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We are who We are in Christ because of God’s Grace

1 Corinthians 15:10 But, by the grace from God I am who I am. And His grace, the one upon me, will not come to be without results, but I toil more abundantly than all of them. Indeed, not I but the grace from God, the one with me.

Paul received the position of an Apostle because of God’s attitude by which He gives a benefit without consideration of merit (grace). A position that Paul felt he did not deserve because he persecuted the church, yet, God saw fit to place him in it. Understanding this, Paul states that this grace will not come to be without result, for he labored intensely far above the other Apostles. However, Paul does not give himself credit for the toil, for it was not him, but the grace that was with him.

What part of the body did God place you in? All to often we get our minds focused on the things of this world and forget who we are in Christ; forget to see things as they really are. We are who we are in Christ because God chose to give us a benefit without consideration of merit. We did not earn it, but that does not mean we should not use it. Will His grace come to be without result in you? Or will you live a life that glorified Him by showing forth who you are in Christ?

Since you have been raised with Christ, set your mind on the things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God, not on the things of this earth and put on the new man, the one being renewed unto a full experiential knowledge […]

We are who We are in Christ because of God’s GraceLuther Walker2016-10-12T06:02:47-07:00

Inner Burning (ἐνθύμησις)

Enthumesis (ἐνθύμησις) comes from a word that means inner burning (thumos – θυμος). By adding the preposition in (ἐν), it describes the burning within a person while not retaining the aspect of anger that thumos expresses.

During Christ’s ministry to Israel, a paralyzed man was brought to him. Seeing the man’s faith, Jesus told him to be of good cheer because He has forgiven his sins, Matthew 9:2. Immediately, some of the scribes said among themselves this was blasphemy. However, Jesus intuitively knew their inner burnings and asked them, “Why do you burn malignant evil in your hearts?” Matthew 9:4. Answering the inner burnings of their hearts Jesus states, “Is it easier to say your sins are forgiven you or to say rise and walk?” Christ stated that this man’s sins were sent away so they would know that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sin, Matthew 9:6.

The Pharisees were firmly against Jesus and took every opportunity they could to speak against Him. After Jesus released a man who was possessed by a demon that was causing him to be blind and mute, the multitude was amazed and questioned if Jesus could be the son of David. The Pharisees responded by claiming that Christ cast out this demon by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons. Jesus, being aware of their inner burnings, calls them out for their sons’ actions, who were casting out demons. If He is doing it by the authority of Beelzebub, by whose authority are their sons casting them out? However, the reality is that a house that stands against itself falls; therefore, since a demon was cast out, the Kingdom of God is at hand, […]

Inner Burning (ἐνθύμησις)Luther Walker2024-05-12T07:03:10-07:00

The Truth Will Set You Free

In the Gospel of John, the author records a statement from Jesus to the Jews who believed Him. If they abide in His word, they will know the truth, and the truth will set them free.

Therefore, Jesus said toward the Jews believing Him, “If you abide in My word, truly you are My disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32

The response of the unbelieving Jews was to refute their need for freedom immediately. However, all those who sin are slaves to sin, John 8:33. The sin referred to here is not the acts of sin that a person does. Instead, it is specific to the sin nature of a person. All those doing sin (the act of lawlessness) are slaves to the sin [nature].

As the steward of our dispensation, Paul is given instructions on how to have victory over the sin nature. In Romans chapters six through seven, he writes of his experience with applying the doctrine of the truth in comparison to how the law works against the sin nature. Through this, we clearly understand what Jesus was referring to as the truth. The truth is a specific doctrine that frees a person from slavery to commit sin so that he is able to produce righteousness.

The first aspect of this doctrine is to know. Those who abide, feel at ease, in His word must know it.

Know that we have died with Christ and have been raised to walk in newness of life.

Or do you not know that as many as have been immersed into Christ Jesus, into His death have been immersed? Romans 6:3

Therefore, we have been buried with Him through the immersion into the death, in order that just as […]

The Truth Will Set You FreeLuther Walker2024-05-05T13:07:49-07:00

The Fall of Cain

In Genesis 4:7, God instructs Cain concerning the rules of his household. After God rejected the work of Cain’s hands as an offering, Cain was very angry. In response, God lays out the rule by which Cain is expected to govern his life.

And if you do good, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do good, sin lies at the opening, and its desire is unto you, and you are to rule over it – Genesis 4:7.

This is the first time in Scripture we are introduced to the sin nature. The sin nature describes the human nature bent by Adam’s fall. Through Adam’s trespass and sin, his nature became bent towards doing what is wrong, for although Eve was thoroughly deceived, Adam was not, 1 Timothy 2:14. Adam passed on this bent nature to his offspring, Genesis 5:3. Therefore, even though as humans we now inherently possess the knowledge of good and evil, we are all born with a nature that is separated from God in our spirit and bent towards wrong. However, with this knowledge, we are also to rule over our nature, not permit it to rule over us.

After Cain does not heed God’s instructions and slayed his brother as a sacrifice, he was punished. The works of his hand will no longer produce good, and he is to wander the earth, never possessing a homeland to reside in. In Cain’s response, we again encounter the sin nature when he states, “My perversity is greater than I can bear.”

And Cain said to the LORD, “My perversity is greater than I can bear.” Genesis 4:13.

In Genesis 4:7, the word for sin is in a specific […]

The Fall of CainLuther Walker2024-04-25T06:26:34-07:00

Without Form and Void (תֹ֨הוּ֙ וָבֹ֔הוּ)

The insistence among some Christian teachers that the universe was created in six days raises a few issues when examining Scripture. It is Scripturally accurate that the earth we currently know was made in six days; however, made and created are two different concepts.

In a beginning God created the heavens and the earth, Genesis 1:1. Although in verse one many English translations add a definite article (the) before “Beginning”, implying that it is the first act or start of creation, in the original Hebrew, “Beginning” is not definite. Therefore, Genesis 1:1 is not referring to the beginning of God’s acts of creation. God’s first step in creation was creating the spirit beings, who witnessed the creation of the universe, Job 38:7. In verse Two of Genesis chapter One, the Hebrew verse starts with a conjunction vav (ו). Vav is used to indicate the progression of the story; however, it is not connected to time, only to order. Many events could have happened between the two episodes, but the first event occurs before the second one. Therefore, God created the heavens and the earth, and then something happened that caused the earth to be in a state of ruin. What occurred between the creation of the universe and the earth being found as a wasteland, void of life, in Genesis 1:2 is not discussed in Genesis, for the focus is on the renovation of the earth and the creation of humans, not the creation of the universe. Before we look at what happened between the creation of the universe and the condition of the earth in Genesis chapter One verse Two, let us examine the words “without form” and “void” to ensure we are […]

Without Form and Void (תֹ֨הוּ֙ וָבֹ֔הוּ)Luther Walker2024-03-28T07:14:26-07:00

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