Grace Life Issues living under grace based upon your new identity in Christ.

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1 1 Sunday, May 29, 2016 Great Lakes Grace Bible Cnference The IF Factr Intrductin II Crinthians 2:11 since the time f Paul, Satan has been seeking t get an advantage f us as believers. The adversary has been seeking t establish a state, cnditin, r circumstance that he culd explit t his advantage against believers. Accrding t verse 11, the Adversary seeks this advantage thrugh the implementatin f what Paul calls his devices. Accrding t Nah Webster a device is: That which is frmed by design, r invented; scheme; artificial cntrivance; stratagem; prject; smetimes in a gd sense; mre generally in a bad sense, as artifices are usually emplyed fr bad purpses. Ephesians 6:11 believers are instructed t put n the armr t Gd in rder t stand against the wiles f the devil. A wile is defined as, a trick r stratagem practiced fr ensnaring r deceptin; a sly, insidius artifice. (Webster s, 1828) II Crinthians 11:3 we knw that Satan is willing t use any means necessary t bscure Gd s truth and/r keep believers in the dark with respect t what Gd is ding during the dispensatin f grace. Ephesians 4:14 I believe that the Adversary pssesses a wide array f devices/wiles that he can emply depending n where an individual persn is at with respect t Gd s truth. These devices/wiles are cunningly utilized by the Adversary t keep believers susceptible t the winds f dctrine. False Gspels keep peple frm getting saved (II Cr. 4:14). False Bibles n final authrity (Gen. 3). Undispensatinal Bible Study bscures the truth f the mystery and the wrd rightly divided. Grace Life Issues living under grace based upn yur new identity in Christ. Just because ne cmes t a prper understanding with respect t the fur general categries des nt mean the believer have successfully averted the enemy s devices. As believers stand fr these fur truths they will encunter ever mre sinister devices designed t cunningly cax believers away frm the truth. I Timthy 1:19 in recent years I have cme t believe that sme are making shipwreck f the Pauline Grace Message by failing t prperly understand the basic cnditin if. Pastr Bryan Rss

2 2 I Crinthians 15:2 sme are saying this passage is nt the gspel that saves tday because it is cnditinal. Clssians 1:23 likewise, sme maintain that ne must cntinue and be nt mved away if they wish t be presented hly, unblameable, and unreprveable in his sight in verse 22. In bth f these passages, hw ne understands the English cnditin if makes a wrld f difference in terms f what ne believes the passage t be teaching. Herein resides the gal f this study. I wuld like t examine hw the cnditins fund in I Crinthians 15:2 and Clssians 1:23 shuld be understd. In rder t accmplish this task we will cnsider the fllwing three pints: Hw d cnditinal statements wrk? I Crinthians 15:1-4 Clssians 1:23 Hw D Cnditinal Statement Wrk? First f all, anytime yu see the English wrd if yu are dealing with a cnditin. The questin ne must ask is what TYPE f cnditin am I dealing with? The Oxfrd English Dictinary (OED) ffers the fllwing basic definitin fr the English wrd if. Intrducing a clause f cnditin r suppsitin (the prtasis f a cnditinal sentence). On cnditin that; given r granted that; in (the) case that; suppsing that; n the suppsitin that. S accrding t the basic definitin, the English wrd if can either intrduce a clause f cnditin r intrduce a suppsitin i.e., an assertin. The dictinary uses the technical term prtasis. The wrd prtasis is a wrd f English grammar. a prpsitin, the majr premise f a hypthetical clause In ther wrds, it deals with the prtin f a cnditinal sentence cntaining the if statement. In philsphy and lgic a prtasis is als knwn as an antecedent. prtasis = antecedent i.e., they are the same thing. Pastr Bryan Rss

