Romans
By Norman P. Grubb
"When you were in the old life you were free from Grace, and what did you get? Just a mess. Aren’t you ashamed! What fruit did you get out of that? Just the sins of which you are ashamed! We know that don’t we? The emptiness, fruitlessness and false freedom that we had—freedom from being God’s man to being the devil’s man. When we are honest with ourselves. Now it is reversed. We are God’s men. How ridiculous to think that you could continue in the old way, when the new boss has taken ...over.
By Norman P. Grubb
"When you were in the old life you were free from Grace, and what did you get? Just a mess. Aren’t you ashamed! What fruit did you get out of that? Just the sins of which you are ashamed! We know that don’t we? The emptiness, fruitlessness and false freedom that we had—freedom from being God’s man to being the devil’s man. When we are honest with ourselves. Now it is reversed. We are God’s men. How ridiculous to think that you could continue in the old way, when the new boss has taken ...over.
Now Paul moves into the famous seventh chapter. In this chapter Paul discusses our freedom from the Law. We are free from sin; also we saw that we were free from sins—by Christ’s blood—freedom from sin, if you recognize that you are identified in Christ. You are OUT OF THE SPIRIT OF SIN, who caused you to sin. You are parted from your self-centeredness. Or should be by now.
YOU GET THAT PLAY DON’T YOU? Sins are occasional products; sin is the principle that you live by. You cannot be born again and live by the principle of I am for self. That was broken at the Cross. Your sins, you may slip into occasionally. That is only sins. That is only sins and Paul deals with that later on. But, you cannot possibly be for self or you are not born again!!! If you are born again, the new spirit of self-giving-self, the spirit of Christ has taken you over and you are under this new compulsion as seen in 2 Corinthians 5. If you have come into this new life in Christ, “From now on we recognize no man according to the flesh,” you see all men as having the potential of what they are meant to be—either redeemed or they are meant to be redeemed. Then to move forward in Christ into His great salvation in which GOD's secrets are more deeply revealed. They can be. You have a new outlook on the world—how you can be an agent to bless people and please God. You don’t even know yourself. You are a new self!"
For many these words maybe troubling as they are for the most part not heard in their choice of religious institution. Moving on the Pastor Hoekstra.
"Rahab, the Harlot, Rescued, by Faith"
"By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace." (Hebrews 11:31)
"God delivered the fortress of Jericho into the hands of His people, as the walls fell down, by faith. "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days" (Hebrews 11:30). This evil, vial city of abominations was then destroyed, as the Holy LORD GOD had justly required. "You shall utterly destroy them . . . lest they teach you to do according to all their abominations which they have done for their gods" (Deuteronomy 20:17-18). Yet, the family of Rahab, the harlot, was rescued, by faith. "By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe."
In preparation for entering the land, Joshua had sent out two spies, who were eventually received by Rahab. "Now Joshua. . . sent out two men . . . to spy secretly, saying, 'Go, view the land, especially Jericho.' So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there" (Joshua 2:1). The king of Jericho searched for the men and could not find them, for Rahab had concealed them. "She had brought them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax" (Joshua 2:6). Why would this woman have risked her life to protect these two strangers? She and her family had heard of the reality of the God of Israel. "We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites . . . whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted . . . for the LORD your God, He is GOD in heaven above and on earth beneath" (Joshua 2:10-11). This heathen family now wanted to turn from their idolatrous ways and identify by faith with the true and living LORD GOD and with His people. "Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the city wall" (Joshua 2:15).
By her confession of faith, confirmed by her actions of faith, Rahab and her family were rescued from the judgment that her unbelieving city experienced. "And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father's household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day" (Joshua 6:25). She became a part of the nation Israel, even appearing in the line of Jesus, the Messiah! "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ . . . Abraham begot Isaac . . . Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab" (Matthew 1:1-2, 5). What astounding blessings come to those who believe. By faith, Rahab went from judgment to deliverance, from idols and pagan gods to GOD, from shame to honor!"
Spiritual Instruction, despised,
2Chronicles 30:10-12 "So couriers went from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them. However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. The hand of GOD was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the LORD."
2Chronicles 36:15-21 and Psalm 50:16-21 "The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by His messengers, because HE had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of GOD, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against His people, until there was no remedy. Therefore HE brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged. He gave them all into his hand. And all the vessels of the house of GOD, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon. And they burned the house of GOD and broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all its precious vessels. He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years."
Psalm 50:16-21 "To the wicked GOD says: "What right have you to recite my statutes or take My covenant on your lips? For you hate discipline, and you cast My words behind you. If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers. "You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son. These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you."
Proverbs 1:7, 20-33 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction."
