ROMANS 6:12 – “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.”

THE SIN NATURE

Incidentally, Paul mentions sin some 17 times in Romans, Chapter 6. Fifteen of those times, in the original Text, what is referred to as the “definite article” is present. In other words, in the Greek Text, in front of the word “sin,” it actually read, “the sin,” which means that it was not referring to an act of sin, but rather to the sin principle, or the Sin Nature.

In explaining the Sin Nature, the following has been given in other volumes of our Commentaries, and because of its tremendous significance, will probably be given even again in this Volume, other than this particular time. Commentaries are normally not studied like other books. In other words, most people don’t read them straight through, but rather refer to them as they need certain information. For that reason, we have to repeat information over and over; however, the repetition in another sense is necessary, and because Truth can only be learned as something is repeated to us again and again. That’s the reason many of the great Laws, as given to Moses, were repeated several times, almost verbatim. That’s the reason we have four Gospels, and that the Lord had Paul to write 14 Epistles, etc.

The following diagram will address the Sin Nature, and hopefully help you to understand this subject to a greater degree. The diagram deals with the manner and the way in which the Sin Nature is addressed by most Christians.

IGNORANCE

Despite the fact that the Sin Nature, or at least the understanding of such, is at least one of the most important aspects of the Christian experience, most Christians don’t have the slightest idea as to what the Sin Nature is.

At least one of the problems is the translation from the Greek language to English, or whatever language. As we’ve just stated, in the Greek Text, in many places in Paul’s writings, before the word “sin,” is used, they have what is referred to as the “definite article.” Consequently, it would read “the sin.” For instance:

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in the sin . . .” or,

“God forbid. How shall we, who are dead to the sin . . .” (Rom. 6:1-2).

I suppose that one of the reasons the King James Version doesn’t carry the definite article is simply because it’s awkward in the English Text.

At any rate, when the definite article precedes the word “sin,” or else the word “sin” is used as a noun, it is not referring to acts of sin, but rather to the “sin nature,” or “sin principle,” etc. The term “sin nature” simply means that it’s the “nature” of the person to sin. This is the result of the Fall.

When the believing sinner comes to Christ, at that moment he or she is Born-Again, and the “Divine Nature” comes into their heart and life (II Pet. 1:4). No unsaved person, as would be obvious, has the Divine Nature. In reality, it is the Holy Spirit within our hearts and lives, making our person His Temple (I Cor. 3:16). Now instead of it being our nature to sin, it is our nature to walk in Righteousness, i.e., “Christlikeness.” In reality, Christ is in the Father, we are in Christ, and Christ is in us (Jn. 14:20).

However, at that time, the Sin Nature does not die, but in actuality, becomes dormant, one might say. In that state, and as long as we follow God’s Prescribed Order, we need have no worry or fear of the Sin Nature. In fact, Paul said, “Likewise reckon you also yourselves to be dead indeed unto the sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:11).

If it is to be noticed, he didn’t say that the Sin Nature was dead, but rather that we are dead to the Sin Nature. And I might quickly add that we are dead to the Sin Nature by us having been Baptized into the Death of Christ, buried with Him by Baptism into Death, and raised with Him in Newness of Life (Rom. 6:3-5).

HOW DOES THE BELIEVER STAY DEAD TO THE SIN NATURE?

That’s the great question!

The terrible truth is, virtually all of the modern Church functions in the realm of being totally and completely controlled by the Sin Nature. This means that the same nature that controlled them before they were Born-Again continues to control them. Millions of these people love the Lord with all their hearts, but they simply don’t know how to walk in victory. They know that what is happening to them is not Scriptural, and, in fact, is not right. And many of them try very, very hard to control the situation, but despite that fact, the harder they try, the worse the situation becomes. When we deal with the heading called “struggle,” we will address that particular situation. And when we come to the heading called “Grace,” we will give you God’s Prescribed Order of Victory.

LICENSE

There are many Christians who know and realize that Believers continue to have a Sin Nature, and because of that, they use such as a license to sin. In other words, they claimed that the presence of the Sin Nature keeps them from living as they ought to live, therefore, they continue to claim, they aren’t responsible. Paul dealt with that a long time ago. His answer?

“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in the sin nature, that Grace may abound?

“God forbid. How shall we, who are dead to the sin nature, live any longer therein?” (Rom. 6:1-2).

Using the Sin Nature as an excuse to sin is ridiculous to say the least. The Lord doesn’t save us in sin, but rather from sin. So the idea that the Christian can just sin with impunity, and then claim that he can’t help but do such, Scripturally, won’t hold water! God has a Prescribed Order for Victory, and it’s our obligation to walk in that order, which we will explain momentarily.

DENIAL

There are many who claim that while we did have a Sin Nature before conversion, since conversion, we no longer have such. Let me quickly say, however, that denial of a fact doesn’t make the fact any less real. In other words, the presence of the Sin Nature, no matter how much denied, is going to have its deadly result. If one is denying the Sin Nature, one is not attempting to walk in God’s Prescribed Order of Victory. So they will definitely suffer the ill effects of the Sin Nature, which are not pleasant to behold.

