FALLEN FROM GRACE

Photo by B Smith from the patio

 

236 - FALLEN FROM GRACE

September 17 1961

 Henry F. Kulp

 

Galatians 5: 1 - 5 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Paul has just finished using history to show the folly of trying to be under law. That you must be saved by grace.

1/ The thought of the first six verses is summed up in the end of the 4th verse—ye are fallen from grace. What does this mean? There are men who say it means you have fallen deep in sin, and therefore, you have lost your salvation. And then there are many who say you can’t fall from grace, but, of course, you can—the Scripture very clearly tells you that you can fall from grace, for remember, Paul was talking to believers.

Notice, Galatians 4: 31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

And so then, brethren. He calls them brethren. They were saved all right, but they had fallen from grace. So it is a believer who falls from grace.

2/ First of all, It is necessary for us to understand our salvation. We cannot lose it. If one has eternal life, he has eternal life. If he had conditional life, he does not have eternal life.

3/ Secondly, it is necessary for us to see that salvation does not change a man. God gives him a new life alongside of the old life—the old man. God does not improve the old nature. He gives us a brand new nature.

4/ Then, thirdly, salvation is not accomplished by adding to what man already has until it meets God’s standard. For example, suppose a man is 10% good, as some people think—then they believe that God has to supply the other 90%. Or if a man is 50% good, God supplies the other 50%. Or if he is 70% good, God supplies the other 30%. To be saved, a man who has 10% good merit or righteousness has to abandon his 10% and receive 100% from God. If a man is 50% good, or 50% merit—he must turn his back on that 50% and receive 100% from God. If a man is 70% good, he must cast aside that 70% and receive 100% from God.

Salvation is not by the work of man, Ephesians 2: 8, 9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

5/ Another error to avoid is that when we are saved, when we believe in Jesus Christ, our sins are forgiven from the time we are born until the time we are saved, and after that moment we face our sins—so many people tell me that. For example, a young man, 20 years old receives the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour, and some say his sin is forgiven from birth to that moment at 20 years of age when he is saved, that is not true. Our sins, past, present and the future sins are all forgiven, for when Christ died, how many of our sins were forgiven? None. And when He died for our sins, He died for all of them.

6/ Notice, Ephesians 1: 6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

We have been made accepted in the beloved. We are acceptable to God in Jesus Christ and in no other way or in any other place. Not the beloved one and ourselves, but we are made acceptable only in the beloved one, only in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Then notice, Colossians 2: 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

And ye are complete, where? In Him—in Christ and ourselves? No, only in Christ.

7/ What does it mean to fall from grace? The phrase fallen from grace, occurs only here and nowhere else in Scripture. Remember, we said it is believers who fall from grace, not the unsaved, because they have never been in grace to start with. The word, fallen, in the original means literally, HAVE BEEN DRIVEN OUT OF ONE’S COURSE. It is a word used of sailors who have been driven out of their normal course, their normal lane. Let’s notice where this word is used elsewhere in the Bible.

Acts 27: 17 Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven.

Luke, here, tells us the account of a ship wreck, and he says, lest they should fall into quick-sand and strike sail—that means lower the sails.

8/  Acts 27: 29 Then fearing lest we should have fallen upon rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern, and wished for the day.

From this we can very clearly see that the meaning of the expression “fallen from grace”—means that these Galatian believers had been driven off course, away from the grace of God, and Paul was greatly distressed by their conduct. It did not mean they had lost their salvation, but it meant they had lost the blessing now that they were saved as they had fallen from grace and were trying to keep themselves saved by their own

activity. Notice the context of this Scripture. Paul was not writing about people sinning, he was writing about people having wrong doctrine. People going away from the grace of God over to the law camp. So, falling from grace is not falling into sin—it is falling into doctrinal error. You do not fall from grace by getting drunk—you fall from grace by saying baptism is needed for salvation, you fall from grace by saying you have to keep the Sabbath, you have to do this, and you have to do that.

