Tag: Love of God

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How to Understand the Importance of the Agapé Love

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What is the Agapé Love?

© 2026 by C. O. Bishop

1st Corinthians 13:4-8

Introduction:

We hear a lot about the Love of God, and sometimes we hear scholarly-sounding teaching on the different kinds of “love” in the Bible. Some of that teaching is appropriate, just to eliminate confusion regarding what the Lord commands concerning Love.

What Was Jesus’s New Commandment?

In John 13:34, 35, Jesus said, “34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

Reading that passage, probably most people would assume that the word for “love” in Jesus’s command meant that we ought to have strong feelings of affection for one another. (And, it could mean that!) But this is one of the places where we truly need to understand the difference between at least the two most commonly used forms of “love” in the New Testament.

If we recall the conversation between Jesus and Peter, in John 21:15-17, we may recall only that three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?” And all three times, Peter answered, “Yes!” But the third time, Peter grieved at the question, and protested “Lord, You know all things! You know that I love you!” And, all three times, Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep! Tend to my lambs!” What a strange conversation!

Except that, when we look that up in our handy Greek interlinear (Which I need, because I do not pretend to speak or read Greek, beyond bits and pieces) we find that the first two times, Jesus used the verb “agapao,” to ask, “Do you love me?” And Peter responded using the verb “phileo.” But the third time, Jesus switched verbs and used the same verb as Peter used. Peter grieved because the third time, Jesus used the phileo verb…not because Jesus asked three times. So, there must be a significant difference.

What IS the Difference?

They gave me a “textbook answer” in school, but I wondered what difference native Greek speakers make between the two words. So, I asked a co-worker, a native Greek speaker. He replied in his thick accent, “Ah…phileo means, ‘I love you! You are my brother! I love you!’” And then, with great intensity, he said, “But agapao means, ‘I give you my heart! I give you my soul! I LOVE you!’” He was not some scholar, giving me a clinical, sterile answer. He was not even a believer. He just gave the answer from his heart, as a Greek-speaker!

Therefore, reading the exchange between Jesus and Peter, using those two definitions, it sounds like this:

Jesus asked, “Are you fully committed to Me, Peter, or just to this catch of fish?” Peter replied, “Well, I have great affection for You, Lord—You are like a brother to me! I love You!” Jesus said, “Then feed My lambs!”

Jesus tried again, “Peter, are you fully devoted to ME?” Peter replied, “Yes, Lord! You know I have great affection for You!” Jesus replied, “Then feed My sheep!”

The third time, Jesus asked, “Peter, do you even like me? Do you even care?” Peter was grieved because, the third time, Jesus asked “Do you even have affection for me?” He replied, You know all things, You know that I have affection for you!” And Jesus still reiterated, “Then feed My sheep!”

So, we can at least see that agapao (verb form of agapé) is NOT the same as philéo. Peter knew the difference. Jesus knows the difference, and it is well for us to know the difference! Jesus’s New Commandment was specifically that we have agapé love for one another! Not just affection.

So, How is that Done? What does that “Look like?”

Keep in mind that agapé love has nothing to do with feelings. As we read the description of the agapé love, in 1st Corinthians 13:4-8, we notice that there is no reference to feelings, at all. Every single descriptor is an action word. They all describe how agapé love behaves or does not behave.

So, let’s explore each of the descriptors and see how they might find application in our lives.

1st Corinthians 13:4-8

4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8 Charity never faileth: 

Please notice that because the Greek language has about five different words for love, three of which are used in scripture, the translators authorized by King James attempted to set apart the agapé love by using the word “charity” to translate it. The “problem” for us is that the word “charity” has changed over the years, and now it virtually only means “giving to the poor.”

In a way, that makes sense, as the meaning of “agapao” means the “pouring out of yourself for the benefit of someone else, without regard for how it affects you.” Jesus demonstrated that Love at the Cross: He poured Himself out for us, not allowing His own feelings or comfort to interfere with His sacrifice for us.

So, What DO we see in 1st Corinthians 13:4-8 as the Descriptors for Agapé love?

  1. Agapé Love is patient (longsuffering.)
  2. Agapé Love is kind.
  3. Agapé Love is not envious.
  4. Agapé Love is not given to arrogance, boasting or pride.
  5. Agapé Love is not“puffed up”…not filled with self-importance.
  6. Agapé Love is not given to inappropriate behavior of any kind.
  7. Agapé Love is not focused on self, or the needs of self.
  8. Agapé Love is not easily stirred to anger.
  9. Agapé Love is not given to assuming bad motives in others, nor keeping a “score.”
  10. Agapé Love is not pleased with evil things, no matter to whom they happen.
  11. Agapé Love is happy when truth is honored, even if it is not to its own benefit.
  12. Agapé Love is able to bear up under every load, and withstand every trial.
  13. Agapé Love is able to hope, despite circumstances, for God’s blessing in all things.
  14. Agapé Love is able to outlast any trial, enduring it as part of love.
  15. Agapé Love is eternal, and it has eternal value.