In answer to the claim that the Believer no longer has a Sin Nature, please allow me to state the following:

If that, in fact, is the case, that the Believer no long has a Sin Nature, then the Holy Spirit through Paul went to an awful lot of trouble explaining how to have victory over something which doesn’t exist. To be sure, it definitely does exist, and to be sure, tragically and sadly, it is ruling and reigning in the hearts and lives of most of Christendom.

Paul said, “Let not the sin (sin nature) thereof reign (rule) in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof” (Rom. 6:12). While the Believer definitely has a Sin Nature, exactly as Paul states here, it is not to rule or reign in one’s life. But let me once again emphasize the following:

Denial never changes the fact of anything; consequently, despite the denial, the Sin Nature will always rule in such hearts and lives. That is tragic but true!

STRUGGLE

Many Christians have come to believe that the Christian experience is one long continuous struggle and, in fact, is supposed to be that way. In fact, most of the people who think this are, in effect, good Christians. In other words, they love the Lord very much, and that’s the reason they struggle so intensely against the Sin Nature ruling and reigning in their hearts and lives. But they find themselves more than often in the position which Paul stated, “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” (Rom. 7:24).

These particular individuals, and they number into the millions, are constantly struggling against sin of some nature. They devise one method and then another; many try to pray away the problem, but find that doesn’t work. Others try to fast it away, but find that doesn’t work either. Even though they are greatly blessed in these endeavors, they find that the problem remains, and even gets worse.

Because of their sincerity, they live a life of failing and repenting, failing and repenting, failing and repenting, etc.

And yet they read the words as written by Paul, “For sin shall not have dominion over you” (Rom. 6:14). They don’t quite understand, because in their heart of hearts, even though they know that the Word of God is true, they also at the same time realize that in some way, sin definitely does have dominion over them. They are loath to admit that, and perhaps some are even loath to admit it to themselves, but it is true.

Regarding these people, their lives are so much less than they ought to be, despite the fact that most of them are very consecrated. And that’s what confuses them. Due to their consecration, they don’t understand why the Sin Nature is ruling them in some way. So they keep struggling, because they don’t know what else to do. They read the Words of Christ, “Come unto Me (is meant by Jesus to reveal Himself as the Giver of Salvation), all you who labor and are heavy laden (trying to earn Salvation by works), and I will give you rest (this ‘rest’ can only be found by placing one’s Faith in Christ and what He has done for us at the Cross [Gal. 5:1-6]).

Take My yoke upon you (the ‘yoke’ of the ‘Cross’ [Lk. 9:23]), and learn of Me (learn of His Sacrifice [Rom. 6:3-5]); for I am meek and lowly in heart (the only thing that our Lord Personally said of Himself): and ye shall find rest unto your souls (the soul can find rest only in the Cross).

“For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light (what He requires of us is very little, just to have Faith in Him, and His Sacrificial Atoning work)” (Mat. 11:28-30).

Many of them read these words with tears in their eyes, because they know the Word of God is true, but yet they do not have any “rest.”

As well, they do not find this yoke to be easy, or this burden to be light. So what is wrong?

The next heading will explain it.

GRACE

Before we explain what we mean by the word “Grace,” which is the only way that the Believer can live a victorious life, let me relate this little illustration, that many of you have heard before, but is so true that it bears repeating.

Many years ago, a man and his wife saved and scrimped for several years in order to afford ship passage from Europe to the United States. In fact, they were immigrating to this country, and were looking forward with great anticipation to their new home in this new land. They felt that their lot in life would be much better.

They could only afford the least expensive accommodations on the ship, but were glad to get that. About one or two days before reaching New York harbor, one of the stewards happened to walk by their cabin, saw the door open, and stopped to say, “Hello.” He asked them about the voyage, and what they were going to be doing in the United States, etc.

He noticed some crumbs on the floor, and asked them what they were.

The man replied, “We’ve just had our lunch.”

The steward answered by saying, “What do you mean, you’ve just had your lunch?”

The immigrant replied, “We only had the money for these small accommodations. We didn’t have any money left for food. So we brought some food with us, which is by now getting stale.”

The steward looked at them in amazement, and said, “You brought your food with you?”

Once again, the immigrant replied, “Yes, we did!”

The steward then said, “Don’t you realize that the price of your ticket, even the least expensive accommodations on this ship, afforded you three meals a day at no extra cost, or in fact, as many meals as you would like!”

You can imagine the consternation of that man and his wife when they heard that.

But that’s the way with many, if not most, Christians. We simply don’t realize what Jesus has done for us at the Cross and, in fact, we keep trying to do for ourselves what in fact we cannot do, and no matter how hard we try. In essence, our great efforts, of which we think very highly, are really, in effect, an insult to Christ. It is either saying that He didn’t finish the task, and He needs our help, or else, we have no faith in what He actually did do. Either way, we have insulted Christ to the greatest degree!

