The Way of Grace (恩典的道路) — Zac Poonen

Living Out What Jesus Did and Taught

There's a very wonderful word that we read in the first sentence of the Acts of the Apostles. The Acts of the Apostles is a description of the early Christians. And it is God's intention that our own life should also be like it is in the Acts of the Apostles.

And when we read the Acts of the Apostles and we compare our own life, we find a tremendous difference. There's a principle that we read in the first verse of the Acts of the Apostles. It says in Acts chapter one, verse one, the Acts of the Apostles was written by Luke And in the first verse, he is referring to the gospel which he wrote.

And this is how he describes the gospel that he wrote. This is how Luke describes how he wrote the gospel. Theophilus, I have already written the gospel according to what Jesus taught at the beginning.

Now notice something in that verse. Jesus did and taught. Now there is a saying in the world that you must practice what you preach. But here it says that Jesus preached what he had already practiced.

Here it says that he practiced it first in his life, then he preached it. He did, it says here, and then he taught. What we see here is what he did, what he taught. He did it first, then he taught. All the words of the Lord must be like this.

It must be done first, then we can teach others. We must do it first, then we can teach others. I have traveled in many places and the tragedy I have seen is this. That so many people preach what they have never practiced in their life.

And it was like that in my life too, in the beginning. Till a time came when I realized that I was a hypocrite. That what I stood in the pulpit and told other people was not really true in my personal inner life.

Then I was not following Jesus' example who first did and then taught. And I found that I came to a place in my life as a preacher many years ago. Where though I preached wonderful things from the pulpit, it was not true in my private inner life.

When he was speaking on the pulpit, it was not like that in his life. He also met many preachers, their lives were also like that. And then I came to a rock bottom, zero level in my life. Defeated inwardly.

Defeated in my home life. Not behaving like Jesus Christ at home. Not behaving like Jesus Christ in my private life. But yet carrying on as a professional preacher. And I got on my knees before God. And I was honest with Him.

And I said, Lord, I said I am a hypocrite. The people who hear me preach don't know that. Lord, you know that in my life. And that proves that I am more interested in the opinion of people than the opinion of God.

But I was fed up with myself. And I said, Lord, you have got to change my life. I am not interested in fame or money in the world. But I ask you, Lord, for one thing. And I can honestly say, I ask God for only one thing.

I said, Lord, do this for me. That what I preach will be true in my inner life. That my outward life and my inner life will correspond with each other. And when I was honest with God. And I sought God for His power.

I sought God that I might have the power of the Holy Spirit in my life. And live the type of life the Bible taught that I should live. God opened my eyes to see something that I had never seen for the first 15 years of my Christian life.

Discovering the New Covenant

For 15 years, I was born again. My sins were forgiven. I had been baptized in water. And I was going regularly to an assembly. But there was one thing I never understood. And that was the difference between the New Testament and the Old Testament.

That Jesus came to establish a new covenant or New Testament. It means the same thing. The Bible says in Psalm 25 verse 14. That the secrets of the Lord are revealed to those who fear God. And He will make those people know His covenant.

And make them know His covenant. That is a very beautiful verse. We can learn many things from that verse. One is that God has certain secrets. And just like we reveal our secrets only to those who are intimate to us.

God reveals His secrets only to those who are intimate with Him. There are certain things which God reveals publicly to everybody. But there are certain things which are secrets. Forgiveness of sin is not a secret.

God has proclaimed throughout the whole world that Jesus died for our sins. And we can have forgiveness through His death on Calvary's cross. But there are certain things beyond that which are secrets.

But there are things beyond that which are secrets. But we see that God says that He reveals His secrets only to those who are intimate with Him. Not to all people. This is a very important thing. That it is not by human cleverness that we can discover those secrets.

My human cleverness and intelligence gives me no advantage in understanding the secrets of God. My human cleverness and intelligence gives me no advantage in understanding the secrets of God. It does not say that God reveals His secrets only to those who are clever.

We read in Matthew 11, 25 that God reveals His secrets only to those who are clever. But what did we read here in Psalm 25? If I fear God, God will reveal many of His secrets to me. And I have come to see that there is one very simple test for fearing God.

Just like in the chemistry laboratory, they have a thing called litmus paper to find out if something is an acid or not. And here is a very simple test by which we can find out whether we fear God or not in the same way.

And here is a very simple test by which we can find out whether we fear God or not in the same way. If I am more careful about not sinning in public, but careless about sinning in my thought life, then I don't fear God.

