WBS.215
FUNDAMENTALS OF DISCIPLESHIP
DISCIPLESHIP 101
Part 12 – The Issue of Sin - 1
Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under
the law, but under grace.
Paul declared that he always accompanied his
preaching with MIGHTY signs and wonders by the power of the Spirit. He regarded that as fully preaching the
gospel; and to that end he strived always to preach the gospel with
demonstration of the power of the Spirit.
Yahushua said that those who believed the gospel would be saved and that
signs would follow them. The everyday,
run-of-the-mill believers were PROMISED that these signs would follow their
lives.
This matter of signs and
wonders in the life of a believer has been a life-long focus of my life. I have mentioned more than once in this blog,
since starting it several years ago, that when I was a youth in the Baptist
church, I came across John 14:12. I had
been taught to believe the Bible was the word of Elohim, the wellspring of
infallible truth not to be doubted or disputed.
If it said something, it meant what it said; and it was to be
believed. So, to a young boy reading
that anyone who believed in Messiah would do the works he did, and even greater
works…and looking around and seeing absolutely no one doing the Master’s works…well,
you can imagine how that would be a source of great consternation.
When I was born again some
seven years after finding this verse, my exasperation over this matter
increased. The truth of this verse
seemed more plausible than ever before; and yet I still saw no one doing what
it said. Two years later, when I
received the Holy Spirit, I got a significant portion of my answer to this
dilemma. When the power of the Holy
Spirit began to move in my life, I began to move and operate in the gifts of
the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12), and the supernatural began to become commonplace
in my life; but there were two obstacles that interfered with my experiencing
the kind of ministry that John 14:12, and Mark 16:17-20 promised. Those obstacles were 1) bad teaching; and 2)
the sin issue.
When the charismatic
movement restored the gifts of the Spirit to the church (when it essentially
restored the Holy Spirit, himself, to the church), the whole church was filled
with novices…some just a little less novice than others. It was juveniles teaching infants; and the
result was a lot of bad instruction being passed down. We didn’t know any better at the time. If someone had any success in healing, we
listened to what they had to say. If
anyone had success in casting out demons, we listened to what they had to say;
and so much of what they taught was wrong. They didn’t know any better, and
neither did the rest of us.
It took years to overcome
bad teaching; because it took years to discover it WAS bad teaching. One topic
of bad teaching, however, which persisted throughout this learning process like
a virus you couldn’t kill, is what I refer to as “the sin issue.” Simply put,
it goes something like this:
Sin produces guilt. Guilt estranges one from IAUE. Separation from IAUE produces a belief in one’s
unworthiness to minister in the supernatural. To sum it up:
if there is sin in my life, I can’t be used by the Spirit.
I can remember like it was
yesterday, though it was 45 years ago; a minister whom I greatly respected
said, “Don’t you sit at home watching television all day, then go to a meeting
and raise your bony finger in the air and say, ‘Thus saith the Lord.’” Whether he intended it or not, he was
communicating that you had to be constantly involved with Bible study or prayer
in order to be used of IAUE. To do anything less is sin; and you can’t move in
the gifts of the Holy Spirit if there is sin in your life.
This message has been
repeated in so many different formats that it absolutely pervades the church’s
consciousness. The reason we have bought this message hook, line and sinker, is
because it makes sense to us. It seems practical;
so the reason we do not do the works the Master did is because our lives are still
filled with sin. How can we expect to do
what Yahushua promise us we would do if we are still walking in sin?
The first thing we need to
realize is this. Neither in John 14:12,
nor in Mark 16:17-20, did the Master say we would do his works and have signs
and wonders follow our lives only if we had no sin in our life. If our heads say we cannot do the works of
Yahushua because we know of sin in our life, we cease to believe in the words
of our Master. We cease to expect his
words to be true. We cease to expect to
be able to heal the sick, cast out demons and work miracles. We cease to be believers; and that is the only
qualification required to do his works. We need to resolve this issue of sin,
once and for all; so we can move out of the realm of guilt, put unworthiness
behind us, and get onto the battlefield where we belong.
Years ago, the Holy Spirit
showed me a vision of this battlefield as a football game. Crowds of spectators filled the stands. They
were the unbelievers of this world watching to see which the greater team was. On the field were two teams. One was the church; the other was the army of
Satan. As the game progressed, the
church appeared to be the stronger team; but one by one, members of the church
would remove themselves from the field because they felt unworthy to continue
the fight. The sidelined
themselves. More and more sidelined
themselves because of guilt and a sense of unworthiness to continue to be on
the front lines. They sat on the benches
watching their team becoming weaker and weaker; and the crowds were beginning
to be convinced that Satan’ team was the one for which they should root and
cheer. Consciousness of sin made the
church weak.
