Part One

How The Devil And Well Meaning People Make You Feel Too Unworthy to Receive Healing and Prosperity

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CHAPTER TWO

How The Apostle Paul Dealt With The Unworthiness Peddlers: He Got In Their Face

We're looking at a group of Judaizers (Unworthiness Peddlers) who came into the churches that Paul started and began to teach, "Yes, you're saved by faith in Christ, but you've also got to keep Moses' law." They wanted every Gentile male who came in the church to be circumcised just like Moses' law demanded. They said that if these men didn't do this then they couldn't be saved. This is the problem area that Paul had to deal with. This group came into every church that he started and taught this doctrine to the people.

This is why so many churches today have a doctrine of salvation by works. But you're going to see, as we move through this book, that it's "faith in Christ" and "not works". When God saves someone the Holy Ghost comes into that person and changes him or her from the inside out. He changes their desire, their want to, who they like - makes them like who they didn't like before, makes them like things they didn't like before and didn't want to like - He changes them from the inside out! That is the sign of salvation, and that's the only sign - a changed life. You can be baptized and circumcised and any other "ized" all day long, but still die and "bust" hell wide open. Paul is teaching that salvation is by faith in Jesus Christ.

Where The Guilt Trip Down Unworthiness Detour Begins

Let me back up and give you some background information again. Until you understand the relationship of Moses' law to Abraham's Covenant, you're going to have all kinds of messed up, Unworthiness, Guilt Trip theology, one of which is the doctrine of salvation by works. God picked out one man in Genesis 12, Abram. There was nothing about this man to recommend him to God. Abram, later changed to Abraham, was not a religious man, he was a heathen. He was an unbeliever, an idolater, but God picked him and made a deal with him. The deal was called the Abrahamic Covenant. This Covenant included salvation for his soul, healing for his body, prosperity for his pocketbook, and well-being for his family members. Then God included all his natural descendants in that Covenant. And then He prophetically included those of us who are Gentiles, who would later be grafted into that Covenant after Christ came. See the author's two books, What Are Abraham's Blessings Anyway? and The Unbroken Force of Abraham's Blessings.

A Jew was born saved. He didn't have to get saved, he was born saved. He was born with guaranteed healing for his body, he was born with guaranteed prosperity, he was born with guaranteed well being for his family members. He didn't have to work for it, he didn't have to earn it, he was born with it because of that Abrahamic Covenant. See What Are Abraham's Blessings Anyway?

Four hundred twenty years later though, God determined to do something about their sin problem, but do it in such a way that it didn't mess up what He promised them in the Abrahamic Covenant. So He attached the Mosaic law - the Ten Commandants and the sacrificial system - to the Abrahamic Covenant and said, "This is what we're going to do. I promised all these blessings in the Covenant with Abraham. You are born with it. You have it because I promised it to Abraham. You don't have to get it. You don't have to get saved, you are saved. Your children are going to be born saved. You're going to live and die saved - simply because of what I promised to Abraham. But you have a sin problem that we need to deal with. You're not doing what I want you to do."

So God gave them the Law - "Thou shalt not do this, thou shalt not do that." Then He told them, "If you blow it and sin anyway, I'm going to include a sacrificial system whereby you can make a sacrifice - take the life of an animal - and the Abrahamic blessings will continue for you without interruption. That way, your sin will be covered and at the same time, your blessings will continue. But if you don't make the proper sacrifice, then your Abrahamic blessings are going to stop. You're going to lose your salvation, your healing, your prosperity, and you're going to lose the well-being of your family members. Now when you get tired of all this, go back and make the right sacrifice and those Abrahamic blessings will start up again." See the author's book, What've They Done With Abraham's Blessings?

When you understand the relationship of the Law to the Abrahamic Covenant, then you're in a position to understand the balance of the Bible. However, this is what has happened. As the centuries rolled on, Jewish theologians made a terrible theological blunder, and that blunder has cost Jewish souls by the millions down through the ages of time.

This is the blunder; they disconnected Moses' law from Abraham's Covenant, and set that Law up as an independent religious system. By setting it up as an independent religious system detached from Abraham, they began attempting to work for and earn, by the works of the Law, that which God had already given them in the Abrahamic Covenant. When they did that they lost everything in the Covenant - their salvation terminated, their health went hay-wire, they lost their prosperity, they were driven from their lands, they became a laughing stock and hated by other people - all because they separated Moses' law from Abraham's Covenant. They were trying to earn what they were born with. They were trying to get what God had already given them. They were trying to be worthy of the blessings of God when God had already given everything to them in the Abrahamic Covenant.

Modern theology has accepted this Jewish blunder as a fact. By and large, modern Christian theology, is based on the fact that the Law was a ministration of death, that it was a yoke and a bondage, and was an independent religious system. See What've They Done With Abraham's Blessings?

What Paul Did To Stop The Unworthiness Peddlers In Their Tracks

Look at what he said in Galatians 2:1-3,

1 Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.

