Like a chestnut tree

I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. Remember my imprisonment. Grace be with you. (v. 18)

In the Bible, we read about people being imprisoned. Joseph was sold as a slave. Even his father, Joseph, lived like a slave for many years. The Israelites in the Book of Judges lived like slaves. Throughout history, God’s people experienced what it is like to live as slaves. Being a slave is like living in a prison. My actions and thoughts are dictated by those who imprisoned me.

In the current civilized society, we think we are free. But from birth, we are slaves.

Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’; Cursed is the ground because of you; With hard labor you shall eat from it All the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; Yet you shall eat the plants of the field; By the sweat of your face You shall eat bread, Until you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:17-19)

We must work to maintain our daily lives. When physical need becomes our idol, people do anything to satisfy it. Once they are satisfied, they create an idol with an image.

The craftsman of iron shapes a cutting tool and does his work over the coals, fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary. The craftsman of wood extends a measuring line; he outlines it with a marker. He works it with carving knives and outlines it with a compass, and makes it like the form of a man, like the beauty of mankind, so that it may sit in a house. He will cut cedars for himself, and he takes a holm-oak or another oak and lets it grow strong for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel tree, and the rain makes it grow. Then it becomes something for a person to burn, so he takes one of them and gets warm; he also makes a fire and bakes bread. He also makes a god and worships it; he makes it a carved image and bows down before it. Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat, he roasts a roast, and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Aha! I am warm, I have seen the fire.” Yet the rest of it he makes into a god, his carved image. He bows down before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.” (Isaiah 44:12-17)

It appears that people worship idols they created but the truth is they are their idols. To become an idol, they need people who serve them. Therefore, they work hard to have more money and fame than others.

For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even as I weep, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who have their minds on earthly things. (Philippians 3:18-19)

People do not realize that they are slaves.

So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. Now the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free. I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you are seeking to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak of the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” (John 8:31-38)

Imprisonment exists to teach us about freedom. If we sin, we are slaves to sin. If we rely on the law for our salvation, the law is our master. And if our physical need is our idol, money is our master. Anyone who is not under the absolute grace of God is a slave.

Why the Law then? It was added on account of the violations, having been ordered through angels at the hand of a mediator, until the Seed would come to whom the promise had been made. Now a mediator is not for one party only; but God is only one. Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? Far from it! For if a law had been given that was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law. But the Scripture has confined everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. (Galatians 3:19-22)

Physical imprisonment means little as we see Paul in his letters. Paul was not ashamed of the gospel. With the love God gave him, he preached the gospel with love.

Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will boldly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it fearlessly, as I should. (Ephesians 6:19-20)

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so must you do also. In addition to all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. (vv. 12-14)

Theologians and ministers dress up nicely and go to seminars, forums, etc. to discuss their ideas of God. They like quoting other theologians and talking about what comes first: faith or work. Listening to them is a waste of time and money. They want to think that they are more educated and knowledgeable than others. But the answer is in the Bible. And anyone with the Holy Spirit understands what comes first.

As I have mentioned before, God is the ultimate judge. No one is more logical than God. Paul with the Holy Spirit lays out his argument step by step. He talks about Christ’s person in chapter 1 and then Christ’s work in chapter 2. Now he talks about our new life as children of God.

We face temptations every day. However, we must remember that we are now children of God. We live according to our new status. We are new because of Christ and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we listen to God’s words.

False teachers argue that we can lose salvation if we do not obey. But that is not what Paul tells us in the Letter to the Colossians. We are already saved. We are now being educated and trained to live as children of God.

For the one who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality. (v. 25)

God does not just forgive our sins. God teaches us why our actions and thoughts are wrong. God sometimes lets us go astray briefly so that we learn from our mistakes. King David committed a grievous sin and suffered for the rest of his life. Many false Christians use David’s case as their excuse to commit adultery. They do not see the consequences of David’s sin. His sin is written in the Bible so that we would not make the same error.

