Lesson Two

Lesson One Lesson Two Lesson Three Lesson Four Lesson Five Lesson Six Lesson Seven Lesson Eight Lesson Nine Lesson Ten Lesson Eleven Lesson Twelve Lesson Thirteen Lesson Fourteen Lesson Fifteen Lesson Sixteen Lesson Seventeen Lesson Eighteen Lesson Nineteen Lesson Twenty

 

A Study Of The Cross Of Christ

Lesson Two - Redemption And The Cross

 

"‘It was only the Cross which could open those Pearly Gates.’ ". . . The only way those gates could open, is by what Jesus did at the Cross, hence our Redemption. We must never forget that! We must ever make that the centerpiece of all our Faith and confidence."

 

TEXT: Ephes. 2:8-10 - For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: [9] Not of works, lest any man should boast. [10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

        To begin this section, l want to share with you the words of one of the old hymns of the Church, "He the Pearly Gates Will Open." This beautiful hymn shows us graphically  what Jesus had actually done for us:

"Love Divine, so great and wondrous,

"Deep and mighty, pure, sublime;

"Coming from the Heart of Jesus,

"Just the same through tests of time."

"Love Divine, so great and wondrous,

"All my sins He then forgave,

"I will sing His Praise forever,

"For His Blood, His Power to save."

"He the pearly gates will open, so that

I may enter in;

"For He purchased my Redemption, and forgave me all my sin."

        "It was only the Cross which could open those Pearly Gates." The only way those gates could open, is by what Jesus did at the Cross, hence our Redemption. We must never forget that! We must ever make that the centerpiece of all our Faith and confidence. Everything hinges totally and completely on what Jesus did at the Cross which at the same time, of course, presupposes His Resurrection and Exaltation (Rom. 6:3-5; Eph. 2:6).

Ephes. 2:6
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Romans 6:3
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

        The first Three Chapters of Genesis contain the three Revelations of God which throughout the Bible figure in all God’s relations to man:

        All of this is played out one might say, under three headings. They are as follows:

        1. The serpent attempted to draw Eve into an alliance with him against God, but God will break up this proposed alliance. "I will put enmity between thee (Satan) and the woman (the One Who would come through woman, the Lord Jesus Christ), and between thy seed (the part of mankind who serves the Devil, which is the far greater majority) and her seed (the Lord Jesus Christ)" (Gen. 3:15).

        In other words, there will be a struggle between those who do not live for God, thereby rejecting God’s solution, the Lord Jesus Christ, and those who do accept Him. As stated, Satan generally works through intermediaries, the serpent here, but mankind who served him thereafter – and even some Christians.

        2. What will be the result of that conflict?

        First, victory for mankind, through man’s Representative, the Seed of the woman, the Lord Jesus Christ. "It (He, the woman’s Seed) shall bruise thy head (Jesus would bruise the head of Satan at the Cross)."

        Christ, the Seed of the woman, came into the world to crush the power of the Devil, which He did at the Cross (Isa. 7:14; Mat. 1:23-25; Lk. 1:31-35, 76; Rom. 16:20; Gal. 4:4; Col. 2:15; Heb. 2:14-15; I Jn. 3:8; 5:5; Rev. 12:7-8, 17; 20:1-3, 10).

        3. But the victory will not be without suffering. "And thou (Satan) shalt bruise His heel."

        At Calvary the serpent bruised the heel of the Seed of the woman; but that bruising has brought healing to mankind (Isa. 53:3-4, 12; Dan. 9:26; Mat. 4:1-10; Lk. 22:39-44, 53; Jn. 12:31-33; 14:30-31; Heb. 2:18; 5:7; Rev. 2:10).

        In Genesis 3:21, God killed an innocent creature in order to clothe those who were naked in His sight because of sin. In like manner, the Father gave up His Son, the innocent One, unto death in order to provide an atoning covering for the souls of men.

        This account in Genesis 3:21, presents the first picture of what it would take to redeem humanity. An innocent victim would have to die; however, it would have to be a victim Who would be perfect in every respect, which would make a suitable Sacrifice in order that the sin debt be paid and the Righteousness of God be satisfied. Man could not furnish that Sacrifice, such being impossible to him; therefore, God furnished the Sacrifice Himself, actually becoming man in order to pay this terrible price, which He did at the Cross.

        This of which we have just mentioned, was and is the greatest display of love that humanity has ever known and ever shall know.

