This blog (http://gospel4somalis.blogspot.com) will no longer be active. We have moved over to http://goodnews4somalis.blogspot.com/
See you there!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ Alone
Sin has separated us from God. Due to this separation, we need to become reconciled to God, and this is only possible through Jesus Christ. We are all declared sinners from birth. How can this be? How did sin enter the world? How can God justly declare us guilty of sin from birth, even before we have committed any sin? Why is Jesus Christ necessary in order to reconcile us to God? It is these questions I seek to answer through the exposition of a passage of the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Church of Rome.
Romans 5:12-19
“12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.
Romans 5:12-19
“12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—13 for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. 14 Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.
15 But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. 16 And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. 17 For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.
18 Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19 For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” (Romans 5:12-19).
Context
In verse 12 we see the connector ‘therefore’ which tells us that this verse connects to the previous thought. Paul is speaking of reconciliation and says that “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” (Romans 5:10-11). The passage we will be digging into, therefore, explains how this reconciliation functions.
Death Spread to All Men
“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” Paul begins at the very beginning when God created Adam, whom disobeyed God’s command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As a result of Adam’s transgression, sin entered the world through him. Satan was the one who enticed Adam and his wife to break God’s law, yet God holds not Eve, who ate first, but God holds Adam responsible. God told Adam that “for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17). Adam did eat from the tree, and so sin came into the world through him, and death came into the world through sin. Death also spread to all men because all sinned.
Paul interrupts his comparison and goes on to explain in verses 13-14 in more detail on how death spread to all men. “For sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.” Sin was in the world before the giving of the law. What law is this referring to? It is referring to the Mosaic Law which God gave to the Israelites at Mount Sinai through the prophet Moses. Sin is not counted where there is no law, yet Paul concedes that death reigned from Adam to Moses. He said that sin is not counted where there is no law, yet surprisingly proclaims that death reigned from Adam to Moses. How have all men sinned if sin was not counted before the giving of the Mosaic Law? It seems that the answer would be that there are other laws given in the past such as the covenant with Noah and the covenant with Abraham which men have disobeyed. Paul, however, refutes that idea with his next statement that death reigned “even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam.”
How was the sin of these men not like the transgression of Adam? Well, Adam was given a command from God to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, yet Adam willfully disobeyed God. These other men being referred to, therefore, did not willfully disobey any commands revealed to them by God, yet they are still guilty of sin. Who are such people? One example of such people would be infants. Infants can die, yet they have not received any laws which they have the ability to choose to obey or disobey. So what sin have infants committed which results in the punishment of physical death? Paul says immediately after that Adam was a type (or pattern) of the one who was to come. In order to answer these questions any further, we must continue to follow Paul’s argument.
The Free Gift
Verse 15 begins with “but the free gift is not like the trespass.” Paul then explains, “For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.” Paul is speaking of a contrast between the trespass of Adam and the free gift of Jesus Christ. He emphasizes how the grace of God is superior to the trespass of Adam. Just as Adam’s trespass caused many to die, then so much more can the grace of God overcome the death brought by Adam’s sin. Despite the greatness of Adam’s transgression and its major effect on all people, the grace of God is greater and we can put our trust in grace to deliver us from the death which has spread to us. The free gift is greater than the trespass.
Verse 16: “And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin.” How is it different? Well he goes on, “For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification.” One trespass is all it took to condemn man, yet the free gift covers many trespasses and brings justification. Once again we see that the gift is greater than the judgment.
“For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” Here in verse 17 we see an interesting parallel beginning to stand out. Since death reigned through the trespass of Adam, much more then will life reign through Jesus Christ for those who receive His gift of righteousness. Paul shows us that this free gift he has been speaking of is a gift of righteousness. We can begin to see how all have sinned, despite the fact that those who have not sinned in the likeness of Adam still suffer the punishment of physical death. It is not through the individual sins of all men from Adam to Moses that brought them death, but it is solely through the trespass of Adam that brought death to all men. Infants can experience death because of Adam’s trespass which caused death to spread to all men, in the same way that the righteousness of Christ causes life to spread to all who will receive Him and His abundant grace. If you receive the gift of righteousness through Christ, you will receive life and ultimately conquer death by rising again at the resurrection unto eternal life, but if you reject the gift, you will be conquered by death and perish because of Adam’s trespass alone, although your own individual sins will also add to your condemnation. Even if you had no sins of your own, you would be condemned as guilty by Adam’s trespass alone.
Moving on to verse 18 we read, “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.” Paul explains more details in verse 19, “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” The parallelism should be clear. Adam’s trespass brought condemnation on all men who are in Adam, and in contrast the one act of righteousness by Jesus Christ brings justification and life on all men who are in Christ. All people are in Adam for we have all descended from Adam. We are all guilty of sin because Adam’s guilt is imputed to us. God declares us guilty because of our father Adam who is the head of the human race. In contrast, Jesus Christ is the head of the new humanity, and all who receive Christ are in Christ and the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us who believe. Through Adam’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so how much more through Jesus’ obedience will the many be made righteous? Paul used the word ‘all’ in verse 18, for one trespass led to condemnation for all men who are in Adam, while one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men who are in Christ.
Looking back at the end of verse 12 where Paul said that death has spread to all men because all have sinned, we can see why he did not finish his comparison until verse 18. Paul used the phrase ‘just as’ when describing how sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin and spread to all men because all sinned, but then he diverts to explain how all have sinned, before continuing the comparison in verse 18. Let us try and put together what Paul would have said without the digression. Verse 12, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned,” and then in the second half of verse 18, “so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men,” and then verse 19, “for as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” We can see the reason why Paul stopped after verse 12 to clarify how all have sinned before continuing the comparison in verses 18-19. He made the parallel clear to us in order to avoid misunderstandings.
