I ONCE WAS BLIND BUT NOW I SEE. Amazing grace. How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me! Grace is truly amazing. I have felt the grace of God reach deep into my soul and change a wretch into a beautiful wife and mother. I have seen grace change a prostitute into a powerful woman of God. A drugged induced thief into a Spirit- filled evangelist.
Truly, grace is amazing! But here’s the thing, grace changes lives. It’s not a “do what you want, live like you want” grace that’s so aptly being preached. The Greek word for grace is “charis” and it’s definition according to Strong’s concordance is “the power of God on the heart and its effect in the life”. It’s as if Paul redefined grace when he saw the power of God on a person’s life to transform them. Titus tells us,
“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;” (Titus 2:11-12) and again in chapter 1 “the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness”.
If the gospel of grace that you’ve received hasn’t changed you to live a holy, morally righteous life; it’s not God’s grace. The gospel is not a social gospel of good works neither is it the love gospel so falsely being preached. Jude wanted to write to believers about our salvation, yet he felt compelled to warn us concerning false teachers who were teaching that you could continue to live a life of sin under grace.
“For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.” Jude 1:4
I used to think that these false grace teachers would outright say that they “denied Christ” and then we would all recognize them by these words. But upon further study I found that’s not what Jude is telling us. He is warning us that those who preach that you can continue to sin because of grace, and that we are to “just love”; are preaching falsehood.
Therefore, by their gospel, they deny Jesus. Oh, their preaching includes a “Jesus”, but you can be sure it is not the Jesus of Scripture. It is not the Messiah prophesied about by Jeremiah, Isaiah, Daniel and all the other OT prophets, God in the flesh, and the Savior of the world. It is a fleshly, false and demonic entity they call “Jesus”. This false grace gospel is a doctrine of demons and because it is a lie; it has no power, no transformation, no new life, no turning, no authority and no Jesus. Not only is the false grace/false love gospel powerless, it has none of God and therefore leads to hell and destruction. Shame on those who teach this! Not only is their end destruction, but they are leading many to hell.
The grace that God gives is a gospel of peace, repentance and remission of sins in order to live godly, shunning all sin and wickedness in this evil society. Grace does not allow you to blend in with the culture. It is not woke, neither is it progressive. Instead grace will teach you to starkly stand apart from wickedness. Righteousness does not mix with a godless society. Grace is alive and active. Grace defies all odds. You cannot explain the effects of grace, but you can see grace on it’s recipients. Grace transforms lives. Receive God’s true and pure grace by repenting from your sins and applying the shed blood of Christ over your life. Receive the Spirit of grace and truth and watch what He does with your life.
“Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38
To Learn More About Pastor Crystal please visit the Leadership Page