The Cross Of Christ And Our Redemption

        While Jesus did many things as it regards Redemption, which includes His Virgin Birth, which of course was an absolute necessity, and as well, His sinless, perfect life, never falling one time to sin in any shape, form, or fashion. As well, He performed every type of miracle that one could begin to think; however, all of this, as important and necessary as it was, was ancillary to the main event, His Death on the Cross. The Believer must ever understand that.

        The Cross is to never be looked at as an incidental situation, in other words, just a part of all that Jesus did.

        Again I state, all that He did was of the utmost importance; however, if He had stopped short of the Cross, all of these other things as wonderful as they were, and even as necessary as they were, could not have redeemed one single soul. It took the Cross to do that, which the Believer must ever keep before him.

        The Believer must ever understand, that the Cross was necessary and I mean absolutely necessary, as it regards man’s initial Salvation, as well as it regards our continued victory. All "abundant life," all "rest," which Jesus promised (Jn. 10:10; Mat. 11:28-30), could come about only as a result of the Cross.

        When Believers think of the Cross, most of the time they think of it only in the capacity of the sinner initially coming to Christ. That is just about the entirety of the understanding of most Christians as it regards this all-important subject. Consequently, the Church, at least as it is regarded as a whole, mostly walks in defeat. The reason is this: While the Cross is definitely the foundation of the sinner’s conversion, it is also the foundation of the Christian’s victory. But most Christians don’t understand this. In fact, they have little or no knowledge whatsoever in this capacity.

        The first thing the Christian must do is to understand that when we say "the Cross," we are also at the same time speaking of the "Resurrection of Christ" and His "Exaltation." The latter refers to Jesus being seated presently at the Right Hand of the Father, actually with every Saint being seated with Him (Eph. 2:6). The idea is, and even as Paul explains it in Romans Chapter 6, we are "in Christ," meaning that in the Mind of God, and according to our Faith in that Finished Work, we were in Him when He died, meaning that God accredits what He did to us, in Him when He was buried, meaning that the old sinner with all its passions, sin, and pride were buried with Him, and in Him when He was raised from the dead, meaning that we were raised with Him in newness of life. Thereafter He ascended and now sits by the Right Hand of the Father in great victory, with every Saint, in effect, seated with Him.

        All of this pertains not only to the sinner coming to Christ, but to everything the Believer receives thereafter. In other words, all Victory is in the Cross, all overcoming power is in the Cross, all abundant life is in the Cross, meaning that every single thing we receive from the Lord from the time of conversion, comes through the Finished Work of Christ. But, as repeatedly stated, most Christians have absolutely no knowledge of the part played by the Cross after conversion. They think of the Cross only in the initial Salvation experience.

        Again, if most Christians think of the situation, they think only of some Christian who has failed the Lord and is hooked on some particular vice, etc. That person might need the Cross, but most Christians never put themselves in the category of needing what the Cross provides. In their minds, the Cross is conveniently tucked away in their initial Salvation experience, with the Holy Spirit now doing for them great and mighty things, of which the Cross plays no part.

The Cross And The Holy Spirit

        What most Christians don’t know is, that everything the Holy Spirit does for the Saint of God, He does within the parameters of the Finished Work of Christ. Paul distinctly said, "The Law (the Finished Work of Christ is a Law, actually the Law through which we receive everything from the Lord) of the Spirit of Life (the Holy Spirit) in Christ Jesus (meaning that this Law pertains solely to what Jesus did at the Cross and the Resurrection), has made me free (this alone) from the Law of sin and death" (Rom. 8:2).

Romans 8:2
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

        Pure, plain, and simple, the Holy Spirit will not work in any capacity outside of the Finished Work of Christ. Everything He does for the Believer, is predicated on that Work, and that Work alone. So, whether the Christian knows it or not, understands it or not, the Holy Spirit functions within us only according to what Jesus did at the Cross on our behalf, and our Faith in that Cross. Consequently, if we don’t have the proper Faith, and by that I mean Faith in the Cross, and on a continuing basis, the Holy Spirit, even though residing in our hearts and lives at all times, will simply not work on our behalf. Why?

        All of this of which we speak, one’s victorious life in Christ, actually pertains to our Sanctification. I speak of the Believer becoming more and more Christlike, with Righteousness and Holiness more and more developed within our hearts and lives, with the Saint walking in victory over Satan in every capacity. That’s what the true Christian wants and desires.

        However, too often we try to secure these things in all the wrong ways. And what do I mean by that?