Now then, the sword shall never leave your house, because you have despised Me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ This is what the Lord says: ‘Behold, I am going to raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will sleep with your wives in broad daylight. Indeed, you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and in open daylight.’” Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has allowed your sin to pass; you shall not die. However, since by this deed you have shown utter disrespect for the Lord, the child himself who is born to you shall certainly die.” (2 Samuel 12:10-14)

It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. (Hebrews 12:7-8)

Many Christians think they are saved because they do good deeds and/or are rich and/or have many children. We know we are saved because of our understanding of God’s words. God’s words have life and make us live a new life.

For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

For I want you to know how great a struggle I have in your behalf and for those who are at Laodicea, and for all those who have not personally seen my face, that their hearts may be encouraged, having been knit together in love, and that they would attain to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (vv. 1-3)

I have mentioned a few times that our understanding of righteousness depends on our knowledge of Christ’s person. Theologians and ministers often emphasize Christ’s person and work. But most of them follow the Active Obedience of Christ. This means they do not understand who Christ is. If we do not know who Christ is, there is no salvation. It is because the Holy Spirit gives us the knowledge. Without the Holy Spirit, we are not the children of God. For this reason, I consider the doctrine of the Trinity the most important doctrine in Christianity. It may appear that all Christian denominations are the same but they are different because of their understanding of the Trinity. For example, the Eastern Orthodox or the Jewish religion do not accept our God as their God.

Paul builds up his arguments starting from the basic, the person of Christ, in chapter 1. And he talks about Christ’s work directly related to our salvation and adoption.

And when you were dead in your wrongdoings and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our wrongdoings, having canceled the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. (vv. 13-14)

We became righteous not because Christ kept the law perfectly but because He died for us and resurrected us with Him. Those ministers and theologians who strongly support the Active Obedience of Christ (AOC) typically talk about books and articles written by other theologians and even Greek philosophers. But we simply do not need to because Paul is against the doctrine. By supporting the AOC, many theologians and ministers try to oppress us. They typically throw away predestination and justification by faith at the end of their life. It is because the AOC is based on lies about God. Paul warns us here that these people will try to take us back to Egypt. They say that we are free. But they use their freedom as an excuse for their evil deeds. So their own actions speak against them.

If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” (which all refer to things destined to perish with use)—in accordance with the commandments and teachings of man? These are matters which do have the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and humility and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence. (vv. 20-23)

True Christianity is not about dos or don’ts. It is about knowledge of God. True Christianity does not lead us to sins as some false Christians claim. We must not add anything to the cross of Christ.

Therefore, no one is to act as your judge in regard to food and drink, or in respect to a festival or a new moon, or a Sabbath day— things which are only a shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. Take care that no one keeps defrauding you of your prize by delighting in humility and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind, and not holding firmly to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God. (vv. 16-19)

We do not understand many things about God. From morning till night, I ask God many things. Not all knowledge is given to us. But we do not need to know everything until the new kingdom comes. While on earth, we are given the most important knowledge of God concerning our salvation. That knowledge is this: God sent His only begotten Son to die for us and resurrect us with Him to give us new life as the children of God. As Jesus lives forever, we live forever in the new kingdom.

For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation: for by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or rulers, or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. And although you were previously alienated and hostile in attitude, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His body of flesh through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— (Colossians 1: 13-22)

Apostle Paul was given much knowledge so that he could preach the gospel to everyone.

We proclaim Him, admonishing every person and teaching every person with all wisdom, so that we may present every person complete in Christ. For this purpose I also labor, striving according to His power which works mightily within me. (Colossians 1:28-29)

However, this same Paul quotes Isaiah 6:9-10 in Acts 28:26-28. Isaiah proclaimed God’s messages to the Israelites, who had the circumcision on the body. Paul also did. However, the message in Isaiah 6:9-10 was not written to the Israelites only. The message is also written to Christians who had the ceremonial baptism. Many people were brought to churches and received ceremonial baptism. But many do not understand the gospel. Most of them think doing good deeds would save them. They spend much time reading theology books or Christian inspirational books, written by false Christians. They think they are good and respected by others in their churches. They tell one another to read this book or that because they cannot understand God’s words.