If I am more careful about not sinning in public, but careless about sinning in my thought life, then I don't fear God. For example, you are tempted in some way. But you won't give in to that temptation externally because you will lose your testimony.

But you will give in to that temptation internally and enjoy that sin in your thought life because you cannot do it externally. What does that prove? That proves that I am afraid of men, but I am not afraid of God.

So many young people, they commit sins in private, which they will never commit in the presence of other believers. In public, other believers are watching them. So they don't do certain sins. In private, only God is watching them, so they sin.

What does that prove? That proves they are afraid of believers, but they are not afraid of God. And my dear friends, that is the condition of the vast majority of people who call themselves believers today.

And that's why they can't understand the secrets of God. It's easy to increase in Bible knowledge. But Bible knowledge does not make us spiritual. Now, I want to give you a formula, like in chemistry you have formulas.

Bible knowledge plus obedience makes us spiritual. If I don't obey what I read in the word, I can never be spiritual. I can come to the meetings, and hear so much from Genesis to Revelation. And each Sunday, my balloon is getting bigger and bigger, with all the hot air being pumped into it.

This balloon becomes so huge, but it's only full of hot air, there's nothing inside. It can be easily deflated. That's not spirituality. That's not spirituality. If I increase in Bible knowledge, and I still raise my voice at my wife at home, I'm not spiritual.

If I haven't got victory over shouting at my wife, what can I stand up here and preach to you in the morning? Nothing! That's just knowledge. And knowledge is a great deception when it comes to spirituality.

The Fear of God and Spiritual Obedience

Brothers and sisters, we need to fear God. The great need is for a revival of the fear of God in the midst of the believers. And when I learned to fear God in my life, that is, I began to say, Lord, I'm not interested in the opinion other people have of me.

I'm interested in your opinion about me. I don't care whether other people think I'm spiritual. Lord God Almighty, do you think I'm spiritual or not? And when I prayed like that, then this verse was fulfilled in my life.

Then God showed me the secret things in the Word of God. Then God made known to me His covenant, as it says here. Jesus came to establish a new covenant. A new covenant that was better than the old covenant.

We read in the beginning of the meeting from John 1, 17. The old covenant came through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. The old covenant was like primary school education. Jesus Christ came to lead us on from primary school to secondary to university, higher.

Jesus Christ came to lead us on from primary school to secondary to university, higher. The old covenant was good. But it was like the kindergarten, primary school. Do we need the kindergarten? Yes, we do.

All of us begin there. But we are not meant to stay there forever. So we can say the old covenant was good, but it was incomplete. That was not God's full purpose. It was only a first step that God revealed to man.

But God's intention was later on to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to lead people into the new covenant. Now it says in John 1, 17, the law was given by Moses. But grace came by Jesus Christ. The word the Bible uses for the old covenant is the law.

And in the new covenant, Jesus has come with grace. And there is a difference between law and grace. The law could raise people under the old covenant to quite a high standard of life. We know that Abraham, and Moses, and Elijah lived before Jesus Christ.

But they lived at quite a high standard of life. So we can say that even the primary school brought them to quite a high standard of life. Then the secondary and university education that Jesus gives should raise us to a still higher standard of life.

Why is it then, when we look at the lives of many believers, their standard of life is lower even than those Old Testament people who had primary education. I will tell you why. I will tell you why it was like that in my life for many years.

Because I did not understand the new covenant. I did not understand the real meaning of grace. Because I did not fear God, He did not reveal His covenant to me. My sins were forgiven. But I was defeated in my thought life.

Loving God Rather Than Money

I loved money. And the word of God says you cannot love money and love God at the same time. Impossible. You know the word of God says that in Luke 16 .13. It is impossible to love God and love money at the same time.

But I never knew that. I tried to love God and I loved money too. I was careful about my external life but I used to lust with my eyes. And many other sins I was defeated by. But then God opened my eyes to see the new covenant.

We know that Jesus Christ is greater than Moses. And what Moses and the law could not do, God did through Jesus Christ. And what Moses and the law could not do, God did through Jesus Christ. We read Romans 8 .3.

There was something that the law could not do. This is a very interesting verse. It is the difference between the old covenant and the new covenant. What the law could not do, because of the weakness of the flesh, God has now done.

What the Law Cannot Do

Let's just stop there for a moment. And ask this question. What was it that the law could not do? The law said you must not commit murder. You must not steal. You must not commit adultery. And because God gave a law like that, it prevented many of those Israelites from committing these external sins.

It prevented many of those Israelites from committing these external sins. When our brothers came to Singapore, they saw a big difference between our security and India. Singapore has this law. Because many of them want to steal, but they don't steal because we have the law.

