Sue J Love
Loyal
- Joined
- Mar 27, 2015
- Messages
- 3,419
“Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh” (Philippians 3:2-3 NIV).
In context, the situation was that there were Judaizers among the Christians who were trying to convince the Christians that they had to be more like Jews, and that they had to keep to some of the Old Covenant liturgical, ceremonial, and dietary laws and restrictions, including the requirement of the circumcision of all males. So Paul was writing to correct that wrong teaching. The Christians were not to be led astray by these Judaizers who were adding on to the salvation that Jesus Christ provided for us.
And some Judaizers still exist today, who are being invited to speak in “churches” throughout the USA, who are convincing Christians that it will enhance their worship of God if they follow some of the Old Covenant ceremonies and/or Jewish religious traditions, some of them insisting on the keeping of the Jewish Sabbath and on dietary restrictions which are not required of Christians under the New Covenant. We do not have to listen to them. We are free from the Old Covenant liturgical laws and customs.
But this is not the only area where these “dogs” (false teachers), who are evildoers, are having an influence over those professing faith in Jesus Christ. We have false teachers (dogs) among us today who are convincing those professing faith in Jesus Christ that God requires nothing of them at all other than a profession of faith in Jesus. And they are teaching against repentance (dying to sin) and walks of obedience to our Lord, calling that “works salvation,” even though the gospel message requires both.
For Jesus taught that if anyone would come after him that he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and walk in obedience to our Lord’s commands under the New Covenant, in the power of God, then we have the hope of salvation from sin and of eternal life with God. This is the message of the gospel (see Luke 9:23-26; cf. Romans 6:1-23).
Jesus also taught that not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING the will of God the Father who is in heaven. And to do the will of God is to die with Christ to sin and to now walk in obedience to his commands, in practice, by the Spirit, in the power of God. For if we don’t, we will not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. It is what Jesus taught, and it is what his New Testament apostles taught, that we must die to sin and obey God (Matthew 7:21-23).
So, it is not “works salvation” to submit to Jesus as Lord, to surrender our wills to the will of God for our lives, to die with him to sin, and to now walk in obedience to his commands, by the Spirit, in the power of God, as part of God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in the Lord Jesus, as required of God for salvation and for eternal life. For faith = obedience, and disobedience = unbelief. For Jesus died on that cross, and he put our sins to death with him so that we will die to sin and walk in obedience to his commands, by faith.
So, what they are trying to sell you is that if you believe what Jesus taught and what his New Testament apostles taught, and so you obey the Lord, in practice, and so you are putting sin to death, that you are trying to earn your salvation by your own fleshly “good works,” and that you are not being saved by God’s grace, through faith. But that is a lie! For God’s grace is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives until Jesus returns (Titus 2:11-14).
And Jesus and his New Testament apostles clearly taught that if sin is what we practice (what we obey), and not obedience to God and to his New Covenant commands, that we will not inherit eternal life with God, case closed. And this is not saying that we must be absolutely perfect in every way or else! It is God showing us what it looks like to believe in him and what it looks like if we don’t believe in him. True faith will result in us dying to sin and obeying our Lord in practice or it is not faith which saves.
So, whether you are listening to a Judaizer who is trying to convince you that you have to get circumcised and keep the Sabbath and not eat certain foods in order to be truly saved, or you are listening to a charlatan who is trying to convince you that your salvation has no requirements of death to sin and walks of obedience to our Lord, they are lying to you. And both are teaching what is of the flesh and not what is of the Spirit. For many are altering the gospel to make it more appeasing to human flesh.
And this is why we have so many professers of faith in Jesus Christ today who are still walking in sin, still living in sinful addiction, still living to please the flesh and not to please God in walks of obedience to his commands. For they are being convinced that they don’t have to obey God, but that a profession of faith in Jesus will secure them heaven for eternity. But God’s word teaches that if sin is what we practice, and not obedience to God, that we will not inherit eternal life with God. And I take that seriously!
[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]
Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer
Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897
Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.
Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
Caution: This link may contain ads
No Confidence in The Flesh
An Original Work / March 6, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
In context, the situation was that there were Judaizers among the Christians who were trying to convince the Christians that they had to be more like Jews, and that they had to keep to some of the Old Covenant liturgical, ceremonial, and dietary laws and restrictions, including the requirement of the circumcision of all males. So Paul was writing to correct that wrong teaching. The Christians were not to be led astray by these Judaizers who were adding on to the salvation that Jesus Christ provided for us.
