29 - You cannot earn what God already gave

Johan Toet unpacks a foundational truth of the Gospel: righteousness is not earned, it is received.

Many believers struggle with feelings of unworthiness and try to earn God’s approval through effort. But Scripture reveals that salvation comes by grace through faith, not by works. This episode brings clarity to the finished work of Christ and invites you into rest and assurance.

Be encouraged as you discover what it means to be justified freely by His grace and secure in Christ.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to One Gospel, bringing you the full truth of God's Word. Clearly explained. Together with our host, Johann Tuit, we'll unpack scripture to understand what's written and grow as a disciple of Christ. Ready to take notes? Let's open the Bible.

SPEAKER_01 0:19

Hi there and welcome to today's episode of One Gospel. I am your host, Joan Tut, and as always, I am excited to share the Word of God with you. I also would like to say to all the viewers, you know, thank you for all your testimonies and thank you for all your um encouragements and also questions for new teams that I might discuss or teach on. But it's so good to hear that uh many of you are being by the teachings that I'm sharing in this way. And I also gonna pray that you're gonna be blessed today because I'm really excited about the thing that I'm gonna teach on today. And it's also a message that I want to spread to you to understand and grasp. You know, I love the word of God, I love to explain the word of God. I, you know, I love to explain, you know, um who we are in Christ and what we have in Christ and what our authority is in Christ, you know, and who God is in us and who we are in Him and all this stuff, you know, and really love that and enjoying that, you know. And so uh, but uh today's message is also something again where I went through myself until I really grasped and got a hold of the grace of God, and that finally really transformed my life because you know it's very interesting, uh, you know, to find uh that maybe you thought that you that you understood, but then you find out that you didn't, and um instead of you know judging yourself and condemning yourself and feeling bad about it, you know, rejoicing in the fact that you now understood it, you know, and so uh world will open up for you. And so I really hope to share that with you guys today. But before we do so, let us just open with prayer. Father God, thank you so much for your word. I pray, Holy Spirit, that you will use my mouth and that you will bring me the things in remembrance that you want to share with your children. I give you all the praise and all the honor in Jesus' mighty name. Amen. Sorry, so you know, when I look at myself, you know, um, concerning uh, you know, me and God, even in the beginning, you know, especially in the beginning after I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, after I repented and became a child of the living God, you know, I've had so many innumerous, uncountable moments where I felt really, really unworthy. You know, I really had that that sense of not being worthy in any kind of way for God that He came to me, that He loves me, that He can forgive me. I mean, when God came into my life, I was a miserable, miserable sinner who lived a life of crime, who was doing all kinds of evil stuff, and I was in prison because of that lifestyle, you know, paying 15 years of imprisonment, and yet there in my prison cell, where I had nothing, but I mean, really zero to boast in. You know, God came to me and he bestowed his love upon me, he was just loving me, loving me, loving me, loving me, loving me. And I had such a hard time for so long to receive that because I couldn't understand. I just could not understand. You know, it goes beyond your understanding, it goes beyond everything that you can grasp. You there is no way to reason yourself into understanding the fact that God loves you and that he loves you unconditionally with his agape love because he is love and that he loves you despite of you. In spite of you, you know, he loves you no matter what you've done, no matter where you came from, what your background is, what the color is of your skin, where you have been born, what your religious mistakes were, or your or your or your uh sin mistakes were, you know, and all that thing, or no matter what it is, he just loves you, you know, and that for me, man, that was truly, truly mind-blowing, and it transformed me completely. But um I had such a difficulty to receive that. I mean, I thought, you know, now how can God love me? How can God forgive me? I mean, after all of that, how is it possible that he could really forgive? I mean, I understand he forgave me for this, and I understand he forgave me for that, but but also for this and also for that? I just couldn't get a hold of it, you know. How can God ever use me? How can how can I ever be pleasing to him? You know, how can he how can he really you know love me with no condemnation, no judgment, no rejection, nothing? How how is that possible? I couldn't accept it, I couldn't receive it because it is too big, it's too, it's too it's too huge. You know, it's just like really like out of this world. It's really out of this world. And so I really, really felt unworthy and I felt that I needed to do my best extra hard. I needed to put extra effort and you know, extra, you know, uh hard work and energy, you know, to put in it for for for me to be to be pleasant to God, to be, you know, um a sweet fragrance for my heavenly father. You know, and so I know they are all lies of the devil. I know they're they're absolutely not in line with the truth, you know, and I'm sure that none of you who is watching, none of you who is listening has ever had this problem. No one of you ever felt unworthy