Interestingly, verse eight points out that some of the things we may think are eternal are not! The gifts of the Holy Spirit are not eternal. They are for this life only. There will come a time when we no longer need those gifts. But Agapé Love is eternal and will not cease to function. Choosing to love in this way is always an act of the will…not a response to feelings. It is not based on emotions, but rather, it is a voluntary choice.

What Other Things do we Know About Agapé Love?

Romans 13:10 says “Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore Love is the fulfilling of the Law.”  Jesus confirmed this, in Mark 12:30-33, saying that the twin commands “thou shalt Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and all thy soul and all thy mind and all thy strength,”  and “thou shalt Love thy neighbor as thyself” were the “core value” of all of God’s commands. That, if you fulfill those two commands, you have fulfilled all the rest!

Galatians 5:13 says we are not to use our “Christian Liberty” as an opportunity for self-serving, (serving our flesh; our old sin nature,) but rather, by agapé love, God calls us to serve one another. (Love Serves!) Jesus said (Mark 10:45) that “the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many,” (Love Gives! Love serves, and Love gives!)

1st Peter 4:8 exhorts us, “And above all things have fervent charity [agapé love] among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.”

Cover sins? “Cover…” how? Agapé Love motivates us to “throw a veil over” the faults of others. God expects us to forgive others, in the same way that He has forgiven us.

So, How Has God Forgiven us?

Psalm 103:12 says that He has removed our sins from us as far as the East is from the West. That is a powerful statement! I appreciate that particular comparison because it is unlimited. I can only fly so far North before I will suddenly be flying South! And the reverse is also true. But! I can fly East for the rest of my life, and I will never suddenly find myself flying West! And the same is true in the other direction. It is an unlimited separation.

Furthermore, (in Psalm 103:14) God says that “He knows our frame, that we are dust….” He understands our frailties and He accepts us as we are. (Will you be that considerate toward those around you? Will you accept them as they are, and choose to tolerate their idiosyncrasies? Will you tolerate their irritating mannerisms, and their flawed logic?) The word “forbearance” means to lovingly “put up with” one another.

Imputed Righteousness

Romans 4:7, 8, quoting King David, says “Blessed is the man whose sins are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”

God the Father sees you in Christ…and only in Christ. He sees you as perfect, clean, and holy, in Christ!  The Lord chooses to no longer see you as a guilty sinner. Can you choose to see other believers in that same light? That is what agapé love requires.

If you are loving others with the Agapé love, then you are not so likely to hold their faults against them. In your own mind, you will set aside those faults and you will overlook their shortcomings, and not take into account the wrongs you have suffered. Why? Because their soul is more precious to you than your own comfort. Their well-being is more important to you than “standing on your own rights.”

What are the Results?

The result of agapé love ruling your life will be a more consistent tranquility, as well as a deep concern for the welfare of other believers. You will find that you are no longer likely to be offended by others. You will genuinely care about what they care about, and look for opportunities to be a blessing to others without calling attention to yourself in the process.

Relationships will deepen, as others sense that you genuinely care for them, not just superficially, or “just when it looks good.”

Priorities  begin to change as you begin to see others through God’s eyes. Your focus will shift away from self, and you will increasingly find yourself asking God to show you His way to respond to life, and His path for you to follow. Your church-family will become increasingly precious to you, as you learn to see the brothers and sisters through God’s eyes.

The reality of whether we love God is revealed by whether we treat the brethren with His Love. 1st John 4:20 poses the question, “…he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God, whom he hath not seen?” So, if someone claims to love God, but their actions show that they do not love other believers, then God says they are lying about loving God. That sounds harsh to us. But it is in the same verse we just read: It is the first half of that same verse. “If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar…” The reality is, we are fooling ourselves…deceiving ourselves.

Changed Lives

And, in 1st Thessalonians 4:11, 12, he says another result is that we will be more likely to tend to our own business, and to live quiet lives. We will also be productive, looking for ways to maintain a clear conscience and good relationships with others, particularly unbelievers.

We will strive to earn an income through honest work, and use that income in a way to honor God, and not be dependent upon others, for testimony’s sake. These are good principles for today as well: today, there are various programs which may tempt us to milk “free money from the government,” not admitting that it ultimately comes from our fellow taxpayers. We don’t want to have a reputation for being “freeloaders,” of any kind.

Galatians 6:4, 5 agrees, saying “But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For every man shall bear his own burden.”

But if another brother or sister is under a crushing load that they cannot bear, we exercise the love of Christ and ease their burden. (Galatians 6:2)

Agapé love is practical. And it looks for the opportunity to bless others in practical ways.

Jesus showed the ultimate example of Agapé Love when He bore our sins at the Cross. He met our need, without respect to what it cost Him.  We can either follow His example or fail to do so.

