Romans 6:1 "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?"
And here we have it, the apostle Paul here is addressing people who ridicule easy believism, they ridicule the true biblical teaching of today as they did then in Paul's time.
Here we have these false teachers creeping in saying stuff like, if Salvation is a free gift from God, given to us by his grace, does that mean we can continue to sin as much as we want?
Can we then go ahead and live our lives anyway we like?
Let me answer that for you, the answer is, it's your choice but be prepared to reap what you sow.
I have explained this time and time again using the bible, so I'll keep it short here.
When a person gets saved, they do not immediately change their outward appearance or attitudes, this becomes a process, called sanctification.
Our bodies did not change, this will happen when the Lord Jesus Christ returns, only our spirit has been quickened (made alive), we become born again of the spirit, our flesh (body) still wars against our spirit and through sanctification, we need to bring our bodies under subjection of the spirit.
Now we have a choice to live righteously, which is what the epistle to the Romans teaches, and we should serve the Lord to further the kingdom of God, we can take up our cross, forsake our father, mother, brother, sister, children, literally give up everything we have and be a disciple of the Lord, known as discipleship or, go on living like the world and face divine discipline.
The truth is, not everyone who gets saved will go on to produce fruit (another saved person), look at the apostles, they saved thousands of souls, did they (the saved) all go on producing more saved people?
No, in fact if they did, the world wouldn't be like the way it is now, full of hypocrisy and false religious institutions.
But if we do continue in sin, grace does abound, do you understand that you cannot lose your salvation you are completely covered by the blood?
The Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians the following:
Galatians 5:17 "For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would."
The flesh is at war with our born again spirit, think about it like this, our flesh is older or matured than our spirit (which is a babe) when we are born again, guess which one is going to win more often or have a stronger influence over what decision you are going to make in our spiritual infancy?
You can never reach a state of sinless perfection, Paul the Apostle says he dies daily, everyday he has to bring his body under subjection of the spirit. Have ye not read in the scriptures that they who say they have no sin deceives themselves and are a liar?
~
Romans 6:2 "God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?"
God Forbid! One of the strongest statements one can make to deny or reject something or a statement. Notice this is a question that Paul is asking, we must be careful not to base a doctrine on a question, but only by clear statements should we derive doctrine from.
So Paul here is asking a question, he is asking that as we are dead to sin, how shall we live any longer in sin?
The next verse is also a question:
~
Romans 6:3 "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?"
Paul is asking a question here again, he is asking us if we knew that when we got baptised in Jesus Christ, we got baptised into his death as well.
Baptise means to immerse or submerge, it implies being "all in".
When we are baptised by the Holy Spirit, we are being immersed or put in Christ, completely covered in him. This is the baptism you receive when you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a supernatural event and takes place spiritually, as you become born again.
Then after this (Salvation) happens, one should make the decision to get baptised in water, to get saved? To stay saved? No!
Being immersed in water does not save, FAITH ONLY in the Lord Jesus Christ as your saviour saves!
But water baptism is a public profession of your faith to man that you believe, it is to show the world that you are a believer in Jesus Christ!
So is baptism salvation?
The answer should be no, Salvation is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.
Baptism by immersion in water is a picture of Salvation, not literal salvation. It is a picture of you going into the water dying and when you come up out of the water picturing the resurrection.
Noah on the Ark is a picture of Salvation not literal Salvation.
I'll say it again, literal Salvation is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to be saved!
Here's another question for you baptismal regeneration believers (must be baptised to go to heaven), if you have to be water baptised like what John the Baptist did, was he baptising the people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?
He couldn't have baptised in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; why?
Because the Godhead was not yet made known, so how could John the Baptist baptise people in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit if the Godhead were not yet revealed?
As a matter of fact, the Godhead was not revealed until Jesus himself came to be baptised:
Matthew 3:16-17 "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."
In verse 16 we read that the Spirit of God (Holy Spirit) descending on Jesus like a dove, and lighting upon him (Jesus being anointed with the Oil of Gladness): and then verse 17 tells us that a voice (The Father) from heaven can also be heard.
This was all done as a testimony or witness to show that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ. The beginning of the Lords earthly ministry!
~
Romans 6:4 "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."
For this reason we are buried with Jesus by baptism into death, the old man, the carnal man; sin had died: and just like Christ was raised up by the glory of the Father, even so we should walk in newness of life. This is saying as the old you had been buried in the likeness of his death by baptism, we now emerge as the new man, the born again spirit child of God whom should walk in the spirit; the new life.
When Jesus entered Samaria he came to a well and spoke to a Samaritan woman by Jacob's well.
This woman says to Jesus, that the Samaritans worshipped in the mountain; but you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place you ought to worship, let's see what Jesus answers the Samaritan woman.
John 4:21-24 "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
In context, the woman is asking Jesus where they should be worshipping God, she is asking should they be worshipping in the mountain (most likely Mount Gerizim) or in Jerusalem (Solomon built temple).
