I started to share last weeks blog article with a friend, and I ran into a hailst orm of confusion.

He kept saying, It does not matter what we do, it is all by gra ce. Grace versus Law: And I said, But we enter in Gods salvation by faith in the Word of God, and we produce Heaven on Earth by faith in the Word of God, and we enjoy the eternal benefits by faith in the Word of God. And faith without works is de ad. So your faith has to include corresponding actions to allow that grace of sa lvation to produce in you what you are required to produce Jesus in your flesh. The parts of salvation God will take care of, He will take care of; but what par ts of salvation have been left to us, we must do. And the last time I looked, we are to keep at it until we walk just like Jesus, a nd He did no sin. So if you do no sin then you are doing only what allows God to operate freely in this Earth through you, and that activates and maintains the blessing of God. While you are alive on this Earth, you are doing or working som ething every moment, 247. And those doings will be judged as works on the Day of Judgment. That doing is either of sin or righteousness. So part of the process i s to believe your righteousness is greater than your present sin consciousness b ecause of Jesus. Thus you can operate in the blessing while you are still imperf ect or sinning in other parts of your life. That is the main message of 1 John 1 . I had not realized that the debate among Christians still rages on over grace ve rsus law in terms of what we have to do to activate the blessing of salvation in this life. I guess I have been operating more in the power of God long enough t hat I forgot some elements of my past. That means I am learning to do those thin gs that release the power of God into the Earth. But my recent Google search on Law vs. Grace had 13.4 million hits! So this is a big topic and today on this blog, we have little space. So this is just a taste . So here goes! Commands Do Not Leave an Option: First, there are some 1,050 commands, in the Gr eek imperative, or command tone, in the New Testament. We are commanded to obey them in this life, now. That speaks volumes of what is expected. Jesus is Lord means absolute ruler and dictator, owner and judge. Military peopl e get this easily, so do those from the former Soviet Union. For that matter so do most of those who play amateur team sports. But many do not. Obedience of faith is the message of the Gospel. Obedience means you have to do something, or you are either ignorant or disobedient. But failure to comply due to either ignorance or disobedience is sin and thus sowing to the flesh, and wil l reap corruption. Rom 16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, whic h was kept secret since the world began, 26 but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God , made known to all nations for the obedience of faith. The Greek word for faith means that word which you obey continually now to achiev e future results. So we are left with ignorance and disobedience as excuses for not obeying the Go spel. The first part, ignorance, has this answer. Hos 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject

thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. Or as I learned as a child: ignorance of the law is no excuse before the law. I d idnt know, may work with your mom, but not before the law, and certainly not befor e Satan. Willful ignorance or disobedience of Gods laws or ways means you live under oppre ssion, societal ruin; you and your children are taken in physical, financial and emotional captivity and made slaves of the devils schemes. From where I sit, no extended Christian family I am aware of, does not have some of this going on. Also included is lack of money, wage slavery, and no immediate hope to get free financially along with sickness. The story of Gideon is about how he had to thr esh his crops at night otherwise it would be stolen from him. At that time Israe l was living under such evil slavery. Yet they had the blessing of God available to them. That word destroyed in Hos 4:6 means: Strongs OT:1820 cease, be cut down (off), des troy, be brought to silence, be undone, utterly. Or you are forcibly made to shu t your mouth at the hands of a cruel master. Think German occupation of France in WWII, or Communism in the Soviet Union and China. Such is the penalty for ignorance and not doing what it takes to activate and ma intain the blessing of God. Vocal Power: Here is a gentler reminder to get rid of toxic thoughts and Holy Sp irit manifestation-limiting attitudes, and do things to release the blessing: Ep h 5:17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is . 18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be (continually being) f illed with the Spirit; 19 speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritu al songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20 giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Chri st; 21 submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. Simplified: This is real simple. If you are not walking in Heaven on Earth right now, you and no one else, is doing something wrong. This is not just riches and prosperity, but also persecutions for Jesus. And if you do not do it right under the New Covenant, here is your result: 1 Cor 11:27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himsel f, not discerning the Lords body. 30 For this cause many are weak and sickly amon g you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judg ed. Payback is Hell on Earth: So failure to rightly divide the word of truth in the Gospel of Jesus Christ means you will be weak, sickly and sleep (die before your time, asleep in sin and be ineffective in the benefits of the work of Jesus). This may seem rather bold, but as a scientist, here is some simple logic: if the re are sick in your Christian church, say over a year or two per ailment, then s omeone has not learned how to take communion or the Eucharist properly. The issue with God is not that we sin even after we are born again, but that we will not acknowledge our sins and identify them with the suffering, death and re surrection of Jesus in the New Covenant or New Testament. This is because in thi s life, what we sow, we reap, and what we do not resist, overcomes us.

