Thoughts on the Doctrines of Grace Pastor Rob Wilkerson

From Slavery to Slavery

Our Freedom in Christ
Covington, Georgia 1995 Revised, Hudsonville, MI, October 2002

Remember the song we all used to sing at Vacation Bible School? "I may never march with the infantry, ride with the cavalry, shoot the artillery, I may never fly over the enemy, but I'm in the Lord's Army!" Our boisterous marching as children gave firm credence to what Paul taught us in Ephesians 6:12: "Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in heavenly places." The reality as we know it from Scripture clearly states that we are at war. The question the Scriptures prompt is, Whose side are you on? The Scriptures are clear that you are on one side or the other. There is no neutral position in this war. There are no conscientious objectors. Joshua told the people of Israel to choose that very day which army they were going to serve in (Joshua 24:15). You too must choose your side. But understand up front that your choice will be based on your desires of your heart, for according to Proverbs 23:7 this reveals the true character and being of a man. Since the thoughts and intents of your heart determine who you are, they will also determine what you do, for thoughts always lead to some sort of action. Based on the condition of your heart then, whose side are you on? But if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD.
(Joshua 24:15, NLT)

If you find that the thoughts and desires of your heart are evil (Genesis 6:5; 8:21) then Gods Word has concluded that you are already on the side of evil - you are a sinner. Jesus taught us in John 8:34 that, "everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin." And every sinner is bound "with the cords of his sin" (Proverbs 5:22). "Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey..." (Romans 6:16). Those who obey the wickedness of their hearts walk "according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2). You are a son of disobedience when you disobey God. If you are a son of disobedience then,
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Thoughts on the Doctrines of Grace Pastor Rob Wilkerson

You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father (John 8:44). You have committed yourself to doing what the devil wants you to do, yet it is also what you want to do. Therefore you are in bondage to sin, "for by what a man is overcome, by that he is enslaved" (2 Peter 2:19b). Romans 5:12 teaches us that, When Adam sinned, sin entered the entire human race. Adam's sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned (NLT). Since all men are born into this state of sinfulness, we might say therefore, that every man is drafted into the army of the Devil when he is born (cf. Psa. 51:5) and God will come against the Devil and those men with all the righteous forces of God's heavenly throne (James 4:6). There is no draft-dodging in this battle. You can't just run away from your army. Why? Because the Bible teaches that you don't want to. You don't run from something you love and enjoy. If you are a sinner, Jesus Christ Himself states that you have loved the darkness rather than the Light, because the things you do are evil (John 3:19, NASB). In fact, the love of sin is so secure in your heart, if you are a sinner, that Jeremiah asks, Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? Can a leopard take away its spots? Neither can you start doing good, for you always do evil (Jer. 13:23, NLT). Because of the condition of your heart, the reality of your present situation is that, God has imprisoned all people in their own disobedience (Rom. 11:32). If this is your predicament, what will you do? The only way to get out of the army of sin, the only way to truly escape from your slavery and imprisonment to General Satan is to be drafted into another army. The General of another army must come and kidnap you. But this kidnapping is actually a rescue in which King Jesus drafts you from His enemy forces. Now, if the Lord decides to draft a soldier from the Devil's army into His, this means freedom from sin! Hallelujah! But it also means slavery to righteousness now. How so? Remember, a man is enslaved to whatever has overcome him (2 Peter 2:19b). But it is not in any way, shape or form the kind of slavery experienced under sin and Satan. If Christ overcomes the soldier, that soldier is now in bondage to Him. But this bondage is actually freedom! "And having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness" (Romans 6:18). Now, recalling that the condition of one's heart determines the army in which he serves., how is it that a sinner, who once loved his sin, can that man suddenly desire to be in the army of the Lord? The prophet Ezekiel foretold how the unthinkable could actually happen. God says that He "shall give them one heart, and shall put a new spirit within them". He further says, "And I shall take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes and keep my ordinances, and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God" (Ezekiel 11:1920, NASB).
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Thoughts on the Doctrines of Grace Pastor Rob Wilkerson

This process of drafting a soldier from the army of sin to the army of righteousness is known as unconditional election. God, because of His merciful heart, decided to draft some soliders from Satan's army into His army. Once more, the Bible teaches that all soldiers in this battle are born slaves, captives and even prisoners to sin and Satan. The difference here is that those who have been drafted from the army of sin are said to have been freed - freed from sin! This is not just any freedom - the kind which is here today and gone tomorrow. This freedom is from Christ, "So if theSon sets ;you free, you are free through and through" (John 8:36, The Message). There is no hope or liberty if you are in the army of sin. Instead there is only the assurance that you will be bound in the consequences of your sin forever. BUT, "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2 Corinthians 3:17)! Each army has its own laws and standards which each soldier must follow. A sinner elected to salvation by God has God's Word for his law because, "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 8:2). "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1). General Satan knows that he no longer has any real authority over those who have been drafted by King Jesus. Nevertheless there are times when the soldiers of Christ have been and will be decieved by Satans subtle attempts to try to command us once again, attempting enslave us to sin. He will also try to deceive the slaves of Christ into using their freedom as a rationality for sinning. God forbid this kind of thinking! "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh " (Galatians 5:13). Liberty and freedom from sin is granted to us as a gift from God and should never be used for anything contrary to the law of that freedom. "Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond-slaves of God" (1 Peter 2:16). The wonderful gems of the truth of unconditional election will set one free from the bondage of selfishness, pride and arrogance. It frees us from having anything whatsoever to do with our salvation. A slave to sin will only obey his master the Devil. It took the Mighty God and King to come down to the walking dead and breathe His breath of the Spirit of life into soldiers of the walking dead, freeing us from sin and eternal death. Who then will dare stand up to the Heavenly General and lay claim to his own salvation. No soldier ever obtains his rank on his own, but rather it is awarded him. God awards and grants His precious rank of salvation to whomever He pleases. And for those who would say otherwise, while they may belong to Christs army, they will utlimately have no further say when his court martial comes on judgment day!
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Thoughts on the Doctrines of Grace Pastor Rob Wilkerson

After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.
(Revelation 7:9,10)

Therefore, let us lay aside all our arrogant claims on God's gifts to us since, whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God above (Jam. 1:17, NASB). King Jesus is the one who drafted, and His salvation means that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ JesusLET HIM WHO BOASTS , BOAST IN THE LORD (1 Cor. 1:29-31). Let us serve our God with all our might in the new rank and position He has granted us - no longer sinners but saints of the Living God!!!

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