9/  Have you ever noticed someone who was saved by grace, and suddenly they have been misled by some of the law-keepers. They are already saved, but they are not too well grounded in the Word of God. An evil sect gets hold of them and says, now you better come over and keep the Sabbath, you better be sure you are baptized for salvation, you better be sure you live a certain life—stop doing this, and stop doing that, and stop doing the other thing. And that poor believer becomes so bewildered, that poor believer loses all the blessing that he had in Christ Jesus, because no longer is he in freedom as we had in Galatians 5: 1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

You notice, he doesn’t tell us to work in this freedom, for this freedom, but to stand fast in it.

10/ Verse 2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

You will notice, that circumcision has been put forth here and it stands for all human efforts, baptism, Sabbath-keeping, all human efforts you might have. It will cause you to fall from grace, not fall into sin.

11/ Let us look at some Old Testament characters and see if when they fell into sin they fell from grace. Take, for instance Lot. Was Lot a saved man? Oh yes, he was a saved man. Did you ever sin after you were saved? Yes, I sinned terribly after I was saved.

II Peter 2: 7, 8 And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)

Here Peter tells us that Lot vexed his righteous soul—notice, his righteous soul, by the way he lived. But did he lose his salvation? He most certainly did not. You could say to Lot—Lot, did you lose your salvation when you fell into sin? No, I fell into grace, because I was still a righteous man, with a righteous soul, but what an awful spanking I received from the Lord. My wife turned into a pillar of salt. My sons-in-law dead, and my daughters debauched.

Genesis 19: 30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.

We find that in the end Lot lived in a cave. How differently he lived from the way he lived as the mayor of Sodom. But yet, Lot, when he fell into sin, did not fall from grace.

12/ Let’s take Abraham, and say, Abraham were you saved? And he says, Yes. I was saved by believing the promise God gave me. He told me that. Did you sin after you were saved? Oh, yes, he hangs his head and says, Yes, I did. I taught my wife, Sarah, to lie, to say that she was my sister. I was willing to have her ruined to save my skin, but when this happened, Abraham did you lose your salvation? Did you fall from grace? No, praise God, I did not, I was chastened of the Lord, but I didn’t fall from grace.

13/ Then take Moses. Moses, you are saved? Oh yes, did you sin after you were saved? Yes, I did, I killed an Egyptian, I struck the rock a second time, and God told me not to do it. Did you fall from grace? No, I fell into grace. The Lord spanked me, the Lord had me die prematurely while I was still strong physically. My eyes were not dim, and I wasn’t decrypted in any way, but God did not allow me to lead the children of Israel into the Canaan land, but I did not fall from grace when I fell into sin.

14/ Then we come to David. David was saved, oh yes. Did you ever sin after you were saved? Oh yes, I committed adultery, I had a husband killed. Well, when that happened did you fall from grace? No, I didn’t, not at all. I took an awful beating from the Lord. I paid an awful price in my family, in my loved ones, but actually, I fell into grace.

Psalm 23: 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Notice, at the end of David’s life, he could walk into the valley of the shadow of death and fear no evil, for the Lord was still with him. David, falling into sin, had not fallen from grace.

15/ Then take Peter. Peter are you saved? Absolutely. I know Jesus Christ as my redeemer. Well, did you ever sin after you were saved? Yes, I denied my Lord. I cursed and I swore. Did you fall from grace when you sinned? No, the Lord still gave me the keys to the Kingdom, and told to feed my sheep, feed my lambs. Oh yes, this happens, believers do sin. But when they fall into sin, they praise God, they do not fall from grace. It is true they are chastened of the Lord. They receive chastisement from the Lord, but yet they are still in grace.

16/ But I do not want to give you comfort in your sins, Christian friend, because you have been saved by grace, I want you to notice what God says should happen to you, Galatians 5: 6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

And notice what Paul says, but faith worketh by love. Faith should be working faith, and then notice, it is to work by love. Not by law, but by love.

