Does God lie?

Romans Chapter 8:37

"We are more than conquerors through him that loved us."

The loser mentality is just what the enemy wants. It's his way of keeping weak minded saints focused on their sin when their eyes should be on Christ and their dependence upon His power to work through them for His glory.

Mark those little Sinai preachers who enslave their folk by keeping them dwelling on the powerless man of Romans 7 while neglecting the liberating truths of Romans 8. They are no different than the Romanists. By keeping their people within the vicious circle of sin and guilt they may as well establish confessionals boxes.

Heb 10:21-31 ESV ....and since we have a great priest over the house of God, (22) let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (23) Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. (24) And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, (25) not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (26) For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, (27) but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. (28) Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. (29) How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? (30) For we know him who said, "Vengeance is mine; I will repay." And again, "The Lord will judge his people." (31) It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Have you noticed how much of the Reformed with their law orientation discounts the work of the Spirit to such an extent that immature and weak minded believers are not much better than unbelievers?

If New Covenant Theology fails to demonstrate with God's Word that the New Covenant has provided a more perfect word on sanctification then we might as well join the ranks of the modern day Judaizers (the slave woman's kids) and sign on to their third use of the Mosaic Law. Understand this well! The new and powerful dynamic provided by the New Covenant for holy living is Christ in you.

Eph 4:11-14 ESV And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, (12) to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, (13) until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, (14) so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

The continuing work of Jesus Christ in the life of His saints is the source of the living waters that supply and refresh their souls. Mature believers walk in the beauty of holiness as they are energized by God in them. They sow to the Spirit and not to the flesh. Even their victory over sin is assured because, as John Piper explains, it's pretty much a done deal. That's provided they really are in Christ in the first place.

Gleanings from John Piper in his sermon on Romans 8:1-2;

"The first thing we can say is that being united to Christ by faith makes his pardon and righteousness ours, so there is no condemnation. The second thing we can say is that being united to Christ by faith makes his power and authority over sin ours, so the law of sin and death can be defeated. In Christ we get pardon from sin and power over sin."

"The only sin that you can defeat in your life is a forgiven sin. Now what we just saw is that the power to defeat it and the pardon to forgive it are "in Christ Jesus." Both are freely given in Christ Jesus. All Christians have both of them."

(http://www.soundofgrace.com/piper2/piper2001/10-07-01.htm )

So then, let's agree to live victoriously for God's glory by coming to a greater understanding of Christ in us. Don't just dwell on the gifts. Live your life in the Spirit! Be mature in Christ. Learn of Him!

Joh 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Col 1:27, To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of
the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you,
the hope of glory:

Grace!
Moe

Charles Spurgeon on the Reverends Amongst Us

Psa 111:9 He sent redemption unto his people:
he hath commanded his covenant forever:
holy and reverend is his name.

A lad fresh from college, who has just been placed in a pulpit, is the Reverend Smith, while his eminently godly grandfather, who has for fifty years walked with God, and is now ripe for heaven, has no such claim to reverence. A gentleman of ability, education, and eminent piety preaches in various places with much zeal and abundant success, but he is no reverend; while a man of meager gifts, whose principal success seems to lie in scattering the flock, wears the priestly prefix, having a name to be reverenced when he commands no esteem whatever. This may be a trifle, many no doubt so regard it; why, then, are they not prepared to abstain from it? The less the value of the epithet the less reason for continuing the use of it. It would be hard to say who has a right to it, for many use it who have not been pastors for years, and have not preached a sermon for many a day; what on earth are they to be reverenced for? Other men are always preaching, and yet no one calls them reverend, but why not '? The distribution of this wonderful honor is not fairly arranged. We suggest that, as the wife is to see that she reverence her husband, every married man has a degree of claim to the title of Rev., and the sooner all benedicts exercise the privilege, the sooner will the present clerical use of it pass out of fashion. We wonder when men first sought out this invention, and from whose original mind did the original sin emanate. We suspect that he lived in the Roman Row of Vanity Fair, although the Reverend John Bunyan does not mention him. One thing is pretty certain, he did not flourish in the days of the Reverend Paul, or the Reverend Apollos, or the Reverend Cephas. (Sword and Trowel Volume 4, 1874)

(Moe adds: I still receive a fair amount of mail addressed to Rev. Maurice Ber.... and always blush at the thought when you and I both know there is only One worthy of such a title.)