If you have fallen from grace, can you recover from the condition?

 Very important for us to understand what it means to fall from Grace. I heard about a book “Fallen from Grace.” It was about a pastor who ran off with his secretary or something like that. That is not the definition of “fallen from Grace” even though falling from Grace might lead to that kind of thing happening to a believer. So what does the term mean? No one better to interpret the Word than the Word Himself—-

The Galatian Christians fell from Grace.

In Paul’s letter to this church whose belief is held by many Christians today, we see the Bible’s definition of foolishness: trying to be perfected by human effort after being made perfect by Christ’s one sacrifice for sins which is good for all time—

“Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on (bewitched) you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of His death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.” Galatians‬ 3:1-5‬.

The church in Galatia received the Good News about a Christ. In Romans 3, we see a snapshot of the Good News which Paul was not ashamed to preach in the face of opposition from severely-religious types who foolishly thought that they were doing a good job of keeping the law—

26...for He himself is fair and just, and He makes sinners right in His sight when they believe in Jesus. 27 Can we boast, then, that we have done anything to be accepted by God? No, because our acquittal is not based on obeying the law. It is based on faith. 28 So we are made right with God through faith and not by obeying the law." Romans 3.

But after the Galatians received the Good News about Christ as it is written above, religious devils crept into their midst and muddied the pristine waters of Grace with the sewage of dependence on human effort at living a godly life (trying to obey the law to “maintain their salvation”) after being born-again. Paul wrote to the Galatians—

4 “For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.” Galatians 5:4

The Good News Translation puts it thus—

“4 Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God's grace.” Galatians 5:4

The Living Bible Version says—

“So Christ has made us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get all tied up again in the chains of slavery to Jewish laws and ceremonies.

2 Listen to me, for this is serious: if you are counting on circumcision and keeping the Jewish laws to make you right with God, then Christ cannot save you.

3 I’ll say it again. Anyone trying to find favor with God by being circumcised must always obey every other Jewish law or perish.

4 Christ is useless to you if you are counting on clearing your debt to God by keeping those laws; you are lost from God’s grace.” Galatians 5:1–4.

To fall from Grace is to turn one’s back on Christ as his Righteousness and Strength and to start foraging for righteousness in ”no good” self using human effort aka the arm of flesh.

Understand that God’s Grace is a Person. His name is Jesus Christ. Titus 2:11 says of Him:

"God’s marvelous grace has manifested in person, bringing salvation for everyone."

Verse 14 of the same Titus 2 says: "He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."

Those who are trying to keep the law in order to be godly (be like God) have been cut off from Christ who saves from sins. Little wonder sins multiply in their lives. They no longer have access to His saving power. So no salvation from sins…

But somehow, the interpretation for “fallen from Grace” has morphed into things like a pastor running away with his secretary and stuff like that. Trying to keep the law in order to get right with God is what falling from Grace is all about. Doing so causes sins to increase—

“The law was given that sins might increase…” Romans 5:9.

Also, “For sin shall not have dominion over you for you are not under law but under Grace.” Romans 6:14.

But this verse is taught in reverse in many places of worship. Keeping the law and doing its works is being shoved down the throats of the flock as the means of attaining godliness and right-standing before God. Christ says—

“There is none good but God.”

Because He so loved us and knows how hopeless it is for man to attain godliness (be like God) via human striving, God Himself provided the Way for us to be godly aka be like God. We see this in Isaiah 53 where Isaiah prophesied of Christ's suffering for us and and His benefits for us. See the result of Christ's decease which He accomplished at Jerusalem in Isaiah 53:11-

"After He has suffered, He will see the light of life. And He will be satisfied. My godly servant will make many people godly because of what He will accomplish. He will be punished for their sins."

Thanks to false teachings, so many Christians are struggling to be made perfect or godly (be like God) by human effort— to become what God has already made us to be in Christ— Godly/Righteous like God, just like Adam and Eve who were created in God’s likeness. Satan’s strategy to deceive and destroy has not changed since Eden. Adam and Eve were created in God’s likeness. See this in Genesis 1:27–

"So God created human beings, making them to be like Himself. He created them male and female,"

Adam and Eve were already like God, but Satan sold to Eve the deceit that she had to strive to be what God already made she and Adam to be (godly, like God) by human effort and through dependence on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil— a type of the law which gives the same knowledge. Just like the tree, the letter kills. See the forbidden fruit as a typology for the law which many churchgoers are trying to obey in order to be godly (be like God)in God’s word in Romans 7:8-12 (MSG)-

"The law code started out as an excellent piece of work. What happened, though, was that sin found a way to pervert the command into a temptation, making a piece of “forbidden fruit” out of it. The law code, instead of being used to guide me, was used to seduce me..."

