Scripture never asks us to place our faith in religion or traditions of men. To the contrary, God requires us to not only read, but to study His word.
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God…” (2 Timothy 2:15).
Take the opportunity to exercise your freedom to pursue God’s truth. The Bereans were called noble because they “searched the scriptures daily…” to determine the truth of God (Acts 17:11).
As you search the Scriptures, you will notice that not every passage is written to the same people under the same circumstances. God promised to the nation of Israel an earthly kingdom and that they would be a holy nation of priests, spoken of in prophecy since the world began (Exodus 19:6, Matthew 6:10, Acts 3:21). God later revealed a heavenly creature, the body of Christ. This message was revealed by the Lord Jesus Christ in “the mystery of Christ” kept secret since the world began (Romans 16:25, Ephesians 3:1-9).
These differences in administrations (1 Corinthians 12:5) reveal God’s purpose and will for both things on earth and things in heaven (Ephesians 1:9-10). Distinguishing between prophecy and mystery, Israel and the body of Christ, and law and grace allows each passage of Scripture to say exactly what it means to whom it was said.
The law once demonstrated man’s sin and inability to produce righteousness of his own, and being under the law came to be called the “ministration of death” (2 Corinthians 3:6-8). Today, salvation is offered freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24) offering us a position not under the law, but under grace (Romans 6:14). We obtain justification before God almighty in an instant upon belief that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again (1 Cor 15:1-4). Our standing and acceptance before God is not gained by religious performance, ceremonies, or traditions, but only by Christ’s completed work on our behalf (Romans 5:1, 1 Corinthians 1:30).
If you have trusted the gospel today, you have been given liberty from the bondage of the law. “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free” (Galatians 5:1). Grace removes the bondage found under the law and produces thankful hearts that gladly serve Christ who gave himself for our sins. We do not strive to earn God’s favor or acceptance, but rest in Christ’s work alone that has made us accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6). We are free to serve Christ from a heart of gratitude rather than obligation.
You have the freedom to pursue God’s truth. Don’t allow tradition or religion to become a substitute for the manifold wisdom of God (Ephesians 3:9-10). Open God’s word, choosing to believe what God said and to whom He said it. Discover the riches of His grace for yourself. As the mystery of Christ becomes clear, so does the Bible’s message, revealing God’s purpose for both heaven and earth and the liberty that belongs to every believer in Christ today.
“...to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God...” - Ephesians 3:9-10