Grosey's Messages

ROMANS 6      THE POWER OF A NEW IDENTITY

In working through the Heidelberg Catechism, we come soon to consider the relationship of the believer to the ten commandments of God.

But before we can deal with the Ten Commandments, we need to work out some things in the believers' lives.

We as believers have an unusual relationship with the Ten Commandments. It is like a mother in law. You can't live with them nor without them.

You and I must figure out our relationship with them. How do we do that? We know from our weekly law/grace readings that the law cannot save us. It shows us our sin and our need of a saviour. We know from our previous studies that no matter how much we try, we cannot save ourselves, and in fact the whole nature of grace is to bring us to rely totally upon the grace of God revealed to us in the Lord Jesus Christ and brought to us by Him alone!

Later,  in Romans 7 the apostle Paul also instructs about the Law of God.

The duty towards the law, The death of the law,

The deliverance from the law and the destiny to bear fruit that the law approves.

But now we have to consider verse 1 of chapter 6.

In response to the grace of God, does that mean we can go on in sin?

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?² May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?

Now some folks look at this and immediately conclude one of two things and both are wrong:

They conclude either that sin doesn't matter to God anymore and a Christian can live however he likes, or

A Christian is now so free from sin he will never have a problem with sin again!

Both are wrong.

I remember one young guy at a bible study announced that he had become sinlessly perfect and he would never ever sin again!   And he had proved it by not sinning for the last 2 weeks. I asked his wife if that was so. Her story was a bit different.

We will read these words from chapter 7 next week.

Rom 7:21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.

In chapter 7 the Apostle Paul gets very vulnerable and transparent.  He gives an honest confession of his own struggle against sin and its temptation, and admits that often he failed to do the things he really wanted to do, while at the same time he did things he really did not want to do.

Our new identity in Christ does not keep us from being tempted and drawn to sin.

Sin is still alluring and sometimes looks very appealing to the Christian.

Sin has lost its power over us… But it has not lost its appeal to us.

Temptation is still very real to us, even though we are totally identified with Jesus Christ… It is very important that we do not try to interpret Romans 6 apart from chapter 7.  If we were to stop reading at chapter 6 we would think that I have a new nature and a new life, and therefore, I should never again have any pull toward sin.  In fact, I should never again expect to be tempted by temptation. In fact, I have read some "deeper life" people who subtly teach exactly that.  They try to ignore chapter 7 of Romans and say "You need to stop living in Romans chapter 7 and start living in Romans chapter 8."   Hey… You never will stop living in Romans chapter 7 until you get to heaven.  Paul was living in Romans chapter 7 and chapter 8 simultaneously… all the time. If you think you are going to live in either Romans 6 or Romans 8 without simultaneously living 7, you will be greatly disappointed. And the people who try to teach Romans 6 or Romans 8, while ignoring Romans 7 are out of balance… And can even begin to teach a false doctrine.
So what does chapter 6 teach us about or becoming godly?

1. RECOGNISE YOUR IDENTIFICATION IN UNION WITH CHRIST

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?² May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?³ Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?⁴ Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life.⁵ For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection,⁶ knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;⁷ for he who has died is freed from sin. ⁸ Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,⁹ knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him.¹⁰ For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God.

We who have been born again, have literally become One With Jesus.  He is in us and we are in Him. WE are no longer connected to Adam or his kind of life… WE are now eternally connected to Jesus and His kind of life.   THIS IS OUR NEW IDENTITY.  We have literally become  NEW PERSONS in Jesus Christ… 2 Cor 5:17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

This Identity is in Union With His Death.

When Jesus died, He died on our behalf, in our name.  It was as though we were actually dying with Him.

1 Peter 2:24 and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.25 For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Isa 53:4Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.

THINK ABOUT THIS… He became the Son of Man that we might become the sons of God. He took our sins that we might take his righteousness. He became guilty that we might be declared innocent

He became a servant that we might become saints.

