Jehovah's Witnesses Straight Talk - Forum/Blog

If by Grace, Then it is no Longer of Works

****Rom.11:6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.

What does love owe us? If you were to ask most of us, it would be a list of doe's and don't s; love is contingent upon our owing others something in this world. Few of us can separate the bad things others do too us, from person we love, from the debt of hurting us.

Rom.13:8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

1Cor.5:4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, you being gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5:5 are to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

But here God confront us with a dichotomy that his love is not earned by our good works it is given because he is love and chooses to love us even while we are yet sinners! This thought so confound us, we have as human built massive religions; structure that are held together by just the opposite, debts. Yes, works of law, works done to stay a member, obeying the rules of a religion so we can be accept by the love of humans.

Romans 10:2 For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.

Matthew 13:38 the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the children of the Kingdom; and the darnel weeds are the children of the evil one.

Matthew 13:40 As therefore the darnel weeds are gathered up and burned with fire; so will it be at the end of this age.

Subsequently, most of us compute that God is like us in demanding works of law before he accept us. The question remains what does love owe us? Here Paul deals with the reason Israel failed and God opened the Gentiles to become joint heirs with Christ in his Kingdom. Love cannot owe us a single things, because love is not obligated to love us as a debt, it is instead given us freely because its is love! That is what love is, a gift, freely given because the giver, God, is love, it adds it does not take away. It is a positive, not a negative, that is, a debt owed. If its not given freely its not love.

1Cor.13:4 Love is patient and is kind; love doesn't envy. Love doesn't brag, is not proud, 13:5 doesn't behave itself inappropriately, doesn't seek its own way, is not provoked, takes no account of evil; 13:6 doesn't rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 13:7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 13:8 Love never fails.

Thus, these anointed brothers and sisters wanted to go back to owing a debt because debts obligate us to others. Debts are as powerful as money, they demand loyalty, respect, and control, without them our world system would not exist. The Jews had a powerful system of things, a government that gave debt, and provided atonement for debt. A system of things is like the grain of a tree, it is the way we think by being a part of that system of things.

John 8:15 You judge according to the flesh. I judge no one.

Matt.18:22 Jesus said to him, "I don't tell you until seven times, but, until seventy times seven. 18:23 Therefore the Kingdom of Heaven is like a certain king, who wanted to reconcile accounts with his servants. 18:24 When he had begun to reconcile, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.{Ten thousand talents represents an extremely large sum of money, equivalent to about 60,000,000 denarii, where one denarius was typical of one day's wages for agricultural labor.} 18:25 But because he couldn't pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, with his wife, his children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
18:26 The servant therefore fell down and kneeled before him, saying, 'Lord, have patience with me, and I will repay you all!'
18:27 The lord of that servant, being moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. 18:28 "But that servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, who owed him one hundred denarii,{100 denarii was about one sixtieth of a talent.} and he grabbed him, and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'
18:29 "So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will repay you!' 18:30 He would not, but went and cast him into prison, until he should pay back that which was due. 18:31 So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were exceedingly sorry, and came and told to their lord all that was done.
18:32 Then his lord called him in, and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt, because you begged me. 18:33 Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your fellow servant, even as I had mercy on you?' 18:34 His lord was angry, and delivered him to the tormentors, until he should pay all that was due to him. 18:35 So my heavenly Father will also do to you, if you don't each forgive your brother from your hearts for his misdeeds."

But our Father in heaven is not part of man's system of things, he is not part of false religion that survives by debt of sin; giving it power, wealth, and control. Nor is he part of us when we act like false religion enslaving others by debt. God freely gave us grace, that is, unmerited kindness in forgiving us all our debts against him. He did not hold back one thing to save us, he did not give us second best, he gave us at great cost too himself his son's life by undeserved kindness before we even knew what grace was?

1 John 4:19 We love Him, because he first loved us.

1 John 4:16 We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him.

The problems Paul was dealing with by Holy Spirit was faith in God's grace, and/or unmerited kindness, why? Simply, because it did not build empires, conquer kingdoms, or make a great name for those living in unmerited kindness, no! It did the exact opposite, it made those under grace plunder for the nations, it enslaved them into a lowly servant position, it had no power in a system of things controlled by works of law, i.e., debt of sin. The freedom and home God's people were seeking was spiritual kingdom ruling in their hearts and in heaven, not in the flesh upon earth having sin.

1 Corinthians 4:9 For, I think that God has displayed us, the apostles, last of all, like men sentenced to death. For we are made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and men.

Isa. 53:3 He was despised, and rejected by men; a man of suffering, and acquainted with disease. He was despised as one from whom men hide their face; and we didn't respect him. 53:4 Surely he has borne our sickness, and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted.

There was no gain; material gain in love, no gain in grace, the question was who of the few would find the kingdom of God, and who would endure in true faith? Who would love the Father so much for his kindness they to would reject this world lust and desires?

Galatians 4:3 So we also, when we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental principles of the world.

Ephesians 1:4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and without blemish before him in love;

Colossians 2:8 Be careful that you don't let anyone rob you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the elements of the world, and not after Christ.

See also: www.nu-truth.com