reconciliation

Talk Is Cheap

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17 So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me. 18 If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. 19 I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. 20 Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ. – Philemon 1:17-20 ESV

It’s quite easy to give advice to others. In fact, it comes naturally to most of us. Sharing our opinions and providing free counsel to our friends and family members just seem like good things to do. We can even back up our good intentions from the “Good Book.”

Where there is no guidance, a people falls,
    but in an abundance of counselors there is safety. – Proverbs 11:14 ESV

But even the best counsel, motivated by the best intentions, doesn’t always produce the best outcomes. Telling someone what they should do, without providing them any hint as to how to do it, can be demoralizing and even damaging.

Paul was asking Philemon to accept his runaway slave back with open arms. Not only that, but he was also advising Philemon to treat Onesimus as a brother and not a slave. Everything Paul wrote to Philemon was biblically sound and spiritually appropriate; it was wise counsel coming from a godly and well-meaning friend. And yet, from Philemon’s perspective, it was all “easier said than done.” Paul, under house arrest in Rome and with plenty of time on his hands, could write Philemon a hundred letters full of godly advice on a wide range of topics, but at the end of the day, it was Philemon who would have to turn Paul’s rhetoric into reality, and that was not going to be easy.

Paul was quite clear in expressing how he expected Philemon to treat Onesimus.

So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. – Philemon 1:17 NLT

Philemon was to show Onesimus the same courtesy and respect he would extend to Paul if he were to walk in the door. That was a tall order. Paul was asking Philemon to respond in a manner that was antithetical to logic and social protocol. For him to treat any slave with that kind of respect and honor would have been unheard of in civil society. Yet, Paul was asking him to extend this kind of courtesy to a runaway.

Remember, Paul told Philemon that Onesimus was “no longer like a slave to you” (Philemon 1:16 NLT). That was easy for Paul to say. But in Philemon’s social circle, everyone would have known that Onesimus was his slave, and that he had run away. When Onesimus returned, they would have expected Philemon to deal with him according to Roman law. To not do so would have set a dangerous precedent. If Philemon failed to punish Onesimus for running away, it might encourage other slaves to follow his example. Other slave owners in the community, and possibly in the church, would have viewed his kind and gracious treatment of Onesimus as unacceptable behavior.

Paul was fully aware of the gravity of his request of Philemon. He knew it would not be easy to follow, and it could also prove costly. Paul was cognizant of the fact that Onesimus represented a financial investment for Philemon. In the economic system of Rome, Onesimus had monetary value that was greater than his human worth. He was a commodity whose appraisal was based on his production capacity or resale value. So, when Paul asked Philemon to set Onesimus free, he was asking his friend to take a substantial hit to his bottom line.

But look closely at what Paul wrote next: “If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account” (Philemon 1:18 ESV). You might say that Paul was putting his money where his mouth was. He was backing up his wise words with the promise of action. Paul was personally investing himself in the process of reconciliation between these two men.

When Paul told Philemon, “charge that to my account,” he was essentially saying, “Impute Onesimus’ debt to me.” It was like saying, “put it on my tab.” Paul was committing himself to make up any financial liability Philemon might face as a result of following his advice. Paul was willingly putting skin in the game, and his model for this kind of selfless, sacrificial commitment was Jesus.

For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. – 2 Corinthians 5:21 NLT

Jesus came to earth so that He might reconcile sinful men to God, and in order to do so, He took on their sin debt. He bore their sins on the cross and died the death they deserved to die. And because those who place their faith in Christ enjoy a renewed relationship with God the Father, they have the capacity to view things from a totally new perspective. Consider Paul’s words to the believers in Corinth.

So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. – 2 Corinthians 5:16-19 NLT

Philemon and Onesimus had both been reconciled to God through the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross. But Paul deeply desired to see Philemon and Onesimus reconciled to one another. They had both been set free from slavery to sin and death, and now they could live in newness of life together as brothers. And Paul was willing to invest himself in the process of reconciling their differences, even to the point of underwriting the financial debts of Onesimus.

Paul made his commitment clear, telling Philemon, “I will repay it” (Philemon 1:19 ESV), and Philemon knew he could trust Paul to keep his word. To further influence Philemon’s decision, Paul resorted to a bit of guilt-tripping, essentially saying, “You owe me.” This should not be viewed as a threat but as a gentle reminder that Philemon owed his new life in Christ to Paul’s ministry. Paul had risked a lot to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to Philemon’s community and, as a result, Philemon had been reconciled to God. By placing his faith in Jesus, Philemon’s debt had been paid in full.

Nothing would make Paul happier than to hear that Philemon and Onesimus had been reconciled, and he let Philemon know his decision to receive Onesimus as a brother in Christ would be all the payment he needed.

Yes, my brother, please do me this favor for the Lord’s sake. Give me this encouragement in Christ. – Philemon 1:20 NLT

Telling others what they ought to do is easy, but how willing are we to commit ourselves to help them follow our advice? What cost are we willing to pay to see that our wise words are followed? Paul was willing to put his money where his mouth was. What about you? Are you committed to walking alongside the ones with whom you freely share your counsel and dedicate your time and resources to see that they have what they need to succeed?

This reminds me of the story of the chicken and the pig. In debating the degree of their commitment to a typical breakfast of bacon and eggs, the chicken bragged about how some brave hen willingly made provision for the eggs. But the pig responded by pointing out that while the breakfast required the chicken’s participation, it demanded a pig’s total commitment.

Paul wasn’t content to provide wise counsel; he was totally committed to seeing that it was followed, regardless of the personal cost. Paul could have easily said to Philemon what he wrote to the believers in Philippi.

But I will rejoice even if I lose my life, pouring it out like a liquid offering to God, just like your faithful service is an offering to God. And I want all of you to share that joy. – Philippians 2:17 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Light in the Darkness

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3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,

“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.” – Ephesians 5:3-14 ESV

Darkness is the absence of light; it is what happens when light is removed or unavailable. The term “darkness” is used by many of the New Testament authors to describe the moral and spiritual state of mankind apart from God. Without God, humanity is left in a state of darkness. The apostle John described God as light-producing and darkness-dispelling.

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. – 1 John 1:5 ESV

God brings light into the world, illuminating and eliminating darkness wherever His presence dwells. So the spiritual darkness in which mankind finds itself is the result of an absence of God. Since God is omnipresent, there is no place where He does not exist, but when men fail to acknowledge His presence, power, and authority over their lives, they find themselves plunged into spiritual darkness.

