So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:33)

If you are the pastor of a church, pick one Sunday and preach the demands of discipleship without mentioning grace. The demands of discipleship include turning aside from our own life, taking up our cross of self-denial, and following the Lord wherever He leads us. Tell the members that unless they do this they are not disciples, that is, not true Christians.

Preach the Gospel of the Kingdom as straight as Jesus did without attempting to soften its impact, without once tempering your teaching with references to God's love and mercy. The true saints in your assembly will rejoice and praise God for the truth. The "mixed multitude" (probably the majority), that you think are such dear saints, that love you so much, will have things to say to you and those statements will not be pleasant to hear!

The Kingdom of God is a seed that is sown in us. It grows as we nourish it with prayer, reading the Scriptures, obeying the Lord, and serving God in every other way. It is only as we overcome sin that we enter the Kingdom. No amount of mercy or grace has any ability whatever to give us the Kingdom. We enter the Kingdom by growing in the righteousness that is Christ in us. Mercy and grace serve to provide for us and keep us without condemnation while we are being transformed morally. God's love, mercy, and grace are never a substitute for our stern obedience to the Holy Spirit as He brings us from victory to victory over the sin in our personality.

The Law of Sowing and Reaping

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Galatians 6:7,8)

First of all, to whom is Paul writing?

Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) And all the brethren which are with me, unto the churches of Galatia: (Galatians 1:1,2)

Paul was writing to "the churches of Galatia." There are some today who would tells us such admonitions of Paul (and there are several similar warnings!) do not hold true for believers because they are "saved by grace," that is, by the grace Paul described in the Book of Romans. This would make Paul a very confused and inconsistent teacher of the Gospel.

The truth is, the ministers who advise us that the admonitions of the Apostles do not apply to the believers are the ones who are confused and inconsistent. Such ministers already have led multitudes astray with their flawed teaching!

All creatures of God reap what they sow. The law of sowing and reaping is an eternal law in both the natural and the spirit realms. God's love, mercy, and grace do not affect the law of sowing and reaping except under the conditions we have described previously.

Let us say we sow grass seed in our yard. What do we expect to reap? Grass! We would be amazed indeed if bushes or people sprang up as the seed germinated. We have sown grass and we shall reap grass. It is as simple as that.

To be continued.