Jesus says to her that the hour cometh (his death by crucifixion) when man will worship the Father neither in the mountains or Jerusalem.
Jesus says you don't know what you worship: but we Jews know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews, what does this mean?
Salvation is come by the way of the root and offspring of King David, of the tribe of Judah; Jesus is of the tribe of Judah, and Jesus is salvation, of the tribe of Judah; also known as the Jews of the southern kingdom of Israel.
Jesus says true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth: for that reason the Father seeks such to worship him.
Verse 24 is rather a smack in the face to Mormons who believe the Father is of flesh and bones like man, to deny this scripture is to call Jesus a liar.
From the mouth of Jesus himself, he says God is a Spirit: and they that worship him MUST worship him in spirit (born again) and in truth!
My friends, here is the answer to the question of how do we worship God?
Not in building made with hands, it is not the building or place of worship that matters, it is believers coming together and worshiping the Father in spirit and truth and the start of walking in newness of life!
~
Romans 6:5 "For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:"
Seeing as we have been planted together in the likeness, notice the word likeness it doesn't mean literally, in the likeness of his death, we shall also be raised up in the likeness of his resurrection, meaning we shall also receive a new body at the second coming of the Lord, glorified the same manner in how Jesus Christ's body was glorified at his resurrection.
~
Romans 6:6 "knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin."
Knowing that we shall be like him at the resurrection (2nd coming) that our old man (The flesh) is crucified with him (Jesus) that the body of sin (flesh, the spirit cannot sin because it is of God) might be destroyed, that henceforth, the word henceforth means "from this time on" or "that time on" we should not serve sin.
Notice it doesn't say "must not" it says we "should not" serve sin, as man, we are still prone to sin, whether it be wilfully or in ignorance, we will still sin.
Colossians 3:1-4 "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.4 When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory."
As believers we should set our affections or cares on things above (Heavenly), and not of things on the earth; John says it beautifully in his 1st epistle.
1 John 2:15-17 "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever."
Just beautiful!
~
Romans 6:7 "For he that is dead is freed from sin."
When the body dies, as a believer we are free in Christ, free from sin, free from bondage to sin; the Apostle Paul says the following to the Corinthians:
2 Corinthians 5:8 "we are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord."
Paul says he is rather willing to be absent from the body, so that he could be present with the Lord.
This scripture also punches in the face of false doctrine that teaches when you die you go to a sort of spirit prison to await the 2nd coming and judgement, and then there's the soul sleep crowd where when you die, you stay asleep in the grave to await the 2nd coming of the Lord Jesus Christ; these are false teachings because when we die (in Christ of course), we leave our bodies and go to be present with the Lord, and where is the Lord presently?
The Lord Jesus Christ is presently in heaven sitting at the right hand of his Father!
~
Romans 6:8 "Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:"
This verse can be taken two ways, an earthly interpretation of dying physically we believe that we will go to heaven to live with him as explained above.
And the spiritual interpretation of this verse would be because the old man has been crucified with the Lord, or the old man, the carnal man has been buried in baptism with him, then we are risen with him, as a new man of the spirit with him living in us also.
Our new life is in Christ, not in the flesh.
~
Romans 6:9 "knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him."
Jesus was risen from the dead, he will no longer die; death itself has no dominion over him. If we die with Christ (believers) we are promised eternal life through faith in him, to never die ever again.
2 Timothy 1:9-10 "who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, 10 but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel:"
And we read in 1st Corinthians the following:
1 Corinthians 15:54 " So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory."
And Jesus says the following in Revelation:
Revelation 1:18 "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."
Jesus has the keys of hell and of death, they have no dominion over him.
~
Romans 6:10 "For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God."
Baptism is a picture of our old man, our old self put to death, and when risen, our new self now lives for God, we should walk in the spirit and do those things that are pleasing to God.
~
Romans 6:11 "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Notice how Paul hammers the same thing over and over again?
He is saying here likewise meaning in the same manner reckon that you yourselves be dead to sin, but alive to God by Jesus Christ our Lord, our saviour; by his precious blood is it made possible to live unto eternal life.
~
Romans 6:12 "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof."
Because we are now living unto God, we should not let sin reign in our mortal body, our flesh, if we let sin reign in our mortal body then we are going to more than likely obey it according to our lusts.
James Chapter one illustrates this perfectly when we allow our lusts of the flesh reign in our bodies.
James 1:15 "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."
What is lust? Our desires, a sense of longing for something, ultimate what the bible calls covetousness, when we desire to have something that does not belong to us.
That beautiful beach mansion, your neighbours wife or husband, heck wishing your husband or wife was more like so and so is covetous, you get the idea.
And God here is saying that when lust has conceived, when we desire something that does not belong to us in our hearts it will eventually outwardly manifest itself in the form of sin: and when sin is finished, it brings forth death.
We should walk in the spirit so that we are not tempted to walk in the lusts of the flesh.
~
Romans 6:13 "Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God."