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that sha ll he also reap. 8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corru ption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap zoe/life everla sting. 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. 10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all m en, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. So whatever your definition of law and grace, it had better resolve the clear st atement of Gal 6:7-10. Activate This Blessing Card Now! So yes, to activate and keep working the blessi ng of God you (or someone else for you) have to do those things that allow or pr ovide the path for God to bless you. Otherwise He is limited to getting you to s top sinning and hating God so you can start to do those right things in faith. G od has said once you get born again, as a righteous Father, how you turn out aft er the Day of Judgment is up to Him, but what your life works produce in this li fe for that Day, is up to you. 1 Cor 3:13 Every mans work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, b ecause it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every mans work of wh at sort it is. 14 If any mans work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any mans work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be sozo/saved; yet so as by fire. 16 Know ye not that ye are th e temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? On that Day God will test your life works with fire. The wood, hay and stubble w ill go, and the gold silver and jewels are yours forever. No matter what, if you have Holy Spirit dwelling in you (whether you cooperate with Him or not), you w ill be sozo saved, but not your evil works. This salvation is Gods part, what bur ns on that Day is your part. Doing the right things to release and maintain the blessing is included in the m eaning of good works: Titus 2:13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14 who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity (wrong or evil thinking of lookin g for another source than God and His goodness), and purify unto himself a pecul iar people, zealous of good works. And you can consider this article my attempt to obey: Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised; ) 24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto agape/love and to good work s. So I really hope this provokes you (and me) properly. No Free Sins: Perhaps I will deal with the subject of law and grace in a later p osting, but for right now please understand, there are NO FREE SINS. First, whether you confess it or not, it cost Jesus His life with an ago nizing whipping, a cruel crucifixion, and worst of all, days in Hell suffering t he full damnation due for every sin. So if you trivialize what Jesus did, He suf fered for it and was healed of it for you anyway, 2000 years ago. God knows what it cost. Jesus knows what He paid. Holy Spirit knows what He raised and healed. As your mind gets renewed into the Gospel, so will you. And second, until you deal with it in the body and blood of Jesus, the d evil will make sure it works death into your life now. And third, on the Day of Judgment it will be included in the wood, hay a nd stubble and be destroyed [and I believe you will see the gold, silver and jew els you could have had if you had not sinned].

But if you do those things that release the blessing of God, you will not be sin ning and will get benefits in this life and eternal gold, silver and jewels on t hat Day. So, as a review, let us look again at a simple definition of blessing: God inhabiting with His zoe life your thoughts, words and actions by Holy Sp irit so they produce not just normal, earthly abundance, but heavenly abundance and more blessing for you in this life and in the next. The key is that the fruit of that blessing will be such that other people, i ncluding the worldly, will see it, admire it, speak well of it, be envious of it and somewhat afraid of you, and will give you persecutions along with it. A clear example is him and made him rich. ], and received in the d the man waxed great, Isaac who reaped a hundred fold crop in a famine. It fed Gen 26:12 Then Isaac sowed in that land [during the famine same year an hundredfold: and the Lord blessed him. 13 An and went forward, and grew until he became very great.