        Many Spirit-filled Christians, simply think that once they have the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking with other Tongues, than everything is then automatic. The Truth is, nothing is automatic. Consequently, there are millions of Spirit-filled Christians, who are walking in victory little more, if at all, than the Christian who is not Spirit-filled. In fact, due to the ignorance of the Cross and all it provides, this is the case with most Spirit-filled Christians I think! So, none of this is automatic, but rather demands our Faith in the Cross.

        However, one cannot really have Faith in something, of which one knows little about. And to be sure, most Christians, even as we have stated, know little or nothing as it regards the Cross in their everyday experience.The result is, Spirit-filled Preachers and Laity are failing right and left. The major Pentecostal Denominations don’t know what to do about the situation, so they try to brush it under the rug, even living in a state of denial.

        In this capacity, not knowing why the people are failing, and most of the time looking at the situation totally wrong, there is no restoration effort whatsoever. In fact, most don’t even really know how to restore anyone, simply because they don’t know why the person failed to begin with. Not realizing that almost all failures in the lives of Christians, even the strongest Christians (and I’ll explain that later), come about because of a lack of understanding of God’s prescribed order of victorious living according to what Jesus did for us at the Cross, and our Faith which should be totally in that, they keep making the same mistakes over and over. They keep trying to live this life by their own strength, and are doomed to failure.

        The tragedy is, we don’t realize we’re trying to do it by our strength. We cover up our efforts with all type of Scriptures and thereby think what we’re doing is Scriptural. It isn’t, at least most of the time!

        With most so-called Christian Leaders having a totally erroneous conception of the Cross, they at the same time, have an erroneous conception of almost everything else as it pertains to Christianity. The idea is, if our view of the Cross is skewed, meaning that we do not understand the part it plays in not only our initial Salvation experience, but also our continued victorious walk in Christ, everything else will be out of kilter as well.

        That doesn’t mean that the person isn’t saved, but it does mean, that the individual doesn’t see things right, consequently doesn’t deal with things in a right way. As a result, these Religious Leaders mostly want to do away with Preachers who fail in any capacity, simply because they don’t know what to do. They do not at all understand Paul’s admonition of Restoration in Galatians 6:1. They can think in terms only of punishment, simply because they have a wrong viewpoint of the entire matter. Consequently, you’ve got sinful men attempting to punish sinful men, with most of the time the ones doing the punishing in a far worse spiritual shape than the ones they are punishing. The upshot is, neither one knows what is happening. The one who has failed really doesn’t know why he has failed, especially considering that he has tried so hard not to fail. The ones doing the punishing, because they think they must punish the one who has failed, are completely unscriptural in their activities, yet most of the time, don’t know what else to do.

Redemption And Our Own Strength

        Most Christians attempt to be an overcomer, to walk victorious, in their own strength. They don’t realize they’re doing this, but that’s actually what is happening. We’ll begin our explanation in the following manner, and perhaps it will be easier to understand.

        If one is not walking in victory before the Lord, and I mean victory over the flesh in every capacity, then it means that one does not properly understand the part the Cross plays in our everyday experience. Not understanding the Cross, there is only one alternative left to us, and that is to try to do the thing within our own strength, which is impossible to begin with. The Christian can no more sanctify himself by his own strength, than the sinner can save himself by his own machinations, of whatever sort. However, we have Christians trying to sanctify themselves, just as there are millions in the world trying to save themselves by their own good works, etc. While Believers plainly tell the unsaved that it’s not possible to be saved in that manner, at the same time, many of us turn right around and try to bring about victory in our lives in the same manner – by our own self-efforts, etc. We do these things, because we don’t know God’s prescribed order of Victory. We are consequently doomed to failure in this capacity, just exactly as the sinner is doomed to a failure of Salvation. While the Believer does remain saved, even though he does not understand God’s correct way of victory, still, his life is not what it ought to be, in fact, falling far short.

        All of this is so needless, so useless, especially considering, what Jesus has done for us in order that we might have all that we need. Regrettably, Satan has been very successful in blinding the Church to its True Source of Victory, which is the Cross, and I might quickly add, the Cross alone. There is no other way of Victory.

        At this moment as I dictate these notes, and for the last several years, hundreds of thousands in the Church have been trekking all over the world looking for particular manifestations. In the mid 1990’s it was the "holy laughter" thing. Then it was the "slain in the Spirit" thing, which in fact, has been a part and parcel of this of which we speak all along.