Now let’s look at Grace.

What did Paul mean by the statement, “For you are not under the Law, but under Grace” (Rom. 6:14)?

When most Christians think of Grace, something magical comes to their minds. They don’t really understand what it is, but they know that because they are Believers, they are beneficiaries of this tremendous principle. They somehow think it’s just automatic, because we live in the Dispensation of Grace.

They are partly right and partly wrong.

Grace is simply the Goodness of God extended to undeserving people. So the question is, how do I function in the realm of Grace?

LIVING ACCORDING TO THE GRACE OF GOD

The Grace of God comes to Believers as a result of what Christ has done at the Cross. While God is the God of Grace, He is no more the God of Grace today than He was in Old Testament Times. The problem in Old Testament Times was, due to the fact that the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins, the sin debt remained. As a result of this, the Grace of God could not be extended in the abundant manner that it is presently, due to the fact that the Holy Spirit could not come into the hearts and lives of individuals at that time to permanently abide (Jn. 14:16-17). But since the Cross, the sin debt has been removed, due to the price paid by Christ. Now, the Grace of God can come in unlimited quantities.

So the great question is, how do we have this uninterrupted flow of Grace?

The following manner is the way, and the only way:

THE CROSS

The Believer must realize that every single thing that we have from the Lord comes to us exclusively through and by the Cross of Christ. In other words, it is the Cross which has made it all possible (Rom. 5:1-2; 6:3-14; I Cor. 1:17-18, 21, 23; Gal., Chpt. 5; 6:14; Eph. 2:13-18; Col. 2:14-15).

The Cross is the solution to every single problem, because it was there that Jesus addressed every problem which came to man as a result of the Fall.

FAITH

Understanding that the Cross is the vehicle through which the Grace of God comes to the Believer, our Faith must ever have the Cross as its Object. We must not allow our Faith to be deterred to other things.

Whenever Paul speaks of Faith, without exception, he is speaking of Faith in Christ and what Christ has done at the Cross. In fact, every time he uses the phrase, “In Christ,” or one of its many derivatives, he is speaking of what Christ did for us in His giving of Himself.

The truth is, every single person in the world has faith; however, it’s not faith that God will recognize. The Church is full of faith, but again, for the most part, it’s not faith that the Lord recognizes. Let me explain:

The only Faith that the Lord will recognize is that which is anchored in Christ and His Finished Work
(Jn. 3:16; I Tim. 6:12; II Cor. 13:5).

THE HOLY SPIRIT

Once we understand that everything comes to us through the Cross, and that the Cross must ever be the Object of our Faith, that being done, the Holy Spirit, Who works exclusively within the parameters of the Finished Work of Christ, will then help us live this life, which is God’s Prescribed Order (Rom. 8:1-2, 11).

The Holy Spirit doesn’t require much of us, but He does require proper Faith. Listen again to Paul:

“Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the Law; you are fallen from Grace” (Gal. 5:4). Three things are said in this Verse:

1. People who seek to be justified by the Law, by rules and regulations, by works, etc., will never succeed.

2. To function by Law, Christ becomes of no effect unto us, which means that His Sacrificial Death on the Cross of Calvary was to no avail, at least as far as the person is concerned who is trying to function by Law.

3. That being done, the individual falls from Grace. What does that mean?

It means that the person is depending on something other than Christ and what Christ did at the Cross, which stops the Grace of God. Falling from Grace is not committing certain acts of sin, as some people teach, even though trusting in things other than Christ is definitely sin. “Falling from Grace” is one placing oneself in a position which stops the Grace of God. Let’s go into a little more detail as to what that is.

FRUSTRATING THE GRACE OF GOD

Paul also said, “I do not frustrate the Grace of God: for if Righteousness come by the Law, then Christ is dead in vain” (Gal. 2:21).

In fact, “frustrating the Grace of God,” is by and large the same as “falling from Grace.” And sadly, that’s the state in which most Christians find themselves. The things that most are doing to attempt to live for God, whether they realize it or not, are simply frustrating the Grace of God. And to be sure, that’s a sad state to be in.

Whenever the Believer places his Faith in something other than Christ and Him Crucified, that’s when the Grace of God is frustrated, which means that the Holy Spirit cannot help the individual, at least to any degree. That’s a perfect prescription for failure.

So what does Paul mean when he talks about living under Law?

LIVING UNDER LAW

Most of the time the Apostle is speaking of the Law of Moses, but not always. When he speaks of “Law,” it really doesn’t matter whether he’s speaking of the Law of Moses, or laws made up by our Church Denominations, or, in fact, laws made up out of our own minds, etc. In fact, the laws probably are very good within themselves, even as the Ten Commandments were very good, as would be obvious. But the truth is, no one can live for God by trying to live under laws, and for many and varied reasons. In the first place, and the most important, and as stated, the Holy Spirit will not be a party to any of that. But that’s the way that most Christians try to live for God. They don’t realize they are living under law, or by law, or within the confines of law, but that’s exactly what is happening. They think all the time they are living under Grace, but please understand the following:

If the Believer doesn’t understand the Cross as it regards Sanctification, then invariably the Believer is going to live by law. There is no other place to go. It’s only “Grace” or “Law.” And regrettably, many Christians think because this is the Dispensation of Grace, that we are automatically under Grace.