Lord Jesus, please teach us the incredible importance of allowing Your Love to flow through us to the world around us. Let us see other people as You see them, and Love as You love.

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Learn How To Understand The Love Of God

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A Letter to the Children (Part 11)

© 2025 C. O. Bishop

1st John 4:7-13

How to Understand the Agapé Love

Introduction:

It is interesting to note that “Agapé” is the only word John uses for “Love,” in his three epistles. The only place the Greek word “phileo” even occurs in his epistles, is as part of another word, in 3rd John 9. Where Diotrephes “loveth to have the preeminence,” the Greek word is “philotropeuon.” (Not a good love!)

One other “key” place where John uses the word “phileo” is John 21:15-17. John quoted a conversation: “phileo” happened a total of four times: Jesus had asked Peter, “do you love (agapé) Me?” and Peter replied using “phileo,” saying “Yes, You know I love (have deep affection for) You!”

This exchange happened twice. But the third time, Jesus also used the word “phileo.” It grieved Peter, because this time Jesus asked, “Do you phileo Me?” But he again replied using “phileo!” (Peter may have felt he could not claim “full commitment” to Christ, as just six weeks earlier, he had denied that he even knew Him!) Therefore, he claimed nothing greater than affection.

John used the word “phileo” eight times, in the Gospel of John. He also used it twice in Revelation (3:19 and 22:15.) Total of 15 times, always regarding the idea of “affection.”

Those are the only times in ALL of John’s writings where he used the word “phileo.” But he used the word “agapé” a total of 73 times!

John committed himself to the principle of Agapé!

The Principle of Agapé Love

7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.

John says “beloved (to all believers) let us love one another, for… (because) Love is of God…”

I have long felt that “probably” the true agapé love was only possible by the Holy Spirit. This verse seems to confirm the notion. I will no longer say “probably!” Here’s why:

  • (Agapé) Love is of God (as opposed to any other source!)
  • Every one who loves (with agapé love) is born of God.
    • (You must be born again, or it can’t happen!)
  • AND (using “ginosko,” the experiential, practical, ongoing personal relationship word) knoweth God! It means you not only must be born again, but you have to be in fellowship with God at that moment, so that the Holy Spirit is in control! It does not mean simply that “you are acquainted with Him!”

You see, John gave us three facts: (a) God is the only source of agapé love. (b) Therefore, only a born-of-God believer can experience it, and (c) It can only be experienced by one who is currently under the control of the Holy Spirit!

On the basis of those three facts, John says, “Let’s put it into practice!”

Love and Fellowship

8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

If we bear in mind that the word for “know,” here, is “ginosko” (meaning an experiential, ongoing, “present-tense relationship” knowledge) and that the only word for Love, in this epistle is “agapé,” then we can see that John states unequivocally that if you are not exhibiting the agapé love, then you are out of fellowship! (And why?) Because “God is Love!”

People routinely quote this passage as if it were some sort of “Re-definition of God.” But, while God exemplifies the Agapé Love in every way, this passage does not say “God equals Love.” Therefore it also cannot be inverted to claim that “Love equals God.”

Thus, it also does not say “God is the Author of anything and everything that anyone might call Love!” So, the people today, claiming, “Love is Love!” are dead wrong. This verse is specifically about the Agapé Love…nothing else!

Attributes of God

Some people also want to use this passage to claim that “God’s primary attribute is Love.” This is also not true: His primary attribute (stated over and over, in both the Old and the New Testaments,) is Holiness!

In Isaiah 6:1-8, the Seraphim, surrounding the high throne of Christ, did not remark about the Love of God: They cried out, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of Hosts! The whole earth is filled with His Glory!” And Isaiah, in response, did not say, “Wow! I’m surely glad to know He loves me!”

No! He said “Woe is me, for I am undone, for I am a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Hosts!”

Isaiah thought he was about to die, because he, as a sinner, had seen the King! He saw the Holiness of God, and his own unholiness! He feared the inevitable, terrible Judgment of God! (That is a good fear! God says so, in Psalm 19:9!)

But Isaiah went on to learn the Love of God.

The Love of God

9 In this was manifested [made known] the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.

This matches perfectly the Love described in John 3:16. “For God ‘so’ loved …” Meaning, “In this manner God loved: God demonstrated His agapé Love in this way. In the Spanish Bible, it is very clear: “Porque de tal manera amo Dios al Mundo…” In this manner, God loved the World….

What IS Agapé Love?

The Love of God has nothing to do with emotions or feelings: It has to do with a commitment to the well-being of the recipient of that Love.

We have discussed all of this, before, but, when we look at 1st Corinthians 13:4-8, where God gives the most comprehensive description of the Agapé Love, we find that every single descriptor is an action word: Nothing is dependent upon emotions or feelings. All of it has to do with how we respond to the needs of those around us.

God demonstrated that agapé love by going to the Cross for us. Jesus, as God in the Flesh, willingly presented Himself as the only acceptable sacrifice for the sins of the whole human race.

