“1 Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an Apostle, separated unto the Gospel of God,
2 (Which He [GOD] had promised afore by His Prophets in the Holy Scriptures,)
3 Concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the Seed of David according to the flesh;
4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of Holiness, by the Resurrection from the dead:
5 By Whom we have received Grace and Apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for His Name:
6 Among Whom are you also the called of Jesus Christ:” Romans 1:1-6
All who have accepted the Call unto Salvation; all of the ‘whosoevers’ who boldly claim Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour have been called from something to something. We have been plucked up from the miry clay and set on higher ground.
The Believer’s call unto holiness does not stop at Salvation but begins at Salvation. The Lord is forever drawing His Children closer unto Him. Since the time the Lord roamed the garden with Adam and Eve, His Will was and is to fellowship with His creation. Due to Adam’s Fall we have been separated by sin. All who are born of water (natural child birth) are born spiritually dead. They do not yet know God as their Father because they have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. Unless a man be Born Again, born of the Spirit, they do not know the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ.
“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.” John 3:5
This is the Rock of which the Church is built. It is the revelation of Who Jesus is, the only begotten Son of God, that the Church is built; not Peter (sorry my Roman Catholic friends).
“16 And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.
17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood has not revealed it unto you, but My Father which is in Heaven.
18 And I say also unto you, That you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Matthew 16:16-18
It is the revelation of WHO Jesus and WHAT HE has done at Salvation that the Church of God is built upon. Knowing Who He is and what He did at Calvary’s Cross to pay the penalty of sin for the believing sinner and break the power of sin for the believing Saint, there is no doubt as to His Resurrection.
This revelation given to all who are Born Again and OUR continued faithfulness in the Cross of Christ is what affords the Believer the Divine Grace of God for continued obedience to the faith.
It takes the Grace of God to continue in obedience to the faith. It is the fight of faith, faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified, that we must fight every day. Denying ourselves and looking unto the Cross of Christ Jesus is the only means by which the Grace of God flows uninterrupted. The Holy Spirit is not commissioned to superintend the work of God when we are fighting any other fight…no matter how good and/or right it may seem. Even though it’s cloaked in Scripture and presented as biblical doctrine, if it’s not faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified as the answer; we are not being obedient to the faith and God’s Grace will not flow.
When we so often say that we are determined to know nothing else among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified; it is not just a saying but a fight – a daily fight of which we purposefully choose in our hearts in Whom we are going to believe this day. It is a fight to enter into HIS rest and let Him fight our battles. Denying ourselves is no easy task but is a necessity to receive the Grace for obedience unto the faith.
All who have believed are called from something to something and we need the Grace of God to carry us along the way. His Grace is sufficient in our weakness and it is a river of living water as we purposefully look unto the Cross of Christ.
Looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, is the only means by which we receive Grace for obedience to the faith. Look to the Cross and live.
-Donna Clark Warren
Living in The Spirit 