Luciusministry

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Monday, July 17, 2023

Justified by His grace

I do hope by now that we have a clear understanding and are able to stand firmly between the extremity of the rough and turbulent waters of legalism and the extremity of the calm, placid, but extremely toxic waters of liberalism because both are detrimental to our spiritual growth and can result in vain worship, idolatry, irreverence and provoking the Lord to jealousy.

Justification by grace does not nullify, or make obsolete the way of life which has been ordained for man to follow, neither has it given man the license to worship God according to the customs and traditions of men, for as it is written: “What then? Shall we sin (transgress the laws of God) because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that when you yield yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either slaves of sin, which leads to death, or slaves of obedience to the law of God, which leads to righteousness” (Romans 6:15-16).

The crux of the matter is, God has ordained one way of life for man to follow. For thus He said, “I gave them My statutes and made known to them My judgments, which, if a man does, he shall live, aspire, flourish by them” (Leviticus 18:5, Ezekiel 20:11, 13).

The Lord also said to Moses, “One ordinance shall be for you of the congregation and for the stranger who sojourns with you, an ordinance forever throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the stranger be before the Lord. One law and one custom shall be for you and for the stranger who sojourns with you” (Numbers15:15-16).

Man is a slave to either the insatiable desire of the flesh called sin, or a slave to obedience to the law of righteousness. One should not misconstrued the statement, “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes,” to mean that He is the end of the law of righteousness to everyone who believes. For it is written, “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law” (Romans 3:31).

The reality is, having been made free from the power and master of sin, one becomes a slave to righteousness; and having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, one has his fruit to holiness, and the end everlasting life. In other words, obedience leads to righteousness (the keeping of God’s commandments) produces holiness, and holiness culminates into everlasting life.

When one is a slave to sin [man’s sinful nature] he is free or far removed in regards to righteousness. In like manner, when one is a slave to righteousness he is free or far removed from sin. One must not negate practical righteousness which leads to holiness because of imputed righteousness as we have been admonished saying, “Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who practices righteousness is righteousness just as He Jesus Christ is righteous” (1John 3:7).

We have also been warned saying, “Whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew5:19).

On the other hand the legalists ought not to impose their strict observance to the law as though one’s salvation or eternal life hinges on them. Both extremes are wrong and dangerous. The law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine” (1Timothy 1:9-10).

The reason why the law is not for the righteous man it is because, the law as the tutor, guardian, school master, spiritual mirror, and revelator of sin has already pointed him/her to Christ, and since he/she has believed, he/she is now living within the confines of the law, by faith. The purpose for the grace of God is to cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. Because what we are is a gift from God, and what we become is a gift to God.

Because it was when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:4-7).

Therefore, if one desires to express his/her reverence, gratitude, adoration love and thanksgiving to God, it should be done on the day He has ordained and set aside for His glory and honor, for this is what the Lord says; “Keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary. I am the Lord.” This is how those who have turned the grace of God into licentiousness have denied the one and only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ who said, “The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Nevertheless, one has no right to command, coerce, or compel another to do what has been taught because, “The grace of God that bring salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness, and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.

The eagerness and desire to do what is good is derived not from law, command, coercion or compulsion but by faith and love. As it is written, “If you love Me keep My commandments,” and the eagerness to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Yes, let the grace of God cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God: Come, let us bow down in worship. Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care. Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Friday, July 14, 2023

The purpose of Grace

The purpose of grace

It is clear to me that the major cause of the divisions that exist in the church, the body of Christ and the catalyst for being guilty of such sins like irreverence, idolatry and provoking the Lord to jealousy stems from the misunderstanding and the improper application of grace:

Grace as we should know is a terminology that is frequently used in the religious circle, but it is unfortunately misapplied by many. Grace is God’s unmerited favor, mercy and compassion which He bestowed upon man for a distinctive purpose but it stands between two extremes.

The extremity of the rough and turbulent waters of legalism

Legalism is where God’s grace has been received in vain by those who attempt to be justified by the works of the law, and have unfortunately fallen from grace. Because, as it is written, “If anything is by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. And if anything is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work” (Romans 11:6).

The extremity of the calm, placid, but extremely toxic waters of liberalism

Liberalism is when the grace of God has been turned into a license for disobedience, and even denying the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ, by those who are using their liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, and as a pretext for evil. The grace of God is simply His unmerited, undeserved favor, compassion, and mercy which He bestowed upon humanity without their help and participation, for their ultimate salvation. This undeserved favor is descriptive of:

The favor of His only Begotten Son who reconciled us to the Father even when we were dead in trespasses and sins.
His gift of eternal life which according to the apostle John is that, we may know the Father, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom the Father have sent and that we can grope for Him and find Him,
His forgiving mercy, by forgiving us of the sins of the past, and being faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness if we confess our sins.
His divine gifts and talents, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue. He has given to all without exception, life, breath and all things.
The Gospel, the medium by which we can grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Because without faith it is impossible to please God, and faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Grace therefore establishes the foundation by which man can serve God, without his/her own input and involvement, so that no one can boast.

For it is written; “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior ” (Titus 3:4-6).

It is by grace we have been, and are being saved, through faith (hearing the word of God and believing), and this is not from ourselves, it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. But the reason why everything is by and through the grace of God it is because, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for the purpose of good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

We have been saved by grace so that those who have trusted in God by hearing and believing His word may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone. Doing what is good is not according to each man walking after the imagination of his/her own heart or doing what seems right in his/her own eyes, but doing and walking according to the good which has been prepared in advance for us to do. Because, there is a way which seems right to a man, but the end thereof is the way of death.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Friday, July 7, 2023

The seventh distinctive mark of the true church

The church is not in conformity to this world

It is hard for some people to conceive the idea how the church could be in the world, but not of the world. But Jesus said quite emphatically; “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:14-17).