What Changed?

Hebrews 10:5-10 explains the transition between the Old Testament sacrifices (all of which pointed toward the Cross) and the Cross itself:

“5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering [The Old Testament offerings] thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: 6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. 7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; 9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. 10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

Notice that Jesus came, knowing why He came! (“A body thou hast prepared for me! I come to do thy will. In the volume of the book, it is written of me!)

Despite God the Father confirming that Jesus, God the Son, was the Creator (see Hebrews 1:6-13, especially verses 8-10) Jesus (God the Son) came in obedience to God the Father, to be the sacrifice for our sins!

The Ultimate Source

In Jeremiah 2:12-13, God calls upon the whole creation to see the two evils that His people, the Jews, had committed:

  • They had forsaken their God, the only source of Living Water (compare John 7:37-39.)
  • They had made for themselves “cisterns” (holding standing water at best… rains, whenever they came, would fill the cisterns.) But, the Cisterns were cracked anyway, and could not even hold water…the stale water they thought they would use rather than depend upon an ongoing love-relationship with their Creator to provide the fresh, living water they truly needed.

The Only Source

He, (Jesus specifically) is the only source of Living Water: He is also the only source of the Agapé love! When we try to manufacture a pious-looking “love,” via programs, or 12-step plans, or any other human “gimmickry,” we are missing the point.

Trying to “achieve His Love” by our own strength or our own “clever methods” is comparable to the Israelites attempting to “store up manna” for the next day. It did not work! They had to gather the Manna every day, for that day alone! The Creator God has to be the source of The Love of God, on a continuing basis: You can’t “store it up and use it sparingly,” hoping to “have enough for later.”

10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

The Love that God requires from His people has only one possible source: It emanates from an ongoing love-relationship with God, through Jesus Christ. The source is invisible, but the results are not!

12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

God’s love does not need “perfecting,” as we use that word. The word translated as “perfect” in scripture usually has to do with “completion:” God’s Love finds completion as it is exemplified in His people by means of the Holy Spirit actively working through them. We become His hands and His feet. Speaking as His ambassadors, we serve as His mouthpiece. We Love the People in His Name, and by His Spirit.

Our Confidence in Him

13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.

Each of us, as believers, can look back and remember the times when God has stepped in, and by His Holy Spirit, conformed us to His image, in one area or another. We are aware (to one degree or another) of His abiding presence, and we are grateful that He will never leave us.

God also calls us to see that presence as permanent evidence that we have already been placed into the Body of Christ. The Holy Spirit has permanently indwelt us. All of this happened at the moment you were born again. But He also gives us the ongoing witness of the Holy Spirit, encouraging us, and comforting us. He is always there, and He reminds us that we are not alone. (See 1st Corinthians 12:13; Ephesians 1:12-14.)

The Biggest Change

But the change in our lives that is most astonishing is that we can actually care for someone else, without being concerned with our own selfish interests. A young woman once shared with us how she had gone to a “women’s retreat” of some sort. After the retreat began, the leaders assigned the women times wherein they would help serve food or wash dishes, etc..

She told us, “ And, I thought, ‘But I didn’t come here to serve! I came here to be served!’ ”  Immediately, the Holy Spirit used His Word to convict her heart: She instantly remembered what Jesus said, in Mark 10:45, “The Son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give His life a ransom for many!”

The result? God changed her heart, on the spot! She served cheerfully, knowing that in so doing, she was obeying Him and blessing others!

As believers, and as followers of Jesus, we desire to see the Lord change our hearts in similar fashion!

Lord Jesus, please steer us way from the trap of being conformed to the values of the World. Inspire our hearts with Your Holiness and Your Love, and transform us by the renewing of our minds! Fill us with Your Living water, and let it flow through us to the World beyond.

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How Does the Resurrection Affect the Church?

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How Does the Resurrection Affect the Church?

© C. O. Bishop 2018

In the Context of John 14:3 “That, where I am, there ye may be also”

Ephesians 1:13, 14; 2:6; 1st Corinthians 12:13; 15:3, 4; 15:22, 15:16-19;
Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 3:1-4

Introduction:

We often hear (or write) Easter messages that completely immerse us in either the horror of the Cross, (hence, the enormity of our guilt and sin that necessitated the Cross), or the mystery of the burial and resurrection, the fulfilled prophecies, and refuting the various false myths that have sprung up from those who reject the validity of the scriptures…or even immersing us in the joy of the resurrection itself; the effect that it had upon Mary Magdalene, the other disciples—Peter in particular—and on the newborn Church, at Pentecost. Those are all good things.

All of these approaches are valid; all have appropriate results in the hearers, and all have reasonably good grounding in the scriptures themselves, as a rule. (Some may wander a bit, but most are pretty solidly grounded in the Word of God.)

But: What about today? What effect should the Resurrection have upon believers, today?

