Much Better! The New Covenant

Recently, I had the great joy of marrying a special young couple for whom I had provided pre-marital counseling.  It was cool to observe them stare into each other's eyes with that "I love you but I hope I don't pass out" look as they repeated their vows.  As they did, it reminded me that wedding vows are the closet thing we have to a covenant in our culture today.  Christ followers have entered into what Jesus called the New Covenant by very few know what this means.  This void has made us vulnerable to being ambushed by religion and the pain of the flesh.  We see them every week at Grace Life International. A covenant is an agreement between two parties pledging their commitment and responsibilities to each other.  It is binding until one of them dies.   In ancient times, it might be between a king who set up a covenant with the people he had conquered.  The people may not have been given the choice of agreeing.  This was a very authoritative, legal covenant. Another version was much more relational.  In the Old Covenant, God gave Himself to Israel as their authoritative King and their loving Husband.  Key Elements of A Covenant 1. Binding vows.  2. Responsibilities and blessings.   Each had responsibilities for the other which would result in blessings for both.  For example, you and I might commit to be responsible for helping each other if one was attacked.  The blessing would be that we would both have twice the defense for defeating an enemy.   3. The Cutting of the Covenant.   The two parties would walk in a figure eight around animals sacrificed and cut in half in two piles. Now the covenant was sealed in blood until someone died.  The sacrificed animals were also a warning of what would befall someone who broke the covenant!
4. The Covenant Meal.  Both the enjoyed a meal together, eating the cooked animals showing they had internalized the covenant in the very fabric of their being.  5. A sign of the covenant.  There was always a sign covenant as a constant reminder of the relationship.  For example, my wedding ring constantly reminds me of my marriage covenant with my wife.
 Did you know that the Old and New Covenants have all five elements (which I will share next week)?  Did you also know that when Jesus died as one of the parties of the Old Covenant, it ended and the New Covenant was inaugurated?  Read Hebrews 9:16-17.
 "Like a will that takes effect when someone dies, the new covenant was put into action at Jesus’ death. His death marked the transition from the old plan to the new one, canceling the old obligations and accompanying sins, and summoning the heirs to receive the eternal inheritance that was promised them. He brought together God and his people in this new way." I am excited for the deeper intimacy, freedom, and fruitfulness in Christ that await you as God unfolds the New Covenant for you during the next few weeks.
 Believe it!  It's the Gospel!
Live Free In Christ,

Mark Maulding, President and Founder
www.GraceLifeInternational.com All Content Copyright © 2014 Mark Maulding

All Your Failures Are Erased through the Gift of Righteousness

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with regret, even for a moment, because of past failures?  I have and it can take your emotions down to the bottom of the ocean where there is no light and no life.  The great news is that though you may remember your failures, God doesn’t. 

There is a fascinating Scripture in Romans 4:19-21 that gives us keen insight into this issue in the story of Abraham.  You may remember that God promised good ole Abe that he was going to be the father of many nations, but for years nothing happened. 

One day, he and Sarah hatched what seemed like a genius idea.  They would help God fulfill His promise by using a custom of the day which allowed wives to give a female servant to their husband for the purpose of impregnating her.  When the child was born, the wife would be there and the child would be considered hers.  This was the ancient way of having a surrogate to provide a child to a husband and wife.

There was a problem though.  This was not God’s plan!  It was the plan according to the flesh of Abraham and Sarah.  God actually wanted Abraham to trust Him to get Sarah pregnant through Abraham, though she was past child bearing age.

When you read that story in Genesis 12-25, there is no doubt that Abraham wavered in his faith in God’s promise.  But, here is how God remembered it when the Holy Spirit wrote Romans 4:19-22 through Paul.

19 Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; 20 yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform. 22 Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness.  NASB

Do you see it?  Because God saw Abraham’s righteousness, He says that Abraham “did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God.”  And that is the good news of the Gospel!  As one who is in Christ, you may occasionally visit the land of regret, but God wants you to “set your mind on things above, not on the things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2)  In other words, let the Gospel guide your thoughts away from regret and into the confidence of your gift of righteousness in Christ before our Father!  And as one who is 100% righteous before Him in your identity in Christ, your soul will be able to rest in the peace of God.

