Simplicity of the Gospel

Gospel Simplified!?!?

According to the scripture, I am in right standing with God because I believe Him and accept what He says.  He is the creator, He made the rules, and He knows how His creation operates.  So if I believe Him, then I will obey Him by following His commands.  When I  follow His commands, I will be purified.  As I obey, I grow up, I mature in my spirit, and I love other believers; so that by that love, the world will know that I follow Christ.  As the body, we are joined together to become a place for the Lord to dwell in His Holy Temple.  This is true individually also.  We are able to go to war against the enemy of our soul.  We can even take our own thoughts captive and make those thoughts line up with what Christ says in the word.  We dress ourselves up in Christ with the full armor for our battle against the evil in this world, and we put on our shoes of peace so we can GO into the world that sees who we belong to by our love for each other, and draw them out of darkness(world) into the light(love/peace).  We then teach and immerse them in all that God is.  We teach them the commands and encourage them to obey them.  Then as they grow up in their faith, they will GO and draw others out of darkness to light and so on and so on….

See all the scriptures referenced below.

Belief >> Righteousness:  God decided to accept Abraham's belief as his righteousness. (Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Gen 15:6; Gal 3:6)

Belief >>  Salvation:  God decided even though we don't deserve it, to save us because we believe.  (We are saved by grace through faith. Eph 2:8)

• How can I let the word dwell in me?  By reading it. By obeying it, and obeying it is doing what it says. (Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. Col 3:16a; Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves.  Do what it says. Jas 1:22 If you Love me, you will obey me.  Jn 14:15)

Obedience >> Purification: We are able to be purified when we obey the truth/word.  Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere...

When we obey the truth we will love one another.  ... Love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart...   We get rid of all the things that can hinder our purification.  Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.   And we are to grow up in our salvation.  Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.  1Peter 1:22-23; 2:1-2

The world will be able to see we belong to Christ by our love for our brothers and sisters in Christ.  By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.  Jn 13:35

Christ is like the mortar that holds all the living stones together in a bond of unity.  In him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.  Eph 2:21-22

Remember that the weapons are spiritual.  We are able to conquer our thoughts that pretend to be bigger than God by making our thoughts line up with the what Christ says.  We need to make our thoughts obey Christ.  For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.  On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.  We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.  2 Cor 10:3-5

Scripture tells us to put on love, put on Christ and put on armor of God etc. If we just deal with getting rid of our sinful behavior, yet do not take the time to put on all we are commanded, we will stand naked before our enemy and be very vulnerable. Therefore put on the full armor of God... with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.  In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.  Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  Eph 6:13-17

As our feet are fitted and ready, we go to the world with our good news not just on our lips, but also demonstrated in our actions.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you... Matt 28:19-20

Things to Put On According to the Scriptures

The following scriptures are action scriptures that tell us to put on something.  If you are jumping out of an airplane, you will want to PUT ON your parachute.  Let's see what we need to put on to jump into our day.

OT

Job 29:14 NAS

"I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; My justice was like a robe and a turban.

·         Isaiah 51:9 NAS

Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD ; Awake as in the days of old, the generations of long ago. Was it not You who cut Rahab in pieces, Who pierced the dragon ?

·         Isaiah 59:17 NAS

He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head ; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.

 Ezekiel 42:14 NAS

"When the priests enter, then they shall not go out into the outer court from the sanctuary without laying there their garments in which they minister, for they are holy. They shall put on other garments ; then they shall approach that which is for the people."

·         Ezekiel 44:19 NAS

"When they go out into the outer court, into the outer court to the people, they shall put off their garments in which they have been ministering and lay them in the holy chambers ; then they shallput on other garments so that they will not transmit holiness to the people with their garments.  

My pondering (So does our garments that we PUT ON spiritually transmit holiness?)  HMMM

NT

Romans 13:14 NAS

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

·         1 Corinthians 15:53 NAS

For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.

·         1 Corinthians 15:54 NAS

But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put onimmortality, then will come about the saying that is written, "DEATH IS SWALLOWED UP in victory.

·         Ephesians 4:24 NAS

and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.

·         Ephesians 6:11 NAS

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

·         Ephesians 6:14 NAS

Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,

·         Colossians 3:1 NAS

[Put On the New Self] Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

·         Colossians 3:10 NAS

and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him-

·         Colossians 3:12 NAS

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience ;

·         Colossians 3:14 NAS

Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

·         1 Thessalonians 5:8 NAS

But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.