Brother Michel Lankford
One of the most important skills for up-and-coming disciples of YHWH and Messiah to learn, is that we must allow God to change our internal dictionary so that we define key terms, (terms like Grace for instance), in the SAME way that God defines those key terms. That is one of the most difficult things in modern Christian circles today.
I mean, modern Christians often use Bible terms and Bible words, but then they will use DIFFERENT meanings, different definitions, and different applications for those same keywords instead of how God has defined those things in His Word. So, the way that many modern Christians define things like Grace and Love for example is now often completely different than God has defined those terms in His Word.
For example, the sinful world might believe and teach that to be tolerant of wickedness is showing love to someone, but God says that being tolerant of wickedness is actually sin. It’s NOT loving according to God, (1 Corinthians 13:6). So, if my definition and understanding of love, actually fits into God’s definition of what it means to sin, then I’m not really being loving at all, regardless of how I might think and feel about something. My internal dictionary would be lying to me in that case.
I said all that to say this. If you look carefully at the way that modern Christianity often defines grace today, the modern Christian definition of grace actually fits the New Testament biblical definition of what it means to sin, even in the New Testament. So, what they often call Grace, actually turns out to be SIN, even according to the New Testament. That’s because they have been trained to define Grace differently than how God defines Grace in His Word.
Grace in the ancient Hebrew Word Picture:
(חֵ֭ן)
The Letter “Het” Pictures the Fence, the limitation, the border or the boundary.
The Letter “Noon” Pictures Life, actions and movements.
So, in literal terms, genuine Grace is the fence, the border, the limitation or the boundaries which God has established to guard and protect our life, our actions and our movements.
Do you see how radically opposite the modern idea of Grace is in comparison to how God originally defined Grace?
Grace is literally the fence, the limitation or the boundary that protects our life, our actions, and our movements. However, today we are taught to ASSUME that Grace supposedly is all about literally REMOVING the fence, the limitation or the boundary that God established to protect our life, our actions., and our movements. Today we are taught that Grace allegedly means NOT living within the fences that God has established.
Today, modern believers often taught that we should not attempt to push ourselves to try and obey any biblical Commandment or written instruction of Scripture, because to do so is works righteousness, and it is a lack of grace. On the contrary. Just the opposite is true. Being brought into God’s fences, borders and boundaries that will protect our lives our actions and our movements; being brought into God’s Instructions for how to live a life that will prosper us; that IS Grace, according to the biblical definition of the term.
Look carefully at how Paul defines Grace in the Bible, (Titus 2:11-15).
Beloved, Grace does NOT mean that we do not have to obey what God says. Grace helps us and empowers us to obey what God says to do.
Beloved, I strongly urge you to do a New Testament study of the word LAWLESSNESS, what it means, and what the consequences of lawlessness are.
Here is what Grace does according to Paul:
• Grace brings salvation.
• Grace makes salvation appear, (or evident, or visible) to all mankind.
• Grace teaches us to DENY or in other words to REJECT ungodly lusts, passions and desires.
• Grace teaches us that we should live soberly, righteously and godly in the present age. So according to Paul, God’s TRUE Grace actually teaches us to come back within the fences the boundaries and the borders which God established. Isn’t that interesting?
• Grace teaches us to actively look for the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ.
• Through Grace, Christ gave Himself up to REDEEM us FROM EVERY LAWLESS DEED. So Grace through Messiah appeared in order to REDEEM US FROM every lawless deed, NOT to cause or to permit more lawlessness. That’s critical. So, living outside of God’s Laws Commandments and Instructions is what Jesus Christ and the Grace of God came to save us FROM doing. Therefore, continuing to live in lawlessness; continuing to live outside of God’s Laws Commandments and Instructions CANNOT POSSIBLY be what it means to live under Grace, because living outside of God’s Laws Commandments and Instructions; that is the very lifestyle that the Grace of God and Messiah came to SAVE US FROM continuing to do, according to Paul.
• God’s grace came through Jesus Christ to make us God’s own special people; a people ZEALOUS FOR GOOD DEEDS, (which is the very OPPOSITE of sin and lawlessness).
• And Paul specifically tells us to speak these things. He tells us to exhort and to rebuke with all authority in the context of these things. And he tells us to NOT allow anyone to disregard us concerning this teaching about Grace. I find verse 15 very telling because obviously God understood that people would be tempted to disregard this New Testament definition of Grace, so the Holy Spirit obviously directed Paul to write the specific instruction in verse 15. So we are called to speak, to exhort, and to rebuke using this definition of grace, and not allow anyone to disregard us, (Titus 2:15). That’s interesting.
True Grace Transoms Us
Note: Did you notice how the ancient Hebrew word picture for the word GRACE, and Paul the apostle’s description of the Grace of God in Titus 2:11-14, actually MATCH and perfectly coincide together? In effect, it could well be argued that Paul the apostle was actually trying to bring people back; he was trying to RESTORE people back to the ancient Hebraic understanding of the term GRACE. in his description of the term in Titus 2:11-14. Taking away the borders and the boundaries and the fences that God has established to protect our lives is actually the OPPOSITE of Grace. That’s actually Anti-Grace. Think about it.
“The KEY Function is to transform us so that our thoughts, our desires, our words, our deeds and our way of life match YHWH and Messiah’s Character. That’s WHY the Instructions are there, (so that we can tell whether we truly are in God’s fence or not. Please, please, do not be deceived. Do not allow anyone else to deceive you. Any “Grace” that is not powerful enough to transform you into an obedient child of God, is not powerful enough to save you either. “Any grace that does not transform you, cannot save you.”
-Michel Lankford