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(Blue entries in the meditation are links; clicking on them will take you to the verse(s) in the New International Version; clicking on the other versions on that page will show the same verses in the version you selected. Occasionally links on my page are to another file of mine. On this page entries in green are the words of Scripture (NIV). If you wish to pursue your own study on issues raised or on the Scripture verses used try these links: The Online Study Library. The CBC Biblical Studies Library. An additional translation with many notes can be found at Net Bible.)
What is the 'game of life' all about--according to him who knows the answer--because the answer is itself the realization of God's purposes in time and history? Is it the attainment of happiness? Is it that the distribution of of the world's goods and service be perfected so that no one will be in 'need'? Or is it that they be holy? "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14)
Holiness. That is the 'property' that God went to great lengths to bring about. Does not the deliberate providing of his Son as a substitute to take the punishment for sin 'speak powerfully' about the importance to God of his people being holy? (Titus 2:14)
It is this quality of holiness that separates those individuals who are on the 'salvation road' from those who are destined for 'outer darkness' forever.
It is the purpose of this meditation to set people's minds on the importance of holiness--to God and for our good.
What was/is God's purpose for his people from the beginning? The Bible says, "He chose us in him before the creation of the world." For what reason?--"to be holy and blameless in his sight." (Ephesians 1:4) The Bible says Christ "gave himself for us." Why did Christ do that?--"to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." (Titus 2:14)
The reason Christ did that is expressed in different words in another verse of Scripture. "Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." (Ephesians 5:25,26,27)
God accomplished what he set out to accomplish: "Now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death--to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--"(Colossians 1:22)
Over and over again the subject of apostles' prayers is that God will maintain the holy condition of his people.
The Bible says, "For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life." (1 Thessalonians. 4:6) The apostle Peter repeats God's command set forth very bluntly in the Old Testament book of Leviticus (11:44,45): "Be holy, because I am holy." (1 Peter 1:16)
The apostle Paul prayed for the Philippian believers, "that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ." (Philippians 1:10)
Later in the same letter the apostle exhorts the believers at Philippi to "do everything without complaining or arguing." Why? "so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe." (Philippians 2:14,15)
Look at the way the Bible speaks of Jesus and the objective of his sacrifice--
What was God's purpose for each of his people?--that they "be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." (Romans 8:29) Why did Jesus voluntarily go to the cross for us? "to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." (Titus 2:14)
The apostle Peter reminds his Christian hearers/readers of their position as 'priests': "You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 2:5; see also Revelation 1:6 ; 1 Peter 2:9)
God's feelings or reactions to the 'opposite' of holiness are intense. Much of the time God tells us about holiness, that is, what he wants to see by telling Christians about those kinds of behavior which are displeasing to him. The terms he uses to identify what displeases or grieves him (Genesis 6:6-7) bring out something of the meaning of holiness the way a dark background makes the light of a candle stand out. Very frequently in God's word holiness or the need for holiness is taught in this manner.
What are those terms that refer to the 'opposites' of holiness or blamelessness? God has given them names--'sin', 'wickedness'. 'lawlessness', 'transgression', 'evil', the 'doing of wrong', etc. The very 'character' of God as holy is revealed by the way he looks the the behavior described by these terms.
Listen to the way he speaks about such behavior.
Many more statements that reveal the intensity of God's feelings about unholiness can be found later in this meditation--(God's statements that speak of the consequences of not running and finishing the race as God would have his redeemed children do.)
The theme of holiness, the need to be holy, appears constantly in the Bible. The absence of holiness is always an important concern to God. Ungodly thoughts and behavior is always a grievous offense to him. Ungodly thoughts and behavior is not just undesirable or disturbing; it is grievous offense; it is 'spitting in God's face; it is 'treason' against our holy God who sent his Son to die for us. It is 'spitting in the face' of Jesus Christ who voluntarily laid down his life for us that we might be holy.