"He became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2Cor.5:21) His identification with us was complete, that our identification with Him might be complete. Everything He did, He did in our names, on our behalf. It is just as if you and I were doing it in Him. In God's eyes, our deaths and crucifixions could not have been more real if there had been 10 million crosses on that hill, and each one of us hanging on that cross along side Jesus. When He died… we died with Him.

We understand that "Christ died for our sins" as something the Lord Jesus did for us once for all at the cross to bring us freedom from the penalty of our sins. He died in our place so we would never have to face the judgment of God.

But now Paul is saying something more. When Christ died at the cross to separate you from Adam's sins and your sins, and take your judgment He also did something about your old sin Adamic sin nature too. He died to separate you from the power of your sin nature. Somehow or other when He died in your place, He also crucified your old Adamic sin nature to take you out of Adam and place you in Christ.

You are no longer in union with Adam and His failure and your failure by sin, you are now in Christ, an that means something has happened to your old sin nature. That sin nature itself was crucified with the Lord Jesus at the cross to make a way for you to live in a new way.

Gal 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

Gal 5:24 And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Gal 6:14 But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

Col 3:2-3Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

He is saying that in your Union with Christ, that old sin nature is dead! It died with Him there at the cross, and your new identity is in Christ.

Now immediately you should be saying.. but how come I still sin? And how come it is so slow going to become Christlike in my nature.

Our translations come in handy here.

Paul in chapters 6, 7 and 8 is saying that our sin nature has died, but sin still remains in our flesh, as  long as we are in this mortal body.

The Christian lives between D day and VE day.

D Day signalled the end of the Second World War in Europe.

Germany was beaten at the D Day invasion on June 6^th 1944. But it wasn't complete until VE Day some 11 months later on May 8^th 1945. Until then the allied forces had to engage in mopping up operations over each area of resistance still existing. 

You live between D Day and VE Day in your Christian living right now. D Day happened the moment you believed in the Lord Jesus as your Saviour. You were born again! You became a new creature in Christ Jesus. Your sin natire was crucified with the Lord Jesus 200 years ago. But you are still fighting the resistance where sin still lives in your fleshly body today. One day all the resistance will be done (when you die or when the Lord Jesus returns and transforms our fleshly bodies to be like His glorious body! Sinless and perfect then!

But until then we are engaged in mopping up the resistance.

This Identity is in Union With His Burial.

The burial, As DMLJ says, is the final proof of His death for us. It is saying He truly died for us. And more that somehow not only did He die for us to free us from the penalty of our sins, He also died for us to free us from the power of our sin nature.

We have died to our old sin nature and our old sin nature is buried!

There is an end to you having to give up on being godly because you sin nature is too strong. You need to remind yourself that God has made a change! Christ died to bury your old sin nature in that grave He went into.

Your Union with Christ is now such that the Lord Jesus by His death for you and burial for you has put an end to the power of your sin nature over you. Your union with Christ in His death and burial is symbolized in water baptism. The primary message of this passage relates to our supernatural, spiritual baptism into Jesus Christ….  BUT…  In this you can see why the symbolism of water baptism is so very important. It is about a burial of the old way of life. Baptism itself doesn't bury the old way of life, it is a symbolic burial in the ground.  Symbolising that the old life is dead and buried. For new believers that is why baptism should be soon after conversion.

John Stott writes "These verses probably refer to the pictorial symbolism of baptism. When baptisms took place in the open air, in some stream, the candidate would go down into the water and—if I may add in a whisper and in a parenthesis, whether he was only partially or totally immersed, really does not matter a bit I The point is that, as he went down into the Water, whether partially or totally, he would seem to be buried and then to rise again. His baptism would dramatise his death, his burial, and his resurrection to a new life.

"In other words," writes C. T. Vaughan in his commentary, "our baptism is a sort of funeral." Have you ever thought of your baptism like that? A sort of funeral; yes, and a resurrection from the grave as well.

This Identity is in Union With His Resurrection.

In His death, Jesus gave His life to us.  And in His resurrection, He gives His life to us…

Rom 5:10  For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

Now listen, you can not die with Christ, be buried with Him and raise again… And remain the same person you were before.

