Jesus crucified Himself and He forgave all of our sins,
so, due to His salvation, we will enter the kingdom of heaven.
However, the Lord Jesus hasn't forgiven or excused their corrupt disposition,
and hasn't rid them of their corrupt nature which resulted in their sin.
Much less did He say whoever is forgiven of his sins can enter the kingdom of heaven.
It is written,
Amen!
And more we have already got evidence that
we have been gained by God,
which to me begs the question:
Is there a need for the Lord to come and do new work?
We're taught by Jesus very clearly and very plainly,
Amen!
Since we are all believers in Him,
every one of us has received His salvation,
and are entitled to the inheritance of the Lord's kingdom.
Are you honestly sitting there and denying the word in our Bible?
That's just it.
Haven't we already gained our salvation by the Lord God?
How can there possibly be a new work?
I agree! The salvation of Jesus is enough!
The salvation of Jesus is the full salvation of God.
It's simply impossible that God does new work.
You can't do this. Your conclusion is groundless.
That's right. We can't have doubt on this.
Everyone, yes, it is true that we, all of us,
have been saved by believing in Jesus.
Yet what did the Lord Jesus mean by "being saved"?
In which condition was this word said?
It means, of course, that Lord Jesus has saved us,
and that He, our loving Savior, has delivered us from sin!
Everyone, let us fellowship about
the background in which the Lord Jesus said, "being saved."
As we all know, at the end of the Age of Law,
people committed more and more sin, and no longer feared God.
They could no longer keep the law,
facing the danger of being condemned and executed under the law.
In order to free people from the threat of death,
God was incarnated to do a stage of redemptive work personally,
to redeem people from sin.
And since then, people could be forgiven of their sins,
once they accepted Jesus as their Savior.
They would no longer be condemned and punished
because they broke the law.
They could pray to God directly and receive His grace.
That's the true meaning of "being saved" in the Age of Grace.
Speaking of "being saved,"
let us all read what Almighty God has to say about it.
Pastor Cho.
Pastor Han.
Please all turn to page 477.
From Almighty God's word we can learn:
The work that Lord Jesus did in the Age of Grace is redemption.
That is, Jesus provided Himself to be the sin offering forever,
redeeming people from Satan.
As long as people believe in Him, their sins will be forgiven,
and they will not be condemned and punished
for their sins under the law.
However, it's true that
Jesus didn't solve the cause of people's committing sins.
He didn't do the work of purifying and transforming man.
So, those who were saved through grace
can't stop committing sins.
It requires God to do a further work of salvation
before they can be purified.
This flies in the face of the Bible.
It is written,
Amen!
Jesus crucified Himself and He forgave all of our sins,
so, due to His salvation, we will enter the kingdom of heaven.
This cannot be doubted.
That is correct! Hebrews 1:3 says,
Amen!
The Lord Jesus Himself forgave us all of sins on the cross.
And He would never ever treat us like we were sinners.
That's because we belong to God already!
I am not denying people haven't ability to overcome sin.
Even people who have found redemption continue to sin.
It's true. We all will admit this.
However, here is the bottom line—
Christ's salvation is full, true and reliable.
That's true, the Lord Jesus doesn't remember our sin.
Doesn't that mean we are gained by God?
We clearly know that it is the Lord Jesus
who has redeemed us and forgiven us of all of our sins.
Brothers and sisters,
it's true that Lord Jesus has redeemed us from Satan's domain
and we are forgiven of our sins and are no longer of sin.
But still, we should know exactly what "sin" refers to.
Don't tell me you're about to explain to us
what's meant by the unfamiliar term "sin."
Those against the law and Ten Commandments are all sins!
As people sinned,
they would receive the condemnation and punishment of the law.
The Lord Jesus came to work
just for the redemption of all mankind,
so that they were forgiven of their sins
and not punished by the law.
However, the Lord Jesus hasn't forgiven or excused their corrupt disposition,
and hasn't rid them of their corrupt nature
which resulted in their sin.
Much less did He say
whoever is forgiven of his sins can enter the kingdom of heaven.
Instead, He admonished people that,
The Lord Jesus has very clearly explained to us:
He that keeps the word of the Lord and walks the way of the Lord
can enter into the kingdom of heaven.
It is also written,
These verses tell us very plainly:
If people believe in Jesus' name
but do not also practice His word,
the sin offerings become a void to them.
How can it ever be possible for them to enter God's kingdom?
Stop right there!
Paul said,
Amen!
We are not, any of us, going to be condemned at all
because we have accepted Jesus in our hearts.
And we will be entering the Lord's kingdom!
