“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” (Galatians 6:7-8 ESV)
There is a good reason this begins with “Do not be deceived,” and that was back then, and this is now when it appears that the vast majority of those professing faith in Jesus Christ are indeed deceived into thinking that their sins and their actions and the words that they speak will not matter to God on the day of judgment. For they have been convinced that a mere profession of faith in Jesus Christ is enough to secure heaven for them even if they continue in deliberate and habitual sin and not in obedience to God.
For this is the modern gospel that is being taught today that we can just “believe” (rarely biblically defined) in Jesus Christ, and now all our sins are forgiven (past, present, and future), and heaven is now secured for us, and it can’t be taken away, but regardless of how we live. And this is taught largely with the use of Scriptures taught out of context and twisted to say what they do not say in context. For example, the promise in John 10:28-30 is to be prefaced with the conditions (recipients) mentioned in John 10:27.
So the message clearly being spoken here is in reference to those who make large professions of faith in Jesus Christ but who do not do what God requires of them in the way of obedience and repentance and submission to him as Lord, and in the way of surrender of their lives to the will of God in obedience to his commands under the New Covenant. And they may even be those who put on shows of righteousness in front of others hoping to deceive them into thinking that they are righteous, but it is all a lie.
And then, even some of those who know the truth that God is going to judge them if they do not repent, and if they do not walk in obedience to his commands, will lie to themselves and will convince themselves otherwise. And they will come up with all sorts of excuses for why they are still living in slavery to sin and for why their lives are not surrendered to Christ, and for why they are not walking (in conduct, in practice) in obedience to the Lord. Yet, they will still claim that they are God’s beloved.
So the warning here is to not delude yourself into thinking that God will not do what he said in the Scriptures that he will do to those who refuse him and who will not repent of their sins and who think that God will do nothing about it. For God cannot be mocked by such vain pretenses, for he knows our hearts. He sees everything we do, and he hears every thought that we think and every word that we speak, and he knows what is going on behind closed doors in secret places where other humans cannot see.
For whatever we sow to our flesh, from the flesh we will also reap. And whatever we sow to the Spirit, from the Spirit we will also reap. And to sow to the flesh (in practice) will result in death (decay, destruction). But to sow to the Spirit (in practice) will result in eternal life. So if we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the flesh, we will die in our sins. We will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what our lips profess. But if we walk according to the Spirit, its end is eternal life with Jesus Christ our Lord.
[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
So, please look up these noted Scripture references, and please be familiar with what the Scriptures teach on this subject, in context, for they teach the opposite of what so many charlatans and wolves in sheep’s clothing are teaching the people today. For I hear so many say that we don’t have to repent of our sins, and that we don’t have to obey the Lord, and that we don’t have to do any works at all, and that we don’t have to do anything to be pleasing to God if we have professed faith in Jesus Christ.
But the Scriptures insist that we forsake our lives of sin and that we now follow our Lord in obedience to his commands, and that we live holy lives pleasing to God, and that we do the works of God which he prepared in advance that we should walk in them. And they let us know unequivocally that if we do not repent, and if we do not cease to sin habitually, and if we do not obey our Lord in practice, and if we live to self and not to God, that we will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what our lips profess.
So don’t be fooled by the lies that others tell you and that you tell yourselves to comfort yourselves in your sins, that God will not judge you. Don’t be fooled by your own clever deliberate misinterpretations of the Scriptures that you feed yourselves so that you can continue in your sins guilt free, believing you have the hope of heaven when you die. And I know that this specific paragraph I just wrote here does not apply to everyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ, but from what I have observed and read and heard in many places, and over many years, it applies to many.
But to those whose walks of faith are genuine, who are following the Lord Jesus in obedience, day by day, who are living for the Lord and not just for self, who are not deliberately and habitually sinning against the Lord, but who, in practice, are living righteously and in holy living, we still need to take this message to heart lest we become lazy or unconcerned about our actions, and lest we should begin to mock God by how we live and by ignoring his warnings to us. For we must take heed if we think we stand lest we fall. All of us are still vulnerable to sin, so we need to stay armored up.
As the Deer
By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1
As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZv3jzOTE70
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