fall away from what? Fall away from “grace and truth” (John 1:17): “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (I Cor. 10:12). The apostle Paul said, “A bishop then must be blameless,... Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.” (I Tim. 3:2,6,7). The apostle James said, “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.” (Jam. 5:12). And the apostle Peter said,

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

      The doctrine of “eternal security” is a man-made myth exposed by the light of the scriptures. “Fallen from grace” is a Biblical truth confirmed by the scriptures: “in time of temptation fall away” (Luke 8:13), “lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil” (I Tim. 3:6), “lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil” (I Tim. 3:7), “lest ye fall into condemnation” (Jam. 5:12), “let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (I Cor. 10:12). The apostle Paul warned us to “Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.... otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.” (Rom. 11:20-22). The “once saved, always saved” fable is a dangerous deceit designed to draw carnal minded man away from “the true grace of God” that “leadeth thee to repentance” (Rom. 2:4; I Pet. 5:12). “Fallen from grace” is a scriptural fact. And if some modern “theologian” with “a form of godliness” teaches otherwise and consent not “to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.” (I Tim. 6:3-5).

“Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” (Rom. 8:7)

      While the so called “doctrine of eternal security” sounds appealing to the “itching ears” of the modern church-world, it is leading people down a slippery slope of “delusion”. Confusion is created and people are deceived when the “eternal security” doctrine is being propagated by otherwise well-meaning individuals. Yes, Jesus said “I give unto them eternal life;” and “neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” (John 10:28). But, “if we neglect so great salvation” and turn back to our “old sins”, and not “hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown”, Jesus said, “I will spue thee out of my mouth.” (Heb. 2:3; II Peter 1:9; Rev. 3:11,16). Jesus is not speaking to atheists or pagans in these verses. Jesus is speaking to the Christian churches in these verses: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” (Rev. 3:22). The apostle Jude said,

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Jude 1:3,4)

      Truly we are living in the “perilous times” of “the last days” when men are “turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness” and are “lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (II Tim. 3:1-7). When we first repented of our sins and became part of God's family, at that point we were forgiven of our past sins, not our future sins: “the remission of sins that are past” (Rom. 3:25). Yes, Jesus Christ died for all of our sins – past, present and future; and “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (I John 1:9; 2:1-4); but if we don't repent of a new sin that we commit, God will not forgive that sin. If we commit a sin tomorrow, we must repent after it is committed, if we hope to be forgiven of that sin. They that are “unlearned and unstable wrest,” or twist the “scriptures, unto their own destruction”, pretending that all of our sins are already forgiven. By failing to understand the absurdity of this idea of forgiveness without repentance, they are led farther away from “the goodness of God” that “leadeth thee to repentance”, and closer to “their own destruction.” (Rom. 2:4; II Pet. 3:16).

      Now some “unlearned and unstable” individuals will say, “If we have to repent first before we can be forgiven, what about the sins we don't remember, how can God forgive the sins that we can't even remember committing?” These “Presumptuous” “selfwilled” individuals are simply trying to find a loophole to excuse their sins and not “depart from iniquity” (II Pet. 2:10; II Tim. 2:19). The Lord can either remember or forget our sins, even our “secret sins,” depending on whether or not we repent (Psa. 51:9; 90:8). King David said, “Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression.” (Psa. 19:13). This is what it means to be “kept by the power of God through faith,” kept “from the evil,” “from secret faults,” “from presumptuous sins” “unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (I Pet. 1:5; John 17:15; Psa. 19:12,13)

“So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:8)

      “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit,” said the apostle Paul, “if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” (Rom. 8:9,10). “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.” (Rom. 6:11,12). “Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” (I Cor. 6:9-11). Paul said that “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” (Rom. 8:14). Is the Spirit of God leading you “into all truth” (John 16:13)? Or is your old “deceitful” and “desperately wicked” heart leading you into “the works of the flesh” (Jer. 17:9; Gal. 5:19-21)?

“For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” (Rom. 8:13)

      The apostle Paul said, “Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.” (I Cor. 15:34). Paul said, “I die daily.” (I Cor. 15:31). “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20). Paul said, “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” (Gal. 5:24). This is the cross that Jesus said “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23). Jesus said, “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” (John 12:25). Paul said, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philip. 3:12-14). Jesus said, “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.” (Mark 14:38). Paul said, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection:” (1 Cor. 9:27): this is what it means to be “crucified with Christ” (Gal. 2:20).

“Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.” (Colossians 3:5-7)

      The children of Israel often backslid in their hearts, "and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt" (Acts 7:39). Egypt, in this verse, represents “this present evil world” (Gal. 1:4). And just as “the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the LORD their God,” many claiming to be Christians today have either never fully left the sins of the world, or "in their hearts turned back again into Egypt." The apostle Paul said that "if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.", and, "thou also shalt be cut off." and "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." (Rom. 11:21,22; Heb. 3:12). In the gospel of Luke, Jesus gives us a good example of a backslidden Christian who later repented and turned from his sins and returned to his first love: "And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in thy sight, and am no more worthy to be called thy son." (see Luke 15:11-32 and Rev. 2:4,5). Jesus told the jealous brother of the prodigal son to "be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found." (Luke 15:32). The apostle Paul said, "But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth." (I Tim. 5:6). It is true that Jesus said, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." (Heb. 13:5). But, it is also true that, like "the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation," you too can leave "thy first love" and "fall from your own stedfastness" and “draw back unto perdition" (Jude 1:6; Rev. 2:4; II Pet. 3:17; Heb. 10:39). God said, "Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book." (Ex. 32:33). Jesus said in Revelation chapter 3 verse 5, "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life". And chapter 22 verse 19 says, "And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life". Jesus said that "if any man shall take away...." He did not say if any un-saved man, but "if any man shall take away from the words...God shall take away his part out of the book of life".

“The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” (Ezekiel 18:20)

      Some might say, “But, Joshua was the Old Testament.” Well, read what Paul the “apostle of grace” wrote, “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (I Cor. 10:11). Yes, Joshua was “the Old Testament;” however, then, as now, God's people had to first repent and turn from their sins in order to be forgiven. Jesus Christ “is the propitiation for our sins” and “for the sins of the whole world;” but your sins could not be forgiven, remitted and stricken from your record before “ye heard the word of truth” and repented and believed “the gospel of your salvation” (Matt. 18:3; Mark 1:15; 4:12; Acts 3:19; 28:27; Rom. 10:14; Eph. 1:13; I John 2:2). Second Timothy chapter 2 verse 19 tells us that “the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.” When you receive God's gift of salvation “by grace” “through faith,” and you “nameth the name of Christ” as your Lord and God and Saviour, you can't just live as you choose to live: “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (I Cor. 6:19,20; Eph. 2:8; Titus 3:4,6).

“And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.... Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (II Cor. 5:17).

      Nothing you did, however, other than placing your faith in the completed sacrifice of Jesus Christ's death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, saved you from your sins: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Eph. 2:8,9). Jesus said, “My grace is sufficient for thee:” (II Cor. 12:9). God's “grace is sufficient” for the salvation of our souls. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom. 6:23). Our salvation “is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8). And like any gift, it can be accepted and cherished; or it can be outright rejected; or it can be accepted and then discarded like an unwanted “Christmas gift.” Some people say, “God doesn't take back a gift.” These folks don't understand that the gift giver is not responsible for what the recipient does with a gift. God doesn't have to “take back his gift” in order for you to neglect it and lose it. When you give someone a gift, is it your fault if they trash it? Make no mistake, we can forfeit “the gift of God” if “we neglect so great salvation” and lose “the race that is set before us” (Eph. 2:8; Heb. 2:3; 12:1;).

“Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth reproof shall die.” (Proverbs 15:10)

      Most of the Christian churches in Revelation received both a comendation and a rebuke from the Lord. The church of Ephesus: "I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent" (Rev. 2:1-5). The church in Pergamos: "I have a few things against thee,... Repent" (Rev. 2:12-16). The church in Thyatira: "I have a few things against thee.... And I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented not. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works." (Rev. 2:18-23). The church in Sardis: "I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent." (Rev. 3:1-5). The church of the Laodiceans: "because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see." (Rev. 3:14-18). Jesus said, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent." (Rev. 3:19)

"He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding." (Proverbs 15:32)

      The Lord Jesus Christ did his part at Calvary and died for our sins; now we have to do our part and "repent ye, and believe the gospel" (Mark 1:15). Jesus did his part by paying for our sins, and now we must do our part and forsake all to follow him and be his disciples. Jesus said that "whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple." (Luke 14:33). "And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it." (Luke 9:23,24). The apostle Paul said to "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Phil. 2:12), and "let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." (II Cor. 7:1). Don't misunderstand: nothing you did or didn't do played a role in the work of your salvation. The completed work of salvation was accomplished solely by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. But understand this, when someone hears "the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation" and truly does "repent" and "believe the gospel" he, or she, will "depart from iniquity" and "keep the commandments of God" (Mark 1:15; Eph. 1:13; II Tim. 2:19; Heb. 2:3; 12:1; I John 2:4; Rev. 14:12). Paul said, "Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine"; and "Let no man deceive himself." (I Cor. 3:18; I Tim. 4:16): because we most certainly can turn to our "own vomit again" and "trodden under foot the Son of God" and lose "the crown of life" (II Pet. 2:22; Heb. 10:29; James 1:12). Jesus said, "Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown." (Rev. 3:11).

