Lexzie in Christ

“Most of us read the Old Testament the wrong way.”

That statement, from a sermon, is seared into my mind.

“The entire Bible is not the Gospel. The entire Bible points to the Gospel.”

That statement from a separate video – not a sermon – is also imprinted in my memory.

Luckily, both quotes entered my life as I was seeking understanding about deceptive church teachings. Because of that desire, I wasn’t offended by these statements. They actually served as both confirmation and brand new information. (See: A piece of my testimony.)

Note: These speakers believe, as do I, that the entire Bible is good, true and without error. The use of the word “gospel” refers to the “good news” Gospel of Jesus Christ.

i.

This post will center around both of these quotes.

Let’s start by sharing the Gospel.

THE GOSPEL:

First, the bad news: We were born with our hearts turned toward sin; and unable to live into the good and perfect will of God. As He has before, God will eventually pour out His wrath and judgment on the earth. His impending wrath will be against sin and sinful humanity. And, not one of us is without sin. The Old Covenant required blood (animal) sacrifice for the forgiveness of sin.

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Now, the good news: God gives us the opportunity to be born again through His Son, Jesus Christ. Understanding that we are incapable of keeping His law, God created a New Covenant with us through Jesus. God sent His Son to live a sinless life, to be crucified on the cross, buried and then resurrected for the remission of our sins. It is the ultimate sacrifice. In Christ, we are saved, forgiven and made righteous in God’s eyes.

John 3:16-17, says: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

•••

Our salvation: God will eventually send His tangible judgment and wrath upon the world, but Believers are in the hands of the one and only savior; our advocate and intercessor.

In being saved, we receive the ultimate blessing of eternal salvation and the forgiveness of our sins. Our experiential blessings here on earth may fluctuate, and hardships will come due to typical life trials or as a result of sin. But we are granted a peace which truly surpasses all understanding.

•••

The good news is represented by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

You can try to preach around it, but this is the truth that is central to our faith. And to be saved, you must first understand and accept this.

“The entire Bible is not the Gospel. The entire Bible points to the Gospel.”

It is entirely possible to have a decent Bible teaching which is not actually a preaching of the Gospel. I will write an article, and link it here, about why an absence of the Gospel is dangerous to both Believers and to unbelievers who are seeking the truth.

ii.

Now let’s talk about how we read the Bible.

When reading the Old Testament, it is common practice for many preachers and group leaders to break down scripture by placing us in the center. It is common to read the story of David and Goliath and view ourselves as David. However, what the pastor pointed out in the aforementioned, incredible sermon is that: Reading Scripture through this lens is incorrect.

Of course, we relate to them. They are deeply flawed, often scared or insecure. All are prone to sin in some way. It makes sense that we would place ourselves in the center of these passages; viewing ourselves as “David” and our personal battles as “Goliath.” But, when we sit under these teachings long enough, the rendered message inadvertently places both the weight of the trial and the badge of triumph in our lap.

[This also leads into Eisegetical preaching. “Eisegesis is the process of interpreting text in such a way as to introduce one’s own presuppositions, agendas or biases.” – Wikipedia]

So, how should we read it?

Simply put, we need to remember that: JESUS IS ALWAYS THE HERO.

• Old Testament Hero (represents) Jesus

• Old Testament antagonist/enemy (represents) Satan or our battles

• Israelites (represent) us.

More deeply put, The Old Testament heroes all foreshadow Jesus. And, when we read these passages, that is the application which matters most because: Everything should point to the Gospel.

David, Moses, Jacob, Joseph were all real people whom God used prior to Jesus’ birth and ministry; with most of their stories revolving around the continued deliverance of the Israelites for His glory.

Just about every story showcases this dynamic of the chosen, yet sinful, body of Israel behaving in ways which betray God. Their sins often caused them great suffering, though God was still merciful in keeping His covenant. The Israelites would always inevitably call out to God for deliverance, and He showed His grace by using each of these figures. (Moses, David, etc.)

Therefore, we are to first and foremost view “David” as a representation of “Jesus,” and “Goliath” as the enemy. As the pastor explained, we are represented by the Israelites in the passage: God’s children – but perpetual sinners, often in over our heads, in the corner, trembling and in need of saving.

This truth struck me so heavily because it was freeing. It made me realize how thick the tension had been on my life when it comes to my personal trials. I’d been honest in my effort to submit to God. But, because I wasn’t submitted to Christ, I misinterpreted my role.

I thought that my job was to “strategize over my dilemmas in a Godly way.” And, I’d always viewed my role as “David” or “Gideon” – an often terrified, servant who God was arming to send into too big of a battle.

•••

Many Bible teachers place us in the center of the text and then – knowingly or unknowingly – gaslight us into believing that we lack faith if we feel nervous about a pending battle. The truth is: It is traumatizing to view yourself as both helpless and the lone fighter.

It is traumatizing. It is wrong. And it removes Christ from His rightful position in our lives – both as it relates to eternal salvation, and our personal trials.

iii.

What is our role?

So, if our job is not to fight the devil on our terms, then what are we to do?

One: We need to realize that: When we’re in Christ, we are no longer under the jurisdiction of the enemy. Jesus has already defeated Satan. We came into this cursed world, as sinners; and the enemy had certain power over us. But, upon accepting Christ, we are no longer subject to the devil – come eternity, nor while living on this earth. We need to get real clear about where there may be enemy presence in our life so that we are not entertaining what God has delivered us from. [Once you are saved, you are delivered. Not once you see progress. But once you are saved. Figure out how that applies to you and apply it.]