The truth is, this is the Dispensation of Grace, and has been ever since the Cross; however, if Grace was automatic, why do you think that Paul talks about “frustrating the Grace of God,” and “falling from Grace”? Do you get the point?

Because the laws we formulate out of our mind, or our Church formulates, are good in their own right, this fools us. Let me give you an example:

Sometime ago in a Prayer Meeting, I asked the little group gathered as to how one was to get closer to God.

The answers were many and varied. Some said, “You must pray more!” Others said, “You must study the Word of God more!”

There were many answers in this vein, all of them good, and all of them which will be very helpful to the Believer and, in fact, that which any good Christian will do; however, none of those answers were correct.

We must do those things as a result of being close to God, not in order to get close to God.

The way that one gets close to God is for one to understand Christ and what Christ has done for us at the Cross, there anchor our Faith, which will guarantee the help of the Holy Spirit. This is the only way in which one can get close to the Lord, can attain to the Righteousness of Christ, can walk in Holiness, can be Christlike. Everything else comes under the heading of “works,” and falls out every time to “self-righteousness.”

When the Believer is properly looking to Christ, which He can do only by looking at Christ through His Finished Work, then he will do all of these other things that we’ve just mentioned, but not as the cause of his Righteousness, but rather as the result of his Righteousness.

“Law” is the greatest problem for the Child of God, but in reality, it’s not the law itself, but it’s us placing our Faith and trust in these particular laws, whatever they may be. And the sadness is, if you ask most Christians if they were living under Law or Grace, most would instantly reply, “Grace!” But the truth is otherwise.

Once again let us state this: whenever Paul speaks of Faith, always and without exception, he is speaking of Faith in Christ and what Christ did at the Cross. If it’s not that, whatever label we put on it, it translates into law, which the Holy Spirit cannot bless.

The truth is, even though we are Born-Again, which means that we are new creations in Christ Jesus, which means that the Holy Spirit lives within us, no matter how hard we try, we simply cannot live up to law. As a result, Jesus has already done it for us.

He lived a Perfect Life, keeping the Law in every respect. He also satisfied the demands of the broken Law, by giving His Life on the Cross, which necessitated the shedding of His Precious Blood (I Pet. 1:18-20). So, as stated, He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. So all He demands of us now is that we evidence Faith in Him and what He has done on our behalf (Gal. 5:6).

WHY IS IT SO HARD FOR SOME CHRISTIANS TO TRUST IN CHRIST AND THE CROSS?

When one puts one’s Faith totally in Christ and His great Sacrifice, one is at the same time saying that this life cannot be lived any other way. And it’s very hard for most people to admit that. We want to think that we can do it. No matter that no one else ever has; we have the ridiculous idea that we can.

So, forsaking all of that, placing no faith and confidence in works at all, and totally putting our Faith in Christ and His Cross is very difficult for some people. It means they have to abandon all of their self-effort, all of their ability and strength, all of their self-righteousness. And most aren’t willing to do that.

TAKE UP THE CROSS DAILY AND FOLLOW ME

The heading is the Words of Christ. He said, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for My sake, the same shall save it” (Lk. 9:23-24).

Before I explain the Text, let me say that our dependence on Christ and what He has done at the Cross is so absolutely necessary, so absolutely imperative, that in a sense, our Faith must be renewed in the Finished Work of Christ, even on a daily basis. This is how important it is for one’s Faith to be properly placed.

When Jesus spoke of “denying oneself,” He wasn’t speaking of asceticism, which refers to the denial of all things which are comfortable or pleasurable. He was rather speaking of us denying our own strength and ability, and rather trusting totally in Him.

When He said to “take up the Cross,” He wasn’t speaking of suffering. Regrettably, most Christians believe that bearing the Cross constitutes suffering. It doesn’t!

It refers to the benefits of the Cross, which in reality are the greatest things on the face of the Earth. It refers to what Jesus did there for us, the great victory that He purchased on our behalf, which He described as “more abundant life” (Jn. 10:10).

But Satan has been very successful at getting the Church to believe that taking up the Cross constitutes acute suffering, which of course, most people want to avoid, and rightly so.

No, Jesus wasn’t speaking of suffering, but rather all the blessings and benefits which He has brought about for us, by what He did in His Sacrificial, Atoning Death on the Cross.

And if it is to be noticed, and this is very important, He said that we must take up this cross “daily.”

In a sense, each and every Believer is to renew his Faith each and every day, in what Christ has done for us, as it regards His Finished Work.