Proverbs 1:20-33 Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at My reproof, behold, I will pour out My Spirit to you; I will make My words known to you. Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out My hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all My counsel and would have none of My reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call upon Me, but I will not answer; they will seek Me diligently but will not find Me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, you would have none of My counsel and despised all My reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to Me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster."
Proverbs 5:7-14 "Now, O sons, listen to Me, and do not depart from the words of My mouth. Keep your way far (harlotries, adulteries) from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless, lest strangers take their fill of your strength, and your labors go to the house of a foreigner, and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed, and you say, "How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors. I am at the brink of utter ruin in the assembled congregation."
YOU GET THAT PLAY DON’T YOU? Sins are occasional products; sin is the principle that you live by. You cannot be born again and live by the principle of I am for self. That was broken at the Cross. Your sins, you may slip into occasionally. That is only sins. That is only sins and Paul deals with that later on. But, you cannot possibly be for self or you are not born again!!! If you are born again, the new spirit of self-giving-self, the spirit of Christ has taken you over and you are under this new compulsion as seen in 2 Corinthians 5. If you have come into this new life in Christ, “From now on we recognize no man according to the flesh,” you see all men as having the potential of what they are meant to be—either redeemed or they are meant to be redeemed. Then to move forward in Christ into His great salvation in which GOD's secrets are more deeply revealed. They can be. You have a new outlook on the world—how you can be an agent to bless people and please God. You don’t even know yourself. You are a new self!"
For many these words maybe troubling as they are for the most part not heard in their choice of religious institution. Moving on the Pastor Hoekstra.
"Rahab, the Harlot, Rescued, by Faith"
"By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace." (Hebrews 11:31)
"God delivered the fortress of Jericho into the hands of His people, as the walls fell down, by faith. "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days" (Hebrews 11:30). This evil, vial city of abominations was then destroyed, as the Holy LORD GOD had justly required. "You shall utterly destroy them . . . lest they teach you to do according to all their abominations which they have done for their gods" (Deuteronomy 20:17-18). Yet, the family of Rahab, the harlot, was rescued, by faith. "By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe."
In preparation for entering the land, Joshua had sent out two spies, who were eventually received by Rahab. "Now Joshua. . . sent out two men . . . to spy secretly, saying, 'Go, view the land, especially Jericho.' So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there" (Joshua 2:1). The king of Jericho searched for the men and could not find them, for Rahab had concealed them. "She had brought them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax" (Joshua 2:6). Why would this woman have risked her life to protect these two strangers? She and her family had heard of the reality of the God of Israel. "We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites . . . whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted . . . for the LORD your God, He is GOD in heaven above and on earth beneath" (Joshua 2:10-11). This heathen family now wanted to turn from their idolatrous ways and identify by faith with the true and living LORD GOD and with His people. "Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the city wall" (Joshua 2:15).
By her confession of faith, confirmed by her actions of faith, Rahab and her family were rescued from the judgment that her unbelieving city experienced. "And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father's household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day" (Joshua 6:25). She became a part of the nation Israel, even appearing in the line of Jesus, the Messiah! "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ . . . Abraham begot Isaac . . . Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab" (Matthew 1:1-2, 5). What astounding blessings come to those who believe. By faith, Rahab went from judgment to deliverance, from idols and pagan gods to GOD, from shame to honor!"
Spiritual Instruction, despised,
2Chronicles 30:10-12 "So couriers went from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them. However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. The hand of GOD was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the LORD."
2Chronicles 36:15-21 and Psalm 50:16-21 "The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by His messengers, because HE had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of GOD, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD rose against His people, until there was no remedy. Therefore HE brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who killed their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, old man or aged. He gave them all into his hand. And all the vessels of the house of GOD, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon. And they burned the house of GOD and broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned all its palaces with fire and destroyed all its precious vessels. He took into exile in Babylon those who had escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its Sabbaths. All the days that it lay desolate it kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years."
Psalm 50:16-21 "To the wicked GOD says: "What right have you to recite my statutes or take My covenant on your lips? For you hate discipline, and you cast My words behind you. If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers. "You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son. These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you."
Proverbs 1:7, 20-33 "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction."
Proverbs 1:20-33 Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks: "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? If you turn at My reproof, behold, I will pour out My Spirit to you; I will make My words known to you. Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out My hand and no one has heeded, because you have ignored all My counsel and would have none of My reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Then they will call upon Me, but I will not answer; they will seek Me diligently but will not find Me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, you would have none of My counsel and despised all My reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to Me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster."
Proverbs 5:7-14 "Now, O sons, listen to Me, and do not depart from the words of My mouth. Keep your way far (harlotries, adulteries) from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless, lest strangers take their fill of your strength, and your labors go to the house of a foreigner, and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed, and you say, "How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors. I am at the brink of utter ruin in the assembled congregation."
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