How important the matter of holiness is to God can be seen by observing the lengths he went to eliminate those attitudes and acts which are a contradiction to the pure state of his own being, that is, those things he declares to be sin, wickedness, transgression. Who that is all-wise would send his Son to die in the place of individuals who are totally infected with sin and wickedness if their being in a holy state was not vitally important? (Romans 5:7-8; 3:25-26; 8:3-4; Titus 2:14)
Do we want to 'spit in the face' of such a God by looking upon sins as excusable failures or shortcomings instead of thoughts or actions that deserve death as the Bible says? ("the wages of sin is death.")
Not only is the matter of holiness or blamelessness extremely important to God, it is also a life-and-death matter for believers. The next section deals with this truth.
Holiness is always urgent. Holiness is not only matter of extreme importance to God, it is also a matter that is intimately connected with the destiny of people--what we would call a matter of life-and-death, eternal life-and-eternal 'death'. The matter of holiness, the matter of whether my thoughts and behavior are holy is always a matter that affects me.
The same truth viewed from a slightly different angle would be expressed this way: 'whether a person is in a saved condition or an unsaved condition is never (to human beings on earth) a closed issue or a 'done' issue.' Real behavior (as opposed to a deliberate façade) is always intimately connected with our status, our destiny.
The life and death consequences of being holy or grieving God, is not a dimension which was (or will be) taken care of when he or she has made (or will make) a decision or commitment regarding Jesus Christ. What God says is at stake is never a 'closed issue'--an issue that is disconnected from the choices Christians make throughout life on earth. The choice to obey God or to grieve God by transgressing his revealed will never stops being evidence of what is in our hearts (Deuteronomy 8:2-3) and, as such, raises the issue, 'Am I a genuine believer?'
How Christians respond to real challenges, real trials, real testing is always evidence of what is in our hearts (of the 'real me')--whether it is holy or otherwise.
Whether we are genuine believers, believers with the kind of faith that is absolute is not just an issue for other people but is an ever-present issue each of us must face in our own mind. (2 Corinthians 13:5)
Does the preaching, the conversation and conduct of believers (including mine) convey the idea that there is a great urgency to the matter of holiness because it is an inseparable component of salvation? Does the preaching, the conversation and conduct of believers convey the idea that holiness, that salvation is a 'live issue', an ever-present life or death issue? Does the preaching, the conversation and conduct of believers convey the idea that the possession of the inheritance, that the possession of salvation, that the possession of eternal life is not a closed issue except in the mind and plan of God? (2 Timothy 2:19; Ephesians 1:4-5; Romans 8:29-30)
Words are not enough to put to rest the issue of whether an individual is in a saved condition--'in Christ' (Romans 8:1) or is destined to be sentenced to condemnation (John 3:36) The proper words are not enough to demonstrate for all time either to others or to oneself whether one is holy, whether one's faith and relationship to Jesus Christ is the 'genuine article'.
Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 7:21) Who is related to Jesus Christ? Who is a member of his family? Jesus was asked that question. His answer was: "Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." (Matthew 12:50)
"Good" deeds are no guarantee either. While the most godly words are no guarantee neither is the doing of deeds. Even 'good deeds' done in the name of God are not necessarily the same thing as doing the will of God. (Matthew 7:22-23) Yet (in the wisdom of God) while human beings are on earth the matter of being in a saved condition or an unsaved condition remains a 'live' issue, the most vital and urgent issue of our lives.
The apostle Peter reminds his hearers/readers that being diligent in living the Christian life, that is, adding to the web of godly virtues [faith-goodness-knowledge-self-control-perseverance-etc] is intimately connected with this live 'issue'--whether an individual is on 'salvation road' or destined for eternal 'death'-- "For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is short-sighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins....For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:8-11)
What is my response to God's declarations of the 'facts of life' in God's world? The kind of response that my life reveals is always a life and death matter. It is an issue that is never over and done with for anyone--while still on earth. (I may be physically dead before the hour is gone and all opportunity for me to see that my faith did not amount to genuine saving faith would be past.) The issue of whether a person is in a saved condition or an unsaved condition is to human beings on earth an open issue as long as the Christian life lasts. The fact that "the Lord knows those who are his," (2 Timothy 2:19) does not mean that every human being who thinks he or she is a believer is 'one of his'. Self-deception is ever a possibility. (Matthew 7:22-23, 26-27; Jeremiah 17:9-10)
What we do is related to holiness but why we do it is even more related to holiness. Great effort or behavior that is put forth so that I will feel good about myself is not what God wants. Such efforts or behavior is not what God knows to be holy or godly behavior.