Reconciliation
In the beginning, before we dug into the passage, I mentioned the context preceding it. Paul was talking about reconciliation. Speaking to the believers at the church of Rome, he pointed out that while they were enemies of God, they were reconciled to Him by the death of Jesus Christ. The guilt of Adam was imputed to his descendents. This is original sin. This is what is meant when it is said that all people are born sinners. Adam is the head of the old humanity and his descendents are declared guilty from birth. A man is also the head of a household and the ruler over his wife. Eve ate from the tree first, yet God held Adam accountable. Christ is the head of the new humanity, and His righteousness is counted on behalf of those who have received Him and His gift of righteousness. Adam’s sin is imputed to us, and Jesus’ righteousness is imputed to us, if we receive Him. Although Christ had no sin of His own, He died on the cross on behalf of those who will receive Him. Jesus Christ did not physically die because Adam’s sin was imputed to Him, but rather, Christ died physically because He was a substitute who took the sins of His people upon Himself and bore the punishment of death on their behalf.
If you have received reconciliation and justification by receiving Christ and the gift of righteousness by His amazing grace, then let us rejoice in our Lord Jesus Christ. If you have not received the gift of righteousness by the grace of Christ, then you will be condemned and perish if you continue to reject it. Righteousness comes by faith in Christ, not by works. Good works do not make a sinner righteous; good works only keep a sinless person righteous. Since none of us are sinless, we can’t be reconciled to God and declared righteous apart from faith in Christ. Seek the righteousness of God! If you seek your own righteousness, you will never find it because you have no righteousness uncontaminated by sin. God did not create humans as self-sufficient and self-sustaining independent creatures. God created humans as dependent creatures who must depend on Him for there sufficiency and sustainment. You can’t have your own righteousness and even if you did have your own righteousness, you can’t sustain it on your own. We must receive the righteousness of God which has been revealed to us in Jesus Christ. Romans 1:16-17 sums up what I just said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’”
Context
In verse 12 we see the connector ‘therefore’ which tells us that this verse connects to the previous thought. Paul is speaking of reconciliation and says that “while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” (Romans 5:10-11). The passage we will be digging into, therefore, explains how this reconciliation functions.
Death Spread to All Men
“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned.” Paul begins at the very beginning when God created Adam, whom disobeyed God’s command to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As a result of Adam’s transgression, sin entered the world through him. Satan was the one who enticed Adam and his wife to break God’s law, yet God holds not Eve, who ate first, but God holds Adam responsible. God told Adam that “for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17). Adam did eat from the tree, and so sin came into the world through him, and death came into the world through sin. Death also spread to all men because all sinned.
Paul interrupts his comparison and goes on to explain in verses 13-14 in more detail on how death spread to all men. “For sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.” Sin was in the world before the giving of the law. What law is this referring to? It is referring to the Mosaic Law which God gave to the Israelites at Mount Sinai through the prophet Moses. Sin is not counted where there is no law, yet Paul concedes that death reigned from Adam to Moses. He said that sin is not counted where there is no law, yet surprisingly proclaims that death reigned from Adam to Moses. How have all men sinned if sin was not counted before the giving of the Mosaic Law? It seems that the answer would be that there are other laws given in the past such as the covenant with Noah and the covenant with Abraham which men have disobeyed. Paul, however, refutes that idea with his next statement that death reigned “even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam.”
How was the sin of these men not like the transgression of Adam? Well, Adam was given a command from God to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, yet Adam willfully disobeyed God. These other men being referred to, therefore, did not willfully disobey any commands revealed to them by God, yet they are still guilty of sin. Who are such people? One example of such people would be infants. Infants can die, yet they have not received any laws which they have the ability to choose to obey or disobey. So what sin have infants committed which results in the punishment of physical death? Paul says immediately after that Adam was a type (or pattern) of the one who was to come. In order to answer these questions any further, we must continue to follow Paul’s argument.
The Free Gift
Verse 15 begins with “but the free gift is not like the trespass.” Paul then explains, “For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many.” Paul is speaking of a contrast between the trespass of Adam and the free gift of Jesus Christ. He emphasizes how the grace of God is superior to the trespass of Adam. Just as Adam’s trespass caused many to die, then so much more can the grace of God overcome the death brought by Adam’s sin. Despite the greatness of Adam’s transgression and its major effect on all people, the grace of God is greater and we can put our trust in grace to deliver us from the death which has spread to us. The free gift is greater than the trespass.
Verse 16: “And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin.” How is it different? Well he goes on, “For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification.” One trespass is all it took to condemn man, yet the free gift covers many trespasses and brings justification. Once again we see that the gift is greater than the judgment.
“For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” Here in verse 17 we see an interesting parallel beginning to stand out. Since death reigned through the trespass of Adam, much more then will life reign through Jesus Christ for those who receive His gift of righteousness. Paul shows us that this free gift he has been speaking of is a gift of righteousness. We can begin to see how all have sinned, despite the fact that those who have not sinned in the likeness of Adam still suffer the punishment of physical death. It is not through the individual sins of all men from Adam to Moses that brought them death, but it is solely through the trespass of Adam that brought death to all men. Infants can experience death because of Adam’s trespass which caused death to spread to all men, in the same way that the righteousness of Christ causes life to spread to all who will receive Him and His abundant grace. If you receive the gift of righteousness through Christ, you will receive life and ultimately conquer death by rising again at the resurrection unto eternal life, but if you reject the gift, you will be conquered by death and perish because of Adam’s trespass alone, although your own individual sins will also add to your condemnation. Even if you had no sins of your own, you would be condemned as guilty by Adam’s trespass alone.
Moving on to verse 18 we read, “Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men.” Paul explains more details in verse 19, “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” The parallelism should be clear. Adam’s trespass brought condemnation on all men who are in Adam, and in contrast the one act of righteousness by Jesus Christ brings justification and life on all men who are in Christ. All people are in Adam for we have all descended from Adam. We are all guilty of sin because Adam’s guilt is imputed to us. God declares us guilty because of our father Adam who is the head of the human race. In contrast, Jesus Christ is the head of the new humanity, and all who receive Christ are in Christ and the righteousness of Christ is imputed to us who believe. Through Adam’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so how much more through Jesus’ obedience will the many be made righteous? Paul used the word ‘all’ in verse 18, for one trespass led to condemnation for all men who are in Adam, while one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men who are in Christ.