At least one of the reasons that Jesus said that the renewal of Faith must be done “daily,” is simply because Satan will do everything within his power to push our Faith from the Cross to other things. And he doesn’t too very much care what those other things are, just as long as it isn’t the Cross. This brings me to my next topic:

FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH

The only fight in which we are called upon to engage is the “good fight of Faith.” Paul said to Timothy, “Fight the good fight of Faith, lay hold on Eternal Life, whereunto you are also Called, and have professed a good profession before many witnesses” (I Tim. 6:12).

               Unfortunately, most Christians are trying to fight demon spirits, trying to fight Satan, etc. The truth is, Satan along with all demon spirits and fallen angels were totally and completely defeated at the Cross of Calvary (Col. 2:14-15).

So if we engage ourselves in such a conflict, we are trying to do all over again what Jesus has already done and, in fact, which we cannot do. Let me say it again:

The only fight that you are called upon to fight is the “good fight of Faith.” This is a “good fight” simply because if you fight this fight, you are definitely going to win, because the Holy Spirit will definitely help you.

Now what exactly did Paul mean by “fighting the good fight of Faith”?

Any time that Paul mentions Faith, without exception, he is speaking of Faith in Christ and what Christ has done for us at the Cross. And let you, the Reader, understand that when you mention Faith, always and without exception, you must be speaking of Christ and His Sacrifice. As well, the Believer must never separate Christ from the Cross, or the Cross from Christ. Now don’t misunderstand that statement.

Christ is no longer on the Cross. In fact, He is presently seated by the Father in the Heavenlies (Heb. 1:3). And, in fact, we are seated with Him in Heavenly Places (Eph. 2:6).

We’re not talking about reenacting the Cross all over again, for that would be an abomination. We are speaking of the benefits of what Jesus did there. In fact, the Cross of Christ, what Jesus did there, is something that happened now nearly 2,000 years ago. When it happened, it was a Finished Work, which means it will never have to be done again. In fact, it will never have to be amended in any way, hence, Paul referring to the Atonement as “The Everlasting Covenant” (Heb. 13:20). So this means that the Cross has continuing benefits and, in fact, benefits which will never be discontinued. It is these “benefits” of which we speak, and these benefits entirely!

When we speak of the Cross, some people get it in their minds that we’re talking about Jesus still being on the Cross, or, let us say it again, that Christians must suffer, hence, bearing the Cross, but that’s not it at all.

Paul said, “But this Man (Christ), after He had offered One Sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the Right Hand of God.

“From henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His footstool.

“For by one Offering He has perfected forever them who are Sanctified” (Heb. 10:12-14).

There was one Sacrifice offered for sins, and that Sacrifice was Christ Himself. Let’s look at that a little closer:

ONE SACRIFICE

Emphatically, and even dogmatically, the Holy Spirit through Paul proclaims the fact that there is only “one Sacrifice for sins,” not five, not three, not two, only one. That Sacrifice is the Cross of Calvary.

Now when we attempt to take from that Sacrifice, or add to that Sacrifice, we do great violence to the Word of God. Now some may ask as to exactly how such could be done.

If we place our Faith and our trust in anything except Christ and Him Crucified, we are, in effect, adding to His Sacrifice. I think it would be obvious that the Holy Spirit cannot accept anything of that nature.

If we delete from that Sacrifice, which is exactly what the Word of Faith people do, then we sin greatly. What do we mean by this?

The Word of Faith people teach that the Cross was merely incidental as it regarded Christ. In other words, it effected nothing at all, or so they say.

They claim that real Salvation was purchased by Jesus becoming a sinner on the Cross, taking upon Himself the Satanic nature, and then dying and going to Hell even as any sinner dies and goes to Hell. They further teach that He was tormented there for three days and nights by Satan and demon spirits, etc. And then finally, so they say, God said, “It is enough,” meaning that Jesus had now suffered enough for our sins, and then He was “born again,” just like any sinner is Born-Again, and then resurrected from the dead.

This erroneous doctrine is referred to as the “Jesus died spiritually doctrine.” They teach that He literally died spiritually on the Cross, even as we’ve said.

Of course, there’s not a shred of any of this in the Bible. It is made up out of whole cloth. One of its proponents said, “You won’t find this in the Bible; it has to be revealed to your spirit.”

The dear lady who said that (Joyce Meyers) is certainly right about one thing — it’s not found in the Bible. And to be sure, I might quickly add, if it’s not found in the Bible, whatever kind of spirit it was that revealed such to anyone, to be certain is not the Holy Spirit. Anything the Holy Spirit does is always, and without exception, found in the Word of God.

So when they teach this erroneous doctrine, they are pulling people’s faith away from the Cross, unto some fictitious scenario about Jesus suffering in Hell.

There is no Biblical evidence that Jesus ever went to the burning side of Hell. He definitely did go into the part of Hell called Paradise, and He even preached to the spirits in prison, who are fallen angels (I Pet. 3:19-20).

In fact, Peter also said, “For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit” (I Pet. 3:18).