And again, if you do not do the things it takes to release and maintain the bles sing of God, then even though you are in a blessed category, you will not see thos e blessing benefits in this life, and what you did, instead of releasing the ble ssing, will be destroyed on the Day of Judgment. Back to Law vs. Grace, maybe this will help: Law: God will answer because I am doing the right things has worked and still ge ts answers but carries a curse. Grace: I do and because of Jesus God answers, all I did was aim God with what I did, but the answer is because of Jesus and in spite of me. Or as Paul said: Phil 3:9 And be found in him (Jesus), not having mine own righte ousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith [while I do more of the righteous, agape love, works of the Law]. This is the attitude of a man who walked in more pure h oliness, righteousness and agape love every day. Gods Weight Room: And look as how Paul describes the impact of this desire: Phil 3:14 I press (intense and fast running) toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. There is nothing passive about that word press. Here is a warning for all those who do not know the grace of God unto doing the works of Jesus, or as Jesus would. 2 Cor 6:1 We then (Paul and his team), as wor kers together with him (Father God), beseech you also that ye lambano/receive no t the grace of God in vain. And the next verse is even more telling: 2 Cor 6:2 (For he (God) saith, I have he ard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of soteria/salvation have I succoure d thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of soteria/salv ation.) So the warning is clear: if you are not receiving properly the grace of God , you can be saved eternally, but miss it big time in this Earth now. And God says that your eternal salvation is vain for Him now in the Earth. After having seen every Scripture having multiple interpretations, I am sure thi s one has them also. So first of all this applies to Christians. It is from a le tter to Christians. And a Christian is one who has already received Christ and the grace of God.

Christian Description: Here is a description of a Christian: John 1:12 But as man y as received him (Jesus), to them gave he exousia/power (authority, responsibil ity, commission and the resources of Heaven) to become (or operate as) the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. So if you are born-again by believing on Jesus you qualify for both 2 Cor 6:1 an d John 1:12-13. And both verses have a similar message, while you are now a new creature in Christ it is entirely possible to have the grace of God in vain in this life. Remember, God is accountable for His part, your salvation after the D ay of Judgment, and we have our part, the salvation of our souls up to the Day o f Judgment. 2 t d f Cor 6:1 is a clear warning that you can be the righteousness of God and withou attention on your part, that grace of salvation can be vain, useless, empty an of limited benefit on the Day of Judgment (all of this is within the meaning o vain).

You Hit the Jackpot: And the payoff is rather exciting: Rom 5:17 For if by one ma ns offence (Adam) death reigned (as a king enforcing the law of sin and death to produce all the ill, woes, poverty and death in the Earth) by one; much more the y which (continually) lambano/receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righ teousness shall reign (as a king for Jesus to manifest Heaven on Earth) in zoe/l ife by one, Jesus Christ. As a king that means what you say happens. Thus you hav e a powerful proclamation and prayer life for God. This means you are effectivel y blessed in everything you do for and with Jesus. Lambano to Success: Here is another of those 1,050 New Testament COMMANDS: James 1:21 Wherefore (you Christians) lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naug htiness, and lambano/receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to sozo/save your souls. 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, dece iving your own selves. 23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: 24 for he beholdeth h imself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. 25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, h e being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blesse d in his deed. 26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not hi s tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this mans religion is vain. 27 Pure religi on and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. And another witness to this same message: Heb 10:38 Now the just shall zao/live b y faith: but if any man draw back, my (Gods) psuche/soul (life) shall have no ple asure in him. 39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of the m that believe to the sozo/saving of the psuche/soul (life). Fruit Inspection: A saved soul is a soul that looks just like Jesus and that person acts just like Jesus. 1 John 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that agape/loveth him that begat agape/loveth him al so that is begotten of him. 2 By this we know that we agape/love the children of God, when we agape/love God, and keep his commandments. 3 For this is the agape /love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievo us. Note this also includes the miracles of Jesus. Thus when you get this all right, you love doing the commandments of God! That i s included in good works. Keep on Working: Here is what the Bible describes as one who lambano receives an d works with the grace of God effectively. 1 Cor 15:10 But by the grace of God I (Paul) am what I am: and his (Gods) grace which was bestowed upon me was not in v

