1. The CROSS: Christ Our Savior
Jesus' death on a cross was the fulfillment of Old Testament law, which required blood atonement for sin. By His death and resurrection, we are redeemed from eternal separation from God, justified, made righteous, and accepted in His Name.
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to man by which we must be saved.
Jesus is an exclusive Savior. “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name in heaven given to men by which we must be saved” Acts 4:12. Contrary to what contemporary culture tells us, there are not multiple paths to God. There is only one—Jesus Christ
Jesus’ death and resurrection ensures His followers an endless list of promises from God’s Word. When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, His promises are for us, including peace today and hope of eternity with Him.
Very Precious Promises
The Bible is our ultimate authority. And in God’s word are many great and precious promises. Because Jesus is our Savior, Scripture tells us that:
• we are forgiven (Acts 2:38)
• our guilt is gone (Romans 8:1)
• we have peace with God (Romans 5:1)
• God’s wrath is satisfied (1 John 2:2)
• we have been justified (Romans 5:1)
• Christ’s righteousness is imputed to us (Romans 4:24)
• we are “new creations” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
• we have eternal life (John 3:16)
• we have been adopted by God (John 1:12)
• the Holy Spirit lives in us (Romans 8:11)
• Jesus is our advocate (1 John 2:1)
• nothing can separate us from God’s love (Romans 8:38–39)
• death has no more sting (1 Corinthians 15:54)
• we have an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade (1 Peter 1:4)
What an awesome list of promises from God's Word—and this is only a partial list! Because Christ died for us, all of these are ours when we accept Him as Savior.
The Tenses of Salvation
As we consider Christ's death on the cross, I think it's important to look at the three "tenses" of salvation.
• Past: First, we have been saved. We have been justified or made righteous in God's eyes.
• Present: Second, we are being saved. We are in the process of being sanctified or made more like Christ through the Holy Spirit.
• Future: And we will be saved. When Christ returns, we will be glorified or made like Him. We have an eternal inheritance.
Anything else?
Four other things are important to consider about Jesus as our Savior:
• He is a universal Savior. John 3:16 tells us that "whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." All who come to Him with repentant hearts, sorry for their sins, and believe that He is who He says He is, will receive His salvation.
• Jesus Christ is an exclusive Savior. We read in Acts 4:12 that "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name in heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Contrary to what contemporary culture tells us, there are not multiple paths to God. There is only one: Jesus Christ.
• He is a comprehensive Savior. Romans 8:29-30 make it clear that our salvation, predestined from before the foundation of the world includes not only justification and forgiveness of sins but also God's commitment to reform us into the very image of His Son and that one day, when that process is complete, we will be glorified.
• And He is an all-powerful Savior. Nothing can separate us from God's love. Christ's work on the cross sealed our salvation forever. As Romans 8:38–39 tells us, For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Jesus is our Savior. Nothing can separate us from His great work on the cross, from His love. That truth, that promise is at the core of who we are as part of The Christian and Missionary Alliance.
http://www.cmalliance.org/about/beliefs/savior
2. The LAVER: Christ Our Sanctifier
The laver symbol represents the daily cleansing from sin by the power of the Holy Spirit. His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness (2 Peter 1:3).
Unsuccessful struggle against sin and a lack of power in life and ministry frustrate those who have asked Jesus to be their Savior but not their Sanctifier, resulting in a lack of joy in their walk with Christ. At the point when we are born again, we become members of God’s family. We believe He paid the price for our sin, and we are positionally sanctified, or set apart from those are not born again, and are seen as holy because of what Christ has done.
Christ our Sanctifier Part One
“But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.” (1 Corinthians 1:30) NKJV
The Bible teaches three tenses of salvation:
• I have been saved: Justification
• I am being saved: Sanctification
• I will be saved: Glorification
Sanctification means separation
• Separation from sin: “But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’” 1 Peter 1:15-16.
• Separation to God: “(He) has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve His God and Father…” Revelation 1:6.