David wrote, “Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.’ They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!” (Psalm 14:1 NLT). Failure to believe in God does not make Him go away; it simply plunges the disbeliever into further darkness and despair. John described Jesus as the Word of God that “existed in the beginning with God” (John 1:2 NLT). He further noted that God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him” (John 1:3 NLT). As the light of God, Jesus “gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (John 1:4 NLT).

Yet, while the spiritual darkness of the world cannot extinguish “the light of life,” it does not prevent humanity from preferring darkness to light.

God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed.– John 3:19-20 NLT

Jesus describes Himself as the light of the world.

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” – John 8:12 NLT

In his first letter, John points out that a relationship with Jesus, the light of the world, precludes living in darkness. It is impossible to walk in the light and darkness at the same time. 

If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. – 1 John 1:6 ESV

Our relationship with Christ should impact our conduct. That is why Paul tells us: “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Ephesians 5:11 ESV). As children of God, we have been exposed to Jesus Christ, the light of life. As John wrote in his gospel, “The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:5 NASB). Darkness and light cannot coexist. So when Jesus, the light, came into the world, He illuminated and exposed the darkness all around Him. He did not eliminate the darkness of sin because it was sinful men who orchestrated His death on the cross. However, everywhere Jesus went, His life shone like a beacon of hope in a sin-darkened world. He was God in human flesh, dispensing love, grace, mercy, and hope to a lost and dying world. Yet, the apostle John reveals that this life-giving light of God was met with ridicule and rejection by those dwelling in the darkness of sin. 

There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.– John 1:9-11 ESV

But the Light was not wasted. Jesus’ efforts did not prove futile or fruitless.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. – John 1:12

There were many who preferred the darkness of sin over the Light, but some turned to the Light and gratefully received His offer of forgiveness and redemption. He exposed their sins and their need for a Savior. It is interesting to note that John says, “the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.” The Greek word John used is φωτίζω (phōtizō), and it can mean “to give light” or “to enlighten, spiritually, imbue with saving knowledge” (“G5461 – phōtizō – Strong’s Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible). Obviously, John was not indicating that every man was saved as a result of Jesus’ incarnation. But with Jesus’ death and resurrection, the message of salvation came into the world, exposing every man and woman to the truth; some received it, while others rejected it.

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is addressed to those who have received the Light. He is calling them to live lives that reflect their new standing as “children of light” (Ephesians 5:8 ESV). He reminds them of the transformation that had taken place in their lives because of their faith in Jesus.

…for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. – Ephesians 5:8 ESV

Paul does not say, “you are in the light,” but “you are light.” They had been transformed. Not only had they been living in darkness, but they were darkness; their lives were characterized by the deeds of darkness. But the Light of the world had penetrated their lives, transforming them into children of light. Now, Paul was calling them to live as who they were.

This meant a change in behavior. Children of light were not meant to live like children of darkness. And Paul was very explicit in describing what life in the light looks like.

Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. – Ephesians 5:3 NLT

And just in case his audience got a bit prideful and puffed up, thinking they had no problem with those particular sins, Paul dropped a bombshell on them.

Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes — these are not for you. – Ephesians 5:4 NLT

These are those “little” sins that so many Christians excuse as somehow acceptable to God. But Paul says, “These are not for you.” As Christians, it is so easy to rationalize our behavior. We can find it tempting to justify certain behavior as acceptable to God, but Paul lumps obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes in with immorality, impurity, greed, and idolatry. They are all deeds of darkness.

Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. – Ephesians 5:6 NLT

Those are not the characteristics of those who have become light; they mark the nature of those who are still children of darkness. That is why Paul goes on to adamantly demand a radical change in behavior.

Don’t participate in the things these people do. For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true. – Ephesians 5:7-9 NLT

As Christ followers, we are to determine what pleases God and do those things. We are to live differently from all those around us. The light within us is to produce what is good, right, and true. Rather than participate in the deeds of darkness, we are to expose them (Ephesians 5:11). This does not mean that we are to walk around pointing our fingers in judgment at those who sin, but that our very presence as light should provide a dramatic contrast. Paul says, “Their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes everything visible” (Ephesians 5:13-14 NLT).

Our presence among those living in darkness and death will provide a convicting influence on their lives. When Christ followers live as lights in the darkness, their lives become beacons of hope, calling those living in the darkness of sin to experience the light of life. Our light-infused lives become a wake-up call to a lost and dying world.

Awake, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will give you light. – Ephesians 5:14 NLT

Father, we are light. It is not just that we have been exposed to the light of life, but that we have become bearers of the light to the world around us. Your Son made it clear when He said, “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father (Matthew 5:14-16 NLT). My sinfulness was exposed by the Light and I received the righteousness of Christ. As a result, I have the Light of the world living in me and I need to let it shine through me. As Paul said, “We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves” (2 Corinthians 4:7 NLT). I am still imperfect and struggle with my sin nature. As Paul put it, I am a fragile clay jar, but I have the light of God within me; all I need to do is let it shine through me. That is how I want to live my life. I may be broken and flawed, but I have Your power residing in me and when it shows up, You get the glory. Shine through me, Father. Let me be a bright light of hope to a sin-darkened world. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

One Body Through the Cross

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14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. 18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. – Ephesians 2:14-22 ESV

To truly understand this passage, one must first grasp the nature of the relationship between Jews and Gentiles in Paul’s world. There was a long and deep-seated animosity between the two groups. To put it bluntly, Jews despised Gentiles. They viewed them with contempt and rarely, if ever, associated with them on any level. The Jews viewed themselves as the chosen people of God; everyone else was considered a Gentile, an outsider, and destined to God’s wrath and punishment.

It was forbidden for a Jew to marry a Gentile, and in the rare cases it did happen, the family of the Jewish son or daughter would consider their child as dead, even holding their funeral to mark the day. Paul has just told the Gentile converts in the church in Ephesus, “remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:12 ESV). Jesus, the Christ (the Greek word for Messiah), had been promised to the Jews and had been born as a Jew.

However, the Gentiles had been born outside the commonwealth of Israel, with no access to the covenant promises made to the people of God. So not only were they disdained by the Israelites, but they were also considered to be without hope and without God in the world. But Paul reminded that Jesus had changed all that.