This Passage plainly tells us that the death of Christ was “in the flesh,” which means He did not die spiritually. He gave Himself, His physical Body, which was Perfect, incidentally, by the shedding of His Precious Blood, for the life of the flesh is in the blood, which atoned for all sin. It was His Death on the Cross that atoned for sin, and nothing else (Gal. 1:4; I Cor. 1:17-18, 21, 23; 2:2).

Paul said, “Having therefore, Brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the Blood of Jesus (the Cross has made it possible for any and every Believer to come into the presence of the very Throne of God, and at any time so desired),

“By a new and living way (presents the New Covenant), which He has consecrated for us (by the Cross), through the Veil (contains an allusion to the Veil which separated the Holy of Holies from the Holy Place in the Tabernacle), that is to say, His flesh (refers to giving Himself on the Cross, which opened up the Way to God)” (Heb. 10:19-20).

Some may claim that all of this matters little, it just being a play on words; however, to repudiate the Cross, which the Word of Faith people do, borders on blasphemy, if, in fact, it is not blasphemy. Actually, they refer to the Cross as the “worst defeat in human history.” This shows a gross misunderstanding of the Cross of Christ, which is tantamount to spiritual disaster.

They need to read Paul a little more closely, especially when he said, “We preach Christ crucified” (I Cor. 1:23).

SANCTIFICATION

Despite all the talk about the Bible, this is the age, sadly and regrettably, that the Church is almost Bible illiterate. For instance, very few Christians have any knowledge whatsoever as to the meaning of “Sanctification.”

Let’s look for a moment at the order in which the Holy Spirit has placed things, as it regards the Five Books of Moses. Look closely at that order:

1. Genesis — Election: God elected Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldees, as to be the father of the faithful, and as Paul said, “The father of us all” (Rom. 4:16).

2. Exodus — Redemption: The Children of Israel delivered out of Egyptian bondage.

3. Leviticus — Communion: This Book gives us the manner in which the Lord is to be worshipped, with the Types and shadows symbolizing the Cross.

4. Numbers — Sanctification: In this Book we have the walk and warfare of the Saint of God.

5. Deuteronomy — Obedience, which is the theme of this Book, and the demand of the Holy Spirit as it regards the Child of God.

So we have “Election, Redemption, Communion, Sanctification, and Obedience.” This order laid down by the Holy Spirit, which was demanded of Israel, is also demanded of modern Believers.

We will find that Sanctification is the basic study of Numbers, which, in effect, is the single most important aspect of the Child of God. But regrettably, as previously stated, the modern Church little understands this all-important subject.

In its simplest form, the word “Sanctification” literally means to be “set apart,” and in this case, “set apart exclusively for the Lord.” In other words, we are pulled from something, unto something. We are pulled from the world and all of its accouterments, from self and all of its dependence, unto a total dependence on the Lord. We have here before us that which Paul mentioned, as it regards “walking after the flesh,” or “walking after the Spirit.” True Sanctification is “walking after the Spirit.”

As well, and which should be understood first of all, Sanctification can only be effected by the Holy Spirit. It is not possible for the Believer to sanctify himself, etc. But regrettably, most of the modern Church continues to try to do that.

In the Old Testament, Believers were instructed, in fact, to sanctify themselves, which actually referred to obedience, at least as much as they could. Due to the fact that the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sins, the Holy Spirit during those times could not permanently abide in the hearts and lives of Believers. So that left Believers at a serious disadvantage, as would be obvious.

So the Sanctification of that time, although demanded, was more a ceremonial type than anything else (Josh. 3:5).

But since the Cross, the Holy Spirit can now abide permanently within the hearts and lives of Believers, which He definitely does from the moment of the Born-Again experience (Jn. 14:16-17).

So how is the Believer presently sanctified?

Paul said, “Being Sanctified by the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:16).

But how does the Holy Spirit sanctify us?

Paul also said, “By the which will we are Sanctified through the Offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Heb. 10:10).

This tells us that our Sanctification is made possible by what Christ did at the Cross, and our Faith in that Finished Work. The Holy Spirit then sanctifies us, on the basis of the Sacrifice of Christ.

The Holy Spirit does this work (sanctifies us) according to our Faith and trust in Christ, and what He has done for us on the Cross.

The actual truth about Sanctification is, the moment you came to Christ, which means the moment you were Saved, at that moment you were totally and completely sanctified (I Cor. 6:11). That is our “position” in Christ, a “position” incidentally, which never changes, and because it is “in Christ.” But while that is our position or standing, that, in fact, is not our condition or state. So it’s the business of the Holy Spirit to bring our “condition” up to our “position,” or to say it another way, to bring our “state” up to our “standing.” This is, in fact, a process which continues all the days of our lives; and it is done, as stated, by and through our Faith in the Cross of Christ.

But when we attempt to sanctify ourselves, all we actually succeed in doing is to develop self-righteousness.

HOW DO CHRISTIANS TRY TO SANCTIFY THEMSELVES?