What are you going to do the next time Satan brings regret into your mind?  Preach the Gospel to yourself remembering that because you are righteous, God sees you as one who has lived by faith, not by doubt.

Believe it!  It’s the Gospel!

Live Free In Christ,

Mark Maulding, President and Founder

www.GraceLifeInternational.com All Content Copyright © 2014 Mark Maulding

The Freedom of No Condemnation

Not too long ago, my flesh jumped up and down with its dastardly desires.   When it did, my emotions took a nose dive and before I knew it, they were on the floor getting stomped on.   I wasn't having much fun, to say the least.

That is the way our flesh works.  It jumps up and down inside of us trying to control us and when it does, it makes us feel miserable.   And sometimes, it makes the people around us feel miserable!

 I was crying out to the Lord off and on during this time.  Finally, I said, "Lord, please help me with your life in me."  After a while the Holy Spirit reminded me of Romans 8:1-2 but He did it in reverse order starting with verse 2.  "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death."   I rolled that over and over in my mind and as I did, the peace that passes all understanding began to cut through all the negative feelings.

 Let's think about it together for a minute.  The law of the Spirit is the new law which operates in us in the place of the Old Testament law.  What is that new law?  It is this:  we have the life of Christ Jesus operating inside of us to overcome and free us from another law, the law of sin and death.  The law of sin and death is what we inherited from Adam.  This is not the old nature because it was crucified with Christ.  (Romans 6:6).    It's sometimes called the power of sin which is an unholy force in me but it is not me.  It's like having a splinter in your finger.  The splinter is inflicting pain in me but it is not me.  To make it clear, trying harder is not more powerful than this power of sin.  Only the life of Christ in us is more powerful.

Next, the Holy Spirit reminded me of verse one.  "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."   He was saying to me that He knew how much I was being defeated but there was still no condemnation from Him.  He also reminded me that this verse comes after Romans 7:15-24 where the Apostle Paul shares in detail his own story of devastating defeat sin. 

 What freedom!  No matter how much sin defeats us, there is no condemnation! It took a while for my emotions to come up from the floor.  The reason is that our emotions follow our thoughts much like a train caboose follows the engine.  Your emotions may take some time to line up with the truth of the Gospel as well.

 Have you ever heard of preaching the Gospel to yourself?  That is what my story is really about.  The Holy Spirit wants all of us to preach the Gospel to ourselves often- the complete Gospel.   This is where our freedom is in Christ. 

Believe it!  It's the Gospel!

Live Free In Christ, Mark Maulding, President and Founder www.GraceLifeInternational.com All Content Copyright © 2014 Mark Maulding

New Covenant Christians with an Old Covenant Mentality

My wife and I were newly married, had no children and were on vacation at the beach. We were hungry so we drove a few hundred yards to the corner seafood restaurant. After being seated, we carefully looked over the menu, then realized with dismay there was not one entree we could consume. Why? We believed erroneously, that living a life which pleased the Lord as a Christian, meant following the dietary laws of the Old Covenant. We quickly left but were frustrated. No! We were mad, not at the restaurant, but at the burdensome restrictions we felt by living with an Old Covenant mindset. This was well before we understood the freedom we have under the New Covenant.

After almost 25 years of teaching the New Covenant, it is a confirmed reality. The majority of Christians today live with an Old Covenant mentality, though not to the extreme we once lived. Nonetheless, it is an Old Covenant mindset. Here is what that may look like. 

We believe our forgiveness before God is temporary instead of eternal. That's why we focus so much on our sins, that we develop an obsession with confession, rather than an obsession with the power of Jesus' blood and His finished work. "In him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace." Ephesians 1:7 NIV 

We believe the key to living a successful Christian life is through trying harder to be more committed and disciplined, instead of relying on Christ in us 24/7 to live His life through us. "I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done." Romans 15:18 NIV 

We believe God blesses us only because we obey Him, rather than from just our being IN Christ. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." Ephesians 1:3 NIV Of course, it is a blessing to be free to live like who we are in Christ!

What about you? Do you live with an Old Covenant mentality, or are you living more and more in the exquisite freedom of the New Covenant? 

Believe it! It's the Gospel!

