Tuesday, October 25, 2005

'Cheap Grace' Is No Grace At All

Matthew 7:13-29 (NKJV)

The Narrow Way
(Luke 13:24)

13 "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 *Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

You Will Know Them by Their Fruits
(Matt. 12:33; Luke 6:43-45)

15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

I Never Knew You
(Luke 6:46; 13:26, 27)

21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' 23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

Build on the Rock
(Luke 6:47-49)

24 "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 "But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

The verses above are Jesus' own words. They are words of warning that the way to life is narrow and there are few that find it. He also warns us to beware of false prophets and how to recognize them by their "fruits."

Jesus tells us in those verses that not everyone who calls 'Lord, lord' shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. How does He know who are his own? He tells us, "those who do the will of My Father in heaven."

Jesus tells us to "build on the Rock." 24Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:..."

Who is this Rock? It is Jesus himself!


25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

Contrast this with what he says about NOT building your "house on the Rock" -

26 "But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."

The message is so clear. All other ground is sinking sand. Build your house on the Rock....Jesus Christ!

It is the false converts, nominal Christians, those who believe in 'cheap grace' who may face the words Jesus uttered in Matthew 7:23 - And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

I ran across this article that describes the "false convert" concept discussed in "The Way of the Master" book as "cheap grace."

In 'Cheap Grace'Is No Grace At All, Rev. Creech states:

"In previous studies, Barna research demonstrated how a biblical worldview radically alters a person's lifestyle choices, causing them to reject matters like cohabitation, drunkenness, gay sex, profanity, pornography, adultery, gambling and abortion. Nevertheless, Barna says despite all the debate in recent years about various moral issues and the effort of thousands of churches to strengthen people's moral convictions, "only 5% of adults have a biblical worldview. The percentage varies among faith groups. About half of all evangelicals have such a perspective. Overall, 8% of Protestants possess that view, compared to less than one half of one percent of Catholics." Furthermore, the vast majority of people without a biblical worldview, 88% to be exact, feel they are "accepted by God."

These amazing statistics remind me of a phrase Dietrich Bonhoeffer coined to address the self-delusion of Lutheran Church members in Germany in his day. In The Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoeffer spoke of those who had only experienced "cheap grace." He defined cheap grace as "the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession.

Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate."


*******

Another term used to describe those who are not obedient and do not hold to Christ's authority is "nominal Christians". I have heard of that term before. Note the following quote from the article:

"Well-known biblical commentator Arthur W. Pink once mused: "Never were there so many millions of nominal Christians on earth as there are today, and never was there such a small percentage of real ones .... We seriously doubt whether there has ever been a time in the history of this Christian era when there were such multitudes of deceived souls within the churches, who verily believe that all is well with their souls when in fact the wrath of God abideth on them."

*******

Now we know why the Bible tells us that "narrow is the way which leadeth unto life".

Matthew 7:14 - Because strait [is] the gate, and narrow [is] the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Why do only 5% (according to Barna research) of Christians hold to the Biblical worldview? Perhaps these verses from Jude helps explain:

Jude (NLT)


Greetings from Jude

This letter is from Jude, a slave of Jesus Christ and a brother of James.
I am writing to all who are called to live in the love of God the Father and the care of Jesus Christ.
2 May you receive more and more of God's mercy, peace, and love.

The Danger of False Teachers

3 Dearly loved friends, I had been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we all share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the truth of the Good News.* God gave this unchanging truth once for all time to his holy people. 4 I say this because some godless people have wormed their way in among you, saying that God's forgiveness allows us to live immoral lives. The fate of such people was determined long ago, for they have turned against our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

5 I must remind you-and you know it well-that even though the Lord* rescued the whole nation of Israel from Egypt, he later destroyed every one of those who did not remain faithful. 6 And I remind you of the angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God gave them but left the place where they belonged. God has kept them chained in prisons of darkness, waiting for the day of judgment. 7 And don't forget the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, which were filled with sexual immorality and every kind of sexual perversion. Those cities were destroyed by fire and are a warning of the eternal fire that will punish all who are evil.

