Sabra said:
Bon:
How was there grace from the beginning? There was justice - man dying because of his sin (in the Garden of Eden) - and there was mercy with the Ten Commandments and so on.
There has never been love and grace like that displayed in the person of Jesus Christ. Also, Christianity is a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ. It is not a "religion" - it is a lived experience. A relationship with the Almight through my faith in His Son and what He has done for me on the cross.
Do I need to be called a Christian to have such a "living relationship" with God through "Jesus Christ"?
As I understand it, "some" people think that Old Testament believers were saved by keeping the law and New Testament believers are saved by grace through faith!
But our relationship with YHWH, has been about grace through faith all along.
Remember that God never changes.....and one of the reasons that Yahshua (Jesus) was sent by the Father, was to proclaim the favour of YHWH.
Luke 4.18,19 "The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD".
Who is Yahshua speaking to here? .......Right! The Jews!
In Romans 9:30-32 Paul reveals the problem with the Jews and the Law.
Romans 9:30-32 What shall we say, then? That gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, the righteousness through faith; but that Israel who pursued the righteousness which is based on law (or: who pursued the law of righteousness) did not succeed in fulfilling that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it (i.e. the law) through faith, but AS IF it were based on works.
The phrase
"AS IF" or "as though" shows us that Paul did not believe that YHWH ever intended the law to be obeyed by "works."
The law never intended to bring about salvation. Is is based on faith in YHWH's promises and not on legalistic efforts.
Israels mistake was not in keeping the law, but in keeping it by works instead of by faith.
Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.
Matthew 23:23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and FAITH. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
Genesis 6:8
But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
Jonah 4:2 So he prayed to the LORD, and said, “Ah, LORD, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm.
The Aaronic Blessing
Numbers 6:24-26 24 “The LORD bless you and keep you;
25 The LORD make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
26 The LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.”’
Grace through faith, all the way....but don't get me wrong.....Yahshua HaMashiach....is the only way to the Father.
Yahshua showed us how, by revealing the
sprirt of the Law (the Law on our hearts and in our minds), first to the Jew and then to the nations.
Bon