The Promises of Jesus the Messiah:

Jesus made an important promise in John 5:24: He said that whoever hears his word (regarding himself, and God’s redemptive plan), and believes on Him who sent Him (Places their trust in His redemptive work at the Cross), has everlasting life (present tense) and shall not (future tense) come into condemnation, but has passed over (past perfect tense) from death into life.

He also stated (John 14:3) that he was leaving Earth, to prepare a place for his followers, that where He was they should also be. He also stated (John 14:16) that the Holy Spirit, whom He was sending in place of Himself, would be with His disciples forever.                                                                  

In the light of these explicit promises, let’s examine the historical facts:

The Historical Facts:

1st Corinthians 15:3, 4;

Paul stated the bare facts of the Gospel here, but prefaced the facts with a reference to their result. He stated the results of faith, first (we have received the Gospel, and believed it, and our standing with God is dependent upon its truth.) Then he simply stated the facts, as follows:

  1. Christ died for our sins, according to (in keeping with…in fulfillment of) the scriptures.
  2. He was buried (also fulfilling prophecies), and that
  3. He rose again the third day, also in keeping with Biblical prophecies.

None of these things were “just happenstance.” All were called out, far in advance, by prophecy; some of them by a multitude of prophecies. The fact of the “three days and three nights in the tomb”, for example, was in fulfillment of two very explicit prophecies, and perhaps others not so plain. The facts of the crucifixion and resurrection, however, were in fulfillment of scores of clear prophecies and more or less clear Old Testament figures…pictures of the coming Christ.

1st Corinthians 12:13;

This one—the fact of the “baptism of the Holy Spirit”; the Act of the Holy Spirit, placing each believer (us) into our respective places in the Body of Christ— is only dependent upon us being believers: When any sinner sees his own need for the Savior, and trusts in Jesus’s finished work at the Cross—Jesus’s shed blood—being full payment for his sins, the Holy Spirit immediately places him permanently into the Body of Christ. We remain there forever. Jesus said that, of all the souls given to Him he will lose not one, but shall raise them up at the last day (John 6:39).

Ephesians 1:13, 14;

This one, too, is only dependent upon a person’s one time choice, to believe in Jesus as their only Savior and only Hope. It says that those who heard the Word of truth, the Gospel of our salvation (and who trusted in it), after they trusted in Him, were immediately sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit of Promise who is the Earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession. Several important points are made, here, for us to cling to.

  • This promise reiterates the promise of Jesus: that those who heard the Gospel and believed, have eternal life now: (Not waiting to see if they were “among the chosen.”)
  • Another is that we are “…sealed in Christ”: It says “in Whom, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of Promise”
  • Finally, it says that we are sealed in Him “until the redemption of the purchased possession to the Praise of His Glory.” We will not be lost. We have been sealed in Christ by the Holy Spirit…how long? Until the redemption of the purchased possession (the Church) unto the praise of His Glory. We are secure in Him.

This is a stated fact: not just a promise of things to come. All of it is stated as a “done deal”—past tense fact—not dependent upon events still to come. Nothing is hanging in the balance.

Ephesians 2:6

Here’s another “historical fact” which we can’t see, but which God says is already a done deal, as well: Paul says, here, that the believers have already been raised up (resurrected) together with Christ, and have already ascended with Him, and are already seated with Him in Heaven! (This is absolutely beyond my comprehension, but it is clearly stated as a “past-tense fact.”

The Personal, Current Facts: (On the basis of the historical facts)

Romans 6:2-5; Three things:

  1. We are Dead with Him. (v. 2, 3)
  2. We are Risen with Him. (v. 4, 5)
  3. We are Ascended with Him. (implied, in v.4; stated in Ephesians 2:6)

We have been baptized (not by water baptism, but by the real baptism; the Holy Spirit having placed us into the body of Christ); we have been baptized into his death and his resurrection, and (Ephesians 2:6) we are currently seated with Him in the heavenlies. These are each stated as being current realities, not future possibilities.

I am not exhorted to “Die to sin;” I am stated to already be dead to sin.
I am not encouraged to “be risen with Christ” I am informed that I have already risen with Him.
I am not commanded to “seat myself in the heavenlies,” but I am told that I am already there.

What astonishing statements! How can God say that I am “already dead with Christ?” Well…the fact is, it is true! In the Scriptures, Death always has to do with separation of some sort: Adam was separated from fellowship with God, the moment he ate the forbidden fruit. He was spiritually dead. He died physically, 930 years later, when his spirit and soul were separated from His body. A person who is still separated from God, spiritually, never having been reconciled to Him, and who dies physically, is then permanently separated from God. (God refers to this as the “second death”, in Revelation 20:14.)