While we should be putting forth great effort to live according to God's standards that is not enough. The Jewish sect known as the Pharisees were known for their efforts to do just that. But Jesus said that was not enough. (Matthew 5:20). Christians are to walk worthy of their calling but an indispensable element in a 'worthy walk' is that it springs from the motivation to please the God who saved them (to be concerned for God's 'feelings'), not from a motivation to please other men or to salve our own conscience. (Galatians 1:10; John 12:43; Matthew 23:5) Only behavior put forth to produce 'pleasure in God' (to please him) is holy behavior.
Having the proper motivation (at least in part) is an indispensable ingredient in every action that is holy. Having the proper motivation that arises out of the new, godly heart is an essential.
The Bible says, 'If the tree is no good the fruit it produces is no good.' (Matthew 7:18)
"Above all else," the Bible says, "guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." (Proverbs 4:23) In the New Testament we are reminded over and over again that it is the condition of the heart that counts.--"See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. (Hebrews 3:12; See also Mark 7:20-23; Romans 2:5; 10:9; Matthew 5:8; 1 Timothy 1:5; Acts 15:8; Hebrews 10:22)
Our real behavior is always evidence of what is in our hearts (in the 'real me')--whether it is holy or otherwise. (Matthew 12:33) Because our real behavior is evidence of our condition, our spiritual position ('in Christ' or in darkness), even a Christian of the stature of the apostle Paul did not live as if his current behavior didn't matter, that is, had no vital connection to his destiny or 'saved status'. He did not live as if his status as a 'saved' individual was a permanently settled issue. "Brothers," he says, "I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14)
The apostle knew the fact that "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad." (2 Corinthians 5:10) He lived accordingly. His behavior revealed how he looked at the life God gave him: "I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." (1 Corinthians 9:27; see also Matthew 6:24; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17)
This Godly challenge to act in holy ways remains in force for Christians throughout the Christian life. The Bible describes the Christian life in ways that speak of, or imply, a duration of time during which the choice to act as God would have us to act must be repeated again and again. What is important is not that a one time choice, decision or commitment was made but that God-honoring choices are made throughout a life time of testing. All of the believer's life is (from God's point of view) a time of testing, purification, refinement--what is often called the process of 'sanctification'. And believers are told to look upon their trials in life as occasions when God is carrying on this refining process to produce a more holy product, a product that is more pleasing in his sight. (Proverbs 17:3; Deuteronomy 8:2 Job 23:10; James 1:12)
"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness." (Hebrews 12:7-10; see also 2 Peter 1:3-4)
An image that the Bible uses many times to describe the Christian life is that of a race or course. Every Christian, every believer, has been given an assignment by God. To run a race or a course. "Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." That is what believers are told in the book of Hebrews. It is now our turn to run the race. This is what our 'coach' (the Bible) says to us--"Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses [that had been pointed to in the previous chapter of the book of Hebrews], "let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." (Hebrews 12:1) A little later our 'all knowing coach', the writer of Hebrews, reminds us of God's standard by which Christians should handle themselves while in the race: "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Hebrews 12:4)
Whether our behavior is really holy, whether it is the kind that pleases God or, by contrast, is displeasing to him and therefore sinful (or full of sin) never ceases to be a live issue. Forks along the course, the 'road of life' (even when invisible to other people) are constantly demanding new decisions. The choice to act in God's holy ways or otherwise is before us every time we come to the fork in the road--and every choice we make is observed and remembered by God. (2 Corinthians 5:10; Matthew 12:36-37)
What ever behavior of ours is real (as opposed to a deliberate façade) it is always evidence of what is in our hearts (in the 'real me') --whether it is holy or otherwise.
