Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Poor (08/29/24)
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TITLE: From Rags To Riches | Previous Challenge Entry
By Doug Laird
09/02/24 -
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To be poor suggests that one is lacking in some of the basic essentials.
I must concede that I always had a hard time understanding how being poor (lacking) in spirit could be considered something to be desired or envied.
That was, until I learned the role that humility plays in the understanding of the unadulterated Gospel Message.
As long as we think we are otherwise worthy, and or that salvation can be obtained and or retained through human effort, good behavior, good deeds, or the Mark 7: 7 religious traditions/commandments of men, we will not perceive our Eph. 2: 12 hopelessness, our John 3: 7 need, or the John 14: 6 exclusive means to be saved.
The Lord Jesus Christ did for us what we, as fallen Man, could have NEVER done for ourselves.
We are “blessed” when we come to realize just how spiritually poor we really are, because it is then that we discover our need to be born-again, and the one and only means (1) to do so.
It is not until one realizes that he or she came into this world spiritually dead, and that only by being born again can he or she enter the kingdom of heaven, that one can come to understand the significance of the unadulterated Gospel Message.
No amount of good behavior, good deeds, or participating in religious traditions of men can generate as much as one second of eternal life.
Eternal life is an unearned, undeserved, gift from God that He bestows upon those who are born again.
The unadulterated Gospel Message teaches that salvation is based on faith alone in the divine Person and the atoning Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing more; nothing less.
Salvation is the greatest rags to riches story that can ever be told.
The instant one is born-again, one goes from being spiritually dead (the poorest spiritual status) to being the recipient of a regenerated spirit (2), a sealed (baptized) soul (3), and becomes the recipient of the priceless gift of eternal life.
Whenever a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g else is added to the unadulterated Gospel Message, presumably for one to obtain or to retain salvation, it becomes “another gospel” spoken of in such passages as Gal. 1:6-9.
Placing one’s full trust and confidence, to the exclusion of all other means, is what the Bible is talking about when it says one must believe in the unadulterated Gospel Message in order to become a born-again recipient of eternal life (4).
Diabolically induced confusion enters the picture when eternal security is understood to be a license to sin, or when false religious activity adds to the faith alone principle of the unadulterated Gospel Message.
Eternal security is not a license to sin. Although there is no eternal condemnation (5), there ARE other consequences that divine discipline (6) will bring into the earthly experience of born-again believers who commit sin.
When (7) born again believers sin, they step out of fellowship with God, and remain so until the sin is confessed(8).
During periods of time in which born again believers are out of fellowship with God, their (9) productivity and accompanying heavenly reward (10) and privileges (11) will be impacted.
Confessing, but then not forsaking (12) the same sin will result in spending a lot of time going around and around in a revolving doorway, going in and out of fellowship, but never moving forward in the plan of God.
There is nothing wrong with enjoying legitimately obtained earthly prosperity (13), but Scripture warns about becoming earthly rich at the expense of remaining or becoming spiritually poor.
“…you say, “I am rich, am have become wealthy, and have no need of anything,” and you do not know that you are (spiritually) wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3: 17 NASB2020 parenthesis mine).”
Many professing Christians can tell you off the top of their head what the balances are, in their earthly financial accounts, and the value of their assets, but couldn’t tell you when the last time it was, that they made a deposit (14) in their account in Heaven.
Some aren’t even aware that such an account even exists.
In conclusion, it is wise to acknowledge our spiritual poverty, as this is the first step in understanding the unadulterated Gospel Message.
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(1) John 14: 6 (2) Titus 3: 5 (3) Eph. 4: 30 (4) John 3: 16, 18 (5) Rom 8: 1 (6) Heb.12: 5 (7) 1John1: 8 (8) 1John 1: 9 (9) Matt. 13: 23 (10 ) 1Cor. 3: 14 (11) Rev 2/Rev. 3 (12) John 8: 11 (13) 3 John 1: 2 (14) Matt 6: 20
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Blessings
A beautiful verse for this subject is Proverbs 9:10, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..." Fearing God is not the end goal, love is (one of the ways to add to our Heavenly account!). Yet, fearing Him will show us how desperate/poor we are for His grace.
Very well done.