God is saying here don't let sin be the master of you, don't let it control the various members or body parts that you have, don't let them be under the control of sin; rather yield or give over your members, yourself to God, as those that are alive whom are no longer dead, yield your members as instruments or tools of righteousness to God.
It is in our own power or freedom of choice to decide whether we want to yield ourselves to sin or to God, either your master is sin or the Lord Jesus Christ.
~
Romans 6:14 "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace."
If we yield our members over to God, sin will no longer have dominion over us: for we are NOT under the law, but under grace.
The law was never meant to save us, man could not keep the law it was impossible under the Old Testament, the law itself was holy and righteous, therefore the law cannot be broken as in James chapter 2 it says that whosoever offends in one point of the law, has offended in all. For man it was impossible and it became a curse for man.
Since it cannot help anyone to keep God's moral standard; it can only show the standard, and thus rebuke, convict and condemn those who fail to keep it.
We are under grace, by grace we are saved through faith, and it is not of our works lest any man should boast. It is by God's grace we have been saved through faith, by the goodness and righteousness of God, salvation is a free gift, it is not earned by any man. Even though we do not deserve it, God has freely given it to those who believe on his Son.
We have been clothed in the righteousness of Christ, it is Jesus' blood that washed away our sins and inequities, and he will remember them no more.
By grace when establish the law, and begin the process of sanctification.
~
Romans 6:15 "What then? Shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid."
Paul continues on in his train of thought about us being under grace and not the law, and asks the question, because we are not under the law but under grace shall we continue in sin?
Paul says God forbid!
~
Romans 6:16 "Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?"
Again Paul is repeating what was said before, his question he is asking is do you not know to whom you yield yourselves to obey, is your master sin which is unto death or of obedience unto righteousness?
As a believer, after salvation, if you are living for sin, in the flesh you will face divine discipline, God will scourge and punish EVERY son he receives.
And just because you sin, and nothing happens immediately don't think that recompense isn't coming.
Think not that God has not killed people and taken them home (Heaven) because they consistently refused to obey, and live according to God's will.
So chose your master, sin or God?
For believers, this can mean being removed sooner from this earthly life or living a long fruitful life in serving the Lord to further the kingdom of God.
~
Romans 6:17 "But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you."
BUT GOD BE THANKED! PRAISE THE LORD!
We believers used to be servants of sin, we read in Romans chapter 5 that all men have sinned.
Thank God we do not have to remain in sin.
We who believe in Christ have taken on the righteousness of Jesus Christ and no longer serve sin.
We obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine, Faith on the Lord Jesus Christ who imputes his righteousness to you, a sinner who is now clothed in the righteousness of the Lord.
~
Romans 6:18 "Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness."
We are made free of sin by the blood of the Lamb, our Lord Jesus Christ who died for all our inequities, if it were not for the selfless sacrifice the Lord had done for us, we would all still be in bondage to sin, and we will all be appointed wrath; for there is none righteous, no not one.
But now we have been freed from our bonds, we have now become the servants of righteousness, since Christ has clothed us in his righteousness we are able to become his servant.
The Corinthian's are told the following:
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
On Salvation, the believers has become a new man in Christ, a new creature!
~
Romans 6:19 "I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness."
Paul is speaking after the manner of men or in human terms, most found it difficult in grasping divine truth so Paul would use this master/slave analogy to try to convey what he is saying with more clarity.
Our members was explained in verse 13, our different body parts that we have in our physical bodies, and that before we yielded these body parts as a slave to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity: in other words like a vicious animal when you feed it, the appetite to sin only grows when it is being fed.
Even now we should give our members over to be servants of righteousness and from righteousness to holiness.
~
Romans 6:20 "For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness."
Notice how Paul just keeps on hammering this down hoping it hits home with everyone?
When we were servants of sin, before Salvation we were in bondage to sin, free from righteousness. We were living in the flesh.
1 John 2:16 "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."
Galatians 5:17 "For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would."
James 4:4 "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God."
If we are living in the flesh, we are living in the world, and James states that if any therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
~
Romans 6:21 "What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death."
The life you lived before in sin, what fruit did you have, that fruit that you are ashamed of?
Living in sin and iniquity only leads to death. James put it well:
James 1:15 "Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."
Sin begins with the thoughts of our hearts, our desires and when it has conceived in the heart it will manifest out in the form of sin, and when you follow through with that sin, it will bring forth death.
~
Romans 6:22 "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life."
A servant obeys his master, obedience is better than sacrifice. God wants our loyalty and our love, and the very reason for creating us, for fellowship with him.
1 Samuel 15:22 "And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams."
We see here the problem is not the offerings but the disobedience of God's commands and the desire for approval of people rather than the approval of God.
We are servants of God, and our fruit unto holiness, we should be soul winners, a soul winners fruit is another soul won to the Lord. At the end everlasting life.
~
Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Great soul winning verse to explain after telling someone that we all fall short of the glory of God, and that there is none righteous, no not one, they have all gone out the way.
And the wages or payment for sin is death, not any death as we might know it, but the second death; but the GIFT of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Salvation is a FREE gift, Amen.