The old person you were in Adam died and was buried with Christ… Now you have been also raised with Christ Jesus a brand new person.

1Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

He has ut the power of a new life in you. You are no longer who you were.

The devil is going to tempt you and he will come alongside you to say, "you are just like you were before. There is no difference! Just give up on this Christianity thing, you are the failure!"

But there is a difference! Your in nature died with Christ at the cross. It is buried with Him. And the Lord Jesus being raised from physical death has infused spiritual life into you. And you now live by the power of this new life.

You see, since we have "died with Christ" our old man is dead.  This means our relationship to the law and to sin has changed dramatically.

While we were in Adam, we were legally under the dominion of the law and a slave to sin. There was only one way out of this relationship of bondage to the law and sin… And that was to die. So we died (In Christ) therefore, we are no longer bound by the law and sin.  The old person who was bound has died.  We are a new person, freed from the bondage of law and sin.

In chapter 7 of Romans, Paul uses the institution of marriage to illustrate this truth…

Rom 7:1-6

1 Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? 2 For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. 3 So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. 4 Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another-- to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter.

But now you have died with Christ… And sin no longer has any legal rights over you.   Sin no longer can control you.   Sin can no longer exercise dominion over you.   You are free… Legally free.   Now married to another, Jesus Christ (You are now His bride).

But for it to work you must:

2. RECKON ON IT, TO APPROPRIATE YOUR UNION WITH CHRIST

¹¹ Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. ¹² Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts,

It is very important that you understand this truth.  Sin is not dead, it is very much alive and real, and you are going to combat sin until the day God takes you home to live with Him

But the good news is Those of us who are in Christ have died to sin.

You are no longer under sin's power. You are no longer a slave to sin

You are no longer under sin's dominion. You now have the freedom to obey God, and live a righteous life. You now have the power to choose not to sin (something you never had outside of Jesus) You are a brand new person in Jesus Christ, and sin's death grip on your life has been broken

Again, I say it is important that you understand who or what really died with Jesus.  Because a lot of believers struggle with this truth.  They ask, "If I have died to sin, then…

Why does sin still bother me so much?   Why am I so beleaguered by temptation? 

Why is it I still stumble and fall so often?   Why do I still catch myself sinning?

The answer to that question is, "You have died to sin, which means  Sin's controlling power on your life has been broken.   But sin has not died.  Sin and temptation are still very real,  And every day of your life you are going to have to determine and declare your rightful victory over sin."

When the Allied forces liberated France from Hitler's army, Hitler's dominion and rule over France was immediately broken.   But then the United States had to send in "Occupying Forces" to hold the ground that had been liberated, and to prevent the enslaving enemy from coming back.

The moment you came to life in Jesus, you were set free from the tyranny of sin's dominion in your life.  But you must now be diligent to occupy and guard this new liberty.  Because sin is still very much alive, and sin will make repeated attempts to invade your life and take control wherever you allow it to do so.  Just understand this, you never ever have to let sin back in, or ever again give sin a foothold in your life.

You must identify that this has happened! You are no longer who you thought you were! Slaves in Texas after the emancipation annunciation were still held in slavery because they thought they were still slaves. But they were already free: they just hadn't claimed it yet!

Augustine after his conversion was pursued one day by a harlot he had spent a  lot of time and money with.  She ran after him calling out "Augustine it is I!" And he kept running calling out "Yes But it's no longer I!"

George Muller: "There was a day when I died; died to self, my opinions, preferences, tastes and will; died to the world, its approval or censure; died to the approval or blame even of my brethren or friends; and since then I have studied only to show myself approved unto God."

Leading The Way's Michael Youseeff wrote "Until you learn to die to self, you will live your Christian life in defeat. Until you learn to die to sin, you will live in bondage. Until you learn to die to pride, you will live in slavery and servitude. If any believer feels defeated, it is because he has bought into the lie of believing that Satan has invincible power over him. As a child of God, you do not need to be in bondage. James 4:7 says, "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

When James says, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you," it does not mean that you are standing in the battle arena and being beaten. Rather, it is a picture of a general who has defeated his enemy and calls out to his officers to clean house. Your commanding general rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and is at the Father's right hand "with angels, authorities, and powers in submission to Him" (1 Peter 3:22). When you are joined with Christ, you have the same authority. You can break out of bondage. You can give up a sinful habit. You can be freed from any addiction—by the power of Christ."

