Fanatics

Want to guarantee that people will die for your cause? Create a system of works salvation and then give people assurance that they'll bypass a life of slavery to legalism by their death for the cause. The knights of the crusades where told they would skip purgatory if they died in holy war, and the suicide bombers of the jihad are told of rich rewards in the afterlife for their martyrdom.

It works. Heck, if I believed I had anything to do with my salvation and someone convinced me that my death for god would allow me instant access to heaven I'd blow myself up too. The idea of having to work for salvation IS that hopeless.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1-4 ESV)

Great things!!

"For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God. Teach me your way, O LORD, that I may walk in your truth; unite my heart to fear your name. I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forever. For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol." (Psalm 86:10-13 ESV)

The Lord is great. He has done great things so we don't have to. I can rest in the work of my God even when life seems hard. The Lord is utterly unique and so unlike anything we know that we can not understand Him fully, but He is so great and able that He has made Himself known to us in a way we can understand. Praise God!! Praise Him while you have breath in you. The time is short and the day is fast approaching when the mercy that is shown to all the tribes and peoples will come to an end and the judgement will be swift. Repent and believe - Jesus Christ came as a ransom for many. Resting in our works will only result in due payment for them - and I can honestly say that my due payment would be horrifying to say the least. He has done great things - He has cast my sin as far as the east is from the west.

"O for a thousand tongues to sing

My great Redeemer’s praise,

The glories of my God and King,

The triumphs of His grace!"

"Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the LORD has done great things! (Joel 2:21 ESV)

Life

Millions of people living, dying, and being forgotten in a matter of decades.

Whats the point?

If the dead are not raised, there is no point.

"O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:55-57 ESV)

I've been listening to a lot of Paul Washer and reading a bunch of Michael Horton, and this is what happens....

I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:6-9 NAS)

Paul talks about being 'called' in the same sentence as talking about the gospel. They are inseparable. What does called mean to Paul?

For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren; and whom He predestined, these He also called; and whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. (Romans 8:29-30 NAS)

Only those that God calls are justified in his eyes. Salvation is a sovereign work of grace alone. The only way anyone makes a true choice to believe and be saved is if God raises them from spiritual death to life. Resting in a decision for Christ is resting in works. A view of salvation that leaves the end result in the hands of people alone is no different than the Pharisee in Luke 18. Maybe the prayer of the modern Pharisee now looks more like this:

"Lord I thank you that I walked the aisle and made my decision for Christ. I thank you that I wrote the date of my decision in my Bible so that I can be assured that I am saved"

That kind of decision based salvation is no better than basing salvation on infant baptism. It's a false gospel. It is NOT the gospel of the Bible. When the tax collector leaves all his works and cries out to God for mercy, he is seeking God in the only way God can be sought - by faith. His faith is a gift from God, not by his own doing. (Eph 2:8) God is the one who saves by his own sovereign will and there is nothing we can do to affect that in any real sense. If you want God, it's because God is working in you. If you see your sin for what it is, and realize that there is nothing in yourself that can save you, it's because God is working in you. If there is any true desire in you to know the only God who is over all creation it's not coming from you but from God alone. None are righteous, none seeks God unless God himself condescends to change the very will of the sinners he wishes to save so that he might manifest his glory in them. If you got to the gates of heaven and God asked you why you think you're saved what would your answer be? "Because I was a pretty good person" will not cut it. "Because I prayed a prayer" will not suffice.

Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7:22-23 KJV)

Many people that cast out demons and do miracles while claiming the name of Jesus Christ will not enter heaven. Only those that God has saved by his own decree and the sacrifice of Christ will enter the kingdom of heaven.

Does God know you? Or do you just think you know God?

Just occured to me...

I love Christ. I really do. But I have a tendency to amass all kinds of hobbies and things that redirect my focus. Temporarily, but still it gets redirected. I like hunting and fishing, and there's nothing wrong with either of those things, but I seem drawn to picking up new hobbies even though some days I'm that guy who's saying "Oh ya I was gonna study my Bible, but I just didn't have time". How many days do I not have time for God but somehow find ways to jam a hunting trip into my busy schedule? Unbelievable, especially since I'm keenly aware that the only way to be truly at peace and satisfied is by looking to Christ.

So many Christians suffer from the same sickness. Love Christ, but fill our spare time with every diversion available because the world says we need to guard our recreation time. Now there's nothing wrong with the occasional hunting trip, but my brain that's so easily distracted could probably use more time with God in His Word than time blasting ducks.

God help us all.

Church.

Got baptized today in the river - totally freezing but definitely one of the top experiences of my life. The whole thing was great, sharing my story with the church, obeying Christ in baptism and then just feeling the love from these people of God, so many of whom I've known for such a short time. What a blessing.

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." Hebrews 10:23-25

I am encouraged. Christianity without church is a shell if it is Christianity at all. Brethren: we are the family of God, and fellowshipping in it is truly a foretaste of heaven. Everyone else: you have no idea what you're missing out on.

"...He who promised is faithful."

God is awesome.

Romans 6

Reading Romans 6 right now...

Now that we are justified, we should no longer let sin reign in our bodies, but should strive to kill it. As Christians, our world view changes, making us concerned with the heavenly things and not with the things that occupied our time before. We are no longer bound to the law, and therefore we are not ‘tied up in legalistic knots’* to try and maintain righteousness. We are free to live under the reign of God and not to be continually enslaved by sin. We should not give sin the opportunity to reign, nor should we give any ground to it because we are children of God and have been justified, and the rule of sin over us has been broken. We do not have to fumble around in the dark, we have Christ, we have peace with God, and we are made capable of killing sin by his work on the cross. We are no longer children of the devil who must play the world’s game and live in the flesh, we are children of God and must act like it, and can act like it. We are to present ourselves as slaves to God. Slaves are not autonomous; slaves do the will of their master. God will discipline us and keep us when we stray, but our responsibility is to seek his will in the word and live as though nothing matters but the glory of God. We are to be obedient from the heart to the teaching of God, which is given to us in His word. Before we are saved we strive and endeavour to satisfy our fleshly desires and to make ourselves happy. Now that we are justified and saved, the correct response is to strive for the things of God, and to present ourselves as ‘slaves to righteousness’. Slaves work for their masters. Work for God, because this results in sanctification. We cannot expect God to make us more holy when we are still presenting ourselves to the laziness and dissipation of the world. God will sanctify us when we follow the commands of scripture, which we are enabled to do by the great work of Christ on the cross. The benefits we received from our sin in the past were not lasting benefits and resulted ultimately in death and punishment. But the benefits we receive now from slaving for righteousness have eternal benefit and result in salvation.

"For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:23 NASB

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" Matthew 11:28-30 NASB

Let us not forget that although His yoke is most certainly an easy one, it is a yoke nonetheless. We are slaves to Christ - slaves, not associates, not coworkers, not buddies. God is for us, but we should not lose sight of the fact that our proper response to the love and mercy of God is work. We show the world what we truly believe by our lives. To often I myself am lazy and halfhearted in my slavery. What a pitiful and worthless slave I am! May God help me to be a slave who strives for righteousness.

* - From Voddie Baucham's sermon entitled "What is adultery?"

http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=53091755325