Recap of Chapter 4
In the last chapter we learnt about Abraham, and we read how he was imputed righteousness by God through Faith, by calling upon the name of the Lord!
We are justified by faith, not works, as works cancels out grace, let's now dive into chapter 5 and see what we can learn from this chapter!
~
Romans 5:1 "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:"
We are justified in God's sight by faith, and we can have peace with God, knowing that we are not subject to his wrath and fierce anger through our Lord Jesus Christ.
~
Romans 5:2 "by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, this grace, was made accessible by him. Wherein we stand, means we now stand in grace, not of our works but inside the Father's grace, this is our position that we must stand in when we come to the Father for Salvation, we must leave our works at the door and stand within God's grace, and because of this grace we are able to rejoice in hope of the glory of God!
~
Romans 5:3-4 "And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 and patience, experience; and experience, hope:"
Not only do we as believers rejoice in hope, but as believers we too must glory in tribulations as well!
What is Tribulation?
Tribulation means persecution, or a state of great suffering or trouble.
We glory in tribulation also is because tribulation builds character, and saints need to go through such things in order to sanctify ourselves, knowing that tribulation works patience, and through patience, experience, and from experience, hope.
To get a really good understanding of this saying, reading through the book of Job is a perfect example of Job going through tribulation, and through his patience was experience enhanced and through experience, his hope on the Lord strengthened. Job did not renounce the Lord once, even his wife told him to curse God and die!
Jesus also taught that believers will also endure tribulation for his sake, he also explained that whilst we go through these things, that we need to remember that peace is found through him as we are going through such ordeals.
John 16:33 "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."
In 2 Corinthians Chapter 1 we read that tribulation can come to anyone, it comes to all, however believers in Christ have Jesus Christ to rely upon in times of tribulation.
2 Corinthians 1:4 "who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
We must also distinguish between divine punishment and unmerited tribulation, however regardless of what kind of tribulation you are going through, I believe whatever form of tribulation you are going through, we should receive it in all meekness and give praise and all glory to God, we go through this to make us stronger in God.
~
Romans 5:5 "and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."
And this hope we have, we ought not to be ashamed of; because we know that God poured his love out to all the believers hearts, which we know is by the Holy Spirit, whom is living in us.
Remember what the Apostle Paul said in Romans Chapter 1?
Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."
~
Romans 5:6 "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly."
When we were yet without strength, meaning man being dead in sins, incapable of saving himself, in due time, meaning at the appointed time as prophesied in the bible, that Christ would die for us, sinners as written in Romans 3:10 "as it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:".
~
Romans 5:7 "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die."
For scarcely meaning very rarely would someone would die for a righteous man: yet for a good man, by chance, some would even dare to die.
For a good man?
Remember Jesus said, there is one that is good and that is God. Jesus is good, he is God.
Now let's stop and think about this statement, wouldn't it have made more sense or made us feel better, that Jesus died for us because we are righteous?
Compare Old Testament sacrifice, when sin was committed it had to be atoned by a blood animal sacrifice; and even then it was only a temporary covering for the sins committed.
We had to keep doing this to satisfy God's demand for payment of sin by offering sacrifices continually.
But here is the beauty of the New Testament, sacrifice is no longer required. Jesus himself offered his own body as the perfect sacrifice, covering our sins forever!
The mystery, is that God showed us his love that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall have everlasting life. Jesus died for us, even though we were sinners and are undeserving of such a thing.
~
Romans 5:8 "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
As stated previously, that while we were yet sinners every single one of us, Jesus died for us; that is how much God loved us, he commended his love toward us even though we did not deserve it, Jesus died for us even while we were yet in rebellion against God.
~
Romans 5:9 "Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him."
Because believers have been justified or made righteous by his blood, by whose blood?
Our Lord Jesus Christ's blood of course!
Because of the Lord spilt his blood for us, we have now been saved from the wrath of God, believers are not appointed to wrath, but to Salvation.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 "For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,"
And because of his blood, his precious blood is what saved us from the wrath of God.
~
Romans 5:10 "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life."
For when we were enemies of God, sinners who were bound by sin have been reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life, you see; Jesus did it all, he made it possible for us to be reconciled to God, to him we owe everything!
~
Romans 5:11 "And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement."
Not only have we been reconciled to God by our Lord Jesus Christ, but we also joy in God through him, that word "joy" reminds of what he said in the parable of the talents (Matthew 25). Through Jesus Christ we have now received the atonement.
~
Romans 5:12 "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:"
This part of the scriptures is now talking about how death came through one man, Adam and now life has come through one man, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Sin entered the world through one man, and the penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23); and so death is passed upon all mankind, for that all have sinned (Romans 3:23).
The sin nature of man has to do with the flesh man. The flesh man is controlled by the desires of the flesh. Man is a spirit who lives in a body of flesh. Man has a free will to do with his life on earth as he wishes.