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. – Ephesians 2:13 ESV

The great chasm that separated the Gentiles from the Jews was closed by Jesus. He had made it possible for them to have hope and a relationship with God. But amazingly, Jesus had not just reconciled the Gentiles with God, but He had also reconciled them to the Jewish believers in their congregation. They were now one.

For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. – Ephesians 2:14 NLT

When God called Abraham and promised to make of him a great nation, that was the beginning of the Jewish people. God separated them out from the rest of the nations of the world. He took one man and his barren wife and miraculously gave them descendants “beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore” (Genesis 22:17 NLT). God chose them as His own and revealed Himself in ways He had never done before with any other people group.

He rescued them from captivity in Egypt. He led them through the wilderness and met all their needs along the way. He gave them His law. He provided them the land of Canaan as their homeland just as He had promised Abraham. He fought and won battles on their behalf. He gave them prophets to speak to them. He provided kings to lead them and appointed priests to minister to them. And, as His chosen people, they were to be a light to the Gentiles, a visible example of what it looks like when men live in obedience and submission to God.

But they failed. They couldn’t keep God’s law and were incapable of remaining faithful to Him. They repeatedly rebelled and wandered from the truth of God, seeking after false gods and the fulfillment of their own selfish desires. And as a result, God punished them by sending them into exile. He disciplined His chosen people, but He also redeemed them from slavery again and returned them to the Land of Promise. But things would never be quite the same. They would never have another king or enjoy the peace and prosperity of David’s and Solomon’s reigns.

Then God sent His Son, the Messiah. After centuries of waiting, the long-awaited One arrived on the scene. But John records what happened. “He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” (John 1:11 ESV). Jesus, the Son of God and the descendant of King David, was rejected by His own people. Instead of crowning Him as King, they demanded His crucifixion. But it was all part of God’s redemptive plan for mankind.

With His death, Jesus “broke down the wall of hostility that separated us” (Ephesians 2:14 NLT). The law had separated Jews from Gentiles, but it had also separated Jews from God. They could not keep the law. Instead, it exposed their sinfulness and condemned their lack of faithfulness to God.

But Jesus removed the barrier. He reconciled both Jew and Gentile to God “in one body through the cross” (Ephesians 2:16 ESV). He made it possible for men to be restored to God and to one another. Paul claimed that Jesus “brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near” (Ephesians 2:17 NLT). The very same message of redemption was preached to all men, regardless of their ethnicity or religion. Restoration and reconciliation with God would be the same for both. As Paul stated earlier, it was to be by faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. – Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV

Now, believing Jews and Gentiles were one. There was to be no more alienation, separation, animosity, pr hostility. As a result of their shared faith in Jesus Christ, they had become “fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19 ESV).

The church, the body of Christ, had been God’s plan all along. It was always His intention to redeem men and women from every tribe, nation, and tongue. That is why He told Abraham that He would make him the father of many “nations,” not just the Hebrew nation. He had also told Abraham that through him all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 22:18), and that promise was fulfilled in Christ.

In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. – Ephesians 2:22 ESV

Together, we form the people of God, reconciled to Him through a common faith in His Son, and living in the shared power of His Spirit. One nation under God.

Father, Your intention has always been to redeem a lost and dying world. You sent Your Son to serve as the atoning sacrifice for the sins of mankind, and not just for Jews, but also for Gentiles. You chose the descendants of Abraham as Your treasured possession and blessed them with Your presence, the Mosaic Law, and the sacrificial system. You repeatedly poured out Your grace and mercy on them and blessed them in so many ways, but they refused to honor You as God, choosing instead to worship false gods. They feined obedience, but practiced unfaithfulness. Yet, they were the means by which You sent Your Son into the world to redeem all men. As Paul put it, “He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them” (2 Corinthians 5:15 NLT).

Through the Jews, You proved that access into Your presence and awareness of Your moral code of conduct would not be enough. They enjoyed a unique relationship with You and knew Your expectations of them, but were completely incapable of remaining faithful and obedient. Legalism and lawkeeping was not going to work because “the law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins (Romans 8:3 NLT). And the benefits of His death were not just for the Jews, but for all who would believe. And I am a grateful beneficiary of Your love, grace, and mercy. Thank You! Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Grace Greater Than Our Sin

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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. 20 Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. – Romans 5:18-21 ESV

Paul continues his contrast between Adam’s one act of unrighteousness and Christ’s singular act of righteousness. Adam’s sin led to condemnation and death for all men, while Christ’s sacrifice led to “justification and life for all men” (Romans 5:18 ESV). But Paul seemed to know that some in his audience would question why God had bothered to give the law in the first place. Why would He have given a set of rules that no one could keep? Paul responds to that unstated question by stating that the “law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were” (Romans 5:20 NLT).

God provided His people with the law, not to eliminate sin, but to expose it. In Chapter 7, Paul writes, “it was the law that showed me my sin. I would never have known that coveting is wrong if the law had not said, ‘You must not covet’” (Romans 7:7 NLT). But he also adds that “sin used this command to arouse all kinds of covetous desires within me! If there were no law, sin would not have that power. At one time I lived without understanding the law. But when I learned the command not to covet, for instance, the power of sin came to life, and I died” (Romans 7:8-10 NLT).

God gave the law to the people of Israel to prove that no man could live up to God’s holy and righteous standards. He had given them a comprehensive compendium of legal commands covering every conceivable aspect of life. He left nothing up to their imaginations or personal opinions. It was all in black and white, so they had no excuse and could not plead ignorance. They knew what God expected, but because of their sinful natures, inherited from Adam, they could not accomplish what God demanded of them. As a result, sin increased. They repeatedly and willingly violated the laws that God had laid out for them. 

But the good news is that “as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant” (Romans 5:20 NLT). Man’s guilt required God’s grace, and the wrath of God against the sins of man met the love and grace of God at the cross. It was there that God’s holy and righteous wrath was poured out against humanity’s sins and rebellion against Him.

God is a holy and just judge, and He cannot overlook or ignore sin. To do so would be an injustice and a violation of His own holy character. So, God had to punish man’s sins, and, as Paul states in the following chapter, “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23 NLT). God required a proper payment for mankind’s sin debt, and that debt was paid by His own Son on the cross. God was required by His own law to punish sin, but the payment He required was the life of a sinless, unblemished sacrifice. The blood of a bull or goat would not suffice; it had to be a human sacrifice.