Live Free In Christ, 

Mark Maulding, President and Founder
www.GraceLifeInternational.com

All Content Copyright © 2013 Mark Maulding

Do You Believe in a Religious Jesus or the Real Jesus?

At age 19, I was ambushed by religion and unwittingly began to believe in a religious Jesus.  The results over the next several years were devastating as I became a casualty of war.  It is war in the sense that Satan and his demonic armies have a mission against all of us in Christ.  Since he can’t own us, he schemes to influence us with the mission to kill, steal and destroy us and those we influence.  (John 10:10)  In my case, he executed this mission by filling my mind with lies about who Jesus genuinely is, making Him out to be religious.  If he can’t get us to follow the world system, he simply changes tactics and gets us to become religious. He is happy with either direction we go as long as we don’t know the real Jesus.

How do we distinguish between religious Jesus and the real Jesus?   By what the complete Gospel tells us about the real Jesus.  Let’s compare the two.

The Real Jesus

Desires intimacy with me in my best times and in my worst times.  Romans 8:15

Said “It is finished” and wants me to rest in that.  John 19:30, Hebrews 4:10

Wants me to pray throughout my day in addition to any designated time.  1 Thessalonians 5:17

Did everything to make me acceptable to God. Romans 5:1, 17, 19

Died so that God will never be angry with me again. 1 John 2:2

Replaced my old nature with a new nature giving one identity – my identity in Christ. Romans 6:1-11

Disciplines me to get me back on track of trusting and surrendering to Him because He loves me. Hebrews 12:4-11

Accepts me just as much when I sin as when I obey.  Romans 8:1

Tells me to obey God as an expression of who I am in Christ. Ephesians 4:17-32

Uses difficulty to get His character which is already in me to come forth more.  Romans 5:3-5, Colossians 2:10

Wants to live His life through me so I can live for Him.  Galatians 2:20, 2 Corinthians 5:15

Wants me to come to Him when I sin because He died for my past, present and future sins.  Hebrews 4:16, Colossians 2:13-14

Does not condemn me but reminds me that He loves me when I sin.  Romans 8:1, 35-39

Tells me that all of life is worship when He is living through me.  Acts 17:28

Loves me as much as His Father loves Him.  John 17:26

Wants me to live a life that pleases God as an expression of the Gospel I believe, but not to be more accepted by God.  Ephesians 4:1, Philippians 1:27, Colossians 1:10

Wants me to rest in the truth that our Father made me as righteous as Jesus.  2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 4:10

Wants me to understand that holy living looks like love.  Romans 13:8-10

Wants me to focus on Him because He is in me so I can overcome my sin.  Hebrews 12:1-2

Wants me to know that the law has been written on my heart, i.e. my identity in Christ, so that I live from the inside out, not based on the external law or rules.  Hebrews 10:16

Wants me to know He does not hold my sins against me nor withhold Himself from me when I sin.  Hebrews 10:17

Depends on Christ in me and what He has done to me so I can live by faith out of a reverent fear.  Philippians 2:12-13

Wants me to live by faith, depending on Him in me.  Colossians 2:6

Wants me to live in fellowship with believers who are not of my ethnicity.   Ephesians 2:11-22

Religious Jesus

Desires intimacy with me only when I am obeying Him.

Tells me to tell him everything both good and bad that I am thinking.

Makes me think prayer is all about saying the right thing and having a daily designated “quiet time”.

Said “It is finished” but wants me to believe I can never do enough.

Makes me believe I have to please God in order to be acceptable to Him.

Died for me but makes me believe God still gets angry with me.

Added a new nature right beside my old nature so that I have an identity in Adam and an identity in Christ.

Punishes me to make me pay for what I did because He is angry with me.

Accepts me more when I obey than when I sin.

Tells me to obey God to become a better Christian.

Uses difficulty to try to build character in me because I am incomplete without this.

Tells me to be careful what I tell Him.

Tells me to live for God to the best of my ability.

Wants me to show Him how sorry I am before I come to Him when I sin.

Condemns me, telling me what a terrible Christian I am.

Tells me that worship only happens for me when I am in a church worship service or in my prayer time.

Loves me but not even close to what His Father loves Him.

Tells me to live a life pleasing to God so He will love and accept me more.