Because all humanity existed in the loins of Adam, and have through procreation inherited his fallen nature and corruption, it can be said that all sinned in him. Therefore, humans are not sinners because they sin, but rather they sin because they are sinners.
~
Romans 5:13 "(for until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is no law."
Notice the next few verses are in parenthesis, the purposes of parenthesis is to de-emphasis something or to reduce the importance or prominence of something. So these next verses are contained inside the parenthesis!
Paul here is saying that sin was in the world even before the law was given to Moses. He then expounds by saying that sin is not imputed when there is no law.
~
Romans 5:14 "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come."
Sin is not imputed when there is no law, however or in spite of that, death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the same manner or similarity of Adam's transgressions or offences.
Instead of man possessing life, man is instead, facing death. Adam had brought death into the scene, God could not allow man to live forever in sickness, agony, and through deterioration of the body and mind.
So God has provided a way out of this terrible mess that man has gotten himself into, by sending the second Adam, i.e. Who is the like figure or a shadow of him that is to come, the Lord Jesus Christ.
~
Romans 5:15 "But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many."
For the offence many have died, through Adam many have died, but much more is the grace of God, the gift by grace through one man, the Lord Jesus Christ has proliferated or abound unto many who believe.
By one man's transgression sin entered. Jesus Christ actually took the sin of the whole world upon His body and sin for the Christians died on the cross. Peter says the following:
1 Peter 2:24 "who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed."
Jesus provides our righteousness. He made us righteous. We can't make ourselves righteous in God's sight. Jesus made us righteous in God's sight!
~
Romans 5:16 "And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification."
Adam brought upon all men condemnation by only one offense, his wilful act of disobedience.
Jesus, however delivers the believers from the condemnation of many offenses unto righteousness, justification through his wilful act of obedience to the Father.
Paul tells the Corinthians this:
1 Corinthians 15:50 "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption."
Jesus did not die for only certain sins which some erroneously teach, he died for all.
~
Romans 5:17 "For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)"
This is pretty much a repeat of what has been said, through one man's offence death reigned, but those whom are declared righteous by grace shall reign in life by the Lord Jesus Christ.
~
Romans 5:18 "Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life."
Now that we are out of the parenthesis let's continue on from verse 12!
Because all have sinned, for that reason as the offence by one, Adam's transgression, judgement came upon all men to condemnation.
Because of Adam's transgression we have all come to condemnation, I have heard people say that we are not punished for the transgressions of Adam, but our own, but doesn't this scripture prove otherwise?
Through the righteousness of one man, Jesus Christ, the free gift (Salvation) came upon all men unto justification of life.
~
Romans 5:19 "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous."
Through one man and his act of disobedience resulted in the entire human race becoming sinners, so by the act of obedience of one, many shall be made righteous.
Straightforward scripture there…
You see it is not our obedience that saves us, it is the obedience of the Lord Jesus Christ that saved us, and Salvation is not of ourselves lest any man boast!
~
Romans 5:20 "Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound"
When the law entered, the offense abounded more, meaning as man became aware of the law, and many became convicted of their sins, made aware of them. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more!
~
Romans 5:21 "that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord."
Sin reigned until Jesus Christ shed his precious blood on the cross and nailed sin to it.
God's grace (unmerited favour) has provided eternal life, we did not earn it, and it is a free gift.
We can have life eternal, if we will only believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
1 John 5
Authorized (King James) Version
1 John 5:1 "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him."
Anyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, you need to believe that Jesus is the Messiah and in doing so you become born again, born of God, and if God is a Spirit; it means you are born again in the spirit.
"Him that begat" The Father, whom begot the Son, if we love the Father, we also love the Son.
Now recently I have been at spiritual war with an online you tuber with the alias of "Arod Peace" (This guy is an absolute evil tree, reprobate whom refuses to answer whether he is born again, who seeks to pervert the Word of God) now he claims that the Jews believe in God, so there is no reason of them to repent of unbelief because they already believe in God.
This is as such a folly of a view, because throughout history since Abraham, we learn how many of them did not believe and perished.
Jesus himself said the following to the Jews, particularly the religious leaders:
John 8:19 "Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also."
Jesus states that they don't know either the Father or himself, in fact they that reject Jesus, Reject the Father also.
Heck, they don't even believe Moses, read what Jesus says to them in the following:
John 5:46-47 "For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. 47 But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?"
Jesus says that Moses wrote of him, if Moses wrote the first 5 books of the Holy Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, also known to the Jews as the Torah) that means we lose the practitioners of Judaism right at Genesis 1:1! Rather, these Jews believe on the rabbinical writings of the satanic Talmud, this is a collection or a large volume detailing the "traditions of the elders" or the oral law.
This satanic volume also blasphemes our Lord Jesus Christ, his mother Mary among other heinous commentaries.
They absolutely despise the Apostle Paul, they hate him more than Jesus and label him as a traitor. Do a Google search on the Talmud if you're interested in learning more about the minds of Judaism.
~
1 John 5:2 "By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments."
The completeness of the commandments that Jesus gave to all of us was caught up in the one word, and that is "love".