The book of Hebrews provides a detailed explanation for the necessity of Jesus’ substitutionary death on behalf of sinful humanity.

For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. That is why, when Christ came into the world, he said to God, “You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings. But you have given me a body to offer.” – Hebrews 10:4-5 NLT

It was the death of Jesus, the sinless Son of God, that propitiated or satisfied the just judgment of God against sin, and it all took place on the cross. It was there that the wrath and love of God were poured out simultaneously. His judgment fell on Jesus as He bore our punishment for sin, but His love was displayed as He provided a substitute to die in our place. As Paul stated earlier in this chapter, “God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8 NLT). 

The amazing thing is that God’s grace abounded even as man’s sinfulness increased. He provided the law so that the scope and scale of man’s sin problem could be exposed. Earlier in his letter, Paul made it clear that even the Gentiles inherently knew God’s law and obeyed it because it was written on their hearts. It was wired into their DNA because all men are made in God’s image. 

Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it. They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right. – Romans 2:14-15 NLT

Yet, both Jews and Gentiles had chosen to break God’s laws. They willingly violated what was written on tablets of stone and on their hearts.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. – Romans 3:23 NLT

Despite his gloomy assessment of mankind’s spiritual state, Paul provided the good news.

Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. – Romans 3:23-26 NLT

God had every right and even the righteous responsibility to deal with mankind’s sin. And yet, He delayed; He postponed judgment until such a time as He could send His Son to pay the debt mankind owed.

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. – Galatians 5:4-5 NLT

The grace of God, revealed through the life and death of Jesus Christ, is what makes it possible for men and women to be restored to a right relationship with Him. Rampant, runaway sin was no match for the grace of God. His grace super-abounds; it is more than sufficient. As the old hymn so eloquently puts it:

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin!

Grace Greater Than Our Sin, Julia H. Johnstone, 1910

Father, Your grace is greater. Greater than my sin. Greater than my doubt and disbelief. Greater than my stubbornness and constant reliance on my own self-sufficiency. Your grace exceeds my expectations and abounds far beyond anything I could ever earn or deserve. It is mind-boggling to think that You loved me enough to send Your one and only Son to die in my place. In a world where love is almost always reciprocal and a response to having been loved, Your selfless act of mercy and grace is difficult to comprehend. It seems illogical and inconceivable to us. And yet, as Paul so aptly puts it, You showed Your great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:8). Your law exposed our sin and sealed our condemnation as law breakers. Yet, in Your love, grace, and mercy, You made a way where there was no way (Isaiah 43:16-19). You provided a means of salvation that satisfiied Your justice and made possible our justification. And I love You for it. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.22

The Wrath and Love of God

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18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. – Romans 1:18-20 ESV

In verse 17, Paul states that the gospel reveals the righteousness of God from faith for faith. In Greek, the word “reveals” is apokalyptō, which means “to make known what was once hidden.” So Paul is saying that the way to achieve righteousness, which was once hidden from men, is through faith in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. That is why he says, “The righteous shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17 ESV). This new or formerly hidden faith means that getting right with God was revealed through the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ; in other words, through the gospel.

Now, in verse 18, Paul unveils another once-hidden mystery; the gospel also revealed the wrath of God. He states, “God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Romans 1:18 NLT). The gospel, which is the good news regarding salvation through Jesus Christ, the wrath of God was poured out. Jesus’ excruciating death on the cross is simultaneously a picture of God’s love and wrath. The prophet Isaiah, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, wrote of the coming Messiah.

Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
    it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
    a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
    crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
    He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
    We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all. – Isaiah 53:4-6 NLT

Peter referred to this passage when he wrote, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24 ESV). The full extent of God’s hatred of sin was revealed on the cross. The innocent died for the guilty. The sinless One had to pay the price for the sinful. God died for the godless.

To restore sinful, disobedient men to a right relationship with Himself, God had to pay the ultimate price and sacrifice His own Son. Jesus came to die, and His death was the only means by which the wrath of God could be satisfied, so the sins of man could be forgiven, and righteousness could be achieved.

Later in this same letter, Paul asks a rhetorical question.

What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory—even us whom he has called, not from the Jews only but also from the Gentiles? – Romans 9:22-24 ESV

God would have been completely just and right if He had chosen to destroy all mankind, because all men are guilty of having rebelled against Him. They were all vessels of wrath prepared for destruction. But instead, God chose to pour out His wrath on His own Son, so that some might be saved from destruction. There are those who have described that idea as a form of divine child abuse. They struggle with the idea that a good and loving God would out His own Son to death, even though it resulted in the redemption of countless millions of condemned people.

But God knew what man couldn’t know, that a restored relationship with Him was impossible without His help. Humanity could never live up to God’s righteous standards and was totally incapable of producing the kind of righteousness God required. That’s why Jesus told His followers, “Unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 5:20 NLT).

That statement from Jesus did not come across as good news to His audience; it sounded implausible and impossible, but that was His point. The righteousness God required was outside their capacity to achieve, so it would have to come from a source other than themselves. It would have to be a righteousness revealed from heaven in the form of Jesus Christ.

But while the gospel is good news, it is accompanied by bad news: God hates sin and must punish it. In His holiness, He cannot tolerate or overlook sin. Mankind is inherently ungodly and unrighteous, and in their state of unrighteousness, they suppress or hold back the truth. This doesn’t mean they in some way restrain or hinder the truth of God, but that their actions deny the reality of God’s holiness and His expectation that His creation reflect that holiness.

Paul goes on to say that humanity is without excuse because God has revealed Himself through His creation.

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God. – Romans 1:20 NLT

The very existence of idols throughout human history lends credence to Paul’s statement. The human race has always recognized the existence of a greater power outside of everyday experience. Men reveal the reality of God in their built-in need to worship someone or something. Martin Luther writes, “This demonstrates that there was in their hearts a knowledge of a divine sovereign being. How else could they have ascribed to a stone, or to the deity represented by stone, divine attributes, had they not been convinced that such qualities really belong to God!” (Martin Luther, Commentary on Romans).

So man is without excuse, but not without hope. While the full extent of God’s wrath was poured out on His Son on the cross, His love was also on full display.