17/ Then we go back and notice the 5th verse—For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Notice, the hope of righteousness by faith. Notice, everything is through the Spirit. Everything for the believer is through the Spirit. Everything for the believer is through the Spirit—the Holy Spirit has come to dwell in us, and God works His work in us by the Holy Spirit. So instead of human efforts, instead of trying to do something to earn Divine favor, we yield ourselves to the Holy Spirit of God that He might work in our lives, and do His work in us. Notice, when He says, we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. What is the hope of righteousness? It is the coming again of the Lord Jesus Christ, our gathering together unto Him. We are now made the righteousness of God in Christ, yet everyday we mourn over our failures, we do not rise to the heights we desire. Every night we have to kneel before God and confess our sins, and we are looking forward to that glad time, that wonderful time when Jesus Christ will appear in the Heavens, catch us up to be with Him, and we shall be like Him and then this righteousness that is our gift, will become a reality in our every experience.

18/ Faith working by love is not legality. Let’s remember that very clearly. A physician came into the room where a preacher was visiting with a family and a dear child who was ill. This child was the apple of its mother’s eye. The doctor said, Now Mrs. So-and- so there is one thing I would like to suggest. Because, of the condition your little baby, I would not let anyone else take care of her. She is in a very nervous state, and she is very much afraid of others at this point. I am sure the best thing you can do is you wait on her hand and foot, and not have a nurse. You take care of her until the sickness is over. Do you think that mother found that a hard law to obey? I am sure not. Her mother-heart led her to respond at once—Yes, Doctor, I’ll see that no else looks after my baby—I will do all I can for her. Was that legality? No, this is faith working by love.

19/ These Galatians had lost that working by love. They had become harsh and critical like the Judazing teachers that had come into their midst.

I Peter 4: 8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.

Peter tells us that love shall cover a multitude of sins. The key here, is the word, cover. It means to hide. So Peter says, have intense love among you, opposite of critical, uncharitable, judging attitude. Remember Shem and Japheth? How they came upon their father, Noah, in a drunken, shameful condition? He was exposed. They could have awakened him, and criticized him and told him how terrible he was, and what an awful thing he had done, and how he had been a disgrace. No, they didn’t do that—instead, they spread a garment over their shoulders and going backward tossed it over his uncovered, unconscious body. Not even allowing themselves to look upon their father. They didn’t look upon his sin, and so when faith that is in our lives causes us to work by love, we are charitable. We try to help others, rather then be critical. We preach the grace gospel—not the uncharitable, harsh, critical judging attitude of the day. Those who live by the grace gospel should be gracious. They should live by grace, realizing everything they have from God is for nothing, and they should deal with others in this same wonderful glorious attitude.

AMEN

Ref: 09/17/1961 / 235 - FALLEN FROM GRACE / 04/06/2021

GOD’S GREAT EXPERIMENT

Photo of Mount Kahuzi in the DR Congo

234 – GOD’S GREAT EXPERIMENT

July 9, 1961

Henry F. Kulp

 

Galatians 3: 17 - 22 And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise. Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

Up to this point in the book of Galatians, Paul, is writing to the churches at Galatia, was proving that the law cannot save, it cannot keep, it cannot satisfy. And so the natural question follows—why do we have the law? Why did God give the law? And so Paul anticipates the question, and he answers it. If the law cannot save, keep him or make him better, why then, give the law?

1/  Notice three definite things are stated in this brief verse—that is Verse 19

(1) The law did have a beginning. Paul says it was added—added to something else that must have existed before the law itself came.

(2) The law had a definite purpose—because of transgression, or as we proceed to reveal the true nature of sin by transgression.

(3) The law also came to an end—just as it had a beginning. It was added till the seed should come. That little word, till, is usually over-looked. It is just a small word, it seems insignificant, but it is non-the-less important. The law was added till. That word. Till, means the same today as it did in the day that Paul wrote. May we just give you an illustration of what we mean. I can say to David when he asks if he can stay up late tonight—David, you may stay up till 10 o’clock. And that means David is to go to bed at 10 o’clock. Or, I can say to someone, I would like to borrow $50 till the first of the month. What does that mean? It means I will pay back the $50 at the first of the month. And so the law came to a conclusion when Christ came.