We read in John 1:29, 33 that Jesus is
• “the one who is taking away the sin of the world…”
• “the one who is baptizing with the Holy Spirit”
Two realities—two experiences. All Christians understand the first promise. But many Christians do not understand the experience of the second. It is the experience of Christ’s sanctifying work in a believer’s life. For those who neither understand nor allow for the Spirit’s control in their lives, the results will have profound effect. Ongoing and unsuccessful struggle against sin and a lack of power in life and ministry frustrates the believer. Doubts creep in about the assurance of salvation; there is a lack of joy in the walk with Christ.
Pneumatology “101”
In the context of the following Scriptures, the Greek word for Spirit is pneuma.
• Every Christian is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.” (Romans 8:9).
• Many Christians are not (and never have been) filled with the Holy Spirit. “…be filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18).
Two realities—two experiences. With the decision to believe Christ is Savior, the One who was sacrificed for the sin of the world, the believer is immediately indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The believer who forsakes the flesh, allowing the Spirit’s infilling, experiences victory and deliverance not only from the penalty of sin because Christ’s righteousness is imputed to him. The Christian who is filled with the Christ’s Spirit knows deliverance from the power of sin as Christ’s righteousness is imparted to him.
Not only does the follower of Christ experience freedom from eternal death because Jesus lives in him but also freedom to live an abundant life in the present because Jesus lives through him. With the indwelling of the Holy Spirit he is equipped to fight the temptations of the future.
A Sad Reality
• Most American Christians show little evidence in their lives that they have been separated from sin.
• Most American Christians behave in ways that make it difficult to believe that they have been “set apart” for the service of God.
By Rev. John F. Soper
Christ our Sanctifier Part Two
According to John 1:29-33, Jesus is:
• the one who is taking away the sin of the world
• the one who is baptizing with the Holy Spirit
These two realities offer the believer two experiences. All Christians understand the first but most Christians do not understand or experience the second.
Two Realities - Two Experiences
• Deliverance from penalty of sin
• Deliverance from the power of sin
• Freedom from death
• Freedom to live
• Release from the guilt of the past
• Equips for the temptations of the future
• Christ’s righteousness is imputed to us
• Christ’s righteousness is manifest in us
• Jesus lives in us
• Jesus lives through us
True Or False?
According to the New Testament, there are two kinds of Christians.
• I Corinthians 3:1-4 — spiritual and worldly (carnal)
• Romans 7 and Romans 8 — self-propelled and Spirit driven
• Ephesians 5:18 — filled and not filled
What does this look like?
• “It’s all about purity.”
• “It’s all about power.”
• “It’s all about joy.”
Jesus tells us in John 15 that He is the Vine and we are the branches. Because of our relationship with Jesus:
• “we will bear much fruit…” — PURITY
• “we can ask whatever we want…” — POWER
• “our joy will be complete” — JOY
The Steps to a Spirit Filled Life
• Surrender. You cannot make yourself holy any more than you can make yourself saved! (Rom. 6:11; Rom. 12:1-2)
• Accept. Christ is your Sanctifier in the same way that He is your Savior! (Col. 2:6; Gal. 2:20)
• Abide. Maintain a continuous relationship with Jesus through obedience to his Word. (John 15:1-11)
Abiding and the Word of God
• John 17:17 — “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”
• John 15:3 — “You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.”
• John 15:7 — “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be given you.”
• Additional Scriptures to read: Ephesians 5:18, and Colossians 3:16.
Christ our Sanctifier Part Three
As we move forward in our understanding of Jesus as our Sanctifier, let’s review our position in Christ and find out how we can live a Spirit-filled life.
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel." Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. I would not have known him, except that the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is he who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' (John 1:29–33)
Jesus is:
1. “…the one who is taking away the sin of the world…”
2. “…the one who is baptizing with the Holy Spirit…”
Two Realities - Two Experiences
All Christians understand the first reality, grateful and confident that Christ’s blood has atoned for their sins. They no longer need to fear eternal separation from God.
But most Christians do not understand or experience the second reality—the full reality of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Because many Christians have been badly taught, or because they have chosen to disregard the clear teaching of the New Testament regarding sanctification, they are missing much of what God has made available to every believer in Christ.