Are you actually still going to deny it?
That's true, the Lord Jesus didn't remember our sin!
What qualification do you have to condemn us?
Pastor Han,
about whether one is able to enter into the kingdom of heaven,
we need to determine what it should be based on.
The question is:
Should it be based on man's word, or on God's word?
Another question we need to address is:
Whose word has authority, Paul's word or Jesus' word?
Who is He that guards the gate of the kingdom?
Since we all believe in God
and we all seek the way of eternal life,
we should clearly take the word of God as the criterion,
rather than making decisions based on the word of man.
If God receives a person to His eternal kingdom
who is still resisting and rebelling against Him,
where is God's holiness and where is God's righteousness?
God is a holy God and He is a righteous God,
and His disposition does not tolerate man's offense.
So, judging by God's disposition,
those who received Jesus' redemption
aren't able to enter God's kingdom yet.
It is a fact!
And as we all know the Lord Jesus said,
Jesus' words teach us very plainly:
Those who commit sins
are not qualified to remain in the kingdom of God.
Almighty God also says,
It is important for us to ponder why God chose to do this.
The intention of God saving mankind
is to gain a group of holy mankind.
If they are of sin and if they are of filth,
then by God's own word
they are not entitled to enter the kingdom.
This is determined by God's righteous disposition.
So, those who were forgiven of their sins
and saved through the grace,
are still in need of a further work of purification and of salvation,
if they want to enter the kingdom of heaven.
Did I hear you mention "a further work of salvation" just now?
Jesus Himself said upon the cross, "It is finished."
Those were His words. What is it that you think He meant?
Is it your position
that Jesus wasn't then able to grant us salvation?
What you're doing is boldly denying both our Savior's word
and the most important work He ever performed!
Truly, the Lord Jesus said clearly
that God's salvation work was finished.
Yes, it's what the Lord Jesus said personally.
You can't just deny it!
Pastor Cho, none of us are denying
these words were said by the Lord Jesus.
When the Lord Jesus said those words "it is finished,"
He was speaking of the redemptive work
He finished in the Age of Grace.
However, this doesn't indicate
God's entire management plan to save all of mankind.
We all know that, about the Lord's returning in the end time,
the Lord Jesus had spoken the Parable of the Sower,
the Parable of the Net,
and the Parable of the Wise Virgins,
and the Parable of the Bad Tenants, and many others as well.
It is also prophesied in Revelation that in the end time
the Lord will do the work of reaping and selecting,
and the work of judgment.
If the Lord Jesus had accomplished all the work of salvation,
then how is it work of this kind could be done?
Therefore, when the Lord Jesus said "it is finished,"
His meaning was the redemptive work had been finished,
yet He wasn't saying
all of mankind's salvation and all of God's work had been finished.
Hmm, everything you just said seems reasonable.
The Lord Jesus hadn't done the end-time work.
Ah, so the word "it is finished" said by the Lord Jesus
actually meant that
the redemptive work of the Lord had been accomplished,
but not that all the work was finished.
How come we didn't find out?
Let us read two paragraphs of Almighty God's words.
Please turn to page 791 in
What? Just a small part?
Yeah!
That's impossible!
Please open
and turn to page 588.
Only a half? Didn't Jesus say clearly "it is finished"?
Just stop!
You're still just sitting there and denying the work of Christ.
Pastor Han, please let us calm down.
Let Brother Jung keep reading the word of God.
Yes, Pastor Han,
can you please do us the honor of listening first?
Pastor Han, let's listen some more.
How can you sit there and say that about the Lord Jesus?
The Lord Jesus was crucified on the cross
and He redeemed the whole of mankind,
but now you're saying He only completed a part.
What you're saying is unacceptable.
While it's true sins are committed by men,
Jesus Christ, our Lord redeemed mankind upon the cross.
This is an absolute fact!
Everyone, even if Jesus' sin offering
continues to be effective for mankind forever,
the truth is, I tell you that
Jesus' work was not the work that saves men absolutely from sin.
From Almighty God's words we can see that,
indeed, the redemptive work of Jesus
only completes half of the work of saving mankind.
It has only laid the groundwork,
the foundation for God's end-time work.
Actually, although everyone who Jesus has redeemed
has been forgiven for all their sins,
there still remains their corrupt nature,
deeply-rooted, and very much driving them.
Their disposition is still filled with arrogance and self-conceit,
selfishness, craftiness, jealousy, aggressiveness, and lust.
All still worship evil, revere money, position,
fame and worldly gain.
They pursue a luxurious and decadent life,
and enjoy indulging in the pleasure of sin.