But the assignment God gave to Christians is not only to participate in the race; it is also to finish the race. Or, to use another athletic image, 'we must be standing when our time in the ring (like a boxer) is over'. (Ephesians 6:13) Another way the Bible expresses the idea that what professing believers do now and until the end of their life on earth is of vital importance are the blunt statements of God which tell us or remind us that only he (or she) "who stands firm to the end will be saved."
The 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews contains a good summary of those who ran the race 'successfully' when it was their time to run it. Not inappropriately that chapter is often referred to as the 'heroes of the faith' chapter. They are individuals who remained faithful to the end of their earthly pilgrimage.
While the 'heroes of the faith' chapter summarizes the lives of many individuals who remained faithful to the end of their earthly pilgrimage the Bible also gives vivid warnings by telling us of various people who did not run the race as God desires them to do (=keep the faith)--"Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home--these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire." (Jude 1:5-7)
When in the race or the ring is not a time to take it easy. Writing to a congregation of professing believers the apostle Paul said, "Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed--not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence--continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling." (Philippians 2:12;see also Luke 8:13)
Being in a standing position after having been through the race or the ring (as the 'heroes of the faith' were) is what demonstrates to the world and to oneself the genuineness of our faith. "These [trials] have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." (1 Peter 1:7; see also Deuteronomy 8:2-3)
This is how the apostle Paul lived. He went into 'strict training'. Because of this he could say near the end of his earthly ministry: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
The apostle Paul puts it this way: "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever." (1 Corinthians 9:24-25) And he did.
How do we do this? The apostle Peter says to God's redeemed children, to the citizens of heaven, to the pilgrims on earth, "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, [which is what you are] to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul." (1 Peter 2:11; see also Galatians 5:17; 1 John 2:15-17)
Why act in godly ways? Because God says so. Doing what God says is not a request which may be freely ignored but is a requirement. (Acts 17:30; 2 Timothy 2:19) This way of behaving, this running and finishing of the race in a manner God considers worthy is not an option or a non-essential for the Christian. It is not an option It is not a luxury that may be chosen if we desire it.
An 'option' is a choice that can be either chosen or ignored without paying a price or incurring consequences. Jumping off a tall building is not an option--in this sense. Behaving in holy ways is not an option for God's redeemed children. The consequences of choosing to walk in a worthy manner or choosing to ignore the practice are as real as the consequences of choosing to eat food and drink fluids or choosing not to eat or drink. Holiness, like a garment, is as necessary for being in the presence of the Holy God (Habbakuk 1:13; Hebrews 10:14; Matthew 22:11-14, etc) as eating and drinking is necessary to sustain the body.
There are consequences to not living in the fear of God. There are consequences to not running and finishing the race in a worthy manner. There are consequences to not being a believer.
It is the consequences of not running and finishing the race as God would have his redeemed people do that indicate how important being holy is. What is at stake? Two different consequences. It is the alternative to finishing the race or standing firm to the end that reveals the importance of running and finishing the race. What is at stake for me in finishing the course is (as the apostle Paul puts it) getting "the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14) And that prize is becoming like Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 John 3:2; Romans 8:29) and enjoying life with God forever. The alternative is eternal 'death'. A lot is at stake in running and finishing the race worthily, in behaving in holy ways.
Here are a few of God's statements, 'ultimatums', if you will, that speak of the consequences of not running and finishing the race as God would have his redeemed children do. We have already quoted the vivid warning set before us by God's actions towards his people in the wilderness. (Jude 1:5-7)
It is believing in the importance, the high desirability of attaining or avoiding, the consequences of choices that gives meaning to those choices that we make in the course of the Christian 'race'. If the matter of holiness is disassociated from eternal consequences, if believers do not look upon holy behavior as evidence of the regenerated life then how important is it--to us? How urgent is it to us?