“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 ESV

Later in this letter, Paul elaborates on this remarkable truth.

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. – Romans 5:6-9 NLT

God’s wrath was satisfied by Jesus, but men must accept God’s gift of His Son’s sacrificial, substitutionary death. They must rely on Jesus’ payment to provide them with the righteousness they could never have earned on their own. But the apostle John goes on to reveal a sad but true reality.

God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. – John 3:19-20 NLT

Men can choose to accept the love of God or remain under His wrath. He has provided a way of escape, but all men must choose to accept or reject it.

Father, this is a difficult truth to understand. As human beings we tend to believe that we are inherently good and capable of performing “good deeds.” Yet, Your assessment is, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6 NLT). As Paul so bluntly put it, “None is righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10 ESV). And because we are all sinful and unrighteous, we are deserving of Your just condemnation. Yet, You chose to send Your Son to die in our place and take upon Himself the punishment we deserved. He payed the price we owed for our rebellion and allowed us to be declared just, righteous, and fully forgiven of every sin we have ever committed — past, present and future..Yet, You didn’t stop there. The gracious gift of Your Son’s death didn’t just remove our iniquity, it transferred His righteousness to our account. Remarkably, we stand before You as fully righteous and acquited of all charges against us. At one time, I was guilty, condemned, unclean, and without excuse. But, in Your grace, You offered me the free gift of faith in Your Son’s death on my behalf, and my life was changed forever. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Practicing the Three R’s

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5 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you. 6 For such a one, this punishment by the majority is enough, 7 so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything. 10 Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs. – 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 ESV

In these verses, Paul refers to an unnamed individual who had been a source of trouble in the church. Evidently, he had played an adversarial role, attempting to undermine or question Paul’s ministry or the validity of his apostleship. In doing so, he had caused Paul and the church pain  (lypeō – sadness or grief). This man’s disruptive presence had been a source of consternation and sorrow, and Paul concedes that it had been harder on the Corinthians than it had been on him.

Unlike their earlier response to the man who had been having an incestuous relationship with his stepmother (1 Corinthians 5:1-2), in this case, they had chosen to deal with it. Even this had caused grief, because practicing tough love toward a fellow believer is never easy. In the case of the young man committing adultery with his stepmother, Paul had told them, “You should remove this man from your fellowship” (1 Corinthians 5:2 NLT). He went on to defend his recommendation, telling them, “You must throw this man out and hand him over to Satan so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved on the day the Lord returns.” (1 Corinthians 5:5 NLT).

Church discipline is neither fun nor easy, but the alternative can be devastating. Paul had warned the Corinthians of the danger of procrastinating about internal problems within the church. 

Don’t you realize that this sin is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old “yeast” by removing this wicked person from among you. Then you will be like a fresh batch of dough made without yeast, which is what you really are. – 1 Corinthians 5:6-7 NLT

Regarding the individual Paul refers to in this letter, the Corinthians had practiced church discipline, but now it was time to restore their brother in Christ. He gently, but firmly, reminds them, “Most of you opposed him, and that was punishment enough. Now, however, it is time to forgive and comfort him. Otherwise, he may be overcome by discouragement” (2 Corinthians 2:6-7 NLT).

The goal of church discipline should be the repentance, restoration, and reconciliation of the offending party. This man’s public ostracization by the church had made an impact on his life. Now, Paul wanted them to forgive and restore him so that he would not lose heart and perhaps fall into greater sin. Paul writes, “ I urge you now to reaffirm your love for him” (2 Corinthians 2:8 NLT).

According to Paul, the body of Christ has been given the ministry of reconciliation. It was the same ministry to which he had been called by Christ.

And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” – 2 Corinthians 5:18-20 NLT

Helping restore lost individuals to a right relationship with God is our mission. However, it also includes restoring believers who, through persistent, unrepentant sin, have walked away from God and the body of Christ. Paul told the believers in Galatia:

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. – Galatians 6:1 NLT

It would be ungodly to practice church discipline on a fellow believer without pursuing the ultimate goal of their restoration. Removing an offending believer from your fellowship without intending to restore them one day is not what Paul had in mind.

One of the things we must always keep in mind is that Satan is always out to divide and conquer. Jesus said of him, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy” (John 10:10a ESV). His intention is to attack those within the flock of God who are weak and vulnerable. He can’t take away their salvation, but he can steal their effectiveness and joy. He can kill their sense of contentment and destroy their unity with the body of Christ. Satan would much rather destroy the church from within than attack it from the outside. That is why we must be so concerned about sin within the camp.

Sin, like yeast, permeates and spreads. It can be like cancer, growing unobserved and undetected, silently infecting the entire body. So we must always be on the alert and willing to confront sin within the body of Christ. But along with confrontation, we must extend compassion and pursue restoration. And it all begins with forgiveness. This was a recurring theme for Paul:

…be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. – Ephesians 4:32 NLT

Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. – Colossians 3:13 NLT

May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory. – Romans 15:5-7 NLT

Paul knew that God longed for unity among His people. Christ prayed for it in His High Priestly Prayer.

“I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.

“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.” – John 17:20-23

Sin was and is an ever-present reality within the body of Christ, but forgiveness should be as well. Otherwise, we open ourselves to the evil schemes of Satan, who seeks to outwit us and destroy the unity Christ died to provide. That is why we need to practice the three R’s: Repentance, reconciliation, and restoration.

We are in this together. We are the body of Christ, the family of God, and our unity should be as important to us as it is to our heavenly Father.

Father, unity does not mean universality. As members of the body of Christ, we are not all the same. We come from different backgrounds, have differing talents and abilities, and we have each been given a different gift by the Holy Spirit for the mutual edification of the church. But we all share a common struggle with indwelling sin; we can’t escape it. Some are more spiritually mature than others. There are those who are weak and more susceptible to sin. And while You have called us to confront sin when we see it, we should never do so without pursuing their repentance and reconciliation. You never said it would be easy, but as Paul makes clear, reconciliation is a non-negotiable necessity. Peter said that judgment begins in the house of God (1 Peter 1:17), but it must be accompanied by restorative love and a desire for spiritual healing. Show us how to practice tough love with the heart of Christ, and never out of judgmentalism or prideful arrogance. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Change For the Better

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51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55 “O death, where is your victory?
    O death, where is your sting?”