        The truth is, while some of these manifestations are definitely real, in other words they are of the Lord (at least those which really are), they are not the answer to this of which we speak. And yet, untold numbers of Christians think in their minds, that if they can just receive this phenomenon, whatever it is, it will give them victory.

        I have heard the testimonies of scores who have traveled to particular places, in essence saying, "I’ve got to get something from the Lord, or else I don’t think I can make it any further," or words to that effect. I’m not speaking only of the Laity, but Preachers as well.

        To be sure, their hunger and thirst are commendable; however, even if they receive this of which we speak, they will not get that for which they seek, which is a victorious, overcoming, Christian life. That can be found only in the Cross of Christ.

        In the last couple of years I have watched some Christians with particular problems in their lives, whether of alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, immorality, or other things that we could name. In other words, they were struggling with this situation in whatever capacity that Satan had attacked them. They were losing, even as they could not help but lose. No one may know about the situation, but that doesn’t make it any less real and any less destructive

        The modern Church not knowing how to handle the problem, mostly advocates humanistic psychology as the answer. I would hope that the doing of this is because of ignorance on the part of God’s True Way, rather than unbelief. If it’s unbelief, then the situation is critical indeed!

        As a result of this, and if psychology is really the answer, then almost all Christians should be seeing a Psychologist somewhere, because almost all Christians are walking in failure in one way or the other. Yes, there are some Christians walking in victory, but not many!

        I’ll say it again, if the Believer doesn’t know and understand God’s Way of Victory which is only through the Cross, then victory is not obtainable. And due to the Church having had such little teaching on the Cross in the last nearly half century, the last two generations of Christians have almost no knowledge on this all-important subject.

        Others try to gain victory in various ways. We do so through trying to become more and more holy. By that I mean we try to pray more, or be more faithful to Church, or give more money, or fast more. In fact, there are untold numbers of Christians at this very moment, who think that if they could just fast long enough, five days, ten days, etc., they would solve the problem that is threatening their very Christian experience.

        While all of these things are very important in their own way, and should be done by Christians, they are not God’s order of Victory. If any of these things were, then Jesus did not have to come down here and die on a Cross. In other words, He died in vain, i.e., "uselessly." All He should have done was to instruct us more perfectly on these various efforts, etc.

God's Order Of Redemptive Victory

        As we’ve stated repeatedly, the way of Victory is the Cross, and what do we mean by that?

        The answer that I will give you, was given to me by the Lord as a result of Revelation. Don’t misunderstand! It is not new, actually being the very foundation of the Christian Faith.

        Now let me deal just a moment with the term "strong Christian."

        Some paragraphs back, I made mention that even strong Christians can live a life of failure. That may seem to be a contradiction in terms, but it actually isn’t.

        When I say "strong Christian," I’m referring to one who is dedicated to the Lord, totally consecrated to the purpose of Christ, totally desiring to walk before the Lord in all Righteousness and Holiness.

        One may read that sentence carefully, and think, "It’s impossible for that type of Christian to fail!" However, it isn’t impossible, in fact, it happens constantly!

        All of these things we have named, consecration, dedication, sincerity, etc., in other words, actually struggling with all of one’s strength to walk as close to the Lord as is possible, as noble and worthy as all of these things are, none of this is God’s prescribed order. Don’t misunderstand, such things are definitely necessary and, therefore, definitely commendable, but within themselves, will not bring victory. That confuses us, because we think if that won’t bring victory, what will?

        That’s at least one of the reasons that it’s so very wrong to punish a person of this nature when they fail. What good is punishment going to do? They didn’t fail because they wanted to fail. In fact, they failed despite doing everything they knew to do to not fail.

        Now, some can laugh at that, claiming it’s not so. But the truth is, it is so, and not only occasionally so, but actually far more often than one thinks.

        I am reminded of D. L. Moody, when he finally understood, what is actually what we’re speaking of here. It is said that when the Revelation came to him, he ran out of his hotel room actually running down the street shouting, "Grace, Grace, Grace!" Moody's exclamation of joy came at the fact he realized three things that we must never forget today:

        Don’t misunderstand, by no means are we demeaning Prayer and Fasting, etc. In fact, once one understands the rudiments of the Cross as he should, there will even be more Prayer and Fasting, etc., but in the right way.

FAITH

        I have mentioned Faith several times. All Christians have Faith (Rom. 12:3). The problem is, that most of the time their Faith is misplaced. Consequently, it is Faith that God will not, and in fact, cannot honor. The Believer’s Faith at all times must be anchored in the Cross. However, Satan has been very successful in moving our Faith away from the Cross to other things.