He said love God first, and then love your neighbour as yourself.
His commandment is love.
We read the following in:
John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another."
If we love one another, people who see us doing this will know that we are disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, this is discipleship.
We are already saved by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, and now we are to love one another to show the world that we are His disciples.
Now it's important to know that not everyone who gets saved will go onto picking up his cross to follow the Lord, the parable of the sower is about discipleship as well, remember there were 4 groups, 1 group is unsaved, the other 3 are saved, but 1 group goes onto produce fruit, that group is discipleship!
But understand this, whether you are seeking discipleship with the Lord or not, we are to take heed of his commandment to love one another.
~
1 John 5:3 "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous."
If we love God, we keep his commandments, if you have been following this study from the beginning, you will know there is a difference in "keeping" and in "Doing" or "Obeying".
As born again believers, we should strive from the moment of Salvation, that point where we are spiritual babes (milk) and to make that conscious choice to be a disciple of the Lord (meat).
Not everyone received the call from the Lord for believers to become His disciples (Pick up your cross and come follow me) very well. In fact, you can read from the Gospels that the Lord himself denied certain people because he knew it was not for them.
The call to Salvation had but one condition, that you believe; the call to Discipleship had many conditions and could be summed up in these words: you must forsake all that you have, and come, follow me.
Not all believers could do this, or were willing to do this, does that mean that they weren't saved?
Does this mean they lost their Salvation because they didn't follow the Lord?
No!
Many confuse Salvation with Discipleship, especially those who preach the gospel according to Lordship Salvation, this theology is a damnable teaching, preachers like John McArthur, Paul Washer Raul Ries, John Hagee, Sam Gipp, Michael Yousseff, and YouTubers like Levi Price among many who flood the world with satanic deception.
They like to mince words and mix free grace (Salvation) with costly grace (Discipleship) and mould it into a gospel of poison, and works of iniquity.
The Lords commandments are not grievous, to love one another is all we have to do, and in stark in contrast to the burdensome man-made religious traditions of the Jewish leaders:
Matthew 23:4 "For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."
This also includes the religious scene in our world today, they are just as guilty in enslaving every poor soul back into the works of the Law to be saved and stay saved. The Lord said, his yoke is easy, and his burden is light!
There is perfect peace and rest in the Lord, when we keep His commandments. There is no fear, when there is perfect faith like the Lords to rely on.
~
1 John 5:4 "For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith."
Whatever is born of God overcomes the world, what does that mean?
We'll come to that in a second, whoever or whatever overcomes the world is born of God, even our faith, our faith with lead us to overcome the world, the word "overcome" is the key word which will be explained in the next verse, read on!
~
1 John 5:5 "Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?"
Who is he that overcometh the world?
We who believe that Jesus is the Son of God is overcome the world, overcome means to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, that is our Faith!
Jesus overcame the world, death and the adversary; we who believe on Jesus are made partakers of that victory and we are more than conquerors now that we are in Christ:
Romans 8:37 "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us."
2 Corinthians 2:14 "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place."
We know that without faith, it is impossible to please God. So what is Faith? Let's take a look in Hebrews 11:
Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
Hebrews 11:3 "Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear."
To please God, we must believe in our heart of the love of God, which we cannot see with our naked eye, the love of God, even though we cannot see it with our naked eye; it is more real than anything else.
Our very life and eternal fate is determined by believing in salvation through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
The victory over this world is when the world becomes unimportant in our life. Christians are in this world, but not of this world. We are dead to fleshly lusts of this world, and are putting our faith and trust in Jesus.
Our life is living towards that day when we are finally redeemed by the Lord, the day he comes back for us, so that we can be with him forever and to our final home, the new heavens and earth forever eternal lasting.
~
1 John 5:6 "This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. "
John now starts to tell us in the next few verses the testimony that God has given to us that Jesus is the Christ.
This is he that came by water, remember this is a testimony to confirm witness that Jesus is the Christ.
Remember when Jesus got baptised in water?
That was the anointing or the ordination of Jesus and the start of his ministry, remember John the Baptist's mission was to reveal who the messiah is to the people.
At that moment, people witnessed, the Father speaking from heaven, the Holy Spirit coming down like a dove and resting on Jesus; that was the witness by water.
Secondly the blood is witness as well, speaking of the Lord's crucifixion, his blood spilling for man on the cross.
The Holy Spirit bares witness, and there is nothing false about the Spirit, because the Holy Spirit is TRUTH.
~
1 John 5:7 "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."
Why all this commotion about this verse? Because this verse proves the triune nature of our one true God.
You know what's real funny is the Mormons, they call God the Father "Elohim", which is not his name at all but a Hebrew word for God (plural form), but then again, they don't worship the true Father nor the true Jesus do they?
For there are 3 that bear witness in heaven, who is in heaven right now?
The Father, the Word which is Jesus before he became flesh, and the Holy Spirit; and these 3 are one.
Amen.