3 3 Please identify the prtasis/antecedent in the fllwing statement. If yur my sn, then act like it. If yur my sn = the apdsis/antecedent. S then what d we call the then act like it prtin f the statement? In English grammar the secnd part f the statement is knwn as an apdsis r cnsequent in philsphy and lgic. The OED defines apdsis as, The cncluding clause f a sentence as cnstructed with the intrductry clause, r prtasis, nw usually cnstricted t the cnsequent clause in a cnditinal sentence. apdsis = cnsequent i.e., they are the same thing. S, the then act like it prtin wuld be the cnsequent r main result f the statement If yur my sn, than act like it. In this example, what is the functin f the cnditin? T call int questin r raise dubt as t whether r nt the child is my sn. OR Establish the FACTUAL relatinship between bth parts f the statement. Smetimes the cnditin if means t establish the abslute FACTUAL relatinship between tw things; whereas ther times it seeks raise a questin r intrduce dubt. The determining factr in which functin a particular cnditin is serving is the md n the verb fllwing the cnditin. Accrding t the OED cnditins fllwed by the indicative md are FACT stating. With the cnditinal clause r prtasis in the indicative. The indicative after if implies that the speaker expresses n adverse pinin as t the truth f the statement in the clause; it is cnsistent with his acceptance f it. The entry fr the wrd indicative reads as fllws: Gram. That pints ut, states, r declares: applied t that md f a verb f which the essential functin is t state a relatin f bjective fact between the subject and predicate (as ppsed t a relatin merely cnceived, thught f, r wished, by the speaker). (OED) Of a frm f statement: Having the verb in the indicative md; assertive f bjective fact. (OED) Pastr Bryan Rss

4 4 Cnditins f this TYPE are knwn as indicative cnditinal statements and are FACT stating, i.e., IF AND ITS TRUE. In cntrast, a cnditin with a verb in the subjunctive md fllwing if serves a cmpletely different functin. The OED entry fr if identified these TYPES f cnditins as well. The subjunctive after if implies that the speaker guards himself frm endrsing the truth r realizatin f the statement; it is cnsistent with his dubt f it. Likewise, the OED defines subjunctive as: That is subjined r dependent. Designating a md the frms f which are emplyed t dente an actin r a state as cnceived (and nt as a fact) and therefre used t express a wish, cmmand, exhrtatin, r a cntingent, hypthetical, r prspective event. S, a subjunctive cnditinal statement means t express DOUBT and can be summarized as, IF MAYBE IT IS MAYBE IT ISN T. Clssians 3:1 what is the functin this cnditin? Is Paul calling int questin whether r nt the Clssians are risen with Christ? N, he is telling them n the basis f the FACT that they are risen with him t seek thse things which are abve. Clssians 2:12 established the FACT that the Clssians ARE RISEN WITH HIM. Clssians 3:1 takes the established FACT frm chapter 2 and infrms the Clssian hw t live in light f it. The functin f the cnditin here is IF AND ITS TRUE. Rmans 7:2 s the wife being bund by the law t her husband is subject t whether r nt he is alive. S if the husband is alive is the wife subject t the law f the husband? Yes. The nly way the wife is lsed frm the law f the husband is if the husband is dead. In this example its subjunctive. In ther wrds, the satisfactin f the cnditin is subject t the circumstances. As lng as the husband is alive is the wife bund t the husband? Yes. If the husband is dead is the wife lsed frm the law f the husband? Yes. The functin f the cnditin here is MAYBE IT IS MAYBE IT ISN T. Pastr Bryan Rss