The same religious deceit which Satan sold to Eve is still widely being peddled from corrupted pulpits today— dependence on human effort at obeying the law (which kills and gives the knowledge of good and evil like the tree of the same name) for the attainment of godliness. Beloved of God, in Christ, we are a new creation — created to “be like God,” but with better covenant promises than Adam and Eve: we are joint heirs with Christ. Christ suffered and died to make us godly like God. Let’s not fall for the same con of Satan. To man, that doctrine of Satan seems good and moral as it did to Eve, but in reality, it is the way that Proverbs 14:12 speaks of—

"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death."

The message of the cross is not right doing by human might and power. That is the letter that kills. Christ’s message is right believing/TRUSTING in Jesus Christ. When your believing is right— putting no confidence in useless human effort/arm of flesh and trusting utterly in Christ as our Righteousness and Strength, like a branch that has been grafted to the Vine, right living will follow. You will bear much fruit. Effortlessly. Christ says so in John 15:5.

We all now have the same choice as Adam and Eve did, — try to be made perfect or godly (be like God) by human effort at obeying the law which is a picture of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and get cut off from Jesus Christ the Tree of Life as well as fall away from God’s grace (undeserved, unearned, unmerited favour) or rest in the blood-bought perfection or godliness that Christ gave His life for us to freely have.

So what happen to those who have fallen away from God’s grace?

Like many churchgoers today, I was living life fallen away from God’s grace for decades — religiously attending church, doing my best to obey the law, constantly checking myself for sins in order to escape being “left behind”… And I didn’t even know it. Until Grace found me and put me on His shoulders like the sheep in the Parable of the Lost Sheep. Utterly dependent on Him for our very breath, we get to go furthest, fastest and be at rest. So yes, Grace restored me from my fallen condition.

Christ says "No one is good but God." And this same God in His love sent His own Son to die to be our Good. In Him, God sees us as righteous, even though we are guilty of many sins. This is God’s written word—

“And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins.” Romans 5:16.

Religious types who think they can keep the law as Peter die before Satan sifted him for the good that he claimed to possess cannot but see this truth of Grace (unmerited favour) in the light of—

“So you mean I can just go out and murder someone and God will still see me as righteous?”

As if Peter could not wait for another opportunity to deny Jesus. As if Judas loved betraying Jesus and was somewhere splurging on sheep and stuff with his betrayal money. In reality, Judas was depressed and suicidal, like many who are trying to be godly by human effort at obeying the law today— whether Christian or not.

Are we looking for the next opportunity to commit sins? Why do we think that other people are different? All flesh is the same. People are not looking for an avenue to commit sins. People are looking for the Way out of sins but are being shown the law which was given for just one purpose—

“The law was given that sins might increase…” Romans 5:20.

Grace is the ONLY Way out of sins.

In Christ, God sees us as righteous, even though we are guilty of many sins, not so that we should continue in sins as seemingly godly but actually false preachers of Satan’s doctrine like to imply but according to God's Wisdom, believing so is the ONLY WAY to live in triumph over sin and death. See this truth WRITTEN for us in Romans 5:16–17—

"And the result of God’s gracious gift is very different from the result of that one man’s sin. For Adam’s sin led to condemnation, but God’s free gift leads to our being made right with God, even though we are guilty of many sins. 17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one Man, Jesus Christ."

Know that the only reason why many who think they can keep as much as a tittle of the law are not wallowing in horrid sins right now is the same reason why Peter thought he could never deny Christ-- God's mercy in preventing Satan from sifting one like wheat for the good that one claims to be when Christ says—

"There is none good but God."

So by God's grace, let us stop depending on our ability to keep the law which gives the knowledge of good and evil and opens the door for Satan to sift a person for that good that he claims to possess. Let us trust Jesus Christ the Tree of Life as our Good and godliness. Then, every blessing of God and right living will follow. All who believe so, stopping their useless attempts at being good like God by human effort at using their knowledge of good and evil and rest in Christ as the sole basis for why God sees them as righteous, we get to live the abundant life in Christ Jesus. In Grace.