So how am I “dead to sin?” My old sin nature (the only nature I had before re-birth) was and is entirely committed to self; to sin. God says that it cannot be repaired, cleansed or redeemed. It cannot become subject to God’s righteousness. (Romans 8:7; Ephesians 4:22)

So, all God could do to save me was to give me a new nature; one that was in harmony with Him. Ephesians 4:24 says that my new nature is created, after God (in His likeness) in righteousness and true holiness. That, too, is a “done deal!” I have been separated from my old sin nature to the extent that I am no longer enslaved to it, and I have a choice: I can obey God, with a clean heart, because I have a new nature. God does not propose to “fix” my old nature: as far as He is concerned it is dead…it is irretrievably corrupt. And, he sees Me as separated from that old sin nature. He says I am dead to it. I do not have to submit to its desires any more.

In keeping with that fact, He says that we are also risen with Christ: His death, burial and resurrection became ours. God sees us, eternally, only in the person of Christ. Over in Ephesians, we saw that His ascension is also ours. We are already safely at home with Him, in God’s eyes: all we are doing, here, in our earthly lives, is living out that reality, and, both by word and deed, demonstrating to the lost world around us, the truth of the Good News of Christ.

How should those facts affect the way we think?

Since these things are true, and if we are willing to accept them as fact (the Gospel and all that God says about it); how should it affect our thinking and our response to the people and circumstances with which we live?

Can I genuinely exhibit the Love of Christ, because He lives in me, and not be offended by the petty offenses people or circumstances may bring? They truly are petty, in comparison with the absolutely criminal abuse that was heaped upon Jesus, by the Human Race. (And, yes, all of us are guilty: our sins made it necessary for Him to go there.) Considering the abuse that he endured, both on the way to the Cross, and in the Crucifixion itself, is there anything in our experience that can be considered worth losing sight of the Promises and Peace of the Savior?

Can’t I see my tormentors as precious souls, for whom Jesus died? Can’t I grieve for their lostness, and pray for their salvation? Can’t I choose to be a blessing to them, in hopes of turning them away from eternal condemnation? Or must I secretly feel satisfaction that “Well, they will surely pay for that!” What an incredibly selfish response! I am equally guilty before God, and His Grace was extended to me, a completely lost sinner: Can’t I extend my feeble grace and forgiveness, as an act of Worship to the God who first loved me?

How should those facts affect the way we live?

Can I stop acting as if everything revolves around “how I feel about things?” Can I literally put others first, as Jesus did? Or will I continue to concern myself primarily with my own comfort, my own safety and my own future security?

God calls us to offer our bodies a living sacrifice to Him, so that our lives will be lived out in a manner that honors Him. He calls this our “reasonable service” of worship. (Romans 12:1) That offer has to be renewed often: the problem with “living sacrifices” is that we keep crawling off the altar! We don’t just “die, and get it over with.”

We are called to “die to self:” to “take up your cross, daily, and follow” Him. Notice that we are not called to “die to sin”…that has already been accomplished. We are called to continually renew the conscious setting aside of sin, and to live in the newness of life:

  • To live out the resurrected Life of Christ, not just continue in our own self-centered way.
  • To become the living “Love of Christ” in the unloving world around us:
  • To become the living “Light of Christ”, in this dark world in which we live.
  • To become a clean source of the Living Water, to any soul who is thirsty.
  • To become a clean source of the Bread of Life, to any soul who is hungry.

Colossians 3:1-4 calls us, as those risen from the dead, to set our affections on things above: We are to change our priorities. He says that, since we are seated with Him above, we should see things from his perspective, and count his priorities to be our own. He reiterates that we are dead, and that our lives are “hid in Christ.” God only sees us there, in Christ. He concludes that, when Christ Himself appears, we shall appear with him, in Glory. It will be worth it all, when we see Jesus!

We are Ambassadors of the Risen Christ. That is the confidence that we have in Him: it is the assignment that we have in Him, and it is the direct result of the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus.

Lord Jesus, we thank you for the clear news of your death, and burial and, especially, your resurrection. Please use these truths to shape us into your likeness, and to transform our lives into your own image. Make us profitable servants of God.

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Obedient to the Truth?

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The Truth of the Crucifixion

© C. O. Bishop 12/5/14 THCF 12/7/14

Galatians 3:1


“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?”

Introduction:

Paul is gently berating the Galatian believers: he states that they clearly had known the truth—that Jesus had been clearly displayed among them as having been crucified— and that there was a “truth” involved to which they had been “obedient”, but now were being persuaded to disobey.

So, perhaps we need to look a little more closely, to find out what the truth was, and how they had obeyed it, and why Paul says they are now disobeying it, so that we can gain understanding for our own lives, and avoid the trap to which they had fallen prey.

How does one obey or disobey a “truth?”

When Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness (Numbers 21), the people were under a judgment from God, because of sin. The judgment involved thousands of venomous snakes migrating through the path of the children of Israel: many people were bitten, and many died. When the bronze serpent was hung up on the pole, the command was to “look and live!” They did not magically get rid of the venom—they did not immediately have the fang-marks in their bodies healed: they simply did not die. Had they not believed God’s promise through Moses enough to look to the serpent on the pole they would have died, regardless of their best efforts.