2 And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.

3 But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:

Paul is moving into the battle lines right here. He's beginning to combat this Jewish Unworthiness error, by showing that the Law does not have to be kept by Gentiles or Jews in order for them to be saved. Remember the relationship of Moses' law to Abraham's Covenant - when the people sinned they had to make the right sacrifice or they lost the Abrahamic blessings they were born with. This lasted until Jesus came and became the final sacrifice for sin under Moses' law. When Jesus died, that covered all sins of all types for all times. There was no longer the need for bull and goat sacrifices - it was over. Jesus terminated it.

Seventeen years after Paul's salvation he went back to Jerusalem because God told him to go. When he went he took Titus and Barnabus with him. Titus was a Greek (a non-Jew) and was not compelled to be circumcised like the Jewish leaders said men had to be in order to keep the Law of Moses.

Look at verse 4, and we'll get into the heart of this teaching.

4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:

These false brethren, pretending to be brothers and sisters in Christ, came in the church secretly to spy. (Isn't that just like the Devil's workers in a church?) These false brothers wanted to bring them into bondage. What bondage is Paul talking about? They wanted them to start keeping Moses' law in addition to receiving Christ as their Savior. That was bondage to Paul. It was a religion of works. They said, "Yes, be a Christian by believing in Jesus, BUT by keeping Moses' law, also. For, if you do not keep Moses' law, you cannot be saved." But notice Paul calls this bondage. Christ, plus any other requirement, Paul considered bondage. What was his reaction to these people?

Look at verse 5,

5 To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.

In other words, he said, "I didn't bend to that bunch for even an hour. I didn't submit myself to those boys for as short a space as an hour." There are some areas in your Christian walk where you have to have guts enough to draw a line in the dirt and not step over it, no matter what it costs. This is what Paul was saying - "I drew the line in the dirt, and I didn't cross it, not even for an hour. I did not put myself under their control."

There is always that religious element that desires to bring the man of God under their thumb. My point is this - once the man of God allows it to happen, his ministry is totally finished. He becomes a hireling, something that's not worth having.

Why did Paul not submit to these false brethren? Read again the last part of verse 5 - "...that the truth of the gospel might continue with you." Notice the word "gospel" used here. It is the Greek word which means good news. What was the good news? The good news that Paul was writing about was they didn't have to keep Moses' law any more. The good news was Gentiles were being grafted into the Abrahamic system without any of the trappings of old Judaism. See What've They Done With Abraham's Blessings?

The good news for us today is that Jesus Christ died for our sins, and now we are saved through no worth or merit of our own. It's good news to know that the sin does not exist that can overpower the blood of Jesus Christ. See the author's book, How To Exercise God's Megaton Power Now.

Look at 1 John 1:7,

7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

The word "cleanseth" is written in the Greek present tense. The Greek present tense, unlike the English verb system, means continuous action in present time. So what that verse actually says to Christians is, "The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses and keeps on keeping on cleansing us from all sin." How many sins? All sin. Have you ever found a sin that the Bible says has more power in it than the blood of Jesus is capable of handling?

When you understand this, then you can sing from the depths of your soul the old song, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and His righteousness" - not my abilities, my strength, my power, not how good I can be - because I'm not strong, I have no power, I'm unworthy, and my works won't work. If my salvation was based on that, I'd be on the road to hell. But my hope is not based on any of that. It's based on nothing less than Jesus' blood which keeps on keeping on cleansing me from all sin. There is not one sin the blood of Jesus Christ cannot handle in the life of a Christian. If you want to argue with this, your argument is not with me. Your argument is with the strength and power in Jesus' blood. I base my case and stake my hope on the blood of Jesus. Brother and sister, I'm as safe as His blood is strong. When you find a sin that His blood cannot handle, then I may be in trouble. But until you produce it I'll just coast along very happy.

Now look as verse 6,

6 But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man's person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:

He said, "I didn't let them add a single one of their stipulations to what I preach or believe." Would to God we had churches filled with Christians who had that kind of backbone. When they met, and this group of people began presenting their case, Paul didn't buy anything they had to sell. He stayed with the truth of the gospel which, for Paul, was salvation by faith in Christ plus nothing else.

Look on at verses 7-10,

7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;

8 (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)

9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

10 Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.

James was the pastor of the church in Jerusalem. Two of his right-hand men were Cephas and John. James made the decision. If you read about this account in the book of Acts, you'll see that James, the pastor, made up his mind about what to do, and then they did what he said to do. What they did, based on the leadership of that man of God, was extend the right hand of fellowship to Paul and tell him to go, with the church's blessings and backing, to the Gentiles, just like they had already done for Peter when he went preaching the Gospel to the Jews. But they told Paul to go to the Gentiles without these additional stipulations that the Judaizers- work mongers-Unworthiness Peddlers tried to bring in and ram down their throat. Paul came in with the free truth of the Gospel, drew the line in the dirt. He left there, also, with the free truth of the Gospel - with nothing added to what he believed or preached or taught. It's a mighty man of God who will draw the line in the dirt. Not everybody can do that.