Reckon on it. You say you do not understand it. Bless your heart, whoever asked you to understand it. That is not the point. Believe it! Reckon on it. I do not understand—God says, reckon, reckon. We are talking about something supernatural: do not trouble the waters here. Dare to step out in faith with God. What does it mean to reckon? It means to believe. I put down in black and white exactly what God says, and I put my Amen to it. I reckon on it, whether I understand it or not; whether I realise all the implications of it or not, I reckon on it—that is faith. You don't have to say "YES" to sin ever again.  You are responsible to say "NO"…

This spiritual and vital union which connects us with our Lord guarantees our standing before God to be as perfect as His. And moreover, in this union is to be found the source for spiritual living. Now, how does this become real and practical in our living? Which means that you must:

3. RELINQUISH IN SUBMISSION TO CHRIST

Look at verse 13, "Present yourselves unto God." Present . . . yield. . yourselves unto God.—surrender, faith.

Why should I surrender? If I am not surrendered, if there is some pocket of resistance in my life, and I am rebellious and defiant, and I say, Why should I surrender? what is the answer to that question?

Surrender To A Person

13  but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. ²² But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.

It is our union with Christ that allows all of this to happen.. Without Him you can do nothing.

John Stott said "To rebel against the will of God is not only to flout His authority, and to doubt His love and wisdom, but to forfeit our own highest benefit, I find I need to keep saying to myself: (i) It is right to obey God, because He is my Lord, my Creator, my Redeemer. (ii) It is reasonable, because He is my Father; He will never 'exploit my surrender. (iii) It is refreshing, it is my meat and drink." Colossians 1:27, "To whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." "Christ in you, the hope of glory." Galatians 2: 20, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me." Put them together—"Christ in you," "Christ liveth in me." The Lord Jesus Christ is so identified with His people, that not only are they in Him, but He is in them: the union is complete. Christ lives in the believer.

You have a choice:  "of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness" 

²¹ Therefore what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the outcome of those things is death.²² But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Surrender For A Purpose

For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.

What is the basic reason for yielding ourselves to God, and not to sin? The answer is that we died to sin,' and we have risen to God, so we cannot yield ourselves to sin; we yield ourselves to God.

If we are one with Christ—and we are—then with Christ we died to sin, and we live to God. If we are enslaved to God—which we are —then ipso facto we are committed to obedience. It is inconceivable that we should wilfully persist in sin, presuming on the grace of God. The very thought is intolerable. And we need constantly to be talking to ourselves about these truths.  To talk to yourself is not the first sign of madness; it is the first sign of maturity in the Christian life! It depends what you are talking to yourself about!

You and I need to be talking to our-selves, and saying, "But don't you know that you are one with Christ; that you have died to sin, and risen to God. Don't you know that you are a slave to God, and committed therefore to obedience. Don't you know these things." And go on asking yourself that question until you reply to yourself, "Yes, I do know. And by the grace of God I shall live accordingly."

QUESTIONS FOR BIBLE STUDY GROUPS.

How is Baptism an illustration like marriage (Romans 7:1-6).

What does union with Christ mean?

What does it mean for you?

How does this help in our struggle against sin?

How is Surrender to Christ both a decisive moment and an ongoing experience?

In this context, what then does Romans 6:23 mean?

REPENTANCE  Luke 15: 3-24

Luke 15: The Lost Sheep

1       Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him.2 Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them."

3       So He told them this parable, saying,4 "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'7 I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

The Lost Coin

8       "Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?9 When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!'10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

The Prodigal Son

11      And He said, "A man had two sons.12 The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.' So he divided his wealth between them.13 And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.14 Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.16 And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.17 But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!18 I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men."'20 So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.21 And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'22 But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' And they began to celebrate.