The church because of her status, is a living sacrifice to God, and has been admonished saying; “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God”.

The church has been forewarned saying; "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities” (Romans 12:1-2; Revelations 18:4).

So although we have been duly instructed to submit ourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good: For this is the will of God, that by doing good we may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men ---as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king” (1Peter 2:13-17).

Nevertheless, when it comes to our human body and the way we think we are to be careful to present it as a holy living sacrifice to God which is our reasonable service, for this is the will of God, our sanctification: that we should abstain from sexual immorality; that each one should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.

The main reason why the church should not be in conformity to this world it is because, the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned and the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So the way the world thinks and the way the church thinks is contrary to each other.

For example, the world has just used a kidney from a genetically modified pig and implanted it in a human being, should the church, the body of Christ, the temple of the Holy Spirit subject themselves to such defilement? The church therefore should take cognizance of what they allow to enter and associate with their body and what laws they subject themselves to for we ought to obey God rather than man.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Tuesday, July 4, 2023

The sixth distinctive mark of the true church

f. The church is appointed to believe God's testimony regarding His Son\

Now the testimony which God has given us regarding His Son is that; “There are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one. If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son.

He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life' (1John 5:8-12).

God's testimony is that He has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. Now the Son in Whom we have life said quite emphatically, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

It is this testimony that has become to the Jews a stumbling block. For after hearing this statement, the Jews quarreled among themselves saying; “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?" And despite their rejection to the statement, the Lord reiterated it by saying; “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven --- not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever" (John 6:53-58).

To the Gentiles on the other hand this statement is foolishness, for after hearing Christ's statement they said; “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?" Now when Jesus noticed their apprehension, He said to them, "Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe."

Only the twelve disciples believed Jesus Christ, for it is stated that, “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?" But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom we shall go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." The sad thing is that, both Jews and Gentiles stumble at the Stone of stumbling and the rock of offense. They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.

I therefore beg to ask the question is this statement which was a stumbling block and a rock of offense to the Jews and Gentiles still a stumbling block and a rock of offence to us today?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00S9QXQ4E

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Saturday, July 1, 2023

The fifth distinctive mark of the true church

The church is appointed to be slaves of righteousness\

From the moment one is delivered from sin, he/she becomes a slave to righteousness, for it is written; “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:16-18).

One is either a slave of sin, or a slave of righteousness, and when one is a slave of sin he/she is free in regards to righteousness. In like manner, when one is a slave of righteousness, he/she is free in regards to sin. Now one becomes righteous by practicing the act of righteousness, for we have been admonished saying; “Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”

We have been further admonished saying; “In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother. For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another, not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother's righteous” (1John 3:10-12).

The righteousness of Abel came as the result of him offering to the Lord an offering that was acceptable to Him, For it is written; “By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks” (Hebrews 11:4).

We also have been imputed with righteousness; because of the acceptable sacrifice which Jesus Christ offered to the Father on our behalf, and it is this same acceptable sacrifice that we are required to offer to the Father continually in order to be righteous even as Christ Himself is righteousness.

For it is stated that; “For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) Therefore, as through one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation, even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men, resulting in justification of life: For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made righteous” (Romans 5:17-19).

Now, to those who despise the law and seems not to be able to understand the correlation between law and grace, I beg to ask the question, why is the law not made for a righteous person, but it is for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine (1Timothy 1:9-10)?

The answer to this seeming paradox to some is quite simple. The law is not made for a righteous person simply because the righteous person is already living within the confines of the law because, when we were slaves of sin (transgressing the law with impunity); we were free in regard to righteousness.

It is also very important to note and take into consideration that, it is by practicing and commemorating the act of righteousness by which man was imputed with righteousness that one maintains his/her state of righteousness.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1466328568

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Sunday, June 25, 2023

The fourth distinctive mark of the true church

The Church is appointed to be Ambassadors for Christ

It is the responsibility of the church to fulfill the Lord's commission which states; “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen (Matthew 28:18-20).

God has appointed the church as ministers of the New Covenant, and has been admonished saying; “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:5-6).

The church has been committed with the word of reconciliation, and has been instructed saying; “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2Corinthians 5:18-21).

At the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior we are to give thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:12-14).

At this juncture our citizenship is no longer that of this world; “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).

Therefore, as ambassadors for Christ the church have been given the full authority to represent Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God on earth and should be living and practicing the principles of Gods kingdom as their lifestyle and not that of this world which violates the principles of God, for we are to obey God rather than man.

Our responsibility therefore is to; submit ourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good: For this is the will of God, that by doing good we may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men ---as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king” (1Peter 2:13-17).

The church is not a replica of the Jewish religion, neither is it a replica of the Gentile pagan religion. The church is the Way that has been consecrated in the flesh of Jesus Christ to grant us bold access to the Father. The objective of this Way is to, open the eyes of men [Jews as well as Gentiles] and turn them from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ.

Therefore, as ambassadors of the kingdom of light we should have no affiliation with the political system of this world since the whole world is under the sway of the wicked one and Satan the dragon has given them his power, his throne, and great authority (1John 5:19; Revelation 13:2).

Our responsibility therefore is like that of all ambassadors which is to maintain diplomatic relations with the receiving state which in our case is the world and imploring them on Christ's behalf to be reconciled to God.