Looking back at the end of verse 12 where Paul said that death has spread to all men because all have sinned, we can see why he did not finish his comparison until verse 18. Paul used the phrase ‘just as’ when describing how sin came into the world through one man, and death came through sin and spread to all men because all sinned, but then he diverts to explain how all have sinned, before continuing the comparison in verse 18. Let us try and put together what Paul would have said without the digression. Verse 12, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned,” and then in the second half of verse 18, “so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men,” and then verse 19, “for as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” We can see the reason why Paul stopped after verse 12 to clarify how all have sinned before continuing the comparison in verses 18-19. He made the parallel clear to us in order to avoid misunderstandings.
Reconciliation
In the beginning, before we dug into the passage, I mentioned the context preceding it. Paul was talking about reconciliation. Speaking to the believers at the church of Rome, he pointed out that while they were enemies of God, they were reconciled to Him by the death of Jesus Christ. The guilt of Adam was imputed to his descendents. This is original sin. This is what is meant when it is said that all people are born sinners. Adam is the head of the old humanity and his descendents are declared guilty from birth. A man is also the head of a household and the ruler over his wife. Eve ate from the tree first, yet God held Adam accountable. Christ is the head of the new humanity, and His righteousness is counted on behalf of those who have received Him and His gift of righteousness. Adam’s sin is imputed to us, and Jesus’ righteousness is imputed to us, if we receive Him. Although Christ had no sin of His own, He died on the cross on behalf of those who will receive Him. Jesus Christ did not physically die because Adam’s sin was imputed to Him, but rather, Christ died physically because He was a substitute who took the sins of His people upon Himself and bore the punishment of death on their behalf.
If you have received reconciliation and justification by receiving Christ and the gift of righteousness by His amazing grace, then let us rejoice in our Lord Jesus Christ. If you have not received the gift of righteousness by the grace of Christ, then you will be condemned and perish if you continue to reject it. Righteousness comes by faith in Christ, not by works. Good works do not make a sinner righteous; good works only keep a sinless person righteous. Since none of us are sinless, we can’t be reconciled to God and declared righteous apart from faith in Christ. Seek the righteousness of God! If you seek your own righteousness, you will never find it because you have no righteousness uncontaminated by sin. God did not create humans as self-sufficient and self-sustaining independent creatures. God created humans as dependent creatures who must depend on Him for there sufficiency and sustainment. You can’t have your own righteousness and even if you did have your own righteousness, you can’t sustain it on your own. We must receive the righteousness of God which has been revealed to us in Jesus Christ. Romans 1:16-17 sums up what I just said, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’”
Sunday, March 28, 2010
How can Jesus be both God and man?
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God….And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:1-2, 14). How can God come to the earth as a man, yet remain God? God does not eat, drink, sleep, and die, yet Jesus Christ did all these things. How can this be?
Let us dive into the Doctrine of the Incarnation. Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternally divine and have no beginning and end. They were not created, but are self-existent and self-sustaining. “God is spirit” (John 4:24). At the incarnation, Jesus Christ whom is spirit, wrapped Himself in human flesh and thus became the God-man. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word had one nature, namely His divine nature. At the incarnation, Jesus took on a second nature, namely a human nature. How did these two natures co-exist in the single person of Christ?
The Bible tells us that Jesus is both God and man, but it does not tell us how the two natures co-existed. In the early church there were discussions over this exact issue. A gathering took place in 451 known as the Council of Chalcedon. Three main views discussed were monophysitism (one single nature), miaphysitism (one united nature), and dyophysitism (two natures).
One particular position was that Jesus’ human nature was absorbed by His divine nature to form a new nature. The problem with this view is that it contradicts the fact that Jesus is fully God and fully man. It was determined at the Council of Nicaea in 325 that Jesus Christ is of one ‘substance’ with the Father in His divine nature and one ‘substance’ with man in His human nature. This monophysite position contradicts this understanding. This position is better understood with an illustration. If you take yellow paint and mix it with blue paint, you end up with green paint. If this was true of Christ, then His divine nature mixed with His human nature to form a new nature which would mean that Christ is not fully God or fully man but some nature in between. The church had to reject this view as unbiblical.
The council concluded that Jesus has two natures (or dyophysitism) beginning at the incarnation. The divine nature and human nature are united together in such a way that each nature retains its characteristics. The two natures of Christ united at the incarnation to form the single person of Christ who is fully God and fully man. Protestants, Catholics, and most Orthodox hold to the two natures of Christ while some Orthodox such as the Ethiopian and Egyptian Orthodox hold to the miaphysite position. To touch on this briefly, they believe that Jesus’ divine nature united with His human nature in such a way that Christ has one nature, yet without any change and mutation of the individual natures. If you recall the monophysite illustration with the mixing of the two paint colors to form a new color, such mixing does not apply to the miaphysite position. An illustration of the miaphysite position would be helpful. The Bible declares that through the union of marriage a man and a woman become one flesh (Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:31). Even though a husband and wife unite to become one flesh, the husband retains the characteristics of masculinity, and the wife retains the characteristics of femininity. When the two natures of Christ unite to form a single nature, they retain their individual characteristics. I disagree with this view and hold to the position of two natures in Christ as held by most followers of Jesus Christ.
In case all this philosophical talk has boggled your mind, which is completely normal--especially if this is your first time thinking about it--let me re-establish the widespread understanding of the two natures of Christ at the incarnation as understood by the world wide church over the span of history. Jesus Christ has always had a divine nature, but at the incarnation He received for Himself a human nature in order that He may provide salvation and forgiveness of sins to all who will receive Him. His two natures unite in such a way that Jesus Christ retains His divinity while becoming fully human, yet without sin.
Here is an illustration:
What is the nature of a square? It has four corners. Each side is the same length. It has four 90 degree angles. What is the nature of a perfect circle? It has no corners. The radius and diameter are the same from all points of the circle. When the nature of the square and the nature of the circle unite to form a single entity, do the natures of the individual shapes change? The square is still 100% square, and the circle remains 100% circle. The natures of the shapes remain distinct and unique even after they unite. The same is true with the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The divine nature and human nature of Christ unite in one person, yet each nature retains all of its characteristics.