        To be sure, these "other things" seem to be very attractive and have a great allurement, but in reality, are unscriptural.

        What am I talking about?

        In fact, in the last nearly 50 years, there has been more teaching on Faith than perhaps all the other centuries since the Cross put together. Regrettably, most of the time it has been the wrong kind of teaching. As a result, the Church has misplaced its Faith. We have faith in our faith. We have Faith in what we claim to be the Word of God, but really isn’t.

The Word Of God And The Cross

        We Christians think that just because someone says they are basing what they do on the "Word," then it must be Scriptural. Sometimes it is, many times it isn’t.

        Christians are bad about pulling Scriptures out of context, attempting to force those particular Promises into things of our own making and devising. In other words, we attempt to use God’s Word against Himself. To be sure, the Lord will not allow such a thing. What I’m saying is this:

        Even though Mark 11:24 says, "What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that you receive them, and ye shall have them," such does not present a blank check in the realm of whatever we desire, as many think. In other words, one cannot use that Scripture and become the President of the United States, even though it might be what one desires. Every Promise in the Word of God is always predicated on the Will of God, and even the Wisdom of God. We must never forget that. He will never allow immature Christians to subvert His Word according to their own foolishness, etc.

        Now let’s go to the next step:

        The Word of God is totally and completely anchored in the Cross, meaning that all of it is predicated on the Finished Work of Christ. It is impossible to divorce the two – the Cross and the Word. As we’ve already stated, "Cross" and "Gospel" are so synonymous, that when one says one, one has said the other.

        The very first Promise given in the Word of God pertains to Redemption (Gen. 3:15). Thereafter, the entirety of the Word concerns itself with Redemption. Almost all of the Old Testament concerns itself with the Law, which had at its foundation the Sacrifices, which were symbols of the coming Crucifixion of Christ, which was an absolute necessity for man to be redeemed. In other words, that’s the story of the Bible, the Redemption of mankind.

        In the fullness of time, Jesus came in order to carry out this Redemption, which He would do totally at the Cross. Consequently, when the New Covenant was given, it consisted of Faith in what Christ did at the Cross, symbolized by the two Ordinances of the Church, "Water Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper."

        But here is what the Bible says about the Word and the Cross:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

"The same was in the beginning with God.

"All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made."

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His Glory, the Glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of Grace and Truth" (Jn. 1:1-3, 14).

        The "Word (The Lord Jesus)" being made "flesh," was for but one purpose, and that was to redeem mankind by dying on a Cross. Consequently, it is impossible to divorce the Word from the Cross, or the Cross from the Word. In fact, they are as stated, synonymous. So what am I saying?

        I am saying, that if we do not understand the Word of God in relationship to the Cross of Christ, and the Cross of Christ in relationship to the Word of God, then our understanding is not what it ought to be, and we will suffer consequences.

        Every single Promise given to the human family, is found in the Word of God, for that is the Word. However, for that Word to be made real, it can only be made real in the Finished Work of Christ. In effect, without the Cross, one could say there is no Word, at least that which will benefit the Saint. Of course, the Word of God has been and is and ever shall be, eternal. But it comes to the Child of God through the Cross of Christ, and only through the Cross of Christ, i.e., "The Finished Work of Christ."

        So when we say, "We are basing everything we do on the Word," it must be understood that the Word becomes effective, only as we understand the Cross, the Finished Work of Christ. In effect, one might say that Jesus, the Word, and the Cross are synonymous. They must not be divorced in any manner. If in fact that is the case, then it becomes "another Jesus, another spirit, another gospel" (II Cor. 11:4).

        In fact, one of the greatest efforts of Satan is to divorce Jesus from the Word, and the Word from the Cross. The entirety of everything is Jesus, Who is the Living Word, and what He did at the Cross.

        As a result, when someone says that they "know the Word," it must be understood as to what manner they know the Word. Unfortunately, many know the Word as it corresponds to some particular doctrine they are attempting to promote. In fact, that’s the case with most.

        The Word of God can only truly be known and understood, as we understand it in the realm of what Jesus did to redeem humanity by His Death and Atoning Sacrifice on the Cross. Of course, Jesus has always existed as God, and the Word is eternal as well. The secret is, that all of this has come to us, both the Revelation of Christ and the Word of God, through the Redemptive Work of Christ, and by no other means. If we try to learn all of this by any other method, or any other way, pure and simple we have a perverted gospel.

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