In the Bible there is no doubt about the urgency of holiness. Because of what is at stake the apostle Peter says to believers--"my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure." How are believers to do this? The apostle says, "make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. (2 Peter 1:5-7; see also Hebrews 4:11; James 2:20-22 ; 1 Timothy 4:16)
The apostle Peter then goes on to describe the significance of doing as he says or not doing as he says: "For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone does not have them, he is short-sighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins....For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 1:8-9,10-11; see also Hebrews 10:26-27)
Resting on the thought that one is a believer, relying on the belief that one is trusting in Christ and his work may be relying on what is in actuality nothing more than a comforting delusion, a 'grand deception'. Without evidence of holy behavior faith (the trust that it implies) may be as unreal as a mirage. "As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." (James 2:26) "You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless?" (James 2:20) The New English Bible expresses the idea perhaps even more clearly in its translation of James 2:18: "'Prove to me that this faith you speak of is real though not accompanied by deeds, and by my deeds I will prove to you my faith.'" Being a believer does not remove the need to be holy, the need to be diligent in running the race as the apostle Paul was. Trusting in the 'blood of Christ' and his continuing intercession does not remove the need to live "a life worthy of the calling you have received." (Ephesians 4:1;see also Philippians 1:27; Colossians 1:10)
In the New Testament Jude shows the vital connection between behavior and our destiny whether it be to enter into the Holy God's presence or into eternal fire. He warns believers with these words: "Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that the Lord delivered his people out of Egypt, but later destroyed those who did not believe. And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their own home--these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day. In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire." (Jude 1:5-7)
To his disciples Jesus described the significance of believer's behavior this way: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful....If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned....This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." (John 15:1-2, 6,8)
Holiness does make a difference. How I live, where my heart is, does make a difference. Jesus said to his disciples, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.... But God said to him, `You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich towards God....For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well." (Luke 12:15-16,20-21,30-31; see also James 4:4; Matthew 6:24; 1 John 2:15-17)
Why did God divulge what his goals, purposes, and desires were? The apostle Peter sums it up in these words: "Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." (2 Peter 1:4) Even the painful ways God looks after the people he redeemed have the same objective: "that we may share in his holiness." (Hebrews 12:7-10) One of God's summaries of the essence of 'religion' brings out the importance of holiness: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." (James 1:27)
Is the matter of holiness urgent? Yes, it is. The Bible states the fact of the matter: "without holiness no-one will see the Lord." Because this is the situation in which every believer lives, God tells his people, "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy." (Hebrews 12:14)
God is very concerned about holiness. Does
the Bible including what God told us after Jesus' sacrifice on the cross make
the attainment of this state--holiness--any less impossible than it was
before?
How hopeless is man's situation? The Bible answers this question many times.
God's standard for all human beings is that they be blameless--be perfect, (Acts 17:30) Sin--any sin or any degree of sin--is a total contradiction of his character. Since absolute purity ceases to be absolute purity when mixed with any amount of impurity, the impurity (the revolting filth) that is part of the very being of sinners cannot continue to exist in the presence of Holy God. (2 Corinthians 6:14; Habbakuk 1:13)
Therefore it is to be expected that He hates sin. His word says so.
The New Testament is just as clear: "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)
God's nature and standard of holiness being what it is--absolute purity, perfection--what hope is there for sinners?
'Progress'? 'Improvement'? Is that the answer? Is that what God the Father sent his Son to die for? No. Progress, improvement is no answer. Improvement in thought or behavior does not and cannot lead to the condition God wants-holiness or blamelessness. Improvement in thought or behavior, a decrease in the level of contamination, is not enough. Improvement--even if it is real--is no solution at all (and it may even divert attention from the truth that it is no solution). At best, improvement can only mean a decrease in the number of blame-deserving thoughts or deeds. But what good is that? "Whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it." (James 2:10) And improvement does nothing to remove the penalty for sins committed previously. Improvement does not erase the blame or guilt previously incurred any more than getting all A+'s from now on erases previous marks that were less than perfect.
Improvement cannot lead to blamelessness any more than pouring pure water into polluted well makes the polluted well pure--it just reduces the degree of contamination. Mixing the most microscopic amount of impurity into the most enormous amount of absolutely pure liquid renders the whole amount impure.