Not only does Jesus have two natures, a divine and a human, but men and women have two natures as well. All of us are body and spirit. We have a spiritual nature and a human nature. At birth, our spirit and body are united to form us as an individual person. At death, our spirit departs from our body. At the resurrection, our spirit re-unites with our body. Without our spirit, our body is lifeless. When Jesus died on the cross, the scripture says He gave up His spirit (John 19:30). When Stephen was stoned to death, he called out for Jesus to receive his spirit (Acts 7:59). Such language describes the experience of death.
When the scripture states that Jesus ate food, drank wine, got tired, slept, and died, it is clearly referring to His human nature, namely His body. When you and I as regular humans eat, drink, and sleep, we are doing so for our bodies. Your spirit and my spirit do not eat or sleep. Our bodies do that. When Jesus ate bread and drank wine, it was not His divine spirit which ate and drank, but His body which ate and drank. The fact that Jesus did these things like other humans does not mean He can’t be God.
A moment ago I said that humans have two natures, namely a spiritual nature and a human nature. It is important for me to point out that our spiritual nature exists as either dead or alive. An unbeliever has a spiritual nature, but the spirit is dead to the things of God and can’t receive the truth of God. “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). In brief, the natural person is a person whose spiritual nature is dead and unresponsive to the truth of God. What are the things of the Spirit of God? God speaks the truth and does not lie, so the things of the Spirit of God would be the truth. A natural man with a dead spiritual nature is unable to discern the truth of God for it is not discerned with the eyes, ears, mind, and body alone, but it is discerned through the spirit. Such people find the death of Christ on the cross for the sins of His people as utter foolishness and refuse to receive it. In order to understand, believe, and receive the truth of the Spirit of God you must be born-again by the Spirit so that your spirit is awakened to the truth of God. If your spiritual nature is dead then pray for mercy and guidance. If your spiritual nature has been made alive by the Spirit of Christ then set your mind on the things of the Spirit and put to death the deeds of your body (Romans 8:13).
I hope and pray that my explaining of the natures of Christ was sufficient and that my explanations and illustrations have been helpful. Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. He had to become a man in the likeness of sinful flesh in order to appease the wrath of God through the sacrifice of Himself in the place of repentant sinners. If Jesus was not fully God and not fully man, then His death on the cross is meaningless and we will all perish in our sins. God is glorified in the humiliation of Christ on the cross, because God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. God loved His people for His own glory and He provided salvation for His people for His name’s sake. The incarnation of Christ and His death on the cross was necessary to purchase the gift of eternal life for our spiritual nature and the restoration for our human nature. Let Christ be magnified!
Let us dive into the Doctrine of the Incarnation. Jesus Christ is the second person of the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternally divine and have no beginning and end. They were not created, but are self-existent and self-sustaining. “God is spirit” (John 4:24). At the incarnation, Jesus Christ whom is spirit, wrapped Himself in human flesh and thus became the God-man. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word had one nature, namely His divine nature. At the incarnation, Jesus took on a second nature, namely a human nature. How did these two natures co-exist in the single person of Christ?
The Bible tells us that Jesus is both God and man, but it does not tell us how the two natures co-existed. In the early church there were discussions over this exact issue. A gathering took place in 451 known as the Council of Chalcedon. Three main views discussed were monophysitism (one single nature), miaphysitism (one united nature), and dyophysitism (two natures).
One particular position was that Jesus’ human nature was absorbed by His divine nature to form a new nature. The problem with this view is that it contradicts the fact that Jesus is fully God and fully man. It was determined at the Council of Nicaea in 325 that Jesus Christ is of one ‘substance’ with the Father in His divine nature and one ‘substance’ with man in His human nature. This monophysite position contradicts this understanding. This position is better understood with an illustration. If you take yellow paint and mix it with blue paint, you end up with green paint. If this was true of Christ, then His divine nature mixed with His human nature to form a new nature which would mean that Christ is not fully God or fully man but some nature in between. The church had to reject this view as unbiblical.
The council concluded that Jesus has two natures (or dyophysitism) beginning at the incarnation. The divine nature and human nature are united together in such a way that each nature retains its characteristics. The two natures of Christ united at the incarnation to form the single person of Christ who is fully God and fully man. Protestants, Catholics, and most Orthodox hold to the two natures of Christ while some Orthodox such as the Ethiopian and Egyptian Orthodox hold to the miaphysite position. To touch on this briefly, they believe that Jesus’ divine nature united with His human nature in such a way that Christ has one nature, yet without any change and mutation of the individual natures. If you recall the monophysite illustration with the mixing of the two paint colors to form a new color, such mixing does not apply to the miaphysite position. An illustration of the miaphysite position would be helpful. The Bible declares that through the union of marriage a man and a woman become one flesh (Genesis 2:24; Ephesians 5:31). Even though a husband and wife unite to become one flesh, the husband retains the characteristics of masculinity, and the wife retains the characteristics of femininity. When the two natures of Christ unite to form a single nature, they retain their individual characteristics. I disagree with this view and hold to the position of two natures in Christ as held by most followers of Jesus Christ.
In case all this philosophical talk has boggled your mind, which is completely normal--especially if this is your first time thinking about it--let me re-establish the widespread understanding of the two natures of Christ at the incarnation as understood by the world wide church over the span of history. Jesus Christ has always had a divine nature, but at the incarnation He received for Himself a human nature in order that He may provide salvation and forgiveness of sins to all who will receive Him. His two natures unite in such a way that Jesus Christ retains His divinity while becoming fully human, yet without sin.
Here is an illustration:
What is the nature of a square? It has four corners. Each side is the same length. It has four 90 degree angles. What is the nature of a perfect circle? It has no corners. The radius and diameter are the same from all points of the circle. When the nature of the square and the nature of the circle unite to form a single entity, do the natures of the individual shapes change? The square is still 100% square, and the circle remains 100% circle. The natures of the shapes remain distinct and unique even after they unite. The same is true with the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The divine nature and human nature of Christ unite in one person, yet each nature retains all of its characteristics.