8 Yet these false teachers, who claim authority from their dreams, live immoral lives, defy authority, and scoff at the power of the glorious ones.* 9 But even Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, did not dare accuse Satan of blasphemy, but simply said, "The Lord rebuke you." (This took place when Michael was arguing with Satan about Moses' body.) 10 But these people mock and curse the things they do not understand. Like animals, they do whatever their instincts tell them, and they bring about their own destruction. 11 How terrible it will be for them! For they follow the evil example of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they will do anything for money. And like Korah, they will perish because of their rebellion.

12 When these people join you in fellowship meals celebrating the love of the Lord, they are like dangerous reefs that can shipwreck you.* They are shameless in the way they care only about themselves. They are like clouds blowing over dry land without giving rain, promising much but producing nothing. They are like trees without fruit at harvesttime. They are not only dead but doubly dead, for they have been pulled out by the roots. 13 They are like wild waves of the sea, churning up the dirty foam of their shameful deeds. They are wandering stars, heading for everlasting gloom and darkness.

14 Now Enoch, who lived seven generations after Adam, prophesied about these people. He said,

"Look, the Lord is coming
with thousands of his holy ones.

15
He will bring the people of the world
to judgment.

He will convict the ungodly of all the evil things
they have done in rebellion
and of all the insults that godless sinners
have spoken against him."*
16 These people are grumblers and complainers, doing whatever evil they feel like. They are loudmouthed braggarts, and they flatter others to get favors in return.

A Call to Remain Faithful

17 But you, my dear friends, must remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ told you, 18 that in the last times there would be scoffers whose purpose in life is to enjoy themselves in every evil way imaginable. 19 Now they are here, and they are the ones who are creating divisions among you. They live by natural instinct because they do not have God's Spirit living in them.

20 But you, dear friends, must continue to build your lives on the foundation of your holy faith. And continue to pray as you are directed by the Holy Spirit.* 21 Live in such a way that God's love can bless you as you wait for the eternal life that our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy is going to give you. 22 Show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. 23 Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. There are still others to whom you need to show mercy, but be careful that you aren't contaminated by their sins.*

A Prayer of Praise

24 And now, all glory to God, who is able to keep you from stumbling, and who will bring you into his glorious presence innocent of sin and with great joy. 25 All glory to him, who alone is God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Yes, glory, majesty, power, and authority belong to him, in the beginning, now, and forevermore. Amen.

Footnotes:
1:3
Greek to contend for the faith.
1:5
Some manuscripts read Jesus.
1:8
The glorious ones are probably evil angels.
1:12
Or they are contaminants among you, or they are stains.
1:14
The quotation comes from the Apocrypha: Enoch 1:9.
1:15
The quotation comes from the Apocrypha: Enoch 1:9.
1:20
Greek Pray in the Holy Spirit.
1:23
Greek mercy, hating even the clothing stained by the flesh.

6 comments:

Susan Smith said...

This is a powerful post, Christine.

Cheap grace, nominal Christians, false converts... may be people who are deceived, but when they search their lives, their very hearts... they know they are living a lie. When they are honest, they have doubts.

There are also Christians living in bondage to sin. Carnal Christians are miserable, because they are not living what they believe. They have accepted Christ and believe their sins are forgiven, yet they have no victory over sin in their personal lives. The power of God is not evident in their lives at all.

They are not fruitful in the kingdom and many call them hypocrites. They do not accept by faith they were crucified 2000 years ago on the Cross. The flesh must die. We die daily. Love from East Talpiot. (ss)

Christinewjc said...

Another very important point from the article includes something that Bible-believing born-again Christians are often chastised for by non-believers and sometimes, those who might fit the "nominal Christian" label:

"Obedience is an expression of a right relationship with God in Christ. It's a relationship of love. Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15). If one really knows and loves Christ, it's bound to show in their actions. Where there is essentially no obedience there is every reason to question whether Christ actually resides in the heart."

When someone questions whether or not another is born again, it is not done for the purpose of judgment, it is actually done out of deep concern for the spiritual state of a person's soul.

Jesus said, "You MUST be born again."

His words, not mine.

So, if you are reading this and in the past, a Christian believer has asked you if you are "born again", please know that the person asking is not judging you, but loving you. Why? Because Christ first loved us!

Romans 5:8 - But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

I was in the same boat that you are in (if you are reading this and are not saved). It wasn't until I really understood that God loved me (and loves you too!) so much that He sent His only son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment for my (your)sins.

Because Jesus is God, He never sinned. When He died on the cross, Jesus became the perfect sacrifice for my (your) sins and the sins of the whole world.

1 John 4:10 - In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

I am no better than any other sinner.

1 John 1:8 - If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

Isaiah 64:6 - But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

These verses clearly tell us that we have no 'righteousness' on our own. You would have to be absolutely perfect to get to heaven on your own, and that's impossible!

Only the Lord Jesus Christ is perfect (righteous) and therefore, only He could take the punishment for your sin. There is only one way for you to get to heaven, and that is by believing in Christ as your Savior. When you believe that Christ took your place on the cross, God gives you His perfection (His righteousness).

Romans 4:5 - But to him who does not work, but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.

Acts 16:31b - ...Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.

John 1:12 - But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.

John 3:3 - Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

Being born again requires repentance for our sins, believing and trusting in Jesus as Lord and Savior.

The Bible says that sin cannot be forgiven without the shedding of blood. That's why God told the people in Old Testament times to sacrifice certain animals. But when Jesus died on the cross, He shed HIS blood so MY AND YOUR sins can be forgiven.

Hebrews 9:22 - And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.

1 Peter 1:18-19 - Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

This is why John the Baptist recognized Jesus as the Messiah.

John 1:29b - ...Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

He recognized the promised Messiah of the Old Testament Scriptures. The reason for Jesus' crucifixion was prophesied by Isaiah:

Isaiah 53:5-6 - But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

Salvation through Jesus Christ is a gift from God that must be received. When someone wants to give you a gift, you must receive it, right? If you refuse it, then you do not have (or want) that gift.

Romans 3:24 - Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

We can see that we can't earn such a gift. We are saved by grace through faith.

Ephesians 2:8-9 - for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, Not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Did you read that? NO ONE CAN BOAST, including the greatest pastor or evangelist we know.

But like my blog post and the 'cheap grace' article indicates, EVIDENCE of saving grace is shown by those who love Jesus and want to obey his commandments.

Why?

Because we love him. We are so grateful for his sacrifice for our sins. We realize our need to repent of sin and ask for forgiveness. We see the Lord's amazing mercy and grace afforded to us. We WANT to obey him!

Titus 2:11-12 - for the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,
Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.

Grace is giving me (and you) a free gift that I (and you) don't deserve. Salvation is being freed forever from the punishment of my (and your) sin. Denying means willingly saying "no" to worldly lusts and sinful desires. We are serious about doing what God says is right during the period of time we are now living in before Christ comes again.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Prayer is just talking with God. Even if you have never done it before, God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. The following is a suggested prayer. You can just use it as a guide and personalize your own prayer.

"Lord Jesus, I want to know You personally. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. Please forgive me. I open the door of my life and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving me of my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be. Amen."

Does this prayer (or one similar) express the desire of your heart?

If it does, pray this prayer right now, and Christ will come into your life, as He promised.

I would encourage you to visit this page at my website for more help and guidance. I pray that you have trusted Christ as your Savior and Lord today. If so, welcome to the family of God!

In Him,
Christine

Susan Smith said...

Wow! Is there any more to say?