"The lord of that servant... will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers." (Luke 12:46)

      The apostle James said, “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.” (James 1:12). And who are “them that love him”? Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.... If a man love me, he will keep my words:” (John 14:15,23). The apostle John said, “He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:4). “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments:” (I John 5:3).

“To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.” (Isa. 28:12)

      Brothers and sisters, the scriptures are perfectly clear: Jesus Christ abolished “the law of commandments contained in ordinances;” “the handwriting of ordinances that was against us” that “Moses wrote”, not the “the ten commandments” of God, the “two tables of testimony... written with the finger of God.” (Eph. 2:15; Ex. 24:4; 31:18). Some people can claim ignorance, but if you are a child of God you must not remain in ignorance or darkness: “For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:... And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.... Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” (Eph. 5:8,11,14). “Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.” (I Thess. 5:6). And now that you know the scriptures, this knowledge is required of you (Luke 12:48; John 15:22; Acts 17:30; Jam. 4:17). “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” (Eph. 5:15-17). Jesus said, “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” (Rev. 22:12).

“For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.” (Matt. 16:27). “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.” (II Cor. 5:10). “Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” (Matt. 7:22,23).

      Of the ten virgins in Matthew chapter 25, five were denied entrance “and the door was shut”. These foolish virgins were waiting “to meet the bridegroom” and fully expected to go “in with him to the marriage”. But while they “slumbered and slept” their lamps had “gone out” because they “took no oil with them” (Matt. 25:1-13). These five foolish virgins considered Jesus Christ to be their Lord. They said, “Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” Note the contrast in Matthew chapter 7 where Jesus said, “I never knew you”; whereas the five virgins were told, “I know you not”: obviously they had a relationship with Jesus at some point. And also in Luke chapter 13 Jesus said:

“Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.” (Luke 13:24-28)

      The “one sacrifice” of Jesus Christ “for sins for ever” does not say that we can never lose our free gift of salvation (Heb. 10:12). This is a fallacy predominant in many Christian circles today. Read the entire tenth chapter of Hebrews in its proper context and you will see that the apostle Paul was talking about the Old Testament sacrifices for sins being done away with and any future sacrifice for sins being already accomplished. The apostle Peter said that some things in Paul's writings are “hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.” (II Pet. 3:16). Keeping the ten commandments will not save you. But breaking the ten commandments will destroy you: “But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.” (Prov. 6:32). “For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.” (II Pet. 2:20,21). The apostle Paul said:

“But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.” (Heb. 10:39)
“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;” (Titus 2:11,12)

      Psalms chapter 24 verses 3 and 4 says, “Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart”. King David said, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” (Psa. 119:11). Jesus said, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” (John 15:3). It is God's word hidden in our hearts that cleanses us from all unrighteousness (Jer. 31:33; Heb. 8:10; 10:16; I John 1:9). “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” (John 17:17). “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.” (Psa. 119:9). “When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.” (Prov. 6:22). But someone might say, “It's the blood of Jesus, and not his word, that cleanses our sins.” Actually, they are one in the same, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood:” (Lev. 17:11) and “Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.” (John 6:53). Jesus is “the life:” (John 14:6); Jesus is “the Word.... And the Word was made flesh” (John 1:1,14). Jesus said, “the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” (John 6:63). Paul said, “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” (Eph. 5:25-27). Jesus said, “repent ye, and believe the gospel.” (Mark 1:15). When we hear God's word and believe it, we must repent of our sins and hide his word in our hearts and then keep our hearts with all diligence – “Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.” (Prov. 4:23) – then we are “born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” – and “he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.” (I Pet. 1:23; I John 5:18). Peter said, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:” (I Pet. 1:22). Paul said, “And be not conformed to this world:” (Rom. 12:2).

“Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” (James 4:4).

      Jesus called us “An evil and adulterous generation”, “A wicked and adulterous generation”, and an “adulterous and sinful generation” (Matt. 12:39; 16:4; Mark 8:38). Jesus said “That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” (Matt. 5:28). Second Corinthians chapter 6 verse 17 says, “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you” (II Cor. 16:14-18). The apostle Peter warned us about “them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness,... sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you; Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls:” (II Peter 2:10,13,14). The apostle Paul said, “For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.” (Rom. 16:1). Ephesians chapter 4 verses 20 through 24 says:

“But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

“Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.” (Isa. 56:11)

      The apostle John said, “They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them. We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.” (I John 4:5,6). John said, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.” (I John 3:1). The apostle Paul said, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Rom. 12:1). First John chapter 2 verses 15 through 17 says:

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.”