Consider: when we hear the truth of the Gospel, we can either believe it, to the extent of personally placing our trust in the completed work of Jesus at the Cross, or not believe it…and place our trust in something else. If we choose to trust in something else, we will eventually die in our sins regardless of our best efforts.

So, what if they had looked, believing, but the pain of the snake-bite and the earnest voices of their friends persuaded them to try some home-remedies anyway, perhaps just to lessen the pain? Did God rescind His promise and see to it that they died? No—the promise was sure—but the best their own efforts could do was to alleviate symptoms. Without that initial faith, to look to God’s solution for sin, they would have died.

In our own lives, we may have at one time trusted God to save us from our sins…but later have fallen prey to some persuasive philosophy, or our own unbelief, and have come to believe that if we do not hold our hands right when we pray, God will not hear us—or that if we do not perform some other ritual correctly, or avoid certain behaviors, etc., then God will reject us after all, and that the blood of Jesus at the Cross was, in fact, ineffective. At that point, we are disobeying the truth, because we are no longer dependent upon the Grace of the living God, and the effect of His Grace is lessened in our lives, simply because we are no longer receptive to Him…we are depending on our own works, and trying to earn His favor. Human religion can alleviate symptoms, but cannot deal with the curse of Sin. Jesus deals with the curse first, and then proceeds to deal with symptoms throughout our lives.

The Truth of the Gospel

So what is the “Truth” of the Gospel, and how do we “obey it” initially…and, more to the point, how do we obey it on an ongoing lifelong basis?

Paul recites the facts of the Gospel in 1st Corinthians 15:3, 4, where he says that he had delivered to the Corinthians what had been delivered to Him—the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. In Romans 1:16 he states that this Gospel, being believed in, is the power of God to save those who believe—whether Jews or non-Jews. Here in Galatians he only alludes to it because they already know the facts—and have already believed them. He says that Jesus and His crucifixion had been clearly presented among them…and that they had understood it.

The truth of the Gospel involves two or three main concepts, depending on how one wants to outline the facts:

  • Man is lost, and cannot save Himself (which is bad news), and
  • God is Gracious, and has provided for salvation through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (That’s the Good News!)
  • All God has asked Man to do is to place his trust in that Gracious gift.

Every one of us here has heard that truth, regarding the Crucifixion, and has placed his/her trust in that gift. But the question is: can we, like the people of Israel, be guilty of turning our eyes away from the Grace of God and return to our own works? The answer, of course, is yes, we can.

So, let’s look at five aspects of the Crucifixion, and see how we can be “obedient to the truth”.

The Crucifixion was Personal

One thing I have run into periodically when attempting to share the Gospel, is the response that “Yes, I know Jesus died for our sins!” or “Well, of course, he died for the whole world!”, but when I try to pin it down, as to whether His blood was the payment for the sins of that particular individual, he or she hedges and reverts to “ …he died for the world”, or something similar.

That is a little like saying “everyone at work today signed a petition to recall the dog-catcher (or whatever)”…then someone asks “did you sign it?” and all they can get for an answer is “everyone signed it!” I am left to think that, either they did not sign the petition, or they are ashamed of having done so.

Did Jesus die for you personally? Are your sins what put him on that cross? If they are not, then you are missing the point of the Crucifixion. When the nation of Israel initially celebrated Passover, the requirement was that every single person should eat of that Passover lamb. It was not enough to just be part of Israel, or even to just be part of a household that had the blood on the lintel and doorposts: Everyone was to eat of it…personally. I must personally place my trust in Jesus’ blood payment for my personal sins.

The Crucifixion was Vicarious

When we watch adventure movies, or read adventure novels, the idea is that we can experience the wild or dangerous or creepy thing that is in the book or movie without any personal risk. I may enjoy watching some athlete pole-vault over an 18-foot bar, or shoot through some terrible rapids in a kayak, but I am never going to try it myself. I experience his victory vicariously by watching. This is called a vicarious thrill, but it is a weak example:

Webster defines “vicarious” as

1:  a:  serving instead of someone or something else,  b:  that which has been delegated <vicarious authority>

2:  that which is performed or suffered by one person as a substitute for another or to the benefit or advantage of another: substitutionary <a vicarious sacrifice>

3:  that which is experienced or realized through imaginative or sympathetic participation in the experience of another <a vicarious thrill>
The first two definitions are the ones we want, here: Jesus died in my place (2nd definition) because he had the delegated authority from God to do so (1st definition), therefore I died through him when I confirmed that delegation of authority, by faith. I did not have to personally be crucified, or have the full Wrath of God poured out upon me…I experienced it through Christ—he did it as my designated substitute.

The Crucifixion was Substitutionary

This is a part of the definition of “vicarious”, of course, but it carries a stronger idea. We have a hard time with this idea, because it carries the meaning that, “when Jesus died as my substitute, I died!”