The Old Testament Laws required two or more witnesses to establish truth:
Deuteronomy 17:6 "At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death."
So from these verses you can see the correlation with the number of witnesses being given about Jesus being the Christ.
~
1 John 5:8 "And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."
So in the previous verse we have Heaven bearing witness, now John writes to tell us that the witnesses on earth also agree.
~
1 John 5:9 "If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son."
Man's witness is in part, because of the limited knowledge he has. The witness of God is in power and operating with full knowledge.
The witness of God was when the voice came from heaven and called Jesus His Son.
This happened a few times when God's voice was heard speaking from heaven recorded by the 4 Gospels.
If man gave us a testimony, God's is greater, and the previous 3 verses is God's testimony of his Son.
~
1 John 5:10 "He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son."
Those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ have the witness also, we have the Holy Spirit of God dwelling in us, whom testifies to us that Jesus is the Christ.
Whosoever doesn't believe, God has made him a liar, because they don't believe the record that God gave of his son.
~
1 John 5:11 "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son."
Boom! And what is this record that we've been talking about?
The record is this: That God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, if you believe on the Son, you have eternal life.
Amen.
~
1 John 5:12 "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."
If we die without the Lord Jesus Christ, we end up in hell, if we die with Christ, we have life, everlasting.
~
1 John 5:13 "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."
The Apostle John has always written to us in all his epistles and the Gospel for one main reason, so that we might believe on the name of the Son of God, and that is he whose name is Jesus; and that by believing on him, we know that we have eternal life.
Never once does John mention anything else other than to believe, if repentance or more precisely repenting of your sin was so important to getting saved, don't you think he would have made a grave mistake in not saying so?
Would we not see him use the word "repent" at least once?
No, it is not found anywhere in the writings of John, he writes for the purpose that we might be saved by one thing only, belief.
~
1 John 5:14 "And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:"
Christians can know with absolute confidence that God answers prayer in accordance with His will, when they approach the throne of grace.
Hebrews chapter 4 says the following:
Hebrews 4:16 "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
To pray according to God's will is to pray in accord with what He would want for us, not what we would desire or insist that He do for us.
Matthew 6:8 "Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him."
The Father already knows what you need even before you ask him, some people will say why pray if the Father already knows?
Well, for starters, of course the Father knows all things, all glory to the Father! But, think about it, it would be sinful for us to ask for things, because we just want it, some people are foolish enough to ask for wealth, prosperity and material goods that aren't profitable to advance the Kingdom of Heaven.
We should be asking ourselves before we pray to God, should I ask God for something that worldly that will only profit my carnal needs or should I ask something that will profit other people?
Am I profiting for the glory of God or for my own selfish needs?
Am I stroking my own pride or should I ask for guidance, wisdom, meekness, remember what the Lord says, to do your prayers in secret, so that the Father will reward you in secret.
Avoid repetitions like constant chanting (Roman Catholics are one group that does this) of words hoping the Father will hear your prayers, for the Lord says, they have their reward.
John already stated that answered prayer also depends on obedience to God's commandments and avoidance of sin; remember what was said in this study series in Chapter 3?
1 John 3:21-23 "Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. 22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 23 And this is his commandment, that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment."
And the Psalmist wrote:
Psalm 66:18 "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:
James Chapter 4 is a great chapter to read as well, he says the following:
James 4:3 "Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts."
Those who regard, respect or favour sin in their hearts, the Lord will not hear them. We should be consciously aware of what we ask for, if we ask for what it is according to our own desires, we shall not be heard.
However, you should pray to be delivered from these temptations, for wisdom and guidance to overcome these temptations.
James 1:2-7 "My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 3 knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 4 But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. 5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord."
James says when we are confronted with many different forms of temptation, when this happens our faith is being tried, and our faith should work in patience, patience allows us to have that perfect work, or perfect result so that we may be perfect wanting nothing; that nothing being given into that temptation.
If we lack the wisdom to overcome that temptation we should pray to God for that wisdom to help us discern the right thing or choice.
Jesus says the following to his disciples in John chapter 14:
John 14:12-14 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. 13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."
For the born again believer, we go from spiritual babes (Moment of Salvation – Once Saved Always Saved) and grow into mature spiritual adults (Discipleship – Continued growth to advance the Kingdom of God); the more we learn from the Word of God (Studying the Holy Bible) the more mature we become, and then we can teach others and win more souls and spread the Gospel in love and truth.
The cost of Salvation to us is free, but it cost the Father His son and by His grace he gave us the opportunity to become his children and joint heirs of the kingdom; we can't lose our salvation.
But the cost of discipleship is steep, and may cause you to lose everything and everyone that you love, the rewards is something that cannot be described with mere earthly words!
God will answer your prayers if you are in living in obedience to his commandments: believe on the Son of God, and love one another as we love him.
~
1 John 5:15 "and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him."
If we know that he hears us, knowing that he hears us is because we have faith in him, it is very important to believe that you receive the thing you are praying for. It is your faith that is the key to getting prayers answered.