ain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of G od which was with me. Notice Paul got to where he was in God by LABOUR or works, and he worked harder at it that they all. The all includes all those other Christians who did not walk in Jesus like Paul did. So these all were born again yet the grace of God was inef fective because they did not labor as Paul did. Also note that the grace of God impelled Paul to work. In my experience, if you do to understand the part about laboring with the grace of God, then no discussion of grace versus law or works is of benefit. But if y ou realize that grace puts you to work RIGHTLY with itself, that is, grace, then it starts to make a lot more sense. And there are a lot less scriptures you hav e to reach for fancy interpretations to not obey. You are alive in this world to bring the Kingdom of God to Earth. So the purpose of grace is to get you to work so you bring the Kingdom of God to Earth through you. Bypassing Death: James pretty well sums up this same message from Paul. James 2: 17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. 18 Yea, a man may s ay, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. 19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justif ied by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Seest thou ho w faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? 23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed un to him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. 24 Ye see then ho w that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. 25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, a nd had sent them out another way? 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. Or as Paul says to Titus: Titus 3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, se rving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. 4 But after that the kindness and agape/love of God our Saviour to ward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but accor ding to his mercy he sozo/saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 6 which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Sa viour; 7 that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal zoe/life. 8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. T hese things are good and profitable unto men. 9 But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofi table and vain. 10 A man that is an heretick (fractious, divisive, unpersuadable ) after the first and second admonition reject; 11 knowing (be aware and conside r) that he that is such is subverted (away from his new birth in Jesus), and sin neth, being condemned of himself. 12 When I shall send Artemas unto thee, or Tyc hicus, be diligent to come unto me to Nicopolis: for I have determined there to winter. 13 Bring Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey diligently, that nothing be wanting unto them. 14 And let ours (people that will hear us) also le arn to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not unfruitful. Standing Strong in Jesus: So here Paul says the result of the grace of justifica tion is to (verse 14) maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not un

fruitful. Unfruitful is similar to vain in concept. You are living a life that pr oduces mostly wood, hay and stubble, and produces nothing for God or you on the Day of Judgment. And if you are not exhorted, as Paul exhorts Titus to exhort, then you will not produce or labor with the grace of God (your justification in and by Jesus) and be unfruitful. So a second message is that if you are using the concept of grace to not do, lab or and work as God offers, then you need to be exhorted daily to get busy in gra ce, or you will end up vain and fruitless. One Way to Riches: This requirement to exhort daily and often is found many plac es in the Bible, here are some from Paul: Titus 1:9 Holding fast the faithful wor d as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort a nd to convince the gainsayers. 10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision (Jews and Christian Jews): 11 who se mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucres sake. Notice for such lies you can be well paid by other Christians! That is what it m eans by filthy lucres sake. Notice Holy Spirits opinion of those who teach grace as a way to not labor and wo rk with God in verse 11. So where ever you are in the debate over grace, law and works, be careful. Go too far and God says your mouth must be stopped! And based on what I hear a lot, there are many candidates for a godly mouth plug in the Body of Christ! How to Be Great: Jesus said it this way: Matt 5:18 For verily I (Jesus) say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass fro m the law, till all be fulfilled. 19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of thes e least commandments, and shall teach men so [to not do the right works of Gods l aw], he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. If you are one who uses a false concept of grace to not be in labor or works doi ng Gods law, then Jesus defines you as one who is least. The good news is that you are still in the Kingdom of God, but your value to God on the Day of Judgment wi ll be least. Grace Works: This following passage is really cool because it clearly states tha t the salvation grace of God is to teach you to labor and be fruitful with good works, of the God kind. Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth soteria/salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts [denying is a form of works], we should zao/live soberly, righteously [includes all of Gods w ays] and godly [just like Jesus], in this present world; 13 looking for that ble ssed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Chr ist; 14 who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. 15 These things sp eak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee. Just to be clear, here is the definition of the Greek word here translated as exh ort: Strongs NT:3870 beseech, call for, (be of good) comfort, desire, (give) exhor t (-ation), intreat, pray, encourage. So this is a strong entreaty or request to obey and miss the penalties of not being zealous of good works. Included in thi s is what many team members may have heard as a coach exhorts at half time to a lo sing team.