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Two: We are to realize that everything is a battle for our soul, or the souls of those around us. The devil will actively use, or sneakily capitalize off of our hardship. This is why we need to keep our eyes focused on Jesus. We don’t want to be led astray and we don’t want to lead others astray.

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Three: In his sermon, the pastor reiterated multiple times that God saves us for His glory. If you are a Believer, searching for your purpose, it is found all throughout Scripture. We were created to bring Glory to God and to spread the Gospel. That is the charge on our life. Our purpose is never going to be one that is solely self-fulfilling. God has placed hobbies and various things for us to indulge and find satisfaction in, but…:

Our ultimate job is to share His word. God does the drawing near of His saints. The Holy Spirit does the convicting. And Christ saves.

•••

Four: Now that we’re not obsessing over problems that are above our paygrade, we can devote time to learning how we’re supposed to show up as disciples and followers of Christ. We have room to deep-dive into the very things that Jesus has commanded us to do.

Deep Dive 1: Personally, I’ve been listening to a great expository teacher and pastor, who has incredible Bible Studies on everything from the Sermon on the Mount to a breakdown of the books of John, Romans and more. He delves into love, repentance, humility, justification and other deeply important concepts.

Expository teachers walk through the verses in context, without hyperbole and with strict adherence to its original meaning. These studies have deeply increased my humility, impacted my relationships, and have helped to shine a light on what is of utmost importance to God. [I will share links.]

Deep Dive 2: When we are focused on our job, we also have room to learn about where we stand on aspects of theology which don’t necessarily impact our being saved, but which can further encourage us in our faith walk. It is helpful to know where you stand on different topics such as, “Who gets saved?” “Can one lose their salvation?” and such. For one, it helps you to know if your church home and pastor align with your doctrinal beliefs. [I’ll create a list of some of these topics for your convenience.]

There are also some amazing sites which can elaborate on the different beliefs so that you may know where each denomination stands. But, no matter who your preacher is, you need to study the Word for yourself, in prayer.

iv.

Seek ye first the… what?

The Kingdom of God is priority. Therefore, Christ is priority.

Make no mistake, when it comes to our day-to-day and seasonal battles, God will communicate with us via the Holy Spirit. He will direct our path. He will tell us when to sit still and when to move on something. We are not going to be passive participants in our own lives; we are called to be actively obedient.

However, we will not be fighting our battles the way we think we’re supposed to. And we may not be called to fight the battle the same way each time. (Let us remember Moses’ striking of the rock.)

Because we will not be called to fight our battles the same way each time, it gives even more credence to the statement, “Many of us read the Old Testament the wrong way.”

If you’re reading the Old Testament as a blueprint for your next steps, you’re likely to come away with a mixture of Divinely-inspired truth and personal conviction that may not actually be from God. (Eisegesis.)

•••

Now, I do believe that when you’re earnestly seeking Him, God can use the Holy Spirit to meet you where you’re at. This is the only way to explain how I’ve continued to grow in my faith, albeit slowly, while in my former church home. I do believe that, as He’s drawing you to Him, you can still learn powerful truths, even if your method or approach is flawed, or outright wrong.

But, just know, the goal is not: Seek ye first the answer to your problems…

It is: Seek ye first the Kingdom of God.

Closing:

God is concerned – first and foremost – with our salvation. Though the enemy has no power over us, Satan will bring his distractions. Life will too. But… our salvation, the nurturing of other Believers, and the salvation of unbelievers… requires a level of laser focus on the Gospel. It requires constant reiterating of the narrow gate and narrow path.

It goes without saying that we are not perfect and we will never be. That’s not the point of being a Christian! Sin will always be tempting. But, we will not be content in our sin and we will be quick to repent. We’ll be quicker yet, when we stop placing ourselves at the center of every story and start pointing all things back to where they rightfully belong: to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Prayer:

I don’t know if I was saved before; despite always saying the salvation prayer at church. But, a few months ago, as God convicted me of all of this, I invited Jesus into my life right here in my living room. I said my own prayer as well as one that I found online. I’ll write out a prayer for you, if you would like to give your life to Christ.

I fully believe that those who are truly in Christ will never turn away or become apostate. (There are different beliefs on this.) I believe that once you really accept Him, you are regenerated, given a new heart and that you experience a new birth. I believe that if you are to deny Christ after having accepted Him, then there is a chance you were never in Him. (If I am wrong, then I humbly ask God for forgiveness on this, and I will edit as He convicts me.)

But at this point in my studies, I believe that when Christ says: “No one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:28), He is referring to those who are truly in Him. Not those who are deceived into thinking they are in Him. This would be what allows His statements in Matthew 24 to remain true: “At that time, many will turn away from the faith…” and “…false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

I believe that once you understand and decide to accept the truth of God’s love and His wrath, you will understand the need for Jesus, the Messiah. And once you understand and decide to accept Christ, you will be saved. And that is some blessed assurance.

On this site, I will be linking the Bible Studies, sermons, articles and resources. These links are those which I’ve found helpful ever since God convicted me to leave my church. I will also by writing original articles based off of studies and insights I’ve gleaned from my own personal Bible Study time. I’m so sure that there are other sites that you can visit to glean the same thing, but I am just really excited about all that God is doing in me, and this site is where I’ll share!