2/  Immediately, when you say the law had a beginning and it had an end, you have folks who get very excited. They say, Oh, that’s dangerous, that’s a terrible teaching. 

A women came to a preacher after he finished preaching on the beginning and the end of the law one night, and she said, This teaching of yours is very frightening, because if you do away with the law, there is nothing to keep us faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ. So he said, Madam, Are you married? And she said, ”Yes,” I am. Do you know in the state in which you are living there is no law against adultery. Are you faithful to your husband? Have you committed adultery? She was shocked—she was astounded that a preacher would talk to her like that. She said, Of course, I have been faithful to my husband, No, I have not  committed adultery. Well, suppose they do away with the law in this state, and it is no longer a crime to commit adultery? Will you commit adultery? Will you be faithful to your husband? She said, Why, of course I’ll still be faithful to my husband—I will not commit adultery. Well, why? There is no law that says it is a sin to commit adultery in this state—if they do away with it. She said, Well, I’ll be faithful to my husband, and I’ll not commit adultery because I love him. Oh, he said, The Law of Moses has been done away with—it does not keep us faithful to the Lord. We have something far greater to keep us faithful to the Lord—that is our love for the Lord. 

I’d like you to notice a Scripture in conjunction with this. 

II Corinthians 5: 14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

It is the love of Christ that constraineth us—notice, not the law, but the love of Christ constrains us. Literally, the clause means—the love of Christ over-masters us. That is to say, it makes us helpless to do otherwise than to win men to live for the Lord Jesus Christ. When we are over-mastered by Christ, it means that His life is ours. His truth is ours, His will is ours, and His passionate concern for men is ours. 

Paul became consumed to the very core with the idea of the love of Christ. He became gripped by it, and it motivated him, it urged him on. So it is not the law, but the love of  Christ which urges us and over-masters us.

3/  Nowhere in Scripture is the purpose of the law more clearly stated than in this verse. And don’t tell me that this applies only to the ceremonial, or the dietary or the sanitary laws or the sacrifices of the Old Testament. Paul is speaking of the law—the whole law, the Ten Commandments in particular.

4/  Now let us look at the beginning of the law. We have two questions here. When was the law added, and to what was it added? Let us look first of all at the words of John the Baptist as he spoke of the coming King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Lord Jesus Christ. 

John 1: 17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. For the law was given by Moses.

Then also in John 7: 19  And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?

Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? The law started with Moses. Until God gave the Ten Commandants written on tables of stone to Israel through Moses, Israel knew nothing about the law, and for over 2,000 years from Adam to Moses, God gave no Ten Commandments to man. Man knew nothing about the Ten Commandments.

5/  Then notice the next part—the purpose of the law. It was added. The law did not exist until the time of Moses, but something else did exist to which the law was added. When we add something, we, of course, imply that there is something else to which this can be added. To what was the law added? Under what did man live before God gave the law to Moses? We all know the answer—it is very simple—it was the grace of God. Adam was under grace, Noah was under grace, Abraham was under grace. God dealt in grace before the law, and during the law, and since the law. But here we have law added to grace.

6/  Grace, of course, is the good news of God, but the law is not good news to the sinner. On the contrary, the law is very, very bad news to the sinner. For the law tells a sinner how wicked he is, and how he is condemned. Therefore, bad news of the law was added to good news of grace. It did not take the place of grace. We don’t mix it with grace—it does not supplant the grace of God—it was added, and in the Greek it means to place alongside of.

7/  Now we have the purpose of the law. It was added, and it was placed alongside of grace to reveal the awfulness and the true character of sin. You might say, was their sin in the world before the law came? Of course there was—men died, and God brought punishment upon them for their sin—but sin was not looked upon as transgression until the law came.

8/  Notice, the words, Romans 4: 15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.