Two Kinds of Christians
The New Testament clearly teaches that there are two kinds of Christians. In I Corinthians 3:1–4, Paul talks about Christians who are “spiritual” and contrasts them with those who are “worldly” or “carnal.” In Romans chapters 7 and 8, the comparison is between those believers who are self propelled and those who are Spirit driven. In Ephesians 5:18 he implies that some are “filled” and some are “not filled.”
Steps To A Spirit-Filled Life
The opportunity to experience the two realities of sanctification is available to every believer. The path to the Spirit-filled life involves faith-filled risks that always involve change.
• Surrender: You cannot make yourself holy any more than you can make yourself saved. Romans 6:11; Romans 12:1–2
• Accept: Christ is your Sanctifier in the same way that He is your Savior! Colossians 2:6; Galatians 2:20
• Abide: Maintain a continuous relationship with Jesus through obedience to His Word. John 15:1–11
By Rev. John F. Soper
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do so few Christians experience the second reality of sanctification?
• Ignorance — Acts 19:3
• Sin — Ephesians 4:30
• Fear — I Thessalonians 5:19
• Lack of Desire — Matthew 5:6
Is there a difference between the baptism and filling?
The major problem here is that the New Testament does not clearly distinguish between several different words used to describe the dealings of the Holy Spirit with God’s people. Some of these words are listed below.
• “baptized”
• “filled”
• “anointed”
• “sealed”
• “earnest”
While the language the Bible uses to describe the experience may be ambiguous, the possibility of living a spirit-filled life is a Clear Reality
Is this a one time experience?
While the initial filling of the Holy Spirit usually comes as an experience subsequent to conversion, it is important to understand that:
• Sanctification is also a “progressive” experience. Philippians 2:12–13; Philippians 3:12–14; Colossians 2:6
• It is also important to recognize that we need to be filled again and again because we leak!
Two Great Errors
1. Avoiding the Holy Spirit out of fear: Many Christians run from God because of sin or preconceived notions of inability or worthiness. When we remember to live Jesus’ words from John 15, “Apart from Me you can do nothing,” we realize that our daily sanctification is dependent on our willingness to surrender to Him.
2. Seeking an experience or feeling as the evidence that we have been filled: Experiences are temporary and feelings are fleeting. God’s Word is true and everlasting. We cannot put our faith in experience or feeling but only in His eternal Word.
A Final Thought
If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to you children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13)
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)
http://www.cmalliance.org/about/beliefs/sanctifier
3. The PITCHER: Christ Our Healer
This symbol represents a pitcher containing oil to anoint the sick for healing that comes through obedience to God's Word. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up (James 5:15).
We find no record in the gospels of Jesus turning away anyone who came to him for healing, nor do we find that any disease was too difficult for him to heal. He even raised the dead. Miraculous healings still occur today—evidence that Christ is still our Healer.
“Jesus Is Still the Healer”
The Purpose of Divine Healing is to Glorify Jesus. In the Book of Acts, we find three important truths we need to grasp: Jesus is still the Healer, Healing comes from Jesus alone, and the purpose of divine healing is always to glorify Him.
As a pastor, I was called to meet a couple at a hospital. Their daughter had suffered a seizure and was not breathing. When I reached the hospital, neither the parents nor the doctor were with the child. A nurse was unplugging the flat-lined machines.
The Holy Spirit prompted me to do something I’d never done before — pray over the girl’s lifeless body. I asked the nurse if I could pray for a minute, to which she replied, “You know she’s dead,” but allowed me to go ahead.
I asked God to restore the little girl. Then I went to next room and found the parents witnessing to the doctor. About a minute later, we heard a scream, then the little girl crying for her mommy. It’s never happened to me before or since. But Jesus is still healer.
Why did Jesus Heal so Many People?
• To get attention: Jesus knew that by meeting a physical need, healing, the door would be open to speak about Jesus’ greater mission—to bring salvation to souls. We see the same pattern throughout Jesus’ ministry. Whenever Jesus made an intangible claim, He backed it up with a tangible act of compassion. Jesus said He was the bread of life and fed 5,000 people with a few loaves of bread.