We do not yet know why God has decided to save only some. And the Bible clearly tells us that God did not choose people based on their good deeds. Apostle Paul was living proof because he persecuted Christians. I can only conclude that the reprobate people are used for training God’s chosen people. They exist for our learning. We still try to explain the gospel to them. But they talk about Greek philosophy and human wisdom and ideas to nullify the power of God shown on the cross of Christ.

The kingdom has the exact measurements. Nothing will be changed from the original blueprint. Therefore, we do not fear people.

Then there was given to me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, “Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. Leave out the courtyard which is outside the temple and do not measure it, because it has been given to the nations; and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. (Revelation 11:1-2)

And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. (Matthew 10:28)

1 May God arise, may his enemies be scattered;
    may his foes flee before him.
² May you blow them away like smoke—
    as wax melts before the fire,
    may the wicked perish before God.
³ But may the righteous be glad
    and rejoice before God;
    may they be happy and joyful. (Psalm 68:1-3)

We as Christians have been hearing about Judgement Day and eternal punishment. We were persuaded to believe in God and join a church so that we could be saved. Punishment accompanies the law. The law accompanies slavery. Christ will indeed come back and judge all people according to their deeds. Some will receive eternal life and others will receive eternal punishment. But Christianity is not about fear but hope. We, as reborn Christians, must look forward to the new world. Everything created is for our education. Once we, as the invisible church, are fully mature, this world will end. The new world will come.

The most pitiful among all people are those who are at ease. They have money, fame, and health. They have nothing to worry about. Their life looks ‘sorted’. But it is easy to see that God does not want these people to repent of their sins. They don’t put all their hope in the new kingdom.

And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?” And looking at them, Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. (Matthew 19:24-26)

Verse 26 is not about the rich people being saved. Here, Christ talks about salvation without works. Within the old covenant, salvation without works is impossible. One must do good deeds to earn righteousness. Christ came to teach us what God truly wanted from His people.

Now go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, RATHER THAN SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:13)

Job was self-righteous. He even thought he was more righteous than God. But he learned through suffering. Can one be saved without works? It is impossible under the old covenant but God makes it possible through the new covenant. But churches around the world go after money and fame. They deny God’s absolute grace. They despise the cross of Christ. True Christians are mocked and ridiculed. However, God will restore His people.

Psalm 42

1 As the deer pants for the water brooks,
So my soul pants for You, God.
² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God;
When shall I come and appear before God?
³ My tears have been my food day and night,
While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
⁴ I remember these things and pour out my soul within me.
For I used to go over with the multitude and walk them to the house of God,
With a voice of joy and thanksgiving, a multitude celebrating a festival.

⁵ Why are you in despair, my soul?
And why are you restless within me?
Wait for God, for I will again praise Him
For the help of His presence, my God.
⁶ My soul is in despair within me;
Therefore I remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
⁷ Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your breakers and Your waves have passed over me.
⁸ The Lord will send His goodness in the daytime;
And His song will be with me in the night,
A prayer to the God of my life.

⁹ I will say to God my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”
¹⁰ As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries taunt me,
While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
¹¹ Why are you in despair, my soul?
And why are you restless within me?
Wait for God, for I will again praise Him
For the help of His presence, my God.

Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you will not go over there.” (v. 4)

For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. (John 1 :17)

The Law came in so that the offense would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, so also grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:20-21)

But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Since you did not trust in Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, for that reason you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.” (Numbers 20:12)

This is the last chapter of Deuteronomy. Moses dies and does not enter the promised land. The land symbolizes the kingdom of God. It is only a symbol, not the real kingdom of God. But what happened to the Israelites then teaches us about God’s plan of the kingdom.

Once I had a chat with a former Christian who has become an atheist. I asked him about his understanding of Christianity. He said faith came because people could not keep the law and get saved. What he said is accepted by most churches as the right understanding. But he is wrong. Faith did not come as an alternate way to salvation. God planned the kingdom with His only begotten son as the cornerstone before He created the world. So there was no such thing as salvation (or righteousness) by perfect keeping of the law.

