Affirm Truth

AffirmTruth.org is a Christian, evangelical, theologically conservative, and non-denominational ministry, based out of Chennai, India.

Tag: morality

Grace over karma – what’s the deal?

Posted by on in Blog Post1 Comment

                                                

Karma sounds like a fair deal every time we hear about it.It is easy for our minds to comprehend and agree with the law of karma. If a person does bad, he is held responsible for what he did and reaps bad in the next birth out of the bad he sowed in the previous birth. This cycle of rebirths continue until one has come out clean – moksha.

But we see that the Bible clearly states that we will all die once and after that stand in front of God’s throne for judgment. This shows that the law of karma where by people take rebirth into something based on their previous life is not true. We all have one life to live and we will be judged on that – whether we lived wisely or foolishly.

Hebrews 9:27

27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

2Corinthians 5:10

10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us(K) for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Does the above verse mean that we will be saved by doing good? – by no means.

But the judgment mentioned in the above verse is for already saved believers to give an account of what he did with his life here on Earth. Whether he used this life to do good works or spent it foolishly and he will be rewarded accordingly but this does not decide his eternal destiny.

If we were to be saved based on all our thoughts and deeds then, I would say – God save us!

And most fortunately, that is what He does – God saves us from all our sins!

Matthew 1:21

She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

 The Bible puts forward a truth that is contradictory to the law of karma. Here, we see Jesus paying the price for the sins of all mankind with His own life once and for all. Love so great seems incomprehensible to our minds and rightly so.

Because why would God care to take away the sins of wretched men?

Moreover, why would God pay it with Heaven’s best, His only Son – Jesus?

The answer is found in John 3:16

John 3:16

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.

God                                                          

 – The Almighty Authority

So loved the world                                

– the mightiest motive

That He gave His only begotten Son       

 – the Greatest gift

That whoever                                           

– the widest welcome

Believes in Him                                        

– the easiest escape

Should not perish                                 

 – the divine deliverance

But have everlasting life                     

 – the priceless possession

This is the unmerited grace of God.

Ephesians 2:8-9

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

We have been saved by the incomparable riches of His grace.  All we must do is humbly accept this gift of God that was offered to each one of us at the cross of Calvary.

There Jesus bled and died to make atonement for the sins of all mankind. He was stripped, spat on, flogged, whipped,  mocked,  struck, a crown of thorns was set on His head and when He could hardly stand, they placed a heavy cross on His back to be carried from Jerusalem to Golgotha, where He was to be crucified.

Finally, they nailed Him to that cross and crucified Him. The all-powerful God took upon Himself the most pitiful death for you and me.  But with this sacrifice He nailed to the cross the power of sin and death. He knew it was impossible for us to save ourselves, so He took our place on the cross. Forgiveness from sins and adoption as God’s children is offered to us for free because of the price Jesus already paid.

To ignore this greatest gift of grace – salvation, would be to ignore the real essence of life.

Accept His grace over your life and live life knowing that you are forgiven and accepted by God. There is no sin He has not paid for. Repent of your sins and humbly accept the forgiveness that Jesus offers for those who believe in His finished work on the cross.

Don’t worry if people condemn your life and actions as beyond forgivable, because there is a God who paid it all just for you. He can transform every broken relationship that is beyond cure. He can change situations for you because God sees what man cannot see – He sees your heart.

1Samuel 16:7

The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

This new year accept Jesus as your personal savior and Lord.

Romans10:9

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

“Grace” is only another word and can never be explained completely in words unless experienced in life.

Live this life knowing that you are forgiven, accepted and dearly loved by God – this is the real deal!

Heresy or Hypocrisy – which is better?

Posted by on in Blog PostLeave a comment

Heresy and Hypocrisy are plagues that rock the foundation of Christian living and morals if not addressed properly. Both of these moral failures have brought down some of the finest men and women in Christianity today. However , if we are asked to choose between them- which one would you choose? Or would you even want to choose?