Not only does Jesus have two natures, a divine and a human, but men and women have two natures as well. All of us are body and spirit. We have a spiritual nature and a human nature. At birth, our spirit and body are united to form us as an individual person. At death, our spirit departs from our body. At the resurrection, our spirit re-unites with our body. Without our spirit, our body is lifeless. When Jesus died on the cross, the scripture says He gave up His spirit (John 19:30). When Stephen was stoned to death, he called out for Jesus to receive his spirit (Acts 7:59). Such language describes the experience of death.
When the scripture states that Jesus ate food, drank wine, got tired, slept, and died, it is clearly referring to His human nature, namely His body. When you and I as regular humans eat, drink, and sleep, we are doing so for our bodies. Your spirit and my spirit do not eat or sleep. Our bodies do that. When Jesus ate bread and drank wine, it was not His divine spirit which ate and drank, but His body which ate and drank. The fact that Jesus did these things like other humans does not mean He can’t be God.
A moment ago I said that humans have two natures, namely a spiritual nature and a human nature. It is important for me to point out that our spiritual nature exists as either dead or alive. An unbeliever has a spiritual nature, but the spirit is dead to the things of God and can’t receive the truth of God. “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14). In brief, the natural person is a person whose spiritual nature is dead and unresponsive to the truth of God. What are the things of the Spirit of God? God speaks the truth and does not lie, so the things of the Spirit of God would be the truth. A natural man with a dead spiritual nature is unable to discern the truth of God for it is not discerned with the eyes, ears, mind, and body alone, but it is discerned through the spirit. Such people find the death of Christ on the cross for the sins of His people as utter foolishness and refuse to receive it. In order to understand, believe, and receive the truth of the Spirit of God you must be born-again by the Spirit so that your spirit is awakened to the truth of God. If your spiritual nature is dead then pray for mercy and guidance. If your spiritual nature has been made alive by the Spirit of Christ then set your mind on the things of the Spirit and put to death the deeds of your body (Romans 8:13).
I hope and pray that my explaining of the natures of Christ was sufficient and that my explanations and illustrations have been helpful. Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. He had to become a man in the likeness of sinful flesh in order to appease the wrath of God through the sacrifice of Himself in the place of repentant sinners. If Jesus was not fully God and not fully man, then His death on the cross is meaningless and we will all perish in our sins. God is glorified in the humiliation of Christ on the cross, because God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. God loved His people for His own glory and He provided salvation for His people for His name’s sake. The incarnation of Christ and His death on the cross was necessary to purchase the gift of eternal life for our spiritual nature and the restoration for our human nature. Let Christ be magnified!
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Justice, Mercy, and Grace of God
Part I: Justice, Mercy, and Grace
God applies His justice, mercy, and grace to every single individual throughout history without exception. These qualities of God apply to both the reprobate (those destined for condemnation) and the elect (those destined for salvation). These qualities differ depending on which group they fall upon.
The justice, mercy, and grace of God can be divided into two categories each: the temporal justice and eternal justice; the temporal mercy and eternal mercy; and the temporal grace and eternal grace.
Let me define these three qualities of God: justice, mercy, and grace. An easy way I choose to understand these terms is this: justice is receiving what is deserved, mercy is not receiving what is deserved, and grace is receiving what is not deserved. The wording may be a little mind boggling, so I bolded key words for emphasis which should make it easier to comprehend the differences.
Part II: The Reprobate
All sinners deserve the full wrath of God which is the spending of the rest of eternity in the
The temporal aspect of justice is received throughout the lives of the reprobate through the judgments of God. He often upholds this temporal justice through governments, police forces, court systems, and even parents. Sinners pay fines, spend time in jail or prison, do community service, receive death penalties, are flogged, and whatever other means court systems put in place for crimes (sins). Parents punish their children for disobedience (sins) in various ways as well. Justice is upheld by God in this way. God also sends judgments upon individuals in other ways such as disease, exile, sickness, torment by evil spirits, famine, loss of possessions, financial poverty, spiritual blindness and depravity, and the list could go on.
God applies His mercy to the reprobate when they do not immediately receive the punishments they deserve and are given time to repent of their sins and commit them no more. Without mercy, God’s justice would be meted out immediately. Mercy can be mingled with temporal justice by not giving a sinner exactly what they deserve, but lessening the punishment in the hope that such kindness would bring about their repentance (cf. Rom 2:4). Justice does not cause people to repent, although justice can bear fruit of repentance in the sinners’ heart. Mercy is very precious, and you don’t want to abuse it or take it for granted. God said to Moses, “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold” (Exodus 25:17). This shows how precious mercy is, for the mercy seat in the
The day will come upon the reprobate when the mercy of God will come to an end. When an unrepentant and unregenerate sinner dies, the mercy of God is over. There is no mercy for the ungodly after death. They will be raised up on the last day, stand before the throne of God and with no mercy the Judge will condemn them to hell forever for their wickedness. He will pour out His wrath and vengeance upon them forever. It will never cease. They scorned God’s temporal mercy when they walked the earth, so they will have no part in His eternal mercy. They are without hope. They will be weeping and gnashing their teeth in utter darkness. Their worm will not die and the fire will not be quenched (Isaiah 66:24; Mark 9:48).
The reprobate enjoy many things which they do not deserve. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust (Matthew 5:45). God is gracious towards the reprobate. They enjoy food, water, family, marriage, children, clothing, shelter, friends, health, wealth, and so much more according to the providence of God. What I said above about the kindness of God leading to repentance applies to grace as well. The reprobate should see these good things and in gratefulness they should give glory to God who is the source of all these things. Instead they ignore God, think they obtain these things on their own, and choose to live to glorify themselves and enjoy doing what they want to do, without submitting to the one who has authority over them, namely the Creator of heaven and earth and all that breathes. Temporal grace is a gift of God.