  

Where no law is there is no transgression. 

So you say, does that mean there was no sin before the law came? Most assuredly there was sin, and sin was just as wicked, just as horrible, just as terrible before the law, as it was at the time the law was in force. There was sin before the law, but no transgression. But God gave the law in order that He might reveal to man the awfulness of sin—how terrible committing sin is in the sight of God.

9/  Something can be morally wrong and not legally wrong. Something may be morally wrong and then become legally wrong. Take when automobiles first came in—there were no laws governing the speed and the behavior of those who drove the automobiles —they could go dashing about in their cars and people would duck and run and horses would become frightened and rear up because of these cars and people would say, There ought to be a law against them driving so fast. They were probably driving 15 or 20 or 25 miles an hour. So they made a law that it was against the law to go—we will say—more then 15 miles an hour. Now it was morally wrong to drive and scare people before the law came in. But then it became legally wrong to go faster than a certain speed.

10/  Romans 3: 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Notice, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. The law did not reduce sin, neither did it make sin worse, but it revealed sin to be terrible, to be horrible.

11/  Romans 5: 20 Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound:

Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound that the true nature of sin is brought out. Up to 100 years ago it was perfectly legal to own slaves in the United States—you could buy a slave, or you could own slaves. You could buy and you could sell them, you could treat them anyway you wanted. There were no laws, so therefore, there was no transgression of the law when you owned or bought or sold slaves, but when the law came in and made it illegal to buy or sell or own a slave, it was made punishable. In both instances it is wrong, but the law made it legally wrong to own slaves.

13/  Then there is another illustration. Before World War I it was not a transgression of the law to drink or sell or to make intoxicating liquor, but during the war, prohibition came in, making it a transgression of the law to sell, to make or to buy intoxicating liquor. Then the 18th Amendment was repealed and it again became legal. The law against liquor was gone, but drinking was no more or less wrong before or after the repeal of the 18th Amendment, but when the law was enforced, the 18th Amendment made it wrong to buy or sell, or to make intoxicating liquor.

14/  The law shows the fact that sin exists, and the law also brings condemnation.

15/  Now the next thing we have to see in this is the fact that the law was given only to the nation Israel. 

Romans 2: 12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without law: and as many as have sinned in the law shall be judged by the law;

Here you will notice there are two classes of people spoken about here—those who have sinned without the law, and those who have sinned in the law. Who are they? 

Verse 14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:

The 14th verse tells us—the Gentiles who have not the law. Surely, Scripture cannot be plainer. When you go back to Exodus 20 you will find that the law was given only to Israel. 

Exodus 20: 1 - 4  And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

You will notice it is spoken to Israel—to no one else. The law was never given to the Gentiles.

16/  Romans 3: 19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

The law was given only to Israel, so it said only to those who are under Israel that they were to do these things. But then notice, that every mouth might be stopped and that all the world should become guilty before God. God gave the law to Israel to stop the mouths of all men everywhere forever who would teach salvation by works. God took this nation and for over 1,500 years put them under the law and proved to all men everywhere in every age, that men cannot live by law, and that they cannot possibly be saved by their own works. You don’t need any further proof. In 1,500 years not one single Jew was able to keep the law. Not one Jew was saved by keeping the law. Not one Jew was kept by keeping the law.

17/  God proved by the nation Israel that 1,500 years under the law could not change one individual. It could not change the human heart which  was sinful, which is incurable.

18/  Then notice, Galatians 3: 19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

That the law was ordained by angels in the hands of a mediator. It would seem at first that this statement would glorify the law. You think, My this was a majestic scene of the Old Testament when the law was given.

It was a horrible sight.

Hebrews 2: 18 - 21 For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)

It was a horrible sight—the very circumstances under which to fear the law.

(Editor’s note: Why would you long to live under the fear of the wrath of God every day of your life? Choose Life through the Grace of God.)

AMEN

07/09/1961 / 234 - GOD’S GREAT EXPERIMENT / 04/03/2021