And here is the definition of the word rebuke: Strongs NT:1651 convict, convince, t ell a fault, rebuke, reprove. Notice that this word also includes convict, which i s a very strong word. This is specifically saying to point out that a certain be havior is sin and must stop. And right at the end of this passage, Paul, I guess from hard experience, warns Titus, that the typical reaction of the self deceived is to find fault with such speaking, exhortations and rebukes. And even worse, others will talk among them selves and find fault as you obey these clear commands of God on how to preach t he truth Let no man despise thee. Tomatoes Please: So if I am doing my job right, then I expect this will cause so me despising to be going on about me. The true preacher of grace and mercy needs a thick skin, and keeps a salad bowl handy. Want More? This topic is the essence of what Jesus came to do. When you learn how to do gra ce work, you will do all the laws of God by faith working by agape love. And you will activate and maintain the blessing of God in your life. Rom 8:4 That the ri ghteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, b ut after the Spirit. Or course, doing the righteousness of the Law with a glad he art releases the blessing of God for you on Earth now. Please see Deut 28:1-14 for a fuller summary of the blessing. Gods Love Plan: And you will be on your way to: Eph 4:13 Till we all come in the u nity of the faith, and of the epignosis/knowledge (awareness, study, practice un til you are a master craftsman and able to train others to the same level) of th e Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and ca rried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craf tiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15 but speaking the truth in agape/ love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16 fro m whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every jo int supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in agape/love. Power Trio: In all three of our Power Trio Series books there is a section on an effective 10 step process on how to handle sin under the work of Jesus and the New Testament Revelation of Christ in you Heavens hope for the Earth being filled with the Glory of God through you. People have gotten prosperous, healed and d elivered with just this process. Here is the Power Trio at CovenantPeaceMinistries.com: http://covenantpeaceminis tries.com/7.html Also we have a free video series How to Overcome Sin the Jesus Way Part 1 and Part 2 on Vimeo.com and GodTube.com: http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=FEM01CNU And of course the Affirmations in OK, God, Now What (www.OKGodNowWhat.com ) ar e some of the grace-works that will detoxify your heart and transform your spiri tual manifestation into Gods Love Plan for you. Question: Did you understand that while you settle the debate over grace versus law, you are to be busy in obedience to the some 1,050 commands in the New Testa ment? Question: Did you understand that the grace of God actually puts you to work?

Question: Do you understand if you are not doing the right actions, you are sowi ng to the flesh and you will reap corruption in this life and vanity in the next ? God Bless You and Yours in the Name of Jesus to be more Noble in Him (Acts 17:11 -12) Jesus is Lord of Heaven and Earth!

Don Donald C. Mann Speaker, teacher, and author of: OK, God, Now What? http://www.amazon.com/God-Now-What-Donald-Mann/dp/1934769 38X Discovering Our Redemption http://www.amazon.com/Discovering-Our-RedemptionDonald-Mann/dp/1934769509/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1325265902&sr=1-1 Battle Prayer for Divine Healing-Field Manual 2 http://www.amazon.com/Battle -Prayer-Divine-Healing-Manual/dp/1934769460/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1325 265817&sr=1-1 www.CovenantPeaceMinistries.com BLOG.CovenantPeace.com Twitter.com/CovenantPeace FaceBook.com/CovenantPeaceMinistries YouTube.com/CovenantPeace GodTube.com/CovenantPeace