2nd Corinthians 5:14, 15 is a difficult passage, but critical to understanding our position in Christ: It says …”that, if one died for all, then were all dead: and that he died for all that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto him who died for them, and rose again.” We can either accept this as a fact, and try to learn to believe it and live it experientially, or shrug it off as a mystery, and leave it for the theologians to fight over. That may be a tempting option, but it is really not a live option for a believer, simply because the scripture is absolutely true: if you have placed your faith in Christ then you are dead with him…the substitute completed the transaction in your name, and the transaction is complete! So now, whether you understand it or not, and whether you choose to respond well or not, you have a new position in Christ…and you are dead to sin…dead to the World, dead to the Law. You cannot “fit in” as do the unsaved folk around you—because you have been permanently separated from them through death. You no longer belong to the world community. You are an outcast with Christ, and are an ambassador for Him.

The Crucifixion was Efficacious

When Jesus uttered his final words from the Cross, it included one Greek word that is pretty important to us: the word “tetelestai”. It was translated “It is finished”, which is fine enough as far as an English translation goes, but, because English has so many variable and alternate meanings for words, I misunderstood this statement for years. I thought Jesus was simply saying “It’s all over! I’m gonna die now!” I thought it was the voice of defeat…but in fact, it was the opposite. It was the voice of victory!

He was actually confirming that the job He was sent to do was fully accomplished. Nothing was left to do. All the work was done.  He had said earlier that he was sent to save sinners. John the Baptist had pointed him out, (John 1:29) saying, prophetically, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the World!” So—if that was what he had come to do, and if what he shouted from the Cross was that the job was complete, then I have to believe that it is true…that there is nothing left to do, in order to secure my salvation. There is no work that can be added to his completed work at the Cross.

Further, his blood successfully paid the sin debt for the whole world…there will never be a person born for whom He did not make full payment. I will never meet someone who is not on His “list”—he desires their salvation, and He has already paid the full price for it. That means, if I am living for Him, then I should desire it too—and not just as a “back-burner” afterthought—it was foremost in his mind, and should be for me, too.

The Crucifixion was Final

One of the things pointed out in the book of Hebrews, very strongly, is that, unlike the year-by-year renewed and repeated blood-sacrifices that continually covered sin, Jesus made a one-time-only blood-sacrifice that took away sin. Hebrews 10:3, 4 clearly states that those sacrifices were repeated yearly, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Contrast Hebrews 10:10, 12, “…we are sanctified (made holy) through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” And  “But this man (Jesus) after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God.”

There is no further work to be done to pay for my salvation—it is secure forever…but if I am going to live for him, then I need to learn to see the World and the Church and all of Life through His eyes. I need to see my own life as completely belonging to Him. Remember? “I am Crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Conclusion: How can I obey the Truth?

I believe that Jesus died for me, personally—so that should make me aware that, when I sin (and I still do), those sins are part of what put Him on the Cross. This should not be a thing to be “taken for granted”. It is a serious issue.

I can be grateful that He acted in my place, vicariously, so that I do not have to personally experience the wrath of God.

I can daily practice the awareness by faith, that when He died as my substitute, I died—and that my life is never to be the same again. I am dead to the Law, dead to Sin, and dead to the World. That should be my daily concern, to live by faith in that fact.

I should have a genuine heart for the lost around me, knowing that Jesus paid for all their sins, and that their salvation is the primary concern of Christ for the World. We, as believers, have been given the job of being His ambassadors—his representatives—so we are to act in His behalf, and expressing His desires, pursuing His goals.

Finally; I can maintain the awareness that there is nothing to be added to the perfect and final Sacrifice of Christ except thanksgiving, worship, praise and Love. Romans 12:1-3 states that my reasonable service of worship is to offer myself a living sacrifice, so that He can live through me, and bless those around me through my life.

So: what was the issue with those believers in the province of Galatia? The problem was that though they certainly had known and believed the Gospel, they had later allowed someone to lure them away from at least some of the above five points, and were beginning to add works to Grace, and, effectively, to replace Grace with Law. Thus, all five realities of the Gospel of Grace had ceased to be a working reality in their lives. That is why Paul said in Galatians 5:4 “…ye have fallen from Grace”.  Jesus was having no real effect in their lives, anymore, because they had embraced a “do-it-yourself” plan of approaching God, whereas Jesus had said “No man cometh unto the Father but by Me!” Did it affect their salvation? Of course not! But it terribly affected their peace and assurance, and their walk with God. They were trying to “remodel” God’s work with their own works.

As believers, with the full advantage of the written Word of God, let us try to keep in mind the full implications of the Cross, and not fall into the same trap as did the Galatian believers. Guard against legalism, and strive to embrace your new position in Christ, by faith. Yes, the result will be obedience; but it will be the result of Grace and faith, rather than Law.

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