So the pastor, with Cephas and John, extended to this man, Paul, the right hand of fellowship and sent him out with the full backing of the church in Jerusalem. They sent him out to the Gentiles with the same message that he came to them with.

I want you to notice something. Ours is the only religion that is not learned. Though we teach it , it still is not a learned religion. Do you remember what I said about Paul's experience? Look again at Galatians 1:11-12.

When Paul got saved he never had, as far as we know, a human teacher. God revealed the Gospel to him by the Holy Ghost. It was three years after his salvation that he went into Jerusalem and talked to James. In the mean time, nobody had taught him anything. Then he disappeared and stayed gone fourteen more years and did not go back to Jerusalem until the Holy Ghost told him to go, again by revelation. So it was seventeen years that he went without a human teacher, as far as we know. God revealed to him everything that we have in his writings in the New Testament. The point is, there was no difference in the message that he preached and the message that Peter and all the others who lived and walked and talked with Jesus for three years preached.

That's why, when Paul came in there and drew the line in the dirt, they gave him the right hand of fellowship and sent him out to the Gentiles like they had with Peter to the Jews, for they had basically the same identical message. That's supernatural religion! That's the Holy Ghost.

11 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.

12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.

Look at verse 11 again. Here is the number one Christian, The Apostle Peter. And here is this man, Paul, who has never been taught about Jesus Christ by a human teacher. So when Peter came to Antioch, Paul got in his face. That was no small task, because if tradition is correct, Paul was a little Jew, small in stature. Peter, if tradition is correct, was a big man. When he stood up he could knock a hole in the ceiling. So here is this little Jew, Paul, getting right in Peter's face and reading him the riot act - again drawing the line in the dirt. Why did he do this? Because Peter was to be blamed. Why was he to be blamed?

Look at verses 12-13,

12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.

13 And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation.

When the "important" people were not around, Peter would eat with the Gentiles. But when the big Jewish delegates came from the First Church of Jerusalem, Peter shied away from the Gentiles, acting like they were dirty, and wouldn't eat with anybody but the Jews. Peter's leadership was so powerful that all the other Jews who had been eating with the Gentiles backed off with Peter and wouldn't have anything to do with the Gentiles. Paul got in his face about it. This would be the same as some of us being discriminatory over some other people who have a different skin color than we do, when in Christ all of us are one! Thank God for a man of God who battled more racial prejudice than we've ever seen. Paul drew a line in the dirt concerning this subject. He got right in Peter's face and said, "You're wrong!" Now look at verse fourteen:

14 But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?

He told Peter, "You're a hypocrite, brother." It took some backbone for that little Jew, Paul, to stand right in the face of probably the biggest Christian of that day, Peter, and call him a hypocrite.

Look at verses 15-16;

15 We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles,

16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

The Words Just, Justified, Justification, Righteous and Righteousness Are Translations of The Same Basic Greek Root Which Means "Cleared of All The Guilt of All Sins"

I dearly love verse 16. Look at the word justified - it's used three times in this verse. The words just, justified, justification, righteous and righteousness usually translate the same identical Greek word. That Greek word means "the clearance of all guilt". So what Paul is saying here is this - "Knowing that a man is not cleared of all guilt by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, now we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be cleared of all guilt by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be cleared of all the guilt of all their sins." This is what Paul taught. See the author's book, How To Exercise God's Megaton Power Now.

But the Judaizers-Unworthiness Peddlers were coming in behind him into the churches and saying, "Not so. You've GOT to keep the Jewish law as well as receive Jesus." Paul was showing how silly that doctrine was.

Read verses 17-18,

17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.

18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.

What is he saying in these two verses? He is saying to this group of false brothers who want to re-institute and re-impose the keeping of the Law as part of salvation, that the things that had been destroyed by Christ (the Law) were being built again by them, and why build those things up again which made them a transgressor. He asked them why they were putting themselves back under that which made them transgressors to start with. For Christ became the end of the law to everyone who believes. He said, "Why put yourselves back under that which condemns you (the Law) when it's already been torn down. Why build it over again?"

That would be like a fellow condemned to hang by the neck until he was dead. But then he received a pardon. However, the pardon included the stipulation that he dismantle the gallows. So he tears it down, but then turns around and builds it over again, puts the rope on it, steps up to it, puts it around his neck, and pulls the lever. He built again the thing he had torn down and it hung him.

Paul is saying that the gallows of the Law has been dismantled. Why do you want to build it back? That's what condemns you. Remember what he said in verse 16, "...by the works of the law shall no flesh be cleared of all the guilt of all their sins." It's by faith in Christ that we are cleared of all the guilt of all our sins. Praise you Lord!

To clear out the Unworthiness Peddlers, Paul had to get in their face. Unfortunately, this is the only way you will get rid of them also.

In the next section, we shall see Bible proof that your feelings of worthiness or unworthiness have absolutely nothing to do with your right to receive the healing and prosperity God promised you in the Abrahamic Covenant.

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