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

58 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. – 1 Corinthians 15:51-58 ESV

Paul lived with a sense of eminence and an eager anticipation of the Lord’s return. He fully expected to be alive when Jesus returned for His bride, the church. This attitude of expectation, coupled with his strong belief in the resurrection of the body, is what drove him to live his life to please God and make the most of the time he had on this earth. When the Son returned, which Paul believed would be soon, he wanted to be doing the will of God. So he told the Corinthians, “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58 ESV).

All that he discusses in these closing verses of Chapter 15 concerns what he calls “a mystery,” which remains hidden from view, unrevealed, and unknown as to the day of its occurrence. No one knows the day of the Lord’s return. But just because we are ignorant of its timing does not mean we should doubt its validity. The events surrounding that day, including the resurrection of our bodies, though mysterious and unknown in exactly how they will occur, are to be believed and eagerly anticipated. Paul says that not every believer will undergo death; some will be alive and well when the Lord returns. And both the living and the dead will experience the resurrection of their earthly bodies.

Paul does not explain how this will happen because he doesn’t know. He simply reveals that it will happen unquestionably and instantaneously, “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Corinthians 15:52 ESV). He says, “the dead will be raised imperishable” and those who are alive on that day, “shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52 ESV). Both groups will receive their new spiritual bodies, made in “the image of the man of heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:49b ESV).

The apostle John informs us, “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is” (1 John 3:2 NLT). Instantaneously, we will all undergo a miraculous transformation, receiving our new resurrected bodies, created by God for our new home and designed to exist for eternity.

For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. – 1 Corinthians 15:53 NLT

And when that happens, Paul says, it will be a slap in the face to death. Death is the wage or payment for a life of sin (Romans 6:23). When sin entered the world at the fall, it brought with it death.

When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. – Romans 5:12 NLT

For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. – Romans 5:17 NLT

Because of Jesus, death has lost its sting, meaning it no longer has its power over us. Those who have placed their faith in Jesus no longer need to fear death. That does not mean that we are immune to death; even believers die. But the real “sting” of death, its power to separate men from their God, is no longer valid. All men die, but not all men will experience eternal separation from God. At death, those who have placed their faith in His Son will find themselves immediately transferred into the presence of God the Father. Paul alludes to this reality in his second letter to the Corinthians:

So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. – 2 Corinthians 5:6-8 ESV

Well-versed in the Old Testament, Paul paraphrases Hosea 13:14 and uses it to taunt death. Because of Jesus, death’s power over us has been broken. It is like a toothless, declawed lion, intimidating and with a scary roar, but devoid of any real power to do us harm.

But Paul’s real message seems to be that the future assurance of the Lord’s return and the certainty of the resurrection of our bodies should embolden us to live godly lives as we wait. We are to remain “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:538 ESV).

Rather than wasting our time arguing over spiritual gifts and debating who follows whom, we need to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the lost and extend the love of God to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Rather than worrying about death, we need to focus on living for God and making the most of every moment He gives us on this earth. We are His servants and exist for His glory. He has called us to do His will and to spread the message of salvation made possible through His Son’s death on the cross.

But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 6:22-23 NLT

Father, thank You for this much-needed reminder that Your Son is going to return some day. But we’re not to sit around waiting for the eventuality of that day; we are to be busy doing the work He gave us to do. We are to be disciple-makers who carry on His ministry of reconciliation. We are to be good-new bearers, spreading the message of salvation by faith alone in Christ alone to the ends of the earth. His return should serve as our motivation, because it reminds us that His work is not done. He has yet to establish His earthly Kingdom, but He will. And when He returns to do so, we will receive our glorified bodies and finally escape the sting of death. But that is not to be our sole motivation. Our ministry on this earth should be in response to Your gracious love and in obedience to His commission. I want to be a faithful steward (1 Corinthians 4:1-2), carrying out Your will to my final breath or until Your Son returns. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

When We Make Much of Men, We End Up With Less of God

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16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.

18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. 19 For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their craftiness,” 20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” 21 So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, 23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. – 1 Corinthians 3:16-23 ESV

Back in chapter one, verse 8, Paul wrote, “The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing.” Unbelievers cannot understand the wisdom of God revealed in the death of Christ — namely, that one man’s death could provide eternal life for those who place their faith in Him. Now, Paul states that “the wisdom of this world is folly with God” (1 Corinthians 3:19 ESV). Man’s wisdom doesn’t impress God, and it will never make anyone right with God. If anything, the wisdom of man becomes a barrier to accepting the truth of God’s redemptive plan as revealed in the death, burial, and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Human wisdom is futile and incapable of remedying the problem of sin and our state of condemnation before a holy and just God. So Paul questions the logic of making much of men. Why would we create false idols out of men and women, worshiping them for the role they played in our salvation, while overlooking the fact that it was God who sent His Son to die? It was He who gave the message of reconciliation to those He called, and who sent His Spirit to open the hearts of those who heard that message. No man has the right to boast about his usefulness to God, and no one should elevate the messenger over the One who sent the message.

Paul’s real concern has to do with division in the body of Christ. He started out his letter with the plea, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10 ESV). He accused them of quarreling and bickering over which man they followed. 

…each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 1:12 ESV

Their disunity was causing divisiveness. So Paul reminds them that they are the temple of God, not just as individuals, but as the local body of Christ. He is speaking to the church, not individual believers. How do we know this? Because in the Greek language, the personal pronoun “you” is plural, not singular. Peter confirms the idea that the local church is the temple of God, indwelt by the Spirit of God.

…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 2:5 ESV

In his letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul emphasized the same point.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,  built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. – Ephesians 2:19-22 ESV

As God’s temple, the local church is to be valued and protected. If anyone does anything to harm or destroy the integrity of the body of Christ, they will answer to God. Paul warns them, “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:17 ESV). Disunity destroys and damages from within. However, we have been called by God to love one another, not debate and display contempt for one another. In his letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul reminded them of their oneness in Christ.

Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
one God and Father of all,
who is over all, in all, and living through all. – Ephesians 4:1-6 NLT

When Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night of His betrayal, He asked the Father, “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21 ESV). He prayed for a spirit of unity and oneness among His followers because it is our unity that displays the reality of the church’s role as God’s temple. God alone can bring together people of every age, from every walk of life, ethnicity, economic strata, and social background, and mold them into one family — all sharing one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.