5 5 Helpful Hint when dealing with a cnditinal statement always ask yurself the fllwing questin, what type f cnditin am I dealing with? Des the cnditin calling anything int questin r establish the abslute cnnectin between tw things? If and it s true? OR If maybe it is maybe it isn t? I Crinthians 15:1-4 Sme are arguing based upn the cnditin in verse 2 that this passage is nt the gspel. Is this claim true? Hw shuld ne understand this cnditin? I Crinthians 15:1 Paul begins the chapter by addressing the Crinthians as brethren. Why wuld he d that? Because the Crinthians were already saved. They had already trusted in the finished wrk f Christ as the nly ttal cmplete payment fr their sins. I Crinthians 1:2 I Crinthians 6:11 the Crinthians have already been washed, sanctified, and justified I Crinthians 15:1 als nte the past tense n the verbs preached and received. Had Paul already preached the gspel unt them? Had the Crinthians already received Paul s gspel? Yes. Therefre they pssessed a present tense standing in the truths f Paul s gspel. I Crinthians 15:2 hw were the Crinthians saved? By receiving and believing the gspel Paul preached unt them. Ntice that the Crinthians are saved as a present reality (present indicative). if ye keep in memry what I preached unt yu here we encunter the cnditin causing all the fuss. Is the functin f this cnditin t call int questin whether r nt the Crinthians are justified based upn whether r nt they keep Paul s gspel in memry. Is this verse saying that ne must keep Paul s gspel in memry in rder t be justified r saved frm their sins? I believe the answer is NO. First, the verb keep is in the indicative md meaning that this is the TYPE f cnditin designed t establish the FACTUAL cnnectin between tw things i.e., it is serving the lgical functin. If ne reads this cnditin as the TYPE that intrduces dubt r cntingency int the situatin than the justificatin f the Crinthians wuld indeed be cnditined upn them keeping Paul s gspel in memry. Pastr Bryan Rss

6 6 Nt nly des this reading cnfuse the cnditin it als assumes that the wrd saved is nly used t refer t justificatin r initial salvatin frm sin. Let s cnsider the cntext. I Crinthians 15:3-4 was the resurrectin f Christ part f the gspel that Paul preached t the Crinthians? Yes. I Crinthians 15:12 despite the cntents f Paul s gspel sme in Crinth were saying that there is n resurrectin f the dead. I Crinthians 15:13-19 set frth the implicatins fr the n resurrectin psitin that had been embraced by sme f the Crinthians. If ne denied the reality f resurrectin the fllwing wuld be the case: Verse 13 Christ wuld nt have raised frm the dead. Verse 14 if Christ had nt risen, than Paul s preaching wuld be vain alng with the faith f the Crinthians. Verse 15 Paul and the Crinthians wuld be false witnesses f Gd fr having testified that Gd raised up Christ frm the dead. Verse 17 if Christ didn t raise frm the dead the Crinthians are still in their sins. Verse 18 if Christ didn t rise frm the dead departed believers have perished. Verse 19 if Christ didn t rise frm the dead humanity is in a truly miserable state. I Crinthians 15:20 Christ is raised frm the dead. Therefre; we are nt f all men mst miserable (v. 19), departed believers are nt perished (v. 18), the Crinthians are nt still in their sins (v. 17), Paul and the Crinthians are nt false witnesses f Gd (v. 15), and Paul s preaching and the Crinthians faith is nt in vain (v. 14). I Crinthians 15:2 in the cntext, what are the Crinthians saved frm by keeping the cntents f Paul s gspel in memry? They are saved frm the hpelessness, misery, and despair that wuld fllw the belief there is n resurrectin f the dead, which sme f them had embraced. Des the cnditin in verse 2 call int questin the nature f the Crinthians justificatin? N, it is part f the lgical argument that Paul is making thrughut the chapter regarding the reality f resurrectin. It is the if f lgical argumentatin. Is I Crinthians 15:3-4 the gspel? Yes, it is the gspel in a nutshell. It is Paul s gspel biled dwn t its mst basic expressin. D yu see hw a failure t prperly understand the cnditin makes a mess ut f the text? Pastr Bryan Rss