A person who obeys God perfectly may be called upright and blameless as in the case of Job.

The LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, fearing God and turning away from evil. (Job 1:8)

The Hebrew words used for Job here are not righteousness described for Abraham, which I’ve mentioned in a previous post. Through much suffering, Job comes to understand who God is. His uprightness was nothing compared to God who alone is righteous. No one can earn righteousness by observing the law because the law was given to teach us that we cannot earn righteousness. This does not lead us to lawlessness. We know that the law is holy if the Holy Spirit teaches and guides us. We no longer offer to God various animal sacrifices because all law is fulfilled by Jesus Christ. His death and resurrection made us the children of God through faith. So the law is perfected and its essence, love, remains as the eternal law. Only God can love. Only God is righteous. And we love God and His people as ourselves by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Moses, as the mediator of the old covenant, was only a foreshadow of the Savior. That is why he was not allowed to enter the promised land. This does not mean that he was not saved. We must focus on what this teaches us.

The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen; to him you shall listen. (Deuteronomy 18:15)

Christ was accused of breaking the law and killed. But He lives forever as the mediator of the new covenant.

For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the violations that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. (Hebrews 9:15)

Christ was born under the law but free from the curse of the law because He is the only begotten Son of God. He became like us so that we would become like Him. He became like us to redeem us. There is much difference between the words “keep” and “fulfill”. However, theologians keep insisting that Christ made us righteous by keeping the law perfectly. I pray to God that you understand what the Bible teaches and make the right judgment. There is no freedom under a false gospel. Many people left Christianity because churches preach a false gospel. That is why churches are full of false Christians.

Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. (Matthew 5:17)

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun,
Who rides the heavens to your help,
And the clouds in His majesty.
The eternal God is a hiding place,
And underneath are the everlasting arms;
And He drove out the enemy from you,
And said, ‘Destroy!’
So Israel lives in security,
The fountain of Jacob secluded,
In a land of grain and new wine;
His heavens also drip down dew.
Blessed are you, Israel;
Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord,
The shield of your help,
And He who is the sword of your majesty!
So your enemies will cringe before you,
And you will trample on their high places.” (vv. 26-29)

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be. (John 14:3)

Who is this who comes from Edom,
With garments of glowing colors from Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I, the One who speaks in righteousness, mighty to save.”
Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like one who treads in the wine press?
“I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no one with Me.
I also trod them in My anger
And trampled them in My wrath;
And their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I stained all My clothes.
For the day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come.
I looked, but there was no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.
I trampled down the peoples in My anger
And made them drunk with My wrath,
And I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.” (Isaiah 63:1-6)

Only God saves His people and revenges His enemies. As God’s children, we love His people and hate His enemies. We are one with God through Jesus Christ. God gave us the Holy Spirit, the new heart to know and love Him. And this knowledge of God has come through Jesus Christ, the Word. The Holy Spirit teaches us the meanings of God’s words. Therefore, it is impossible to know God without understanding His words. The summary and the culmination of all His words is Jesus Christ. Christ came to preach the kingdom of God. The world was made to build this kingdom, God’s people. We are trained in this world. Once the church is fully matured, the world will disappear or rather be destroyed. Without understanding this, no one can understand the covenants mentioned in the Bible.

One must read the whole Bible to understand the big picture of creation. Churches do not encourage people to read the Bible. Instead, they encourage people to listen to their ministers and elders. They preach salvation by perfect keeping of the law although they pretend to preach God’s grace. They use Bible verses as they like. They pretend to live a moral life but are lawbreakers from God’s point of view. Therefore, we, the children of God, pray to God for guidance and eagerly wait for God’s final judgment at the end.

The enemies of God are those who deny God’s absolute grace. Faith and obedience are the results of the work of the Holy Spirit. God chooses His people before they are born and makes them into His children. If you have faith in God and understand His plan for His kingdom and grace that came through Jesus Christ, you are a child of God. We praise God for His wonderful works.