Paul reminds the believers in Corinth, “So don’t boast about following a particular human leader. For everything belongs to you—whether Paul or Apollos or Peter, or the world, or life and death, or the present and the future. Everything belongs to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God” (1 Corinthians 3:21-23 NLT). Paul, Apollos, and Peter had been given to the church by God. They were to be seen as gifts from God, intended to build up the body of Christ. When Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus, he reminded them of the various roles and responsibilities God had assigned to godly leaders who were tasked with ministering to the local church.

Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. – Ephesians 4:11-12 NLT

God gave these gifted individuals to the church so that it might grow and prosper, “until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13 NLT). Disunity is destructive. Divisiveness is counterproductive. Boasting in men robs God of glory and the body of Christ of its power. Making celebrities out of God’s servants ends up deifying them and diminishing the effectiveness of the local church. The church may grow in numbers, but it will lack the power of God’s Spirit. When we make much of men, we experience less of God.

Father, we tend to view the local church as a convenient option rather than a necessity. We choose a church like we were selecting a country club or a fitness facility. We check out the ammenities, peruse the staff, evaluate the convenience of the location, and then compare it to all the other options available to us. We even consider the personality of the pastor, the style of music, the decor of the worship center, and the demographic of the congregation. But you designed the church to be an organism, not an organization. It is a living, breathing entity made up of all kinds of people from all walks of life. The pastor is to be a messenger of God’s Word, not a celebrity or entertainer. His job is to build up the body of Christ, not to amass a following and a fawning fan base. Would you protect us from the allure of entertainment disguised as worship, the wisdom of man masquerading as the wisdom of God, and personal satisfaction in place of corporate sanctification. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Sufficiency of the Gospel

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8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? 10 You observe days and months and seasons and years! 11 I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain. – Galatians 4:8-11 ESV

There is a common belief, even among evangelical Christians, that all people are seeking after God. But the Bible seems to paint a distinctively different picture of mankind. Ever since the fall, humanity has been on a trajectory away from God, not toward Him. Rather than seeking after God, humanity has been pursuing anything and everything but Him. They have been on a relentless quest to replace the one true God with substitutes of their own making.

In the garden before the fall, Adam and Eve knew God intimately and personally. They had a daily and uninterrupted relationship with Him. But after the fall, they found themselves cast out of His presence, and the further mankind got from Eden, the more distant their recollection of God became. Paul paints a vivid picture of this fading knowledge of God in his letter to the Romans:

For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things. – Romans 1:21-23 ESV

As Paul writes in his letter to the Roman believers, God’s character and divine attributes were made visible through His creation.

…his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. –  Romans 1:20 ESV

But as time passed, men began to lose their perception of God and their ability to recognize His attributes in the world He had made. They lost their knowledge of God and began to create gods of their own. They worshiped the creation rather than the creator. They even worshiped other men, including themselves.

But Paul reminds the Galatians that they have had their knowledge of God restored. Yet this restoration was not of their own doing. It was not something they had achieved on their own and it was not as a result of their own searching or seeking after God. He emphasizes the fact that they have come to be known by God. It was God who sought them out and not the other way around. God had chosen to know them and have a relationship with them. He had determined to make Himself known to them through His Son.

As the apostle John put it, “No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us” (1 John 1:18 NLT). As a result of placing their faith in Jesus Christ, they had come to know God for the very first time. Up until that point, they had been “enslaved to those that by nature are not gods” (Galatians 4:8 ESV). They had been worshiping false gods. Limited by their spiritual understanding, they were stuck worshiping the “weak and worthless elementary principles of the world” (Galatians 4:9 ESV). Their brand of spirituality was of this world and not of heaven. While thinking they were seeking and coming to know God, they were actually moving away from Him.

But God chose to seek them out. He called them to Himself and opened their eyes so that they could see the truth found in His Son’s death, burial, and resurrection. For the first time, they were able to see the depth of their own sin, the hopelessness of their condition, and their need for a Savior. Rather than attempting to earn their way into God’s good graces, they relied on the grace of God as expressed in the finished work of Christ. But Paul was concerned that these very same people, who had discovered the secret of justification by faith in Christ alone, were allowing themselves to become enslaved again. They were listening to the false teachers who were preaching justification by works. Suddenly, grace was not enough. The death and resurrection of Christ was insufficient. More was required. They had become convinced that circumcision was the missing ingredient to their completed salvation experience. Paul completely disagreed.

Some were trying to convince the Gentile converts in Galatia that they were not fully saved unless they became circumcised and began to keep all the Jewish rituals, feasts, and festivals. That is what Paul means when he refers to observing days, months, seasons, and years. These outsiders were convincing the Gentile believers that their salvation was incomplete and insufficient. There was more to be done. But this teaching ran counter to the gospel message that Paul had shared with them. These Judaizers were casting doubt on the all-sufficient work of Christ on the cross. For Paul, this false teaching was a form of legalism and it was deadly. He would not tolerate it or allow it to take root among the churches in Galatia. Earlier in his letter, Paul stated his amazement at how quickly and easily the believers there had turned their backs on the message of justification by faith alone.

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. – Galatians 1:6-7 ESV

There was no other gospel, and there were no other requirements for justification with God to be achieved. Jesus had done it all. The salvation offered by God was not based on human effort, but on faith in Christ alone. The good deeds of men had never made God accessible or known. Acts of self-righteousness had never earned anyone favor with God. As the prophet Isaiah put it, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6 NLT).

The righteousness God requires is only available through faith in Christ. As Paul told the Romans, “I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, ‘It is through faith that a righteous person has life’” (Romans 1:16-17 NLT).

Men don’t seek after God. They may have a vague concept of a being greater than themselves, but they end up creating a slightly improved version of themselves – a human-like entity with superhuman powers who exists to meet their needs and improve their earthly existence. They create their own warped version of a god who is ultimately lifeless and powerless. The futility of false gods is highlighted throughout the Scriptures, illustrating in glaring detail the idiocy of idolatry.