25      "Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.26 And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'28 But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.29 But he answered and said to his father, 'Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.'31 And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'"

The parable of the Prodigal Son goes from Rebellion to Revelry, Wretchedness, Remorse, Repentance, Return, Reconciliation, to Rejoicing.

Luke 13:1-5 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.2 And Jesus said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate?3 I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.4 Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?5 I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."

John the Baptist began his ministry with a call to repentance (Matthew 3:2); our Lord's first word was "Repent…" (Matthew 4:17); those whom He commissioned were commanded to preach repentance (Mark 6:12 and Luke 24:47); there is joy in Heaven over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:10); Peter preached repentance (Acts 2:37-38); Paul preached repentance (Acts 17:30-31, Acts 20:21).

1. WHAT REPENTANCE IS NOT

Conviction of sin is not repentance. Repentance includes conviction, but a sinner can be deeply convicted and still not repent. Felix is an illustration of this – Acts 24:24-25.

Sorrow for sin is not repentance. Repentance includes sorrow and remorse, but it is more than this, for it is possible to be sorry for sin and yet not to repent of sin: 2 Corinthians 7:9.

Hatred of sin is not repentance. Repentance includes this, but it is possible to loathe sin and yet not to turn from it.

Promising to be better is not repentance. Many people make a life-long habit of doing this. The Prodigal determined that he would return (Luke 15:18), but repentance was not indicated by his determination merely. "The way to Hell is paved with good intentions."

Turning from one sin is not repentance. It is not giving up sins, the fruit; it has to do with sin, the root.

2. WHAT REPENTANCE IS

The words for "repentance" in the Old Testament include the Hebrew word nacham which is used 40 times, nearly all of which are used of God Himself. It means "to lament" or "to grieve." The Hebrew word shuvah is used 3 times and translated as "repent" but 185 times as the word "turn" and 369 times as "turn again."

In the New Testament three verbs are used in connection with repentance.

Repentance is a change  of mind – an intellectual experience; it is a change of feeling -–an emotional experience; it is a change of purpose – a volitional experience; and it is a change of conduct – a moral experience. Repentance is not one of these, but all of them together.

Repentance is a change of MIND. The primary Greek word is metanoeo which is used 60 times and refers to a "change of mind" that leads to a change in conduct.The Greek word "metonia" means "after-thought". The change of mind involved in true repentance is so (1) radical that the sinner takes up an entirely new attitude towards God, towards the Lord Jesus Christ, towards sin and towards himself – look up Matthew 21:28-29 for our Lord's illustration of this aspect of repentance.

Repentance is a change of FEELING. The New Testament words include the Greek word metamelomai which is found 8 times and refers to a feeling of concern or regret. A form of the word appears in 2 Corinthians.

It conveys the idea of regret. It is a state of mind that may or may not be accompanied by returning to God.

After his conversion, Saul of Tarsus was overwhelmed with a sense of remorse when he thought of the way he had treated the Lord Jesus – compare Psalm 38:18. The Publican expressed deep emotion when in penitence and confession he "beat his breast" (Luke 18:13); and so did the Prodigal when he returned and said: "Father, I am no longer worthy…" (Luke 15:21).

Repentance is a change of PURPOSE. The will is involved. The Prodigal said, "I will set out…" (Luke 15:18) – "…so he got up" (Luke 15:20). See what Jesus said to the man in John 5:6, and compare Psalm 119:59; Isaiah 55:7 and Ezekiel 18:30.

Repentance is a change of CONDUCT. This is illustrated in the conversion of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10); Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:1-6), and the jailer (Acts 16:30-34). (epistrepho) emphasizes the idea of turning back and is used on a number of occasions for converting or returning to the Lord (Acts 26:20). The Thessalonians turned to God, from idols, to serve the living and true God (1 Thess. 1:9).

Repentance is to leave The sins I loved before;

And show that I in earnest grieve By doing so no more.

0 love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee;

I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow

May richer, fuller be.