One thing... we are never more perfect in the eyes of God than when we first believe. Sin will drop out of one's life on a regular basis after being born again; however, scripture clearly tells us "For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. HEB 10:14 My position is perfect... my experience does not reflect perfection.

The new birth is only the beginning of the abundant life we are promised. Discouragement is a tool of the devil. When I sin, I confess it quickly and go on. God is faithful even when I am not. Good night from East Talpiot. (ss)

Christinewjc said...

Hello Charlie,

Welcome to my blog...I think.

Let's go through the checklist of things you mentioned and see if there is anything that I could agree with. There are certainly a LOT that I cannot agree with.

Charlie stated: "The "cheap grace" of modern industrial bourgeois Christianity is bought at the price of the never-ending spiritual immiseration of the working classes."

I don't think that this is necessarily true. The "cheap grace" that I was referring to had more to do with an individuals' born-again (or lack, thereof) relationship with Jesus Christ and not as blanket reference to Christianity as a whole.

Charlie stated: "Proletarian Christianity, on the other hand, offers workers the gospel of salvation, liberation, and an end to the expropriation of surplus value -- at the price of revolutionary sacrifice and heroic reorganization."

Proletarian Christianity? That's a new concept for me. If by your label here you see the term "proletariat" as meaning and refering to Marxist theory, then I must disagree. I am a staunch pro-capitalist who believes in the ownership of property, including the freedoms and rights as written in our U.S. Constitution. I am a Christian first, wife and mother second, proud member of the Democratic-Republic of the United States of America, and for what it stands for: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Whew! For some reason that felt REAL good to say!

I don't agree with much else in your post, either.

1. The capitalistic age is not "late."

2. All churches don't treat salvation as a "commodity." Perhaps the attitude of an individual person could possibly choose to see it that way, but I wouldn't blame the churches for that.

3. There is no "monopoly" of churches. People have the freedom of choice.

4. The churches don't fight among themselves for 'holy' profits as you labeled it. People give to churches in faithful support for the purpose of evangelizing so that people can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ, equipped for ministry, and sent out as soul winners for the Lord.

5. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not 'authentically communist."

6. I am not your 'comrade.' I belong to Jesus Christ and the family of believers.

7. I don't see those who are not yet born again of God as being that way because of any 'slippery bourgeois' of any church. However, because of bondage to personal sin, deception of the evil one, and adherance to pride a person can choose to miss out on His gift of salvation offered through the death and resurrection power of Christ through the grace and mercy of God the Father. They may choose to trust in themselves rather than truly trusting Christ.

8. My post was not meant as an 'attack' but as a witnessing tool to draw the unsaved and/or 'nominal, false convert' Christians into genuine conversion to faith in Jesus Christ.

9. I don't agree that our churches here in America are all 'stumbling blocks' and I don't think that God's perfect will and sovereignty should be labeled as 'socialism and God's working-class Utopia.'

10. I don't see the phenomenon of cheap grace as the fault of philosophers but rather the unfortunate choice of people who may have NOT followed Jesus' words carefully enough. But there is ALWAYS hope to change this course and path that they may be on.

11. My country of the United States of America is not one that I would label as a 'free trade blunder', but one of freedom and opportunity for all.

12. We do not believe that salvation is by works.

Let's see. Any areas of agreement? Oops...doesn't look that way.

One last point. Our nation is blessed by Almighty God in so many ways. He gets us through all the tragedys and triumphs because He is faithful and true. We continue to ask for His blessings.

I feel quite moved right now after bringing back to remembrance God's love and grace bestowed upon our beautiful nation...I feel like singing...

God bless America
Land that I love
Stand beside Her
And guide Her
Through the night
With the Light from above
From the mountains
To the prairies
To the oceans
White with foam

God bless America
My home, sweet, home
God bless America
My home, sweet, home!

Susan Smith said...