God did not save us by keeping the law for us. God saved us by dying for us. Jesus Christ is the head of the church and the only begotten Son of God. He paid the price on the cross so that we are reborn as children of God as He resurrected. We are one with God. We love the law because the essence of the law is God’s self-sacrificing love. But we are not under the law. We are no longer slaves. We uphold the law as the children of God. We are clothed with God’s righteousness by becoming one with God through Jesus Christ. Christ was blameless before the law. But He did not keep the law to gain righteousness. He did not keep the law to give us righteousness. If we put the law between Christ and us, we are still slaves. That is what false theologians intended to do back in 17th-century England. In the new Reformation era, there is no place for Covenant Theology, Active Obedience of Christ, or Dispensationalism.

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our lowly condition into conformity with His glorious body, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. (Philippians 3:20-21)

See now that I, I am He,
And there is no god besides Me;
It is I who put to death and give life.
I have wounded and it is I who heal,
And there is no one who can save anyone from My hand. (v. 39)

Rejoice, you nations, with His people;
For He will avenge the blood of His servants,
And will return vengeance on His adversaries,
And will atone for His land and His people. (v. 43)

Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood. And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous are You, the One who is and who was, O Holy One, because You judged these things; for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. They deserve it.” And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.” (Revelation 16: 4-7)

I know who my father is. I cannot call someone else “my father” because my conscience will be troubled if I do that. Likewise, I cannot be in an assembly of people who worship a strange god. Even if they say they follow the Reformed theology and learn the doctrines from youth, they are serving an idol because they believe in the Active Obedience of Christ (AOC). Thus, they think that their righteousness is from keeping the law, not from having faith in God. They say they uphold righteousness by faith alone. But they say that righteousness is gained by Christ’s perfect keeping of the law. They nullify the power of the cross. Even further, they insist that Adam could have been the head of the church if he had kept God’s command during a probation period. This is called the Covenant Theology.

The rebirth of the treacherous doctrine started in the 17th-century England. Theologians still debate if the Westminster assembly supported the AOC. The AOC and the Covenant Theology are written in the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. England flourished and became a mighty country. The Industrial Revolution started in England. But we must look at the consequences of material prosperity.

But Jeshurun became fat and kicked—
You have become fat, thick, and obstinate—
Then he abandoned God who made him,
And rejected the Rock of his salvation. (v. 15)

To gain people, theologians forsook truth. They chose the law over the grace of God. They chose money. And we see the consequences of our stupidity and greed in the world. The environments are damaged beyond repair. They call for “mother nature” but there is no such thing. People are drunk and think they are safe when the whole ship is sinking. There is not a thing that we can do to stop the destruction. This is in God’s plan but we caused all these calamities.

Yet, God knows His children. And we wait for the second coming of Christ. Until then, we endure and pray. The words of God are the lamp to our feet.

For the eagerly awaiting creation waits for the revealing of the sons and daughters of God. (Romans 8:19)

‘Vengeance is Mine, and retribution; In due time their foot will slip. For the day of their disaster is near, And the impending things are hurrying to them.’ (v. 35)

Then it will come about, when many evils and troubles find them, that this song will testify before them as a witness (for it shall not be forgotten from the mouth of their descendants); for I know their inclination which they are developing today, before I bring them into the land which I swore. (v. 21)

For I know that after my death you will behave very corruptly and turn from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will confront you in the latter days, because you will do that which is evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands. (v. 29)

God did not give the law to the Israelite for them to be saved by keeping the law. The law was given to them to know God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. But only few understood it. For those who are not given the Holy Spirit, knowing God and His plan is impossible. Thus, they rely on the law but are lawbreakers. The law is a curse because God did not give the law as a way to salvation. God did not give all people the new heart.

Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, so that it may remain there as a witness against you. (v. 26)

The law was not given as a witness for the Israelites. It was a witness against them. No one received salvation through the law. The old covenant must fail so that the new covenant can be introduced. However, the new covenant is older because God planned this before the foundation of the world. The new covenant is the one and only eternal covenant between God and His people. Being biological descendants of Abraham does not mean that they are God’s people. Concerning this, the Book of Galatians explains in detail.