Singapore has many people who want to kill, but they don't dare to kill because they know the law will catch them. Singapore has many people who like to commit adultery, but they don't dare to do it because the law will punish them.

So is the law a good thing? It certainly is a very good thing. Because the law keeps people from doing a lot of bad things. And Paul said in Romans 7 .16, I agree that the law is good. Just think what a terrible place Singapore would be if there was no such laws on these matters.

What kind of situation would Singapore be in if there were no laws? Our lives would not be safe. The law is good. It keeps people from committing external sins. What is it that the law cannot do? What is it that the law cannot do even in Singapore?

Romans 8 .3 tells us that there is something that the law cannot do. What is it? If a man walks down the street and he commits a crime against a woman, the police cannot catch him. If that lust comes out of his heart and he commits adultery with her, then the police can catch him.

But as long as he is only doing it in his heart, the law cannot do anything to him. If a man in Singapore hates another man, the law cannot do anything to him for that. But if the hatred comes out and he kills him, then the law will catch him.

If I walk down the street and I see something in the shop and I feel like stealing it, the law cannot catch me for that. If I walk down the street and I see something in the shop and I feel like stealing it, the police cannot catch me for that.

But if I actually go and steal it, then the law catches me. Do we understand what the law cannot do? The law cannot prevent me from committing a crime inside my heart. It can only prevent me from committing sin on the outside.

If we are believers, and all we say is, I don't commit sin on the outside, that means you are still under law. That's how it was in the Old Testament. They did not sin on the outside. Paul was like that.

Paul said about his own testimony in Philippians 3. Verse 6. That according to the righteous standard of Moses' law, his life was blameless. According to the righteous standard of Moses' law, his life was blameless.

According to the righteous standard of Moses' law, his life was blameless. According to the righteous standard of Moses' law, his life was blameless. But what about what was going on inside his heart?

Paul tells us in Romans 7. Verse 7 and 8. He said in the last part, I would not have known about coveting if the law had not said you shall not covet. But sin, verse 8, taking opportunity through the commandment, produced inside of me coveting of every kind.

The Tenth Commandment and Inward Sin

Do you all know the Ten Commandments? Do you all know the Ten Commandments? Let me just tell you some of them. You shall not have any other gods but Me. You shall not bow down to any idols. You shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

You shall not honor your father and mother. You shall not steal. You shall not tell lies. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not kill. You shall keep the Sabbath. That's nine commandments so far.

And these nine commandments, the Israelites could keep. But then there was a tenth one. And that was the difficult one. The first nine were easy. You know why? Because the first nine all dealt with the external life.

How many of you know the Tenth Commandment? You know what that said? You must not desire your neighbor's wife. Covet or lust. Or desire anything that belongs to somebody else. Desire. That's an inward thing.

You can't see it. You don't know the desires in my heart. I don't know the desires in your heart. You know why God put that tenth commandment at the bottom of the list? To find out how many people really fear me.

How many people will admit that when it comes to the tenth commandment, they can't keep it. And Paul is referring to the tenth commandment here in verse 7 of Romans 7. What Paul is saying is, all the nine commandments I could keep.

But when I came to the tenth one which said you shall not lust. I could not keep it. I found all types of lusting in my heart. That's what he says in verse 8. What do we learn from verse 8? One thing.

That Paul was an honest man. He was not a hypocrite pretending that there was nothing dirty in his heart. And I'll tell you something brothers and sisters. God helps us when we are honest. If we sit here and pretend that there is nothing dirty in my heart, God will never help you.

If you can be honest and say Lord, I see there are a lot of filthy things in my heart which I am defeated by. Then God can help you. Now we understand what the law could not do for Paul. It could not produce righteousness inside.

It could only produce righteousness on the outside. But now here is the wonderful news. You know what it is? You know what the gospel really is? You know what the gospel really is? What the law could not do, God has now done.

The Righteous Requirement Fulfilled Within

Through the new covenant. That's what we read in Romans 8 verse 3. What the law could not do, God did. How did he do it? There was only one way by which he could do it. And we really need the revelation of the Holy Spirit to understand this.

Here it is, Romans 8 verse 3. God sent his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh. And for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh. Why? That's the important question. Verse 4. So that, this righteous requirement of the law, listen to this, might now be fulfilled inside of us.

Up till now, it was only fulfilled on the outside of my life. Now, hallelujah, it can be fulfilled on the inside of my heart as well. Do you think that's good news? For whom is it good news? It is good news for those who are sick and tired and fed up of their inward defeated life.