As with eternal mercy, the reprobate will have no part in the eternal grace of God. The grace of God for them will one day cease. They will stand before God and will receive justice alone. No mercy, no grace; only the wrath of God. No sinner can stand before God with any excuses for as it is written: “Therefore you have no excuse, O man” (Romans 2:1).
Part III: The Elect
With the reprobate we said that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23), and this is true for the elect as well. The rest of that verse, however, says that “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Without the free gift of God, the elect would perish along with the reprobate. Apart from the free gift of God, which nobody can merit by any amount of good works, every person would experience the eternal wrath of God. Thanks to the free gift of God, given to whom He pleases according to His purpose and will, the elect receive full justice, but through a different means than the reprobate.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea (Matthew 2:1) to the virgin Mary and He came to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:20-21). He is the propitiation of the sins of the elect (Romans 3:24-25; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 1 John 4:10). The word propitiation means to appease or to satisfy. In the Biblical context it means to satisfy the wrath of God and to appease His anger toward sinners. Jesus Christ took the sins of the elect upon Himself and suffered the wrath of God in their place.
The justice of God is satisfied, and the righteousness of Christ is imputed to the elect. Imputation means to attribute or ascribe righteousness or guilt to another. The guilt of Adam for his trespass was imputed to his descendents, and the righteousness of Christ is imputed to those whom He died for (cf. Romans 5:15-19). In relation to the elect, justice is fulfilled through Christ. The wrath of God is appeased; it is satisfied. By the grace of God, this free gift is graciously given to those who believe in Christ as the sacrifice for the full payment of their sins. The elect were chosen in Christ “before the foundation of the world” so that they “should be holy and blameless before him” (Ephesians 1:4). Those who are in Christ, there sins are not counted against them, and the justice of God is upheld for all eternity. Those who are not in Christ, the wrath of God remains on them (John 3:36) and the eternal justice is yet to be poured out on them.
When it comes to the mercy of God for the elect, it is much the same as for the reprobate, yet the major difference is that this mercy extends beyond temporal to all of eternity. God’s mercy for the elect will never end. There is never a point in eternity when any of the saints will have earned through merits their salvation. The reason a saint will be in the new heavens and new earth will always be because of the mercy of God.
Grace is much of the same as mercy. None of the elect deserve salvation, but in God’s mercy of not condemning them after their first rebellion, He offers them the free gift of salvation in Christ Jesus in His glorious grace. This grace will never end for the saints, because there will never be a moment in eternity when their salvation will be earned. Their salvation was bought by the precious blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23), so that they could taste the riches and glory of Christ Jesus. Every single thing they enjoy throughout eternity will be new gifts of God’s grace. Even though they will be perfect at the resurrection, all the gifts they enjoy throughout eternity will be of His grace. Their perfection is not their doing, but the work of God. If God didn’t work to bring about their perfection, then they would have never obtained their glorified bodies.
Part IV: The Conclusion
As we saw, every single person in history experiences the justice, mercy, and grace of God. The sinners receive temporal justice on earth through God’s judgments and His providence over civil and parental punishments, and sinners receive eternal justice when the wrath of God is poured out on them in hell forever. Sinners receive the temporal mercy and grace of God, for God withholds from implementing His eternal justice immediately and in grace blesses them with many good things to enjoy. In the end, sinners never repent and give God the praise and glory, and thus the mercy and grace comes to an end and hell contains nothing but the wrath and vengeance of God upon sinners.
In relation to the saints, the Heavenly Father in His foreknowledge took all the past, present, and future sins of the saints and placed them on His Son who willingly took those sins upon Himself, and He appeased the wrath of the Father and thus reconciled the saints to God. Their sins are forgiven and they share in the glory of Christ through regeneration and their baptism into the body of Christ. The justice of God is fulfilled. In God’s mercy, He patiently endured the sins of the elect until the appointed time of their salvation when they believe and put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ who was given for them according to the grace of God. Saints deserved eternal hell with the sinners (justice), but they did not receive the hell they deserved (mercy), but rather, they received the salvation they could never deserve (grace). If God were to forgive the saints of their sins without the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, but on repentance alone, then the justice of God would not be satisfied. Repentance does not appease wrath. Only perfection keeps away wrath, but since nobody is perfect, wrath has come to all. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, appeased that wrath by His death to uphold justice. God would be unjust if salvation came by repentance alone.
Forgiveness does not nullify justice. It is okay to forgive a criminal but still push for justice in the court system. Forgiving our enemies does not require the nullification of justice. Mankind is commanded by God to forgive their enemies because no one is good, but all have turned aside from righteousness. Do you need forgiveness? If so, then you must forgive others. If you don’t forgive others, why should God forgive you? Does God need forgiveness? No way! He is not obligated, therefore, to forgive anybody. Graciously He does forgive the saints. Praise God for His justice, mercy, and grace!
“Full of splendor and majesty is His work, and His righteousness endures forever” (Psalm 111:3).
Monday, June 8, 2009
We are Priests of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
(Romans 15:15-16, ESV) But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
(1 Peter 2:4-5) As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
(1 Peter 2:9) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
(Hebrews 7:11) Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron?
We as born-again Christians are a priesthood of believers. Individually we are priests, and corporately we are a priesthood under the order of Melchizedek. Under the Levitical priesthood, only the sons of Aaron were priests. Under the Melchizedek priesthood, all disciples of Christ are priests. One of the roles of the priesthood is to teach the people the Word of God. The Apostle Paul in Romans 15 describes himself as doing 'the priestly service of the gospel of God.'
Another role of the priesthood was to teach the people how to properly bring and prepare sacrifices which are to be offered to God. The Apostle Paul in Romans 15 speaks of his priestly service in the gospel of God as having the result of making acceptable the offerings of the Gentiles. As a priesthood of believers, we are to train new disciples in how to be faithful priests, and together we are to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. As a result, those who come to faith in Christ can offer up spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God.
(Romans 12:1) I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
(Philippians 4:18) I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.