0 Cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to fly from Thee;

I lay in dust life's glory dead. And from the ground there blossoms red

Life that shall endless be."         George Matheson

J.C. Ryle "Nothing, in fact, has done more harm to Christianity than the practice of filling the ranks of Christ's army with every volunteer who is willing to make a little profession, and talk fluently of his experience. It has been painfully forgotten that numbers alone do not make strength, and that there may be a great quantity of mere outward religion, while there is very little real grace. Let us all remember this. Let us keep back nothing from young professors and inquirers after Christ. Let us not enlist them on false pretences. Let us tell them plainly that there is a crown of glory at the end. But let us tell them no less plainly, that there is a daily cross in the way."

Repentance is essential for salvation. Twice in the same context Jesus underscores this: "Unless you repent, you too will all perish" (Luke 13:3, 5). God commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has fixed the day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by Christ (Acts 17:30-31). Repentance "is of such necessity to all sinners that none may expect pardon without it" (Westminster Confession of Faith, XV, 3).

Salvation is salvation from sin. That means more than forgiveness; it includes sanctification, a transformed life. It involves those who are saved in a turning away from sin. That turning away is repentance. There can be no salvation if we continue in sin (Rom. 6:1-4; 1 John 3:9). Does this mean that we are forgiven on the basis of our repentance? Not at all! Repentance and faith are both necessary for salvation, but they are related to justification in different ways. Faith alone is the instrument by which Christ is received and rested on as Savior. Justification is by faith, not by repentance. But faith (and therefore justification) cannot exist where there is no repentance. Repentance is as necessary to salvation by faith as the ankle is to walking. The one does not act apart from the other. I cannot come to Christ in faith without turning from sin in repentance. Faith is trusting in Christ; repentance is turning from sin. They are two sides of the same coin of belonging to Jesus.

3. HOW REPENTANCE IS BROUGHT ABOUT

Repentance is a Divine gift. Look up Acts 5:30-31; 11:18  2 Tim 2:25.

The gift of repentance is bestowed through the preaching of the Gospel 

The goodness of God leads to repentance. Romans 2:4 When we consider the love of God, especially in the gift of His Son (John 3:16), who went to the cross for us (1 Peter 2:24), then we are brought to repentance.

The sorrows of life bring people to repentance. Trials and bereavements are all instruments in the hands of God for bringing men and women to repentance.

The emptiness of life makes some repent.

4. WHEN IS THE TIME TO REPENT?

With gratitude to Rev. Francis Dixon's Bible Studies.

The Lord's Supper and the Mass HC Lord's Day 28-30.

Many Roman Catholic priests will tell you that all the claims of the Church of Rome stand or fall with the doctrine of the real presence of Christ in the Mass. If the bread and wine used in the Sacrament of the Mass, when consecrated by the priest, are changed in some mysterious way into the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ so that the communicant receiving the bread actually takes into his mouth and eats and digests the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ— if this is true, then the Church of Rome is the true church of Christ and every one of us should be members of it. But if it is false, if it is absolutely opposed to the teaching of the Word of God, then the Church of Rome is an apostate church and every faithful believer should come out of her in order that he might not be held accountable for her sins.

It was because the great reformers of the sixteenth century saw this clearly and were assured in their own hearts that the doctrine of the Church of Rome in regard to the Eucharist or the Mass was absolutely opposed to the Word of God and was not only blasphemous but idolatrous, that they came out in protest against that apostate system and they won for us at tremendous cost of Christian blood the liberty we have.

The sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ had both a backward and a forward aspect.  He put away all the sins of the past that had only been covered by the blood of the sacrifices and made ample provision to put away all the sins of the future for every one who would believe on Him. The means by which needy sinners avail themselves of an interest in the finished work of Christ is very simple. The sinner has to take his place before God as a lost, guilty man, owning his iniquity and putting his trust in the Man who died on the cross; for "By Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by Moses' law."