But those who are not bothered about their inward life, they won't listen to this message. Let's turn to Hebrews chapter 8. Hebrews chapter 8, it says about the first covenant and the second covenant in verse 7.

Verse 7, it says, If the first covenant had been faultless, there would be no occasion sought for a second. That means, if primary school education was enough, then there would be no need for secondary schools or universities.

But we know that primary school education is not enough, therefore, we institute secondary schools and universities. So, God also saw that the first covenant is not enough, He instituted a second one.

And He says, this covenant, I will make a new covenant, He says in verse 8. And this will be different from the old covenant. And see what it says in verse 10. Very important. This is the new covenant.

Middle of verse 10. I will put my laws inside their mind. I will write them inside their hearts. Where was the old covenant written? Outside, on two tablets of stone. Moses came down from the mountain with those commandments written on two tablets of stone.

It was outside. And God was saying, this proves that it can only work on the outside of your life. But the new covenant is not written on the outside on two tablets of stone. It is written inside my heart.

Freedom from the Law Through the Holy Spirit

And when the Bible says, I am free from the law, what does it mean? We read in Galatians chapter 5. And verse 18. That if you are led by the Holy Spirit, you are not under the law. That if you are led by the Holy Spirit, you are not under the law.

This is a very important verse that we need to understand. What does it mean to be free from the law? Let us take the case of a thief in Singapore. There are two ways in which he can be free from the law.

If the government of Singapore will remove the laws against stealing, he will be very happy. Say, now I am free to steal as much as I like. But there is another way. If God can do a work inside that thief's heart, so that he no longer wants to steal, then also he is free.

Then he does not need a law which says, thou shalt not steal, because the desire for stealing is taken away from inside. Here is where many Christians have misunderstood what it means to be free from the law.

They think of it in the first way. Ah, free from the law means it does not matter now if I sin. I will sin, but the blood of Jesus is there to cleanse me. But that is not the freedom from the law which the Bible speaks of.

That is sinking even lower than the primary school of the Old Testament. That is sinking even lower than the primary school of the Old Testament. And it is because many Christians have not understood this, that their life standard is lower than the life standard of people in the Old Testament.

We see that many Christians do not understand this. So their lives and lives are lower than those of primary school students. Jesus came to give us something better. That he writes that law inside my heart.

For example, if God can do a work in my heart that I never lust after a girl even once, I do not need a law which says, do not commit adultery, because I am not even doing it in my heart. Why do I need an external law?

If God can do a work in my heart that I do not even hate a human being, I do not need a law which says, thou shalt not kill, because there is no chance of my killing anyone because I am not even hating anyone.

That is the meaning of being free from that law. God writes his laws inside of me, so that I do not need the external law anymore. This is the new covenant. This is what God opened my eyes to see when I was in need and defeated by sin in my life.

Grace, Victory, and the End of Sin's Rule

Then I understood Romans 6 .14. Romans 6 .14 is another very important verse. It says, sin will not be master over you, because you are not under law but under grace. When you were under law, sin was ruling you.

Not externally, but inwardly. But when you move out of this primary school which Moses brought, and come to this new covenant, the higher thing that Jesus brought, which is called grace, then sin will not have power over me, even inside.

Because when I am tempted to sin, the Bible says in Hebrews 4 .16 that God will give me grace to help me in my time of need so that I do not fall into sin. In the old covenant, David could sing. What did he sing?

In Psalm 103 He said in verse 3 Bless the Lord who forgives all my sins. Sing, bless the Lord who has forgiven all my sins under the old covenant. So forgiveness of sins is a primary school subject. Have you got forgiveness of sins?

Good! That is primary school. But Jesus has come with something more. More than just forgiveness of sins through His shed blood. What is that? What we read in Romans 6 .14. There you got forgiveness. Now you can get victory.

When you get forgiveness you are in primary school. When you get victory you are moved to a higher class. Sin shall not rule over you. Why does sin rule over many believers then? Why do so many believers lose their temper and lust and backbite and are bitter towards people and grumble and complain about so many things.

And what about the petitioners? Because they have sinned. They are jealous. Why? Because they do not understand the new covenant. My dear brothers and sisters. The Lord Jesus wants to lead us to a more abundant state.

When the Lord Jesus was speaking to the churches in chapter 2 and 3 He always concluded His message with one sentence. Do you know what that was? He who has ears to hear let him hear. Not everybody is interested in this truth.

And Jesus knows that. But Jesus also knows that there are some people who are really longing for all of God's truth who are sick and fed up of their defeated lives And to such people He says He who has ears to hear let him hear.

Amen.