The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
    the work of human hands.
They have mouths, but do not speak;
    they have eyes, but do not see;
they have ears, but do not hear,
    nor is there any breath in their mouths.
Those who make them become like them,
    so do all who trust in them. – Psalm 135:15-18 ESV

The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint. The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. Then it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it. Half of it he burns in the fire. Over the half he eats meat; he roasts it and is satisfied. Also he warms himself and says, “Aha, I am warm, I have seen the fire!” And the rest of it he makes into a god, his idol, and falls down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Deliver me, for you are my god!” – Isaiah 44:12-17 ESV

These man-made gods have no power. They are the figments of men’s fertile imagination and the works of their hands, and they cannot seek after men. They must be carried everywhere they go. They have no tongues, so they cannot speak. But Paul paints a very different picture of Yahweh. The God of the Galatians seeks after them. He calls out to them. He willingly desires to extend His favor to sinful men and women and He does so through the gift of grace made available through His Son. No one can His favor.

When it comes to man’s justification before God, self-effort is self-delusional. That is why Paul told the believers in Philippi: “I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith” (Philippians 3:9 NLT).

The Galatians had been set free from their slavery to self-righteousness. Prior to coming to faith in Christ, they had been trying to earn a right standing with their false gods by performing acts of righteousness designed to keep their deity happy. But God had graciously extended His favor by having His servants declare the good news of Jesus Christ. He sent Paul and others with the message of reconciliation. The one true God declared the one and only way for the Galatians to discover freedom from sin and the hope of eternal life.

…all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. – 2 Corinthians 5:18-21 NLT

For Paul, there was no going back. The gospel was enough. The death of Jesus had been fully sufficient and had satisfied the just demands of a righteous God. Nothing else was necessary. No works of men were needed. Circumcision was not required. No addendum to the gospel was missing. The Galatians were known and loved by God because Jesus had made them right with God.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Reality and Reliability of Reconciliation

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21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. – Colossians 1:21-23 ESV

Paul knew it was essential that the Colossian believers fully understood who Jesus was and what He had done for them. Their concept of Jesus was far too limited and had allowed false ideas about His identity and accomplishments to filter into their beliefs about Him. After Jesus resurrected from the dead and ascended into heaven, there was growing speculation as to His true identity and its implications for mankind. In His absence, His disciples continued to spread the news concerning the coming kingdom of God and the sole means of gaining entrance into it: By placing one’s faith in Jesus Christ.

But there were others who had begun to formulate their own concepts concerning Jesus and the implications of His life and death. The disciples had clearly spread the news that Jesus had risen from the dead and had returned to His Father’s side in heaven. Paul had boldly proclaimed the nature of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection to the believers in Corinth.

I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. – 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 NLT

But there were those who had begun to refute the disciples’ teaching concerning resurrection, declaring it improbable and even unnecessary. That’s what led Paul to warn the Corinthians about this dangerous heresy.

…if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. – 1 Corinthians 15:16-19 NLT

There were others who had begun to spread the idea that Jesus had not been a real, flesh-and-blood human. Because these people deemed the flesh to be inherently evil, they could not accept the idea of deity taking on humanity. So, they rationalized it away by claiming that Jesus had only appeared to have a human body. So, His “death” was just a fiction. This heresy was later deemed Docetism, which comes from the Greek word dokein, which means “to seem.” But by voiding the humanity of Jesus, these false teachers were actually eliminating the heart of the gospel message. Without the humanity of Jesus there is no gospel. That is why the apostles boldly preached the reality of Jesus’ humanity.

He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed. – 1 Peter 2:24 NLT

The doctrine of the bodily death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus became the litmus test for determining the veracity of those claiming to be teachers.

Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. This is how we know if they have the Spirit of God: If a person claiming to be a prophet acknowledges that Jesus Christ came in a real body, that person has the Spirit of God. But if someone claims to be a prophet and does not acknowledge the truth about Jesus, that person is not from God. Such a person has the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard is coming into the world and indeed is already here. – 1 John 4:1-3 NLT

So, as Paul continues the introduction of his letter to the Colossian believers, he stresses the humanity of Jesus, reminding them that they had been “reconciled in his body of flesh by his death” (Colossians 1:22 ESV). For Paul, that point was essential, because it explained how sinful human beings could be made right with a holy and righteous God. He even stressed the nature of their pre-conversion state, describing them as “alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds” (Colossians 1:21 ESV). This concept of alienation and hostility was a common theme for Paul. He repeatedly stressed the formerly hopeless and helpless condition of those who now enjoyed a right standing with God. He wanted them to consider the almost incomprehensible scope of Christ’s sacrificial death and all that it had accomplished on their behalf.

…since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God. – Romans 5:9-11 NLT

The physical death of Jesus had made possible their spiritual transformation from enemies of God to friends of God. They had been reconciled to a righteous God by the undeserving death of His righteous and sinless Son. Paul reminded the believers in Rome of the remarkable nature of Jesus’ selfless sacrifice of His own life.

The law of Moses was unable to save us because of the weakness of our sinful nature. So God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. – Romans 8:3 NLT

And Paul told the believers in Colossae that, because Jesus had died in their place, He had been able to present them to God the Father as “holy and blameless and above reproach” (Colossians 1:22 ESV). Jesus had taken upon Himself the penalty for their sins and, in exchange, had placed upon them His own unblemished righteousness. Paul fully understood the significance of this “great exchange,” and boldly proclaimed His appreciation for it and his unwavering dependence upon it.

I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. – Philippians 3:9 NLT

For Paul, belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus was essential for living the Christian life. He called the Colossians to reject any false teaching that might undermine their faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ and urged them to remain committed to the good news just as they had heard it from Epaphras.

…you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. – Colossians 1:23 NLT

Paul knew that false teachers would be a constant problem in the church. Each generation of believers would face a new wave of plausible but unreliable doctrines concerning the saving work of Jesus. He also knew that immature and poorly informed Christians would be easy targets for false teaching, ending up “tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching” and tricked by “lies so clever they sound like the truth” (Ephesians 4:14 NLT). For Paul, the best defense against false teaching was the truth. And he declared his firm commitment to continue doing what he had always done: Preach the unadulterated gospel of Jesus Christ to any and all who would listen.

The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it. – Colossians 1:23 NLT

Paul wanted the Colossians to know that they had been reconciled to God through the physical death of Jesus Christ. He had been a real man who lived a real life and died a real death on the cross – in their place. And by placing their faith in the substitutionary death of Jesus, they had been made right with God. Formerly enemies of God, they now enjoyed a new status as His sons and heirs. And no false teacher or faulty doctrine could take that away from them.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.