Not understanding the Cross, every single Christian, and we speak of those who are truly Born-Again, will try in some way to sanctify himself. He may not think of it in those terms, and may not even understand it in those terms, but irrespective, that’s what he is doing.

Most Christians think that they become better Christians by doing certain types of things. Those things are: being greatly involved in the activities of the Church; giving money to the Work of the Lord; witnessing to people about Christ; etc. In fact, the list is long.

All of these things mentioned, and scores not mentioned, are good and right in their own way. In fact, they are things that any good Christian will do. But these things must be done as a result of our Sanctification, and never as the cause of our Sanctification. But regrettably, not understanding the Cross as it regards Sanctification, that’s what most of the Church is trying to do — sanctify themselves by activity, etc.

THE TABERNACLE

The phrase, “In the Tabernacle of the congregation,” refers to the place where God dwelt, in the Holy of Holies, between the Mercy Seat and the Cherubim (Ex. 25:22).

In fact, the Tabernacle was the very center of all activity of Israel in the wilderness, and was supposed to be.

Everything centered around the Tabernacle, because this is where God dwelt. But bringing it up to the present time, the Tabernacle was a Type of Christ, and in every respect. This means that everything now must center around Christ. But there is a little catch to that:

Much of modern Christianity doesn’t center around Christ, but rather other things. In other words, the center of circumference is their Church, their activity in the Church, their Denomination, or a particular doctrine, etc.

While we may not think that this is very important, the truth is, it is, in fact, of extreme significance. If what we do and what we have is not totally Christ centered, which again refers to Christ and the Cross, we will then find our situation being totally unbiblical. In other words, we will be serving “another Jesus.” And what do we mean by that?

ANOTHER JESUS

Paul said, “For if he who comes preaching another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if you receive another spirit, which you have not received, or another gospel, which you have not accepted, you might well bear with him” (II Cor. 11:4).

What did Paul mean by the statement “another Jesus,” or “another spirit,” or “another gospel”?

Pure and simple, if it’s not “Christ and Him Crucified,” irrespective as to what we may think it is, in fact, it is “another Jesus.”

Pulling it back to Old Testament times, it would be the same thing as someone building another Tabernacle somewhere else in the encampment, which as would be obvious, God would never sanction, which means that He would not be dwelling there. But that’s what the modern Church in essence has done.

It has left Christ, and I say that because the Church has left the Cross. And to be sure, if we abandon the Cross, if we repudiate the Cross, or ignore the Cross, or deny the Cross, we are left in every respect with another Jesus, which means that we now have “another spirit,” and “another gospel.”

Let’s be a little more specific:

PSYCHOLOGY

As far as I know, every single religious Denomination in the United States and Canada espouses humanistic psychology. In other words, they claim that modernistic psychology is the answer to the ills of man, the perversions of man, etc.

By doing that, which incidentally holds no truth at all, they are at the same time repudiating the Cross of Christ.

We teach that Jesus Christ is the answer to every single behavior and spiritual problem, and He is that answer by and through what He did at the Cross. We teach that He addressed every single problem of sin which has come upon man as a result of the Fall. In other words, whatever damage was done by the Fall was addressed by Christ at the Cross, and in totality (Col. 2:14-15), which means that the Finished Work of Christ needs no help from humanistic psychology.

In fact, humanistic psychology, pure and simple, is a lie. It holds no answers for humanity, which should be overly obvious. Listen to Peter:

“According as His Divine Power has given unto us all things that pertain unto life and Godliness, through the knowledge of Him Who has called us to Glory and Virtue:

“Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and Precious Promises: that by these you might be partakers of the Divine Nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (II Pet. 1:3-4).

Now either the Lord did give unto us everything that pertains unto life and Godliness, or else He didn’t, and we need to turn to the likes of Freud, Maslow, and Rodgers, etc.

But I happen to believe that the Word of God is True. I happen to believe that He did give us everything that pertains to life and Godliness, and on that, I will rest my case.

Now the modern Church may claim that it’s still holding to the Cross, while at the same time espousing psychology. But such is impossible. Either one cancels out the other. But regrettably, this is the big lie that many Church leaders have swallowed.

One cannot have daylight and darkness at the same time, or sickness and health at the same time, or sin and Salvation at the same time. So we maintain that the religious organizations, be they Denominations or individual Churches, which espouse humanistic psychology, have, in effect, abandoned the Cross, and are consequently, preaching and teaching “another Jesus.”

The Lord Jesus Christ must be the center of all our Faith, worship, and work. And if we claim that this is, in fact, the case, but yet ignore the Cross, we are only fooling ourselves.

TRUE FAITH IN THE CROSS

Many Believers, upon hearing us teach as it concerns the Cross, will automatically retort, “I believe in the Cross,” so what are you talking about?

The truth is, these individuals definitely do believe in the Cross. But their knowledge, at least for the most part, directs itself only to the Salvation experience. The Cross as it regards Sanctification, our living for God, our growing in Grace, is totally unknown to them. Consequently, they function in Law, simply because there is nowhere else to function. If one is totally believing in Christ and the Cross, to which we’ve already addressed ourselves, that person is functioning in the realm of Grace. Otherwise, and as repeatedly stated, it is law, simply because there is nowhere else to go.