What is it meant to be heretic and hypocrite?

A hypocrite is a person who knows the truth and believes the truth, but doesn’t live by it.

A heretic changes the truth according to how he lives. 

Let us look at some examples of hypocrisy and heresy in churches or Christendom today to understand it better.

  • Hypocrites may fornicate, murder and steal, but they would never teach that fornication, murder and stealing are good. That’s what a heretic would do.
  • A hypocrite may have sexual misconduct with someone else’s spouse, but he/she knows it is wrong. A heretic has sexual misconduct and says, “It is necessary for the church to be welcoming and ignorant to those who have experienced difficulties and pain in keeping their marriage bond.”
  • A hypocrite may experience same sex attraction and have sexual relations with another man/woman, but he/she then goes to confession and realizes that what he/she has done is wrong. A heretic says, “The church needs to be more up to date in understanding of human sexuality.”
  • A hypocrite never gives money to the poor, hoards all his wealth, and plots to get as rich as he/she can, but when he/she looks in the mirror and in the bank account he/she has a twinge of guilt and knows he/she is a greedy and a hypocrite. The heretic says, “God has blessed me! I can enjoy as much I want with what God has blessed me with , there is nothing wrong in it.”
  • The hypocrite has a chance of repentance for he/she still knows that what he/she has done is wrong. The heretic condones his sin, calls evil good and good evil and prides himself on his brave and daring decision.
  • The heretic challenges biblical teachings. The hypocrite is challenged by the teachings.
  • The hypocrite follows biblical teachings even when he fails to follow the teachings whereas the heretic never follows the biblical teaching while pretending that he does follow the teachings.

Note that we all are vulnerable and the above mentioned scenarios of heresy and hypocrisy can be committed by anyone at all levels whether its a ministry , church , a believer or individual minister in any position or authority.

“The interesting fact to note is that hypocrites are some how seen more lovable than the heretics because, if they have any self awareness at all, they know themself as a hypocrite and know that they have failed to observe the teachings in which they believe. And since, its a question of self evaluation and awareness there sins are sometimes hidden from the eyes of the public, christian community or society. But, the heretic on the other hand is an odious, rebellious and proud character–full of his own ideas and ready to re-write the faith for his own benefit. Which makes them easily noticeable. That’s why its harder to notice a hypocrite than a heretic.“

Now with all this said, whom would you support to be better? Or is it even right to make this judgement?

I believe it is not right for any of us to give a judgement. We all sometimes fight hypocrisy in our own life and it’s something we have to overcome by the Grace of God. And we have to be really grounded and humble ourselves in scriptures to make sure we are not a heretic. In my opinion both heresy and hypocrisy are severe moral failures that we all have to be aware as Christians and be on guard all our life.

So, may i conclude this article by writing that as a believer(including me) who so ever we might be or no matter how big or small position we hold in the Christian ministry, we are accountable completely and fully to the teachings of the Holy Bible. We have no other truth to teach but the truth of the Christian Faith as presented in the Bible. We must not be biased or have opinions.But our discernment must be based only on the teachings of the Bible. However, in honesty – living in this fallen world is not easy and we might fail to live up to those teachings sometimes hence, in the process become a hypocrite. But there is a hope and chance for repentance through Gods grace and the blood of the Savior Lord Jesus Christ. And everyone of us should confess, repent and pray with this hope for the hypocrisy in our own lives and hypocrisy in others.

As far as for heresy there might not be hope if its not identified as a sin and evaluated for repentance.Heretics in that case are only pushing themselves towards judgement from the Lord and God himself when he comes back and he is coming soon. A role of a non-heretic believer should be to guard themselves from heresy and point out sin with respect and gentleness whenever possible and pray for Gods salvation to come through.

But in any circumstance, we should be very careful to not become judgemental. It is not for us to pass on judgement on others. But instead love and compassionately care with support and prayer for those who are gripped by these moral issues.

In the words of Jesus,

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?How can you say to your brother, `Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:1-4