Doing for others, 'pouring oil on troubled waters', overcoming many habits of the 'old self' is not the same thing as blamelessness nor do those activities lead to blamelessness. Blamelessness is not a condition which any human being can attain to by doing for others or by overcoming problems or by any activity, even prayer. (Job 14:4; 15:14-16)
In the the Old Testament portion of God's word, in the book of Isaiah the description of the best of human works is extremely vivid: "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away." (Isaiah 64:6) In less picturesque language the same truth is stated bluntly in the New Testament: "The Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin." (Galatians 3:22; see also Romans 3:19; 1 John 5:19)
Not surprisingly Jesus' disciples wondered where this fact left the even best of human beings. "When the disciples heard [what Jesus had said], they were greatly astonished and asked, 'Who then can be saved?' Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'" (Matthew 19:25-26)
Everybody was included. Individuals who became believers were no different. There is nothing that was in people who are believers today that made them any different from those people who never became believers. There is nothing that was in people who are believers today that made them any more worthy of receiving God's mercy than those people whose 'righteous acts are as filthy rags', than the 'whole world that is a prisoner of sin'.
The apostle Paul teaches, reminds, the believers in Ephesus, "Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." In another translation the same phrase is stated even more clearly: "In our natural condition we, like the rest, lay under the dreadful judgment of God."(Ephesians 2:3, NEB)
How then did it ever come about that some individuals who were under the dominion of sin (Galations 3:22) like everybody else in the world--individuals who were "dead in ...transgressions and sins," who used to live "gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts"(Ephesians 2:1-3) turned into believers? Stated in one short sentence we would ask, 'How did it come about that individuals who were under the dominion of sin turned into individuals who were no longer under the dominion of sin, that is, believers?' (1 Corinthians 6:11)
The reason we who believe are no longer in that condition--in the prison house of sin--is that God did something. The Gospel is the announcement of it. The Gospel is the announcement of what God did through Jesus Christ and what the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross accomplished. He redeemed us. He delivered us. (Galatians1:4; Colossians 1:13)
He provided the substitute that met the requirements of God's standards on behalf of every believer. "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us,..."(Romans 8:1-4) [Who the 'us' in the verse refers to is expressed clearly in The New English Bible translation of v.4: "...in us, whose conduct, no longer under the control of our lower nature, is directed by the Spirit." See Romans 8:9]
It was God's feeling/concern for us, not ours for him that resulted in our deliverance from an impossible situation--"Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions --it is by grace you have been saved." (Ephesians 2:4-5; see also Titus 3:5)
God did something. He chose not to treat us according to what we deserve--what even his own law or standard says we deserve. The Bible says so (even in the Old Testament). "[The Lord] does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." (Psalms 103:10-12; see also John 3:16) Instead of giving us what we deserve he chose to be merciful--to bestow the gift of holiness and salvation upon a people (Ephesians 2:6,8; Titus 2:14; 3:5; Romans 3:25-26; 8:3 1 Peter 2:10)
God did something: he provided a substitute. "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Corinthians 5:21) In the Old Testament portion of God's revelation the Gospel was expressed in language that is more descriptive and emotional: " He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all....Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer..."(Isaiah 53:5-6,10; see also 1 Peter 2:24)
But it was not only God-the-Father who showed love to me; God-the-Son did too. Jesus Christ the Son of God, deliberately laid down his life as a sacrifice for me (and every believer). (John 10:11,18) Jesus Christ did not risk his life for me, he deliberately sacrificed it. He did it to bring us to God. "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." (1 Peter 3:18)
It was to make us holy, acceptable to God, that
Christ sacrificed his life on the cross.
"And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the
body of Jesus Christ once for all."