(Hebrews 13:15) Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
We are to offer our bodies as living sacrifices through the obedience of faith by living according to the Spirit and doing righteousness. Let us offer up our sacrifices of praise to God, and our fragrant offerings from our gifts of love to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
We don't need priests in the church as found in Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox, but we ourselves are priests of God and of Christ. We are a priesthood of believers. The priests found in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions have no special significance according to the scriptures, for scripture declares that all disciples of Christ are priests before God. Jesus Christ is the only High Priest.
(Hebrews 6:19-20) We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
Are you a faithful priest of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you teaching the gospel to all people and teaching them how to offer up spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable and pleasing to God? When Christ returns, may you be found a faithful priest in the eyes of God. Amen.
(1 Peter 2:4-5) As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
(1 Peter 2:9) But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
(Hebrews 7:11) Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron?
We as born-again Christians are a priesthood of believers. Individually we are priests, and corporately we are a priesthood under the order of Melchizedek. Under the Levitical priesthood, only the sons of Aaron were priests. Under the Melchizedek priesthood, all disciples of Christ are priests. One of the roles of the priesthood is to teach the people the Word of God. The Apostle Paul in Romans 15 describes himself as doing 'the priestly service of the gospel of God.'
Another role of the priesthood was to teach the people how to properly bring and prepare sacrifices which are to be offered to God. The Apostle Paul in Romans 15 speaks of his priestly service in the gospel of God as having the result of making acceptable the offerings of the Gentiles. As a priesthood of believers, we are to train new disciples in how to be faithful priests, and together we are to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. As a result, those who come to faith in Christ can offer up spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God.
(Romans 12:1) I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
(Philippians 4:18) I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.
(Hebrews 13:15) Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
We are to offer our bodies as living sacrifices through the obedience of faith by living according to the Spirit and doing righteousness. Let us offer up our sacrifices of praise to God, and our fragrant offerings from our gifts of love to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
We don't need priests in the church as found in Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodox, but we ourselves are priests of God and of Christ. We are a priesthood of believers. The priests found in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions have no special significance according to the scriptures, for scripture declares that all disciples of Christ are priests before God. Jesus Christ is the only High Priest.
(Hebrews 6:19-20) We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
Are you a faithful priest of the gospel of Jesus Christ? Are you teaching the gospel to all people and teaching them how to offer up spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable and pleasing to God? When Christ returns, may you be found a faithful priest in the eyes of God. Amen.
Friday, January 2, 2009
A Blood Sacrifice is Necessary for Forgiveness
Why is a blood sacrifice necessary for forgiveness? Why couldn't God just forgive someone who truly repents?
Let me begin by posting a parable from another source.
A grandfather found his young grandson jumping up and down in his playpen, crying at the top of his lungs. When little Johnnie saw him, he reached up his chubby hands and implored, "Out, Gramp, out!" The elderly gentleman stooped to lift the boy out of his predicament, but just then Johnnie's mother approached with the words, "No, Johnnie, you are being punished, so you must stay in."
The grandfather found himself torn between the simultaneously opposing forces of mercy and justice. Tears and hands reached into his heart, but he also respected the mother's wisdom in firmly correcting her son for misbehavior. Love found a way to resolve the dilemma: Since Gramp couldn't take Johnnie out of his pen, he crawled in with him! [Roy Gane, "NIV Application Commentary: Leviticus, Numbers"]
We see in the parable both justice and mercy taking place in a balanced way. Our God is a divine being of justice and mercy. God shows justice and mercy to all creatures, not just in this temporary aspect of this world, but in the ultimate aspect of eternity. Both the elect and the non-elect receive God's mercy and justice, for that is His character. Why can't God just forgive people who repent and believe without requiring sacrifice? I believe the answer to that question is that forgiveness is not justice. If God just forgives the elect for repenting, then there is no justice.
If a man murders another man and he stands before the judge in court and repents of his wrong, and if the judge says, "You are forgiven and may go home in peace," then the family of the victim is going to stand up and cry out injustice. Forgiveness is not justice. Both crime and forgiveness have a large cost. You can't just throw out forgiveness as if it doesn't cost you much, for that is saying that the wrongdoing is no big deal and doesn't cost much. "You killed my brother, but that is no big deal, I forgive you. You want to go out to eat with me this afternoon? We can go to that new restaurant that just opened." No! Sin is a big deal, and so is forgiveness. Justice must prevail. There can be justice without forgiveness, but there can't be forgiveness without justice.
Leviticus and other scriptures which cover the instructions and details of animal sacrifices, teach us that sin must be removed from a person before God will forgive them. That is the ultimate purpose of blood sacrifices. The sins of the person were transferred to the animal who was put to death on behalf of the person and God accepted it as a ransom for the life of the person. Now that the sins have been removed from the person, only then does God forgive the person of his or her sins. Sin defiles the land, and God would not dwell in the midst of Israel if they defiled the land. The people had to be ritually pure and ceremonially clean in order to approach and fellowship with God.
Thus we see that blood sacrifices meet the demands of justice, and thus enabling God to forgive us. God doesn't forgive us without justice. There are two forms of ultimate justice: your defilement gets removed and placed elsewhere, or your defilement remains with you and you get placed elsewhere. Elsewhere in both cases referring to being away from the presence of God.
The non-elect (unbelievers) receive mercy from God when God doesn't kill them right away because of their sins. They receive justice from God when He sends them to hell forever. The elect (believers) receive mercy from God when God doesn't kill them right away because of their sins. They receive justice from God when a blood sacrifice removes their sins from them. If God were to forgive the elect through repentence alone, then He would be ignoring His justice. Justice comes to all. God is not a divine being of justice for the non-elect only, while the elect just receive mercy. No! Both the elect and the non-elect receive both mercy and justice from God.
This is why a blood sacrifice is necessary for forgiveness. This is why Jesus Christ, whom is the ultimate and perfect sacrifice, came to earth to shed His blood on the cross for His people.
Let me begin by posting a parable from another source.