• To prove He could forgive sin: How do you prove such an intangible thing? First, Jesus lived in a culture where the assumption was that sickness was a result of sin. Second, based on the same assumption, healing comes with forgiveness of sin. To prove that He had the power to forgive sins, Jesus said to the man who was lowered down through roof on a mat, “Friend, your sins are forgiven…take your mat and go home” (Luke 5:20).
• To prove He was God: Jesus healed to prove He was the Messiah. Only One has authority to forgive sin—God alone—a charge the Pharisees made when Jesus healed sickness and at the same time forgave sins. He was claiming authority to be God.
• To show His compassion: Jesus healed because he cared. There is no record of Jesus turning anyone away who asked for his help.
• To show that He is the Lord of all of life: Jesus is the Lord of compassion—not just Lord of our souls but of our bodies as well.
• To show that salvation starts now: Jesus’ wonderful, compassionate willingness to reach out and touch our physical needs demonstrates that it’s not just future tense but present tense. Salvation starts now. He heals in this life, in this moment, in anticipation of something much more complete as eternity rolls on.
The Healings Did Not End With Jesus
• He Said They Would Continue: Healings did not end with Jesus. He told his disciples they would do greater things. Although there is some dispute as to the validity of the end of Mark’s gospel (Mark 16:18), it is clear in the Book of John that Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I am doing. He will do even greater things than these” (John 14:12).
• The Apostles Continued His Work: Nothing in the New Testament says or even implies that the healing ministry would stop at end of the New Testament. In fact, it says the opposite. Healing ministry will continue in age of the Church through His Body, the Church. The apostles continued his work.
• Jesus Is Still The Healer! Jesus is still the healer today. Why don’t we see it as the disciples in the Early Church did? They were full of the Holy Spirit. We leak. They were fully obedient. Too often, we are not. They fully expected to see Him work. We are often surprised that He does.
The Power Comes From Jesus
• Not From Our Faith: The power comes from Jesus. The power doesn’t come from faith. There is interaction with faith. Jesus challenged people to have faith. He even said, “Your faith has made you whole.” But faith was a response to the person of Jesus. It was power of Jesus and not individual faith that brought healing. If you believe the power comes from faith, there’s a problem. Faith is a necessary component but not what heals.
• Not From Within: Healing does not come from within us. It is not a matter of getting everything in balance. A great, satanic error of our day teaches that healing flows from inner peace or balance, some resource inside us, even if God put it in us. That simply is not true. Healing comes only from the hand of Jesus.
• Not From Faith Healers: Healing does not come from faith healers. There are gifts of healing. God uses prayer to raise up people who need a touch by Him. But the power is in Jesus, which means, if you need a touch from the Lord, you don’t need to look to a faith healer.
• Not From Crystal Skulls: Healing does not come from any occult objects, such as crystal skulls.
Why Isn’t Everyone Healed?
Why do people get sick in the first place? The Bible gives a theology of sickness as well as a theology of healing. There are a number of reasons for sickness. The first is sin. The Pharisees were right that some get sick because of sin but wrong that all get sick because of sin. In 1 Corinthians, we are warned about abusing the table of the Lord. “That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you sleep.”
Sometimes God allows the enemy to make us sick. Sickness definitely is related to the curse, the fall, and the work of Satan. There is no better example than Job. In the testing, our faithfulness can be perfect. God allows sickness or disabilities to teach us lessons that would not be learned any other.
Healing also can be God’s way of taking us home, the moment of eschatological healing that ultimately comes when we are made perfect. No more glasses, no more insulin pumps. I won’t walk with a limp.
How Do We Respond?
Our prayers for healing tend to be, “Jesus heal me because I want to serve you more, I don’t want pain, or I want to be a testimony of your faithfulness. See how much more faith I have now.”
The only possible right response is: “What ever brings You glory, Lord. I believe you can. With the absence of a firm word to the contrary, then I believe that you will. But the only reason I want to be healed is because I want to bring You glory. If something else brings You more glory, that’s ok with me. It’s not about me. It’s all about Jesus.”
“In The Name Of Jesus Christ Of Nazareth, Walk!”
The power comes from Jesus. The purpose is to bring glory to Jesus. It is not to meet my needs, to make me feel better, or relieve me of my pain, although that is a nice side benefit.