A Reformation of Doctrine

Recovering the biblical Gospel

Restoring the apostolic teachings about salvation

JUSTIFICATION:

•by GRACE alone      •Through FAITH alone    •In CHRIST alone

•as revealed in the SCRIPTURES alone   •To the GLORY OF GOD alone

The Reformation of Worship Return to the Word of God

The Bible in the language of the people

The primacy of the Word in worship

The prominence of preaching in worship

Return to the Sole Priesthood of Christ

There is one God, and ONE MEDIATOR between man and God, the man Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 2:5)

Solus Christus IN CHRIST ALONE

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus…LET US DRAW NEAR with a true heart in full assurance of faith. (Hebrews 10:19,22)

Solus Christus IN CHRIST ALONE   Not via the Mass

Exodus 20:3 "You shall have no other gods before Me. 4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

Worshipping a false god is condemned.

Worshipping the true God oin a false way is condemned.

Exodus 32: The Golden Calf

1 Now when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people assembled about Aaron and said to him, "Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him."2 Aaron said to them, "Tear off the gold rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me."3 Then all the people tore off the gold rings which were in their ears and brought them to Aaron.4 He took this from their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool and made it into a molten calf; and they said, "This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt."5 Now when Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made a proclamation and said, "Tomorrow shall be a feast to the LORD."6 So the next day they rose early and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play. 7 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, "Go down at once, for your people, whom you brought up from the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.8 They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them. They have made for themselves a molten calf, and have worshiped it and have sacrificed to it and said, 'This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!'"9 The LORD said to Moses, "I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people.10 Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation."

1 John 5:21 Little children, guard yourselves from idols.

1. Do I Substitute the Sacrament For the Saviour?

The Fourth Lateran Council of 1215 A.D., convened by Pope Innocent III, Transubstantiation was both defined and made dogma of the church The Eucharist must be administered by a priest The bread and the wine must be locked up in "properly protected places" "Jesus Christ, whose body and blood are truly contained in the sacrament of the altar under the forms of bread and wine; the bread being changed (transsubstantia-tio) by divine power into the body, and the wine into the blood, so that to realize the mystery of unity we may receive of Him what He has received of us. And this sacrament no one can effect except the priest who has been duly ordained.."

Roman Catholicism today: "The altar-cross is also necessary as an indication that the Sacrifice of the Mass is nothing else than the unbloody reproduction of the Sacrifice of the Cross."

The Sacrifice of the Mass and The Sacrifice of the Cross are one and the same sacrifice.

To receive the Eucharist worthily, one must be a baptized Catholic in a state of grace, understand what one is about to receive and have kept the Eucharistic fast. The Church reserves consecrated hosts in the Tabernacle so the Eucharist can be brought to the sick and that the faithful can adore the Blessed Sacrament outside of Mass.

Christ's Sacrifice, however, is perfect and thus it ONLY NEEDED TO BE OFFERED ONCE. The one Sacrifice of Christ is made present in a mystical way at every Mass. By participating at Mass, the faithful  receive grace and are transformed through the Holy Mass. The Real Presence means that Christ's Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity become present under the appearances of bread and wine during the Consecration of the Mass.

Wycliffe  "But the simplest layman will see that it follows, that inasmuch as this bread is the body of Christ, it is therefore bread, and remains bread, and is at once both bread and the body of Christ."  "In the same manner, accordingly, though the bread becometh the body of Christ, by virtue of his words, it need not cease to be bread."

Luther: What is the sacrament of the Altar? "It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, in and under the bread and wine which we Christians are commanded by the Word of Christ to eat and to drink." Augsburg Confession: "Of the Lord's Supper: '...the [true] body and blood of Christ are truly present [under the form of bread and wine], and are [there] communicated to those that eat in the Lord's supper...'"

Zwingli : "I believe that in the holy Eucharist, i.e., the supper of thanksgiving, the true body of Christ is present by the contemplation of faith. This means that they who thank the Lord for the benefits bestowed on us in His Son acknowledge that He assumed true flesh, in it truly suffered, truly washed away our sins by His blood; and thus every-thing done by Christ becomes as it were present to them by the contemplation of faith. But that the body of Christ in essence and really, i. e., the natural body itself, is either present in the supper or masticated with our mouth and teeth, as the Papists or some [i.e., the Lutherans] who look back to the fleshpots of Egypt assert, we not only deny, but constantly maintain to be an error, contrary to the Word of God."