7 7 Clssians 1:23 In my pinin, this is the mst challenging cnditin in all f Paul s epistles. One needs t exercise extreme care when expunding upn this passage. If ne understands the cnditin in verse 23 t be a subjunctive cnditin (Maybe It is Maybe It Isn t) they are placing a cnditin upn saints being presented hly, unblameable, and unreprvable in his sight in verse 22. In cntrast, if ne views the cnditin in verse 23 as a indicative statement f FACT, they are establishing the factual cnnectin between verses 22 and 23. In ther wrds, the reasn believers are hly, unblameable, and unreprveable is his sight is because they will as a matter f FACT cntinue and nt be mved away frm the hpe f the gspel in verse 23. Textually, the verb cntinue fllwing the cnditin in verse 23 is in the indicative md. Accrding t the OED, this grammatical structure serves t establish the bjective FACTUAL relatinship between tw things. In rder t cnfirm whether r nt this is the prper understanding f the cnditin in verse 23 ne needs t examine the cntext. Clssians 1:12-14 Paul uses the past tense t discuss accmplished FACTS as they pertain t Clssians as members f the bdy f Christ. Verse 12 hath made us meet Verse 13 hath delivered Verse 13 hath translated Verse 14 have redemptin & frgiveness f sins Clssians 1:15-20 utlines FACTS pertaining t the creative and redemptive wrk f Christ as well as his psitin f preeminence ver all things in relatin t the bdy f Christ. Clssians 1:21 directs the reader s attentin back t the Clssians themselves. It pints ut their past and cntrasts it with their present situatin. Past were smetime alienated and enemies in yur mind by wicked wrks Present yet nw hath he recnciled. In the present, the Clssians are in the state f having been recnciled. In ther wrds, their recnciliatin is a present accmplished FACT in verse 21. Pastr Bryan Rss

8 8 Clssians 1:22 hw was the recnciliatin f the Clssians accmplished? In the bdy f his flesh thrugh death. It was by placing their faith in the sacrificial death f Christ fr their sins that the Clssians were recnciled. Why was this recnciliatin accmplished? T present the Clssians hly, unblameable, and unreprvealbe in his sight. Psitinally, all believers are hly, unblamable, and unreprvable in his sight. Galatians 3:27 all recnciled believers have put n Christ. When Gd the father lks at us he sees Christ. Clssians 1:23 the presentatin spken f in verse 22 is based upn the FACT that the Clssians will cntinue in the faith, grunded, and settled in verse 23. The verb cntinue is a present tense indicative statement, indicating that the Clssians saints were already cntinuing at the time f Paul s writing. Paul is nt saying that the Clssians might pssibly ne day be presented hly, unblameable, and unreprveable if they cntinue in a subjunctive sense and meet the cnditins. Paul is nt saying, maybe yu will cntinue r maybe yu wn t, we need t wait and see hw it turns ut. Rather, Paul is saying n the basis f the established FACT that the Clssians will cntinue they are presented accrdingly in verse 22. If Paul is saying in verse 23 that nly thse wh meet the cnditins will be presented unblameable in verse 22 than he is directly cntradicting smething he said elsewhere in his epistles. I Crinthians 1:8 being presented blameless is nt cnditined upn ne s behavir but upn Christ accmplished wrk. Clssians 1:23 everything in this cntext is talking abut Christ wrk n ur behalf. Can the Clssians be mved away frm the hpe f the gspel? Ntice that the hpe f gspel is embedded within the gspel that they had heard. Clssians 1:5-6 the hpe f the gspel is cntained within the wrd f the truth f the gspel which the Clssians had already heard, received, and believed. Clssians 1:23 can the Clssians be mved away frm their hpe which is laid up fr them in heaven? Psitinally. the Clssians cannt walk away frm what they were freely given in Christ. Practically, they culd lse sight f it and thereby fail t walk by faith in light f it. But they cannt und what was imbedded within the truth f the gspel they had received. Pastr Bryan Rss

9 9 Cnclusin Failing t recgnize the existence f different TYPES f cnditins is causing sme t make ship wreck n the Pauline Grace Message and the Grace Life. Functinally, it is replacing the freedm that we have in Christ with a prgram f wrks based sanctificatin that appeals t the flesh nature in every believer. It is mdern frm f Galatianism that has believers striving fr the attainment f greater reward and psitin in eternity. II Crinthians 2:11 we need t nt be ignrant f the enemy s devices. Pastr Bryan Rss