And some Judaizers still exist today, who are being invited to speak in “churches” throughout the USA, who are convincing Christians that it will enhance their worship of God if they follow some of the Old Covenant ceremonies and/or Jewish religious traditions, some of them insisting on the keeping of the Jewish Sabbath and on dietary restrictions which are not required of Christians under the New Covenant. We do not have to listen to them. We are free from the Old Covenant liturgical laws and customs.
But this is not the only area where these “dogs” (false teachers), who are evildoers, are having an influence over those professing faith in Jesus Christ. We have false teachers (dogs) among us today who are convincing those professing faith in Jesus Christ that God requires nothing of them at all other than a profession of faith in Jesus. And they are teaching against repentance (dying to sin) and walks of obedience to our Lord, calling that “works salvation,” even though the gospel message requires both.
For Jesus taught that if anyone would come after him that he must deny self, take up his cross daily (die daily to sin) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our lives of living in sin and for self, we will lose them for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and walk in obedience to our Lord’s commands under the New Covenant, in the power of God, then we have the hope of salvation from sin and of eternal life with God. This is the message of the gospel (see Luke 9:23-26; cf. Romans 6:1-23).
Jesus also taught that not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING the will of God the Father who is in heaven. And to do the will of God is to die with Christ to sin and to now walk in obedience to his commands, in practice, by the Spirit, in the power of God. For if we don’t, we will not have salvation from sin nor eternal life with God. It is what Jesus taught, and it is what his New Testament apostles taught, that we must die to sin and obey God (Matthew 7:21-23).
So, it is not “works salvation” to submit to Jesus as Lord, to surrender our wills to the will of God for our lives, to die with him to sin, and to now walk in obedience to his commands, by the Spirit, in the power of God, as part of God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in the Lord Jesus, as required of God for salvation and for eternal life. For faith = obedience, and disobedience = unbelief. For Jesus died on that cross, and he put our sins to death with him so that we will die to sin and walk in obedience to his commands, by faith.
So, what they are trying to sell you is that if you believe what Jesus taught and what his New Testament apostles taught, and so you obey the Lord, in practice, and so you are putting sin to death, that you are trying to earn your salvation by your own fleshly “good works,” and that you are not being saved by God’s grace, through faith. But that is a lie! For God’s grace is training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives until Jesus returns (Titus 2:11-14).
And Jesus and his New Testament apostles clearly taught that if sin is what we practice (what we obey), and not obedience to God and to his New Covenant commands, that we will not inherit eternal life with God, case closed. And this is not saying that we must be absolutely perfect in every way or else! It is God showing us what it looks like to believe in him and what it looks like if we don’t believe in him. True faith will result in us dying to sin and obeying our Lord in practice or it is not faith which saves.
So, whether you are listening to a Judaizer who is trying to convince you that you have to get circumcised and keep the Sabbath and not eat certain foods in order to be truly saved, or you are listening to a charlatan who is trying to convince you that your salvation has no requirements of death to sin and walks of obedience to our Lord, they are lying to you. And both are teaching what is of the flesh and not what is of the Spirit. For many are altering the gospel to make it more appeasing to human flesh.
And this is why we have so many professers of faith in Jesus Christ today who are still walking in sin, still living in sinful addiction, still living to please the flesh and not to please God in walks of obedience to his commands. For they are being convinced that they don’t have to obey God, but that a profession of faith in Jesus will secure them heaven for eternity. But God’s word teaches that if sin is what we practice, and not obedience to God, that we will not inherit eternal life with God. And I take that seriously!
[Matt 7:13-14,21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 10:27-30; Ac 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Tit 2:11-14; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10]
Oh, to Be Like Thee, Blessed Redeemer
Lyrics by Thomas O. Chisholm, 1897
Music by W. J. Kirkpatrick, 1897
Oh, to be like Thee! blessèd Redeemer,
This is my constant longing and prayer;
Gladly I’ll forfeit all of earth’s treasures,
Jesus, Thy perfect likeness to wear.
O to be like Thee! while I am pleading,
Pour out Thy Spirit, fill with Thy love;
Make me a temple meet for Thy dwelling,
Fit me for life and Heaven above.
Oh, to be like Thee! Oh, to be like Thee,
Blessèd Redeemer, pure as Thou art;
Come in Thy sweetness, come in Thy fullness;
Stamp Thine own image deep on my heart.
Caution: This link may contain ads
No Confidence in The Flesh
An Original Work / March 6, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