The Church, for the last several decades, has so little preached and proclaimed the Cross, until anymore, it is for all practical purposes, illiterate as it regards this all-important subject.

At the turn of the Twentieth Century, when the great latter rain outpouring began to take place around the world, as it regards the Holy Spirit, the Denominational Church world, as a whole either ignored this outpouring, or else opposed it. Of course, there were untold thousands who were Saved out of these particular Churches, but as a whole, and organizationally, the Holy Spirit was greatly opposed, and continues to be so unto this hour.

At that particular time, and we continue to speak of the approximate beginning of the Twentieth Century, the Denominational Church tried to preach the Cross without the Holy Spirit. As a result, they fell into the position of preaching neither!

Unfortunately, the Pentecostal Church and the Charismatic Church, as of late, have for the most part tried to preach the Holy Spirit without the Cross. Such a direction has concluded in fanaticism, as such direction always does! Trying to function in the realm of the Holy Spirit without the Cross is a position the Holy Spirit will not tolerate; consequently, those who attempt to do such a thing conclude with “spirits” instead of the Holy Spirit. By and large, sadly and regrettably, this is the condition of the modern Pentecostal and Charismatic worlds.

THE HOLY SPIRIT

Before the great latter rain outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of the Twentieth Century, which incidentally was predicted by the Prophet Joel (Joel 2:23), the Church world as a whole had very little light on the Baptism with the Holy Spirit. In those days, and I speak primarily of the Nineteenth Century, the Church world, at least a great part, preached the Cross. In fact, other than the time of the Early Church, when the Apostle Paul proclaimed the meaning of the New Covenant, which, in fact, was the Cross, the Nineteenth Century probably saw the greatest preaching and teaching on the Cross of any time. But when the knowledge of the Holy Spirit began to be made known to the world, and the Denominational world basically rejected the Spirit, even as stated, little by little, the Holy Spirit, for all practical purposes, withdrew.  As stated, they little preach anything anymore, whether the Cross or the Holy Spirit. As stated, one cannot successfully preach the Cross, without at the same time, preaching the Holy Spirit. And when I speak of preaching and teaching the Holy Spirit, I am speaking of that which is given to us in the Book of Acts, which pertains to a definite experience separate and apart from Salvation, which of course means that it follows Salvation, and is always, and without exception, accompanied by the speaking with other Tongues (Acts 2:4; 10:46; 19:1-7).

If light is given, and that light is rejected, not only is it withdrawn, but what little light previously had is withdrawn as well (Mat. 25:28-29).

Regrettably, most of the modern Pentecostal Denominations can hardly anymore refer to themselves as Pentecostal. Only about one-third of those who belong to these respective Churches, I am told, even profess to be baptized with the Holy Spirit.

The very mainstay of the Church is Salvation by the Blood, which, of course pertains to the Cross, and the administration of the Holy Spirit. Take those two factors out of Christianity, and there is nothing left.

RELATIONSHIP

The phrase, “On the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying,” speaks, as is obvious, of a particular time that the Lord spoke to Moses. This speaks of relationship, a relationship incidentally which any modern Believer can have, if they so desire (Rev. 22:17).

A proper relationship with the Lord produces the most consistent, glorious, abundant life that anyone could ever have (Jn. 10:10). In fact, this and this alone, and I speak of relationship with Christ, is the secret of all life and living, the secret of all joy and happiness, the secret of all fulfillment and development. If you have that you have everything, and if you don’t have that, irrespective as to what you might have, you still have nothing. That’s why Jesus said, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (Christ refers here to ‘gain’ and ‘loss.’) or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?  (Nothing is more important than the soul, because it is eternal.)” (Mat. 16:26).

For man to be estranged from his Creator is the height of all ignorance, despite the fact that he may possibly have tremendous accouterments regarding secular education. So to find Christ is to find life.

However, the sadness is, most Christians, who incidentally have every opportunity to have an abundant relationship with Christ, little take advantage of this tremendous privilege. And the beautiful thing about serving Christ is, irrespective as to whom the person might be, whatever their status in life, that person can draw just as close to God as he or she desires to do so. And the closer we get to Him, the greater the leading, the greater the guidance, the greater the Blessing. The Lord loves to bless His Children, but His Children must obey Him, that is, if the Blessing is to be forthcoming.

It’s a wonderful thing, just as Moses of old, to be able to know that you have sought the Lord about certain things, and He has answered you, and given you information which brought joy to your soul, as well as great blessing. That can be had by any Believer, but sadly, is had by very few Believers. It is all a matter of relationship, or the lack thereof. 

(The above article was derived from the Jimmy Swaggart Bible Commentary, “Numbers and Deuteronomy”, Chapter 1.)  

(The above article was derived from the Jimmy Swaggart Bible Commentary, “Acts”, Chapter 15.)