Calvin: "Do this in remembrance of me. Hence the Supper is a memorial, appointed as a help to our weakness; for if we were sufficiently mindful of the death of Christ, this help would be unnecessary."

Common Views of Communion

1. The Catholic/"transubstantiation" view. When the elements are blessed, they become Christ's body and blood.

2. The Lutheran/"consubstantiation"/"in, with, and under"/"sacramental union" view. Christ is united to the elements.

3. The Memorialist/Zwinglian/Baptist view. Jesus is not present in the elements, but believers reap a spiritual benefit from partaking because they remember his death. The Calvinist/Reformed/"spiritual presence" view. Christ's body and blood are spiritually consumed by the communicants as they physically partake of the bread and wine.

Praying through the saints

2. Do I Substitute The Priests For the One Priestly Mediator?

Praying through Mary

3. Do I substitute Someone else for myself?

I need to go to the Saviour.

Just as I am and waiting not to rid my soul of one dark blot,

To Thee alone who can cleanse each spot oh Lamb of God I come! I come!

The Lord's Supper Is A Meal 20 Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper,21 for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk.

There He sat at the table. He is not indicating that any change takes place in the bread. He is there in His perfectly human body and He holds this bread in His hand and He says, "This is my body." Surely any one must be blind who cannot see what He is telling them is this: This bread, I want you to understand, is to bring before you the truth that my body is to be sacrificed for sin.  "This do in remembrance of Me.'* And He passes the bread around to them. There is no mysterious priesthood; there are no costly vestments; there are no candles burning in a ceremonial manner; no smoking incense ascending. They have partaken of one meal and then He gives them this beautiful memorial feast. He does not even appoint a clergyman to preside there. He addresses them as brethren and He says "This do in remembrance of Me."

The Lord's Supper Is A Memorial He ..took bread;24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me."25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."

A Catholic once said  "Catholics believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist; Protestants believe in the real absence." But that is false. Protestants do not believe that the bread and wine undergo any mystic change, but they do believe that as you eat and drink in remembrance of Christ, Christ is present in His sweet and wonderful way, manifesting Himself to the hearts of His beloved people so that by faith they are enabled to feed upon Him.  Matthew 18 "Where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I in the midst."  We feed upon Him in remembrance. We  look back and think of the sorrows He bore. We contemplate His cross and bitter passion, and as we do, we eat of His flesh and drink of His blood, and as we feast on Christ we find our love for those things for which Christ died upon the cross becoming less, and our love for those blessed things into which He would lead us through the new and living way, through the veil into the holiest, becoming greater, for we become like that upon which we feed.

Therefore, I say, there is a tremendous chasm between the Roman Catholic doctrine of the Mass and the Bible doctrine of the Lord's Supper. The Lord's Supper is a memorial feast. Christians, members of the body of Christ, come together to remember the One who died for them and who put away their sins, and do this because their sins have been put away. No instructed Christian would approach the Lord's Table to get forgiveness.    The reason that there is a crucifix with an idol shaped like Jesus is that the catholic church teaches that the image of the crucifix with the Mass underneath it mystically brings forgiveness of sins to the person who partakes. I have heard someone say "come to the altar stand under the cross and get all your sins forgiven!" Our sins were forgiven at the cross 2000 years ago, not by the priest last week.

It took the blood of the Son of God to forgive my sins, and only He could do it once and for all when He died at the cross. He is the only mediator, not some priest.  I come because my sins have been forever put away by the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus and I desire gratefully to remember the One who offered that mighty sacrifice and so fitted me for the presence of a holy God.

The Lord's Supper Is A Making known 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.

The Lord's Supper Is A Moment to Reflect

Remember

Repent

Reconcile

Recommit

27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.