And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. But as at that time the son who was born according to the flesh persecuted the one who was born according to the Spirit, so it is even now. But what does the Scripture say? “DRIVE OUT THE SLAVE WOMAN AND HER SON, FOR THE SON OF THE SLAVE WOMAN SHALL NOT BE AN HEIR WITH THE SON OF THE FREE WOMAN.” So then, brothers and sisters, we are not children of a slave woman, but of the free woman. (Galatians 4:28-31)

While we were still sinners, God made us His children through Jesus Christ. This eternal blessing was given free of charge. None of us kept the law perfectly. None of us knew the law. This is called the grace of God. Only those who received the Holy Spirit have the new heart to know and love God. The new heart is given not based on our works. Since God knew all of us before we were born, we conclude that the doctrine of divine election is a true doctrine. Those who rely on the law reject or will reject this doctrine. Most churches do not accept the doctrine. Even Reformed churches moved away from it because their foundation got shaken by the false doctrine called Active Obedience of Christ. The law is not our source of righteousness. Christ bought us to become God’s children. We are one with God through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. This was done through Christ’s death on the cross.

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

For this commandment which I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it far away. It is not in heaven, that you could say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us and get it for us, and proclaim it to us, so that we may follow it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea, that you could say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us and get it for us and proclaim it to us, so that we may follow it?’ On the contrary, the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may follow it. (vv. 11-14)

But what does it say? “THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. (Romans 10:8-10)

Jesus Christ was blameless before the law while He was on the earth and stays blameless forever. But His righteousness is not from the perfect keeping of the law. I am repeating the same thing again and again. But the interpretation of the Bible, especially the two covenants by ministers and theologians has wronged so many people. We must ask this question to understand our righteousness – Can a slave free other slaves from bondage and change their status to princes and princesses? Use your common sense. The answer is no. A few years ago, I watched a film called “12 Years a Slave”. The main character in the film was not freed by another slave because a slave cannot save another slave. Theologians and ministers insist that Christ had to keep the law to impute righteousness to us. They say that Christ did not need to keep the law but did it anyway to give us righteousness. But the Bible says He freed us from slavery by His blood.

For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!” (Romans 8:15)

Most of the Israelites in the wilderness did not receive the Spirit. The law was not in their hearts. Their righteousness depended on obedience to the law. It appears that they were given a choice.

See, I have placed before you today life and happiness, and death and adversity, in that I am commanding you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, so that you may live and become numerous, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to take possession of it. (vv. 15-16)

But their failure tells us that there are only curses under the old covenant. Their disobedience teaches us why God put us under slavery in the first place. The law was only a shadow. Christ is the law expressed in God’s immeasurable love shown on the cross.

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers on the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “For this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD: “I will put My law within them and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their wrongdoing, and their sin I will no longer remember.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

All the laws and prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus Christ by making us God’s children. We are His kingdom.

Now I say, as long as the heir is a child, he does not differ at all from a slave, although he is owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by the father. So we too, when we were children, were held in bondage under the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters. Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God. (Galatians 4:1-7)

Some misinterpret this passage and say that Christ was a slave because He was born under the law. But a slave cannot save another slave.

Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; (Hebrews 10:11)

For this reason, Christ is the priest forever in the order of Melchizedek apart from the law.

For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses said nothing concerning priests. And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek, who has become a priest not on the basis of a law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life. For it is attested of Him, “YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK.” (Hebrews 7:14 -17)

The King came and paid for our sins and made us children of God. By believing in God and His work on the cross, we are justified. No one can confess this without the work of the Holy Spirit. Some false believers may appear to follow truth but they go astray because their hearts cannot understand truth.

Many false teachers try to enslave us again. On the outside, they talk about grace and faith. But they despise the cross of Christ. They say the cross of Christ is not enough to make us righteous. Stay alert.

You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? (Galatians 3:1)