(Hebrews 10:10; see also Colossians
1:12)
God did something. Because he did something, genuine believers are in a wonderful position. What greater blessing could be than to be delivered from the domination of sin and from the oppression of the law--the requirement to keep it perfectly. What a blessed declaration God makes about individuals who are in the position of everlasting security: "Blessed is the man whose sin the LORD does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit."(Psalms 32:2) This vital element of the gospel message is too wonderful not to be repeated (and it is repeated, quoted, in the New Testament)--"Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him."(Romans 4:7-8; see also 8:30-34; 9:21-24)
God did it. It was he who made us beneficiaries of his purpose of mercy 'devised' in eternity past. It was he who chose us so long ago to be beneficiaries (Ephesians 1:4-5); the benefit included being called out of darkness (1 Peter 2:9); the benefit included being transferred to the Kingdom (Colossians 1:13); the benefit included being made citizens of heaven (Philippians 3:20); the benefit included being destined not for wrath but for salvation (1 Thessalonians 5:9); the benefit included being made heirs to an incomparable inheritance (1 Peter 1:3-5) by an irrevocable act of God. (Romans 11:29) the benefit included being destined for--the home of righteousness where no evil will exist (2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:27; Ephesians 5:5; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; Hebrews 12:14; Matthew 13:41)
Yes. God did something to bring believers out of an impossible situation. But do believers show the proper response?
Am I sufficiently thankful to God to be concerned about whether he is pleased or grieved by my internal and external behavior? Am I sufficiently thankful to God to be concerned about whether my internal and external behavior is holy or otherwise? Have I looked upon the result of God actions--all the results mentioned above--as a the greatest treasure for which I would gladly exchange every earthly blessing or possession? "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." And again, "When he found one [a pearl] of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it." (Matthew 13:44,46) That is the teaching of the Bible.
Remember how after the apostle Paul understood what salvation was all about he looked at all the earthly benefits that had been his prior to his conversion--"What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ." (Philippians 3:8)
The apostle's Christian life demonstrated before the world how he viewed his new life. Yet even the apostle who firmly believed he had been commissioned by God did not behave as if his behavior did not matter--whether it was holy or unholy. "Brothers," he says, "I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead, I press on towards the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenwards in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14) That is the standard he lived by. The apostle's behavior revealed how he looked at the life God gave him: "I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." (1 Corinthians 9:27; see also Matthew 6:24; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17)
Am I sufficiently thankful to God to be concerned about whether he is pleased or grieved by my internal and external behavior? Am I sufficiently thankful to God to be concerned about whether my internal and external behavior is holy or otherwise? The Bible says, in effect, 'be reminded that' "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Hebrews 12:4) Have I appreciated my salvation so much that I have resisted sin to the point of shedding blood? This is the acid test! (2 Corinthians 13:5) If not, am I ready to be in the presence of Holy God? (Matthew 22:11-13)
If I do not look upon what Christ earned for his people as my greatest treasure perhaps I was never truly called out of darkness, perhaps I was never transferred to the Kingdom of God. Do believers show evidence of the new birth (regeneration)? If there is no evidence there is certainly no assurance and perhaps nothing to be assured about... (2 Peter 1:9)
Is the matter of holiness urgent? How many Christians think and act as if this were so? Again, hear our apostle Paul speak: "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:21) Is the matter of holiness urgent? According to God and his word it is. (Hebrews 12:14; John 3:3; 1 Corinthians 6:9; etc., etc.)
Can it be that the individual who truly recognizes and appreciates what he or she has been delivered from (the penalty and domination of sin) and who truly recognizes and appreciates what he or she has been made an heir to would not be overwhelmingly grateful and would feel impelled to display this deep appreciation by verbal praise (1 Peter 2:9) and behaving as his or her deliverer, redeemer--Jesus Christ wants?
And what God the Father and Jesus Christ want to see? What this entire meditations has been devoted to: holiness, blamelessness. Who is holy?--"This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word." (Isaiah 66:2) "Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear." (1 Peter 1:17) "Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God." (2 Corinthians 7:1)
"....what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him." (2 Peter 3:11-14)
"...work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." (Philippians 2:12-13) "Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it." (Hebrews 4:1;see also 2 Corinthians 13:5; Romans 8:9; Jude 1:5-7)
Yes, holiness is urgent.
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