if it comes to the things of God, if it comes to God Himself. Nobody ever had felt unworthy as a unworthy as a son of God, you know, and no one has ever been bothered by that, you know. I mean, wretched man that I am. Amen. You know, but Paul says this about himself. He says in 1 Corinthians 15, verse 9, and this is really it's a really uh let me just go there quickly with you. 1 Corinthians 15 verse 9. Paul says, Listen, you know, I am the least of the apostles who am not worthy to be called an apostle because I persecuted the church of God. You see, Paul he felt unworthy. Because if you if you put yourself, you know, besides God, you know, and you and his holiness and your unrighteousness, you know, it's like, man, I'm unworthy to be even in his presence. So Paul says, I'm the least of the apostles, you know. I'm not worthy, not worthy. I am not worthy to be called an apostle. You know, Paul says, I have made a mess of it. I really messed it up. I mean, I intended it to be good, you know, and I thought I did good, but I missed it by a mile, man. I really made, I really made a mess of it. I have really, I've tried it, but I failed completely. I have failed completely. Now I know that there is no one listening today, you know what's watching today, you know, who ever felt like that. No one, you know, only me and Paul. You know, Paul and me, you know, we are like this. But let's go to Romans 7.18, Romans 7.18, and let's get into the word. You know, because Paul says, you know, I am I am not worthy. I am not worthy to be called an apostle. And I mean, I'm sure that there are many of you, and even me myself, you know, I've cried out so many times, I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy to be called your son, I am not worthy to be loved by you, I'm not worthy, you know, for your forgiveness, I am not worthy to be blessed by you, I'm not worthy to even receive a second chance, and let alone that you want to work through me and walk with me. I mean, I'm not worthy. You know, many of us, you know, have had fight these ideas, this this the these thoughts, you know, in our lives, the way that we see ourselves. But look what it says in Romans 7 and then verse 18. He says, For I know that in me, that is in my flesh, nothing good wells. For to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do. But the evil I will not, I will not to do that I practice. Well, let's say it in plain English. He says, you know, what I want to do, I don't do, but what I don't want to do, I do. So, you know, he he is struggling. And so he says, Wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death? Oh, wretched man that I am. You know, I mean, I'm I don't know how many times I've said that about myself, man. Oh, wretched man that I am. You know, I don't do what I want to do, and I do what I don't want to do. I don't say what I want to say, but I say what I don't want to say. I don't think what I want to think, but I'm thinking what I'm not wanting to think. Wretched man that I am. Oh my god, who's gonna deliver me from this? You can feel so miserable, you know, about all your mistakes and things. And so Paul also discovered that he was a wretched, miserable sinner because of this sin nature that was within me, because we're within him, because he says, you know, it's not I who do it, it's no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me, you know. Verse 20 of uh Romans 7. It's no, it's not I, it's the sin that dwells in me. He understood and he and he saw that he was a slave who was bound by the power of sin, and who was a slave of the God of this world, and you know, and he couldn't deliver himself, he just couldn't deliver himself from that. Oh, wretched man, who that I am, who will deliver me? Because he understood I can't deliver myself, I can I cannot make myself in right standing with God, I cannot make myself worthy to be in the presence of God, I cannot make myself holy to be in the presence of God, I cannot make myself to have peace with God based on my own performance and my own works and all these things, you know, I'm a miserable, miserable, miserable sinner, I'm a wretched man. Who will deliver me? I mean, I'm sorry, if anybody, if there's anybody that ever tried, you know, to justify himself before God based on his own performance, based on his own effort, his own strength, on keeping the law and you know, and doing all that religious stuff, you know, and all the things that you can imagine. If there's anyone who tried harder than anyone else in this world, then I believe to be that that it will be Paul. He tried everything to justify himself before God, he did everything that he thought he needed to do to be good for God, but it was all rubbish, it was all rubbish. Let's go to Philippians 3. Philippians 3. So here in Philippians 3, verse 4, it says, I'm sorry, I've been speaking so much. It says, Though I also might have confidence in the flesh, if anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, what is on you gonna in a different translation? It says, Though I also might have confidence in the flesh, if anyone else thinks he can boast in his flesh, you know, I'm more so, he says, I'm more so circumcised the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, and Hebrew of the Hebrews, concerning the law, a Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecution, persecuting the church, concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gained to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for Christ, my Lord, for excellence of the knowledge of Christ, my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering, being conformed to his death, if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I already have attained, not that that I have already attained or am already perfected, but I press on that I may lay hold of that which Christ Jesus has laid hold of for me or of me. Man, it's a mouthful. But you know, Paul says, you know, listen, if anybody wants to boast, you know, I'm gonna boast a little bit more. If anybody thinks, you know, to have confidence in his flesh, you know, I mourn. So if there's anybody in this world that thinks, you know, that did he did better than Paul, if it comes to keeping the law, if it comes to, you know, holding all these traditions and religion, religious acts, you know, his own performance and own strength, you know, and persecution, all that kind of thing. If there's anybody thinks that he'd done more than Paul, Paul says, Oh, wait a second. If anyone else thinks you have confidence in the flesh, if you think that you can justify yourself before God based on your own performance and your own dead works and your goodness and you know how amazing you are and all your talents and your giftings and etc. etc. If you think that you can boast there in death before God, Paul says, I more so. I more so. I can do that more than you. Are you from the tribe of Benjamin? I mean, are you from the stock of Israel? Are you a Hebrew of the Hebrews? And are you concerning the law, a Pharisee, concerning zeal persecuting the church? Are you concerning the righteousness which in the law is blameless? Are you that? I don't think so. Well now Paul says, but what things were gained to me I have counted loss for Christ, yet indeed I also count all things lost for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish. It's rubbish. All your goodness, all your all your own performances, your dead works, it's rubbish. If it comes to justifying yourself before God, it's just rubbish. You see, we all intend well. We all have our good intentions, I have no doubt. You know, but we always will miss it by a mile if it comes to God's standard. It's impossible. It's impossible. You know, it's truly impossible to get into God's grace, to get into God's presence, to get into unity and oneness with God, and to get into the kingdom of God based on your own performance and your own debt works. Impossible. It's impossible. And so, you know, the Bible says in Romans 3.23, it says, All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And so, you know, based on your own performance, it's important it's impossible to get into his presence because you have sinned and therefore you fall short of the glory of God. You cannot be into his presence. We all have sinned, and we all were just as miserable, each one of us, you know, the same problem. That's sin nature with what we were born into this world, and we couldn't do anything to change it. But then Paul says something very interesting, and we're gonna read it in one Corinthians. Very, very interesting, that will help you and me a lot if we're gonna get a whole of that. 1 Corinthians 15. Paul says in first 10, he says, but by the grace of God I am what I am. Now let me repeat that again. By the grace of God, I am what I am. Now, I wonder, you know, I really I really question and really ask myself, you know, sometimes, how is it possible, you know, that we have become to believe together that we could earn anything that is of the Lord ourselves by our own performances or that works? How did we come to believe that there is anything that we can earn ourselves with God, or that we can add anything, you know, to add anything to the finished work of Christ? How did we come to believe that there is anything that you can earn yourself or that you can add to the finished work of Christ Jesus, that you can justify yourself before God based on your own performance? You know, I know a lot of brothers who are not sure of their salvation. You know, maybe yes, maybe no. You know, they are not sure because they truly believe that they can lose their salvation. You know, they they they are truly afraid that, you know, they have done something or said something, you know, or thought something that have caused them to lose their salvation, which is like a nightmare just to even think about that. You know, that would make my life miserable. That literally would make my life miserable if I'm not certain of my redemption, if I'm not certain of my salvation, of my right standing with God. I mean, I know a lot of brothers, you know, that that truly, truly believe this. It doesn't matter what you say, but it's truly, truly what they believe. They believe that they can lose their salvation by doing things that they shouldn't have done or by not doing things that they should have done, that it's all based on, you know, your own actions, whether you're gonna keep it or whether you're gonna lose it. You know, and then there are other brothers that I know and sisters, you know, they they do believe that they were saved by grace, but now, you know, they have to do all these things to stay saved. So you they received their salvation by grace, but now they have to perform, and now they have to do all this stuff to stay safe, to remain saved, you know. And I'm telling you, brother and my sisters, it is a lie from hell. Why? Because we have received freely. We have received freely, that means for nothing, for zero, for zip. We have received it gratis. I say that in English, it's for free. You didn't, you know, there's no performance, there's no counter-performance, there are no conditions. It has been given to you for free. Free, free, free, free, free, free, free. Romans, hallelujah. Let's go to Romans 3 quickly. Romans 3 21. Romans 3 21 it says, but now the righteousness of God, um, but now the righteousness of God apart from the law has been revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ to all and all who believe, for there is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. How did you have or how did you were justified? How were you justified? Freely. It's freely. You know, you