Hebrews 10:10 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.
2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that
the worshippers once purged should
have had no more conscience of sins.
3 But in those
sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering
oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
Under the Old Covenant, a
system of sacrifices was constituted for the very purpose of making the Hebrew
conscious of his sinfulness. It was
burned into the conscience of every Hebrew that he was unworthy to stand before
IAUE on his own merits because he was a sinner.
The gentiles were not so well plagued with this conscience because the
Scripture tells us that where there is no law, sin is not imputed; meaning,
there is no accounting for sin unless a law says “Thou shalt not” do something
you have done. Only then is there an
awareness of sin. It does not mean sin
has not been committed; or that they will not be held accountable for it. It simply means they do not have a basis for
having a consciousness of their guilt before IAUE.
Hebrew 10:12 But this man, after he had
offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of Elohim;
13 From
henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
14 For by one
offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
15 Whereof the Holy Spirit also is a witness to us: for after that
he had said before,
16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those
days, saith IAUE, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will
I write them;
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for
sin.
There are four ways that sin
is treated in the Scripture; two under the old covenant and two under the New
Covenant. Under the old covenant, sin is
“covered” by the blood of the offering of atonement. It is this to which the author of Hebrews refers
(Hebrews 10:10-11) that brings a constant reminder to the Hebrew that he is a
sinner before IAUE; because his sins are never forgiven. They are simply being covered by an animal
sacrifice and carried over from year to year.
The second way, under the old covenant, is the once-for-all-time
sacrifice of Yahushua that paid the penalty for sin. According to Isaiah 53:5, Messiah Yahushua took all of man’s sins and iniquities to the tree and paid the debt of
sin. He brought forgiveness to all
mankind through his sacrifice. Having
the debt of sin paid does nothing to remove a conscience of sin. The conscience of sin still exists because 1)
men still sin because it is in their nature to sin; and they are aware of their
guilt before IAUE for their rebellion; and 2) they do not know that they have
been forgiven…that the debt of sin has been remitted.
There is a difference
between forgiveness (charizomai) and remission (aphesis)
of sin. All mankind has had its sins
forgiven; but they are still held in the power of sin. One can be forgiven sin; but it does not
change their nature to sin. A President
can issue a pardon to anyone who has committed a crime in the USA; but his
pardon, though releasing the person from paying the penalty for their crime,
does nothing to stop them from behaving in the same manner that caused them to
commit the crime in the first place.
Forgiveness simply releases one from the penalty of sin. It does nothing to release him from the power
of sin. Remission, on the other hand, is
deliverance from the power of sin; and it is the first way sin is treated under
the New Covenant.
We come to Messiah already
forgiven; but still in bondage to sin.
When we bow our knee to Yahushua as our Master and King, the Spirit of
IAUE creates within us a new spirit that is in union with the spirit of
Yahushua. The nature of that new
creature is righteousness. Sin is alien to its nature. We, however, even after being born again, are
not yet delivered from the power of sin that has made its claim upon our mind
and our flesh. Peter, on the day of
Pentecost, instructed the people to repent (which causes the new birth) and be
baptized (which brings remission, freedom from the power of sin, release from
bondage to sin), and then they would receive the Holy Spirit (which brings the
power to do the works of Yahushua).
Hebrews 10:18 Now where remission of these is,
there is no more offering for sin.
19 Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by
the blood of Yahushua,
22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance
of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our
bodies washed with pure water.
23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering;
(for he is faithful that promised;)
24 And let us consider
one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Notice in this passage how we
can have both a true heart and full assurance of faith…absolute confidence to come
into the presence of IAUE. This is
produced by two things: 1) having a
conscience of sin removed by the sacrifice of Messiah (This is realized in our
repentance and faith in Messiah.); and having our bodies washed with pure
water. The writer is referring to water
baptism following immediately upon our profession of faith in Yahushua
Messiah. It brings remission, freedom
from the power of sin, freedom from bondage to sin. It brings deliverance. It removes “the sin issue” and liberates us
from that as a hindrance to doing the “good works” of our Master Yahushua.
Kingdom
heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the
performance of the will of IAUE.