The disciples with Jesus encountered a blind man (John 9). One of the disciples asked, “Who sinned—the man or his parents.” Jesus explained that neither the man nor His parents had sinned but “this had happened so that the work of God would be displayed in his life.”
Healing is all about glorifying Jesus. It’s not about us. It’s all about Him!
http://www.cmalliance.org/about/beliefs/healer
4. The CROWN: Christ Our Coming King
The crown represents Christ's royalty as the King of Kings. His coming will be a visable, personal appearance.You will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven (Mark 14:62).
Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you have seen him go into heaven (Acts 1:11).
Sometime near the end of his life, Anthony Ashley Cooper, the seventh Earl of Shaftesbury, is reputed to have said: “In the last 40 years, I do not believe that I have had one conscious thought that did not include the idea of the return of Jesus Christ.” An overstatement? Perhaps, but it goes a very long way toward explaining the amazing career of one of the Victorian era’s most successful social reformers.
That same preoccupation is evident throughout the New Testament. It is the stated or implied reason behind nearly every ethical injunction in the writings of the apostles, and without question, it framed the life of the Early Church. The first generation of Christians even began their ordinary interactions with the greeting “Maranatha,” an Aramaic expression meaning “The Lord is coming”!
“Jesus Christ, Our Coming King” is the expression that captures the same passion exemplified by the apostles, the Earl of Shaftesbury and a million other devoted followers of our Lord throughout the centuries. It is, to use the words of the apostle Paul, “our blessed hope.”
Belief in the Second Coming of Christ is rooted in the experience of the followers of Jesus who, a few days before Pentecost, gathered on a mountain to listen to the last teaching of the resurrected Christ. He commissioned them to be His “witnesses” to the entire world, and then, as they watched breathlessly, He ascended into heaven. While they stood gazing at the sky, two angels appeared and delivered this message: “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11b).
The clear implication (and the equally clear teaching of the entire New Testament on the subject) is that Christ’s Second Coming will be personal—He Himself, not some representative, will return to the earth. Further, His return will be both public and visible; that is, we will be able to see Him come. In fact, the writer of the Book of Revelation says that “every eye will see him…” (Rev. 1:7). We are also told that when Christ returns, He won’t be alone. He will be accompanied by “thousands of his holy ones”—angels (Jude 14)—and by “those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thess. 4:15).
Many volumes have been written exploring the events that will occur when Christ returns, but here are a few things the Bible says will happen: Jesus Christ will be vindicated in the eyes of those who crucified Him (Rev. 1:7); the whole of creation will be liberated from the curse imposed upon it after the sin of Adam in the garden (Romans 8:20–21); the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord (Isa. 11:9); God’s righteous reign will be established upon the earth for a thousand years (Rev. 20:1–6); and, ultimately, the final destruction of Satan will be accomplished (Rev. 20:7–10).
Since it is clear that the writers of the New Testament expected the Lord’s return very quickly, many skeptics have suggested that nearly 2,000 years ought to be enough time to convince us that they were mistaken. The Scripture, however, anticipates that attitude and warns us (2 Peter 3:8–10) that while God restrains His judgment (just as He did in the time of Noah) so that more time can be given for men and women to repent, this gesture of patience will be misinterpreted. Most of humanity will conclude that the promise of Christ’s return is nothing more than pious fiction. His return will catch them off guard like the coming of a thief!
Over the last four decades I have read a great many books about the Second Coming of Christ. Unfortunately, most were devoted to predicting when this cataclysmic event will occur (something the Bible explicitly tells us NOT to do), to debating the order of events connected to His return or to splitting the eschatological “hairs” that separate one group of evangelical believers from another. All of this speculation entirely misses the point of what the Bible says about the matter. The whole focus of the New Testament’s teaching about the return of Christ can be summarized in two simple propositions: first, because Christ is coming, we need to be ready—living lives that are pure, steadfast, prayerful, holy and reverent; and, second, because Christ is coming, we need to finish the task He has given us—the preaching of the gospel.
Maranatha! The Lord is coming. Are you ready?
http://www.cmalliance.org/about/beliefs/coming-king