didn't have to do anything for it. It's by faith, you know, that you received it. Through faith, you have received it. Through faith, you have received it. It's not something that you that you can do to receive it. All you have to do is believe it to receive it. So it's freely. Now, that is the gospel that we need to preach, and that's the only gospel by which we will be saved. There is no other gospel by which we must be saved. There is no other truth by which we must be saved. You know, and we need to preach this gospel because, you know, there's a lot of there's a lot of doctrine going out there, you know, just that teaches us, you know, that yes, you are saved by grace, but now, you know, or you know, yeah, no, um, yes, uh, you know, he died for you in grace, but you know, you have to do a lot of things to receive that grace. Uh what? It is grace, it's unmerited favor. I don't deserve it. That's why it's grace. Amen. But that's the that's the gospel that we need to preach. And so here in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul says, Moreover, brethren, verse 1, I declare to you the gospel which I preach to you, which also you received, and in which you stand, by which you also are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preach to you, unless you believed in vain. Now, let me just give a little sidetrack in this. It doesn't say that, you know, um, if you do not Um hold on to that word, you know, you you are not saved. He he doesn't say that, he says, This word that I preach to you, you have received it, and you are standing in it, and you are saved by it. If you hold fast to that word that I've preached to you, unless you have believed in vain. What does Paul say here? He says, Listen, I've preached the gospel to you. And if you receive that gospel, if you believed it with your heart and confessed it with your mouth, then you were saved. But if you heard that gospel, but then you are not holding firm to it, you're not standing in it, you're not believing it, you don't put your confidence in it, you don't put your trust in it, and you don't receive it as the word of God, the word of truth, that by that word, to believe that word and to repent, you are saved, then you then you know you have said, Yeah, oh yeah, well, that's amazing. But you you didn't, you know, you didn't receive that salvation, you didn't receive that born-again experience if you do not hold firm to it and say, This is the truth, and I'm saved by this word. And so he says, But I deliver to you first of all all that which I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. And so this is the gospel. The gospel is Jesus died for our sins. Then he was buried, and he rose again on the third day. This is the gospel that Paul preached, this is the gospel that Jesus preached, that he's gonna die for our sins, and then he will rise again on the third day, and that we only are saved through Christ Jesus by faith, through grace, or through grace, by faith, you know, and and you know, and that's the only gospel that we need to preach. It is the only thing that is true, that's the only thing that will set you free, it's the only thing that will save you. It's and there's nothing more that you have to do than to believe this gospel. That's what Paul says in Romans 1:16. He says, You know, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ because it is a power of God until salvation for anyone who believes. For anyone who believes, first for the Jew and also for the Greek. And so this gospel that Jesus has died for our sins, that he was buried and rose again, freely given to us, you know, by his sacrifice. We this is the gospel we need to believe, we need to hold firm, we need to stand in. You know, we we we shouldn't let that go. We should believe that, that that is the only truth, and that we are saved by grace and not by our own dead works or performances. This is the gospel that needs to be preached. It's Christ, the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by him. You know, if you have the Son, then you have life. If you do not have the Son, then you do not have life. 1 John 5, 11, and 12. And so we come to Jesus by faith. That's the that's the only gospel that we need to preach, and that's the only truth, uh, the word of truth that there is. So you thinking that you can earn it yourself, you thinking that you need to add something to the finished work of Jesus when he called out at the cross, it is finished, you thinking that you can add something by your own performances and that works and capacities and talents and giftings, etc. etc. etc. You know, you are being misled because how do you believe that you can add something to that what Jesus said, it is finished, it has been paid for. You know, there is so much I need to share on this, and so you know, I felt I went a little bit like this, but please bear with me. You know, this gospel will turn you into something that you were never before, and you have received that by grace. You can't lose it because God's gifts and callings are without repentance, they are irrevocable. And so my time now is up in this episode, but I will continue this in the next episode. So I hope to see you back, and um, we're gonna continue on this because it's very deep, it's very big, it's very huge, but it's so important to understand and how beautiful it's gonna be if we're gonna grasp this. All right, so stick with me, and I'm gonna see you in the next episode of One Gospel. God bless you. Bye-bye.

SPEAKER_00 26:22

Thanks for tuning in to One Gospel. If this message encouraged you, be sure to share it with your friends so they can be blessed too. Want more teachings and tools to grow in your faith? Visit onegospel.com and subscribe to our newsletter today. Until next time on One Gospel, where the full truth of God's word is clearly explained.