God does indeed bless America by inspiring her true born-again Christian citizens, filling them with His Spirit and anointing them with His power to be kind and loving even to those who appear unloving.

How do I know this? I was unlovable, unkind, manipulative and very unhappy 21 years ago. God blessed me with a mentor who loved me. She was a willing vessel and God used her to deliver me from homosexuality, sexual lust and alcohol abuse. His unconditional love poured through her to my thirsty heart that needed a mother's love. I was 35-years-old when we met. I thank God for such Christians. You are one of those Christians, Christine.

God bless you from East Talpiot. (ss)

Christinewjc said...

Susan said: ""For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. HEB 10:14 My position is perfect... my experience does not reflect perfection."

So beautifully stated Susan! Because Jesus is perfect and was sinless as the Incarnate Man, only He could release us from that bondage to sin and lead us to sanctification.

Your testimony gives such hope to those who are currently deceived in bondage to any sin.

Any Christian who is still living in bondage to sin, especially carnal sin, grieves the heart of God and, as you said, makes them miserable.

Christ's power and victory over such sin is not evident in their lives because they are still holding on to such sinful acts which doesn't allow the power of Christ's victory (over both sin and death)into their lives!

They are missing out on the victory of God...he has buried all sin onto the ocean floor. Our sin is no more...as far as the east is from the west. Why would someone even want to continue to pursue it?

They don't recognize that they are allowing the limited power of the Deceiver to continue holding them in bondage! Satan wants them to doubt God's power of release and through pride, they refuse to allow Him to be on the throne of their lives. This causes them to live in continual bondage to such sins.

At my Bible study, we were discussing the covenant that God made with Noah after the flood. God said that the rainbow would be a symbol in the sky to remind Him of this covenant.

It has always bothered me that the rainbow symbol has been hijacked by the gay rights agenda. It is being used in a way that mocks God's true covenant with man. It is being used to push an agenda that is evil and keeps souls in bondage to sin.

David Kupelian's book The Marketing of Evil discusses many other evils that man has been duped into believing are 'good things'. As you have told me before, Susan, the chapter on abortion shows how this type of evil has been sold to America, too.

Here's an excerpt from the article link above:

"David covers everything from the gay rights movement to the ACLU atheist agenda to big-dollar medical establishments promoting abortion as "a woman's right to choose." Even the very slogan "a woman's right to choose" generated laughter when it was coined. It was part of a cold and calculated marketing scheme.

The chapter "blood confessions" explains exactly how a baby dies in the womb during an abortion. This is heart wrenching and very disturbing, so beware. You will never again doubt that a murder is taking place during an abortion. The fact that the American public has embraced this horrific evil is beyond words."

How utterly disturbing is this: "Even the very slogan "a woman's right to choose" generated laughter when it was coined."

Can you imagine it? Laughter over the murder of a baby in the womb? It's disgusting and horrendous! Grieves the hearts of millions of Americans and I'm sure it also grieves the heart God.

I pray that every thinking American gets that book and reads it. They will see how such strong delusions sent by the evil one through unregenerate man has caused them to be duped into misjudging "that which is evil as good."

Isaiah 5:20 - 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!

Psalm 52:3 - Thou lovest evil more than good; [and] lying rather than to speak righteousness. Selah.

Matthew 12:35 - A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

John 5:29 - 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.

1 Peter 3:11 - Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.

Jesus is our Prince of Peace! His Word allows us to discern good from evil.

Hebrews 5:13 - But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, [even] those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

In our study, we read Genesis 6.

Look at this verse:

Genesis 6:5 - And GOD saw that the wickedness of man [was] great in the earth, and [that] every imagination of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually.

How chilling! EVERY imagination of the thoughts of man's heart was ONLY EVIL continually!

The Days of Lot were evil too. Jesus said that the signs of his return would be like the days of Lot.

Luke 17:28 Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;


Luk 17:29 But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed [them] all.


Luk 17:30 Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.