They also have no patience and tolerance for others.
They even find it hard to get along with their own families.
Living like this, in such a state,
they cannot even hope to practice the truth
even if they know the Bible.
They're trapped in sins involuntarily, without self-control.
You see, if mankind's sinful nature has yet to be eliminated,
then, God's work of salvation hasn't come to an end.
Their words are absolutely right. They are all facts!
Yes, it is very true that people commit sins
and live in sin every day without ever being released.
So it must be that
God continues the work of salvation in every man.
People can't overcome their sins
if they try to do it by themselves, which I freely admit.
But I don't understand how you can just deny God's word,
and even more than doing this, deny His salvation!
Those saved through grace often commit sins
just because they are still going through
the process of transformation.
If we can rely on His power working for improvement,
then we will eventually reach the state of holiness.
This process is called, listen: "Sanctification of Salvation."
Did you ever hear of it?
Pastor Han, we don't deny that many people in the Lord
have paid quite a price to cast off all of their sins.
Some have tried hard to refrain themselves from committing sins.
And some have even studied the Bible all of their lives,
trying to seek a way out of sins.
To sin no more, they have made a lot of effort.
They often confess to the Lord, fast and pray,
yet what is the result of all of this?
And now who truly dares to say that he has broken away from sins
and become holy in the eyes of the Lord?
Pastor Han, I think we should discuss this issue.
Let's think about this:
if Jesus hadn't done the work of the Age of Grace,
even if all of mankind pursued for thousands of years
in the Age of Law,
he couldn't gain God's grace of redemption.
So why would that be the case?
Why in the world do we need to discuss
such a simple elementary question?
I understand, Pastor Han.
But it relates to one aspect of the truth, and needs us to know.
What I mean by that is
man's disposition changes constantly with God's work.
To the extent which God works,
to that extent mankind is transformed.
I want this to be clear,
so let me explain it to you in another way:
If God does not work,
mankind's transformation will remain at a standstill.
It's just as in the Age of Law,
God's work was to issue the laws
and have people know and understand what were sins.
His work was not to redeem.
So, people in the Age of Law
couldn't gain God's grace of redemption
no matter how hard they pursued.
However, when the Lord Jesus finished the work of redemption,
all people could gain the Lord's grace of forgiveness
for nothing as long as they accepted Jesus as their Savior.
Similarly,
if God doesn't do the work of purifying and transforming man,
those redeemed by Jesus Christ
can't rid themselves of sins and become holy,
however hard they pursue and discipline their body.
It's because Jesus only did the work of redemption,
but didn't resolve the problem
of men's committing sins completely.
And the work of resolving man's sinfulness
is what God will accomplish in the end time.
I can't rid myself of sins.
Is this because the Lord Jesus
hasn't done the work of purifying and transforming man?
So, only when man accepts God's end-time work of salvation,
can he have his disposition transformed and become holy.
So then, according to your words,
did the Lord Jesus do His work of salvation in vain?
And does it follow then that people believe in Jesus in vain?
Everybody, please try to calm down.
We all believe and we would never deny Jesus' salvation.
The Lord Jesus has redeemed mankind from sins.
This is an undeniable fact.
However, God will not finish the work of salvation in one step.
He does it by stages and He does it by ages,
and it progresses step by step.
By stages? You must be kidding.
The work of God is uplifted
and it continues to deepen at every stage.
They're complementary and indispensable to each other.
Each stage of work lays the foundation for the next stage.
And there lies God's wisdom.
For example,
the work of knowing sins that Jehovah did in the Age of Law
laid the foundation of the work of redemption in the Age of Grace.
And the redemptive work Jesus did laid the foundation
for God's end-time work of removing man's sins.
Humph!
Pastor Han, without Jesus' redemption,
we, corrupt mankind, couldn't be forgiven of our sins.
However,
without God's further purification and salvation in the end time,
men redeemed by God will have no way
to get rid of sins and be saved.
Hmm, now this fellowship is sounding reasonable.
That is to say, if we accept God's end-time work of salvation,
it doesn't mean that we are in fact denying Jesus' salvation?
Yes. After we are redeemed by Jesus' sacrifice,
we continue to receive God's further salvation,
just to completely be free of all of our sins,
and just to simply be saved.
To underscore that point, here are Almighty God's words.
Please turn to page 583 in
And now please, turn to page 789.
Almighty God's words have clearly said that
men who have just been redeemed
have not received a full salvation,
and cannot enter God's kingdom.
Only if they accept God's end-time work of salvation,
if they have their corrupt disposition resolved
and break away from sins completely,
can they be saved and finally receive God's full inheritance.