A grandfather found his young grandson jumping up and down in his playpen, crying at the top of his lungs. When little Johnnie saw him, he reached up his chubby hands and implored, "Out, Gramp, out!" The elderly gentleman stooped to lift the boy out of his predicament, but just then Johnnie's mother approached with the words, "No, Johnnie, you are being punished, so you must stay in."
The grandfather found himself torn between the simultaneously opposing forces of mercy and justice. Tears and hands reached into his heart, but he also respected the mother's wisdom in firmly correcting her son for misbehavior. Love found a way to resolve the dilemma: Since Gramp couldn't take Johnnie out of his pen, he crawled in with him! [Roy Gane, "NIV Application Commentary: Leviticus, Numbers"]
We see in the parable both justice and mercy taking place in a balanced way. Our God is a divine being of justice and mercy. God shows justice and mercy to all creatures, not just in this temporary aspect of this world, but in the ultimate aspect of eternity. Both the elect and the non-elect receive God's mercy and justice, for that is His character. Why can't God just forgive people who repent and believe without requiring sacrifice? I believe the answer to that question is that forgiveness is not justice. If God just forgives the elect for repenting, then there is no justice.
If a man murders another man and he stands before the judge in court and repents of his wrong, and if the judge says, "You are forgiven and may go home in peace," then the family of the victim is going to stand up and cry out injustice. Forgiveness is not justice. Both crime and forgiveness have a large cost. You can't just throw out forgiveness as if it doesn't cost you much, for that is saying that the wrongdoing is no big deal and doesn't cost much. "You killed my brother, but that is no big deal, I forgive you. You want to go out to eat with me this afternoon? We can go to that new restaurant that just opened." No! Sin is a big deal, and so is forgiveness. Justice must prevail. There can be justice without forgiveness, but there can't be forgiveness without justice.
Leviticus and other scriptures which cover the instructions and details of animal sacrifices, teach us that sin must be removed from a person before God will forgive them. That is the ultimate purpose of blood sacrifices. The sins of the person were transferred to the animal who was put to death on behalf of the person and God accepted it as a ransom for the life of the person. Now that the sins have been removed from the person, only then does God forgive the person of his or her sins. Sin defiles the land, and God would not dwell in the midst of Israel if they defiled the land. The people had to be ritually pure and ceremonially clean in order to approach and fellowship with God.
Thus we see that blood sacrifices meet the demands of justice, and thus enabling God to forgive us. God doesn't forgive us without justice. There are two forms of ultimate justice: your defilement gets removed and placed elsewhere, or your defilement remains with you and you get placed elsewhere. Elsewhere in both cases referring to being away from the presence of God.
The non-elect (unbelievers) receive mercy from God when God doesn't kill them right away because of their sins. They receive justice from God when He sends them to hell forever. The elect (believers) receive mercy from God when God doesn't kill them right away because of their sins. They receive justice from God when a blood sacrifice removes their sins from them. If God were to forgive the elect through repentence alone, then He would be ignoring His justice. Justice comes to all. God is not a divine being of justice for the non-elect only, while the elect just receive mercy. No! Both the elect and the non-elect receive both mercy and justice from God.
This is why a blood sacrifice is necessary for forgiveness. This is why Jesus Christ, whom is the ultimate and perfect sacrifice, came to earth to shed His blood on the cross for His people.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Justified by Faith Alone
We are justified by faith alone, and not in works. Faith is defined as believing and trusting in Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross for us. By putting our faith in Him and His death on the cross, our sins are forgiven. There is nothing we can do to gain forgiveness of sins except to believe and trust in Jesus Christ. It is not by following the works and deeds as commanded in Shariah Law that we attain forgiveness of sins and the gift of paradise. Instead it is by putting our trust in Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross that we attain forgiveness of sins and the gift of paradise.
So where do works come in? Well, works come as a result of our faith. A faith without works is no faith at all. Just as children should obey their parents out of love, and not to earn rewards, so too should we as children of God obey Him because we love Him, and not to earn forgiveness and acceptance. If we trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation, then we already have forgiveness. Jesus Christ accepts us for who we are. We are His creation, and thus He loves us, just as a mother who gives birth to a child loves her child. Even if that child does things that the mother does not approve of, she still loves her child. To believe that Allah does not love those who do wrong as the Qur'an teaches, makes a mother look better than God, and we both know how blasphemous it would be to say we are better than God in any way. If we love our children even when they do wrong, then why doesn’t God love those who do wrong? Is it a sin to love our children when they do wrong? Of course not.
It is not by fasting during Ramadan that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not by praying five times a day that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not through good manners and hospitality that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not performing the Hajj to Mecca at the proper time that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not through dying as a martyr for the sake of Allah that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is only through trusting in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross as the perfect sacrifice to pay the ultimate price for your sins that you attain forgiveness and paradise.
After establishing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, making Him your Lord and Savior, and choosing to die to self and live for Him, only then do your works become of value and those works are the result of your faith and your love for Allah.
So where do works come in? Well, works come as a result of our faith. A faith without works is no faith at all. Just as children should obey their parents out of love, and not to earn rewards, so too should we as children of God obey Him because we love Him, and not to earn forgiveness and acceptance. If we trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation, then we already have forgiveness. Jesus Christ accepts us for who we are. We are His creation, and thus He loves us, just as a mother who gives birth to a child loves her child. Even if that child does things that the mother does not approve of, she still loves her child. To believe that Allah does not love those who do wrong as the Qur'an teaches, makes a mother look better than God, and we both know how blasphemous it would be to say we are better than God in any way. If we love our children even when they do wrong, then why doesn’t God love those who do wrong? Is it a sin to love our children when they do wrong? Of course not.
It is not by fasting during Ramadan that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not by praying five times a day that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not through good manners and hospitality that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not performing the Hajj to Mecca at the proper time that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is not through dying as a martyr for the sake of Allah that you attain forgiveness and paradise. It is only through trusting in Jesus Christ and His death on the cross as the perfect sacrifice to pay the ultimate price for your sins that you attain forgiveness and paradise.
After establishing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, making Him your Lord and Savior, and choosing to die to self and live for Him, only then do your works become of value and those works are the result of your faith and your love for Allah.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)