Tells me to believe that God sees me as righteous but I really won’t be until I get to heaven.

Tells me to believe that holy living looks like a restrictive, heavy burden that causes me to be self-righteous and judgmental.

Tells me to focus on overcoming my sin.

Tells me to obey the law and rules.

Tells me to obey God out of a fear of punishment.

Tells me to depend on God when I can’t do it myself.

Wants me to believe that segregated churches are best because “they” are different than us.

There is much more I could write but the main point is this:  As you compare these, which Jesus are you in relationship with?  Religious Jesus or the Real Jesus?

The best way to get rid of Religious Jesus and enjoy the Real Jesus is to understand the New Covenant, that is the complete Gospel, and ask God to renew your mind with it.

Believe it!  It’s the Gospel!

Live Free In Christ, 

Mark Maulding, President and Founder 
www.GraceLifeInternational.com 
 All Content Copyright © 2013 Mark Maulding

Forgiveness and Reconciliation Aren't The Same

I remember the first time I bowed my head and prayed for God to show me the people He wanted me to forgive. The Holy Spirit led me very specifically to write down with pen and pad several names.   I forgave each person but soon began to ask myself. "Does this mean I have to reconcile with some of these people?"   I've found through the years, that my question is a very serious one asked by many. Without a Biblical answer, it can stop some in their tracks preventing them from forgiving.

It's helpful to remember that forgiveness and reconciliation are not the same. Forgiveness is something God always wants us to do according to Ephesians 4:32. "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." NASB  Reconciliation, is another matter.

Reconciliation is always God's heart for two people but is not always possible because it takes both to make it work. This is true even of God and people. He has done everything necessary for us to be reconciled to Him. 2 Corinthians 5:20 "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." NASB However, someone's reconciliation with God will never happen unless a person is willing to admit their need for Jesus and place their faith in Him.

There are essential elements, if reconciliation is to take place between two people.

1. Both parties must see a need to reconcile.
2. Both parties must be willing to reconcile.
3. Both parties must take responsibility for their part of the problem.
4. Both parties must admit to what they didto the other person.
5. Both parties must be willing to work on their part of the relationship.
6. One or both parties must give time for trust to be rebuilt.

Because our identity is in Christ, our new heart's deepest desire is to reconcile with another person. Being willing to do so is living from that new heart.   It might help to review the essential elements to see if we are ready on our side to pursue reconciliation, if it is possible. 

 "If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men."  Romans 12:18 NASB

Believe it. It's the Gospel!

Live Free In Christ, 

Mark Maulding, President and Founder 
www.GraceLifeInternational.com 
All Content Copyright © 2014 Mark Maulding

God Will Not Give You More than You Can Handle

I can't remember how many times I have heard this through the years but it is significant.  It's supposed to be a comforting statement for people when they are experiencing a time of great difficulty.  The idea is that God knows how much strength you have so He will not allow difficulty to become so heavy that you fall under it.

       

I suppose this is a misunderstanding of 1 Cor. 10:13, "No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."  (NAS)  The ability mentioned here is not our ability but God's ability, because without Jesus we can do nothing.

God will give you more than you can handle because, He wants to handle it through you with His strength instead of yours.  As a matter of fact, He will give you more than you can handle because He is jealous for you to get to know His Son, Jesus Christ in you.   That means He wants you to talk with Christ in you as you rely on Him more, instead of talking to yourself so much as you rely on yourself.

The Apostle Paul knew how it felt to have more than you can personally handle.

 He thought he was going to die but he tells us God had a purpose in it.  "Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead." (2 Corinthians 1:9 ESV)

Learning to rely on Christ in you through overwhelming difficulties is necessary if you are going to spiritually mature, for it not only blesses you, but others as well.  What a cool plan God has in place!  You get to know and experience Jesus in you more and then others get to know Him more as He lives through you.  "For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.  So death is at work in us, but life in you." (2 Cor. 4:11-12 ESV)

Are you going through great difficulty?  Tell God you give up on your own strength and ability!  Then become enamored with Jesus by focusing on and relying on Him!

Believe it.  This is the Gospel!         

Live Free In Christ, 

Mark Maulding, President and Founder www.GraceLifeInternational.com 
All Content Copyright © 2014 Mark Maulding