Romans 1
1Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, 4and who through the Spirit[a] of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God[b] by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. 6And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
Many today preach a partial side of the Gospel, they preach "Believe, only believe. Have faith in Christ; you only need to believe in Christ. But forget obedience, dont follow anything Christ says.." That is not true belief, as even the demons believe (know about) in Jesus, but Paul is talking about believing (accepting) in Christ which is incorparating Christ into our lives. This means obedience (following) that comes from faith, which is way past the basic outlines of the Law, in which the Spirit guides us. That means those things which Christ preached and asked us to follow are part of our lives. Righteousness through work of the Holy Spirit that surpasses even those who know the Law in its every intricacy and cognitive content..
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
If you hear someone preach on faith and tell you to believe, but dont turn from sin or makes you reject the Spirit which Christ sends which makes us dead to sin, how can you have Christ in you and you in Christ. How different is this from the words of the apostle who declares that faith without works is dead. He says, "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves" (James 1:22).
"..We must have that faith that works by love and purifies the soul. Many seek to substitute a superficial faith for uprightness of life and think through this to obtain salvation.
The Lord requires at this time just what He required of Adam in Eden--perfect obedience to the law of God. We must have righteousness without a flaw, without a blemish. God gave His Son to die for the world, but He did not die to repeal the law which was holy and just and good. The sacrifice of Christ on Calvary is an unanswerable argument showing the immutability of the law. Its penalty was felt by the Son of God in behalf of guilty man, that through His merits the sinner might obtain the virtue of His spotless character by faith in His name.
The sinner was provided with a second opportunity to keep the law of God in the strength of his divine Redeemer. The cross of Calvary forever condemns the idea that Satan has placed before the Christian world, that the death of Christ abolished not only the typical system of sacrifices and ceremonies but the unchangeable law of God, the foundation of His throne, the transcript of His character.
Through every device possible Satan has sought to make of none effect the sacrifice of the Son of God, to render His expiation useless and His mission a failure. He has claimed that the death of Christ made obedience to the law unnecessary and permitted the sinner to come into favour with a holy God without forsaking his sin. He has declared that the Old Testament standard was lowered in the gospel and that men can come to Christ, not to be saved from their sins but in their sins.
But when John beheld Jesus he told His mission. He said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). To every repentant soul the message is, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isaiah 1:18)...." ..EGW in SIGNS OF THE TIMES, MAY 19, 1890 .
The true gospel, is believe in Christ, be saved in Christ, and let Christ take away your sin as He changes your life by the Spirit which not only cleanses you from sin but sanctifies and brings you closer to Christ as you follow him in your life.
1Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— 2the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, 4and who through the Spirit[a] of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God[b] by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. 6And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.
Many today preach a partial side of the Gospel, they preach "Believe, only believe. Have faith in Christ; you only need to believe in Christ. But forget obedience, dont follow anything Christ says.." That is not true belief, as even the demons believe (know about) in Jesus, but Paul is talking about believing (accepting) in Christ which is incorparating Christ into our lives. This means obedience (following) that comes from faith, which is way past the basic outlines of the Law, in which the Spirit guides us. That means those things which Christ preached and asked us to follow are part of our lives. Righteousness through work of the Holy Spirit that surpasses even those who know the Law in its every intricacy and cognitive content..
Matthew 5:20
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
If you hear someone preach on faith and tell you to believe, but dont turn from sin or makes you reject the Spirit which Christ sends which makes us dead to sin, how can you have Christ in you and you in Christ. How different is this from the words of the apostle who declares that faith without works is dead. He says, "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves" (James 1:22).
"..We must have that faith that works by love and purifies the soul. Many seek to substitute a superficial faith for uprightness of life and think through this to obtain salvation.
The Lord requires at this time just what He required of Adam in Eden--perfect obedience to the law of God. We must have righteousness without a flaw, without a blemish. God gave His Son to die for the world, but He did not die to repeal the law which was holy and just and good. The sacrifice of Christ on Calvary is an unanswerable argument showing the immutability of the law. Its penalty was felt by the Son of God in behalf of guilty man, that through His merits the sinner might obtain the virtue of His spotless character by faith in His name.
The sinner was provided with a second opportunity to keep the law of God in the strength of his divine Redeemer. The cross of Calvary forever condemns the idea that Satan has placed before the Christian world, that the death of Christ abolished not only the typical system of sacrifices and ceremonies but the unchangeable law of God, the foundation of His throne, the transcript of His character.
Through every device possible Satan has sought to make of none effect the sacrifice of the Son of God, to render His expiation useless and His mission a failure. He has claimed that the death of Christ made obedience to the law unnecessary and permitted the sinner to come into favour with a holy God without forsaking his sin. He has declared that the Old Testament standard was lowered in the gospel and that men can come to Christ, not to be saved from their sins but in their sins.
But when John beheld Jesus he told His mission. He said, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). To every repentant soul the message is, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isaiah 1:18)...." ..EGW in SIGNS OF THE TIMES, MAY 19, 1890 .
The true gospel, is believe in Christ, be saved in Christ, and let Christ take away your sin as He changes your life by the Spirit which not only cleanses you from sin but sanctifies and brings you closer to Christ as you follow him in your life.