~
1 John 5:16 "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it."
What is this sin unto death?
This sin is rejecting God's grace.
The bible says that when a man constantly and totally rejects the message of the Gospel, and that salvation is found in the Lord Jesus Christ, and is by His grace through faith; he becomes a reprobate (rejected), God whom will give this person over to their own vile affections (Read Romans Chapter 1) and lusts of the heart.
This person is an unsaved, God rejecting soul who is on the eternal path to damnation, this person has no more constraints to hold them back from doing what is vile and filthy.
God will not override the will of the person being prayed for, the prayer of intercession is a powerful prayer; It is an unselfish prayer for others.
It is God's will that everyone be saved, but he will not take that choice from us, we must make that choice of our own accord.
The intercessory prayer for others is effective however, to those have not completely rejected God.
James says in chapter 5, "is there any sick among you?"
James 5:13-16 "Is any among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing psalms. 14 Is any sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15 and the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
James is talking to the saved, the brethren when he says "is any among you?"
It is correct or right for us to pray for the infirmities and sins of others to be forgiven.
The only time this would not be answered, would be if the person had totally rejected salvation in Jesus Christ.
You cannot give a person something that they will not take or accept.
I know that it is seems futile to pray for loved ones in false religions, deceived by wolves and they refuse to hear the truth, and they are no more any different to a reprobate whom have chosen to reject the truth, but in hopes of one day, before it is too late that they will receive the truth and their eyes be opened.
If God will not force them to believe, we shouldn't either.
~
1 John 5:17 "All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death."
Jesus said in Matthew chapter 12 the following:
Matthew 12:31 "Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men."
All manner of sin and blaspheming against the Son of man shall be forgiven (Should you seek forgiveness) but blaspheming the Holy Spirit is not forgivable, what is this sin against the Holy Spirit?
Well if we go to Mark, he tells us exactly what it is:
Mark 3:29-30 "but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: 30 Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit."
In verse 30 we are told it is because the Jews claimed Jesus was performing all these miracles not by the power of the Spirit of God, but by an unclean spirit, they are attributing these works to the devil, thus calling the Holy Spirit of God a devil or unclean.
They are reasoning this in their minds because of unbelief, Jesus said they are in danger of eternal damnation, because they refuse to believe that Jesus is working through the power of God (The Holy Spirit).
So refusing to believe, and seeing the work and power of God's Spirit is the sin that will lead you to eternal damnation in hell; and at the final destination of the Lake of Fire, which burns with brimstone and fire for all eternity, where the will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
It's the same when you give the gospel to someone, they start hearing the gospel, and the power of the Holy Spirit is working away, revealing the truth to the unsaved person and then suddenly at the moment they decide to make the choice they say nope, they reject the gospel, don't believe it, they reject the Spirit.
~
1 John 5:18 "We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not."
All believer may know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; believers are still capable of falling into sin, so what does it mean that whosoever is born of God does not sin?
We are have been made righteous by the blood of Christ. We have put on Christ, through him we are made righteous, it is our standing with the Father through Jesus that makes us righteous, whom our Lord Jesus Christ forever lives to make intersession on our behalf that we may approach our Holy Father by the blood of the Lamb which covers our sin forever and ever!
Those who are born of God is protected by God, the devil has no power over you, and he cannot harm you because you are clothed in the righteousness of Jesus, our Lord.
Our Lord Jesus Christ, whom overcame with victory over hell, and death and ultimately victory over the devil himself.
~
1 John 5:19 "And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness."
All who place their faith in the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ is of God who worship the Father in spirit.
There are two families of this world that the bible speaks of, you either belong to the Family of God, or you belong to the family of that wicked one.
Those who belong to that wicked one belong to the world, living in their own desires and lusts of the flesh, these are they who reject the Son of God, my Lord and my God, his name is Jesus the Christ; who is King of Kings, Lord of Lords, The only High Priest and my Saviour!
~
1 John 5:20 "And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life."
Those who confess that the Son of God did not come are of anti-Christs, we who believe are born of God and he has given us understanding (we understand through the Holy Spirit, whom he dwells within us, the Spirit of Truth) through the Spirit are we able to know that this testimony is true, because he is truth and because we are in him we may know this, because we are in his Son the Lord Jesus Christ. THIS IS THE TRUE GOD, AND ETERNAL LIFE – this statement is true.
2 Corinthians 4:6 "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."
I testify also that this is a true statement, I have seen the power of God work through many people and rejoice and glorify the Father when they come to accept the truth and become a born again believer!
~
1 John 5:21 "Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen."
Beloved brethren, keep yourselves from idols. John makes distinctions with the term "idols" and with "the true God" of verse 20.
He puts a reference here to the false teachers who withdrew from the brotherhood with which they had been formerly associated with in 1 John 2:19.
Their false beliefs and practices are the idols from which the readers are commanded to protect themselves from.
Paul tells of a similar thing in Acts Chapter 17 when he tells the men of Athens to repent from worshiping idols to the one true God.
Amen.