      And what is “the will of God”? The apostle Paul said, “For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication.... For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.” (I Thess. 4:3,7). Paul said, “If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.” (I Cor. 14:37). The will of God is to “be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” (James 1:22). The will of God is to “repent” of ones sins and “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ”, “believe the gospel”, “be converted”, “Being born again,” to hide God's word “in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee”, “Keep thy heart with all diligence;” keep ones self so “that wicked one toucheth him not”, “walk in newness of life”, “live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;” “abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;” “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself”, and “keep the commandments of God” (Psa. 119:11; Prov. 4:23; Luke 10:27; Acts 16:31; I John 5:18; Rom. 6:4; Titus 2:12; I Pet. 1:23; 2:11). The “keeping of the commandments of God” is mandatory, not optional (Matt. 19:17; I Cor. 7:19; I John 2:4).

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.” (Ecc. 12:13,14)

      But keeping the commandments of God without being born again will get us nowhere with God. For man's heart is corrupt by nature; “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked:” (Jer. 17:9). No amount of good works, sacrifices or suffering we can do will cleanse us from a single sin; “for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.” (Gal. 2:21). Job said, “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one.” “Behold, I am vile;” “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 14:4; 40:4; 42:6). The apostle Paul said, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing” (Rom. 7:18). But Paul also told us, “they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” (Gal. 5:24). Paul said, “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.” (Rom. 13:14). “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” (Gal. 5:16,17). Hear what the Lord Jesus said:

“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” (John. 3:5-7)

      The Lord is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (II Pet. 3:9). Psalms chapter 51 verse 17 says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.” God said in the book of Isaiah, “but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.” (Isa. 66:2). Hebrews chapter 8 verse 10 says, “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:” And chapter 10 says, “I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” (Heb. 10:16,17). How awesome! How glorious! How sobering! The same omnipotent finger that carved the ten commandments of God into the tables of stone, is the same omnipotent finger that writes his laws into the table of our hearts and transforms us and keeps us on the strait and narrow highway of holiness which leadeth unto life (Matt.7:14; Isa. 35:8).

      The Lord tells us in the book of Jeremiah, “Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart,” (Jer. 4:3,4). Psalms chapter 51 says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart” (Psa. 51:17). We must humble ourselves, repent, believe the gospel and “lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us” (I Pet. 5:6; Mark 1:15; Heb. 12:1). For it is only then that the word of God can be “sown on good ground” (Mark 4:20). The apostle James said, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” (Jam. 4:8). The Lord tells us in Ezekiel chapter 36, “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.” (Ezek. 36:26,27). This is “the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God” (Eph. 3:9): “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:” (Col. 1:26,27). “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:” (Eph. 1:4).

“If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John 1:6,7).

      The apostle Paul said, “I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read unto all the holy brethren.” (I Thess. 5:27). The “holy brethren”: holy, not because we keep the commandments of God, but holy because the commandments of God are written on the table of our hearts keeping us from destroying ourselves (Prov. 3:3; 7:3; Isa. 54:17; Jer. 31:33; Heb. 8:10; 10:16): “whoso committeth adultery... destroyeth his own soul.” (Prov. 6:32); “He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity:” (Prov. 22:8); “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” (Gal. 6:7,8); “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” (I Cor. 6:9,0)

“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” (I Cor. 3:16,17)

      Jesus said, “I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.” (Rev. 13:8). James chapter 1 verse 22 says, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” And then in chapter 4 verse 17 it says, “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.”

“Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” (Matt. 7:14)

      The way that leads to life is strait and narrow. It is a highway of “godliness” and “righteousness” (I Tim. 6:11). “The way of holiness” is not a difficult way, as some would portray it, but a narrow way (Isa. 35:8). And like a narrow road, many people are avoiding it or overlooking it and missing the on-ramp. The strait and narrow way of truth that leads to life is this: to repent of your sins and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that is believing the everlasting gospel of your salvation and being obedient to all of God's commandments — the ten commandments in particular “written with the finger of God.” (Mark 1:15; 1st Cor. 14:37; Ex. 31:18). And you can't do it on your own; you need his Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of truth, to give you the power to walk in all truth (John 14:17,26; 15:26; 16:13; Acts 1:8): “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.” (Zech. 4:6). You can do it “By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left” (II Cor. 6:7).

“Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.” (Revelation 22:14)

      So if you want to spend eternity with God, you have to "repent" and "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Matt. 4:17; 9:13; Mark 1:15; 2:17; Luke 5:32; 13:3,5; 24:47; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 16:31; 17:30; 26:20; II Cor. 7:10; II Peter 3:9; Rev. 2:5; 3:19; 9:20,21); "Ye must be born again" "of the Spirit" of "the only true God" (John 3:3-7; 17:3) "and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38,41; 8:12,13,16,38; 9:18; 10:48; 16:15,33; 18:8; 19:5; 22:16); and be "led by the Spirit of God" to "do his commandments" (Rom. 8:14; Matt. 19:17; John 14:15; I Cor. 7:19; I John 2:3,4; 3:22; 5:2,3; II John 1:6; Rev. 12:17; 14:12; Rev. 22:14), "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever." (I Pet. 1:23; I John 5:7)