God's love says, "Pardon the
sinner," while His righteousness says, "Punish sin." How can the two be
reconciled? How can God satisfy both His love and His holiness when dealing with the
sinner and sin?
The solution was a substitute for payment. The sinner would not have to pay his debt.
Someone would pay it for him. This was accomplished in the death of Jesus Christ. He died
in place of the sinner, satisfying God's holy nature which cannot tolerate sin. So the
guiltless Christ took the penalty and the guilty go free.
Salvation is God's provision for man's need.
"At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds
of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one
another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not
because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the
washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously
through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might
become heirs having the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:3-7).
An innocent man punished? This is the opposite of justice! Doesn't justice protect the
innocent and bring full penalty on the guilty?
Christ was not forced to pay for our sins. He chose to die!
"I lay down my life - only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay
it down of my own accord" (John 10:17-18).
"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his
life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45).
We sinned against God. In perfect justice He passed the most severe penalty -death! "For
the wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23).
Then, demonstrating His mercy, He stepped down from His throne and took our place.
He took the full penalty Himself.
"God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins
against them" (2 Corinthians 5:19).
The same God whom we sinned against passed the judgment, paid the penalty, and now
offers complete pardon. Yes, to be saved from the most severe penalty - death - all we
must do is accept what Christ has done and acknowledge our need to be saved.
The simplicity makes it hard to grasp. Perhaps this will help. Let's suppose that I owe
$50,000 and have no ability to pay the debt. A friend pays the debt for me and gives me
the receipt. The debt is paid; I don't have to worry about it any more. It's that simple!
As Jesus Christ gave His life in place of mine, He said, "It is finished." By
that He meant that the payment for sins was complete. Then God gave me His receipt. And
what is the proof that my debt was paid? Jesus Christ rose from the dead!
One man tried to explain this to his friend. They were talking out in the shop where
his friend had just completed a beautifully polished table. "I just don't see
it," his friend said. So, the man reached over to the workbench and picked up a
plane. He took the plane and started to run it along the beautifully finished table top.
"Stop! You'll ruin it if you run that plane across it!" his friend shouted.
"Exactly," said the man. "That's what I've been trying to show you about
what Christ did for you and for me. When He gave his life for you, it was finished.
Complete. If you try to change or add to what is finished, you'll spoil it. Just accept it
as finished. His life for yours. And you go free."
IS A GOOD MORAL LIFE A SPIRITUAL LIFE?
The difference between a good moral man and a man who has received Christ is not a
matter of degree. It is a matter of kind. The moral man has a high quality of human life.
The man who has received Christ has a spiritual life. The difference is radical.
A spiritual life and a good moral life are two very different things.
"Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit" (John
3:6).
"He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have
life" (1 John 5:12).
Compare an ugly plant to a beautiful diamond. One has life, the other does not. Polish
the diamond as much as you want, but it is still dead. As ugly as the plant may be, it has
life. There is no basis for comparison.
This same difference exists between the good moral man who is spiritually dead and the
man with spiritual life. Moral polish does not give the spiritual man his life.
Spiritual life is a gift from God that cannot be earned.
"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from
yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast"
(Ephesians 2:8-9).
No mental energy, no moral effort, no evolution of character can endow any human soul
with the attribute of spiritual life. But, thank God, Jesus Christ came down from that
spiritual world to give us life. Only Christ can give spiritual life. The basic principle
holds true. Life comes only from life.
We are fully aware of the differences between what is alive and what is not. No man has
ever taken the non-living atoms of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen and made
something living out of them. But God did! God created life, both natural and spiritual.
SALVATION IS FAR MORE THAN A COLD CONTRACT.
A wealthy man loses all his money. Rather than suffer the embarrassment and sacrifice
his social position, he makes a deal. He agrees to give his daughter to another rich man
in return for a large sum of money. At first she refuses. But when her father shows her
the expediency, she consents and marries the man. According to the law she becomes the
man's wife. But does her heart really belong to her husband?
The Lord desires a true love relationship. When a man and a woman are to be truly one,
they receive each other into the innermost recesses of their hearts. We all have that
inner place in our being, that place where emotions stir and which no one else could
possibly understand. But Jesus Christ understands, and because of His love for us, He
claims the right to enter.
I'm trapped and unconscious in a burning building, and a friend rushes in to save me.
He wraps me in a blanket and carries me to safety. In the process he is badly burned.
Later his burns take his life. Wouldn't my heart go out to him? Of course it would.
Can you see the suffering of Christ? The agony in the garden as He anticipated His
death on the cross? Can you see Him in Pilate's judgment hall, with the soldiers shaking
His blindfolded face and saying, "Tell us who hit you?"
The crown of thorns is pressed down on His holy brow. Bleeding and bruised, He is taken
from judgment to the cross. Spikes are driven through His hands and feet. He is lifted up
to die between two thieves. The people gather round to mock while He pours out His life to
save them.
We begin to understand what self-sacrificing love really means as we hear Him cry, "Father,
forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34).
But if we only feel bad about Christ's suffering, even though tears may stream down our
cheeks, we have failed miserably to comprehend the true significance of the cross. On the
cross, "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). He did this willingly for
us! He chose to die when he didn't deserve to die - because He loved us!
C
ONSIDER Think what sin must be like to an absolutely
holy God. Not just one sin, but all sin. Yet in spite of this, "God so loved the
world that he gave his one and only Son [to be made sin for us] that whoever believes in
him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
R
EASON • Salvation is God's provision for man's
need.
• The difference between a good moral life and a spiritual life is in kind, not in
quality.
• Salvation is far more than a cold contract.
R
ESPOND Now it's your turn. Take a close look at the
following verses and questions. Pause. Ask God to show you what you have missed.
Your response is very important! Please take a minute to fill out and return these
response sheets in one of the enclosed envelopes.
The Living Message Fellowship staff is dedicated to helping you. Please contact us with
your questions or concerns at 1-800-503-2214.
1. "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into
practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the
streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because
it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not
put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came
down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a
great crash" (Matthew 7:24-27).
a. These verses talk about two very different foundations for building our lives. What
are they?
b. What does the sand represent?
c. What does the rock represent?
d. All of us go through storms. What happens when the storms of this life hit you?
2. Re-read: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this
not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast"
(Ephesians 2:8-9).
Spiritual life is a gift from God and never evolves from a good moral life.
a. How does one get spiritual life?
b. What does this verse say about my ability to earn spiritual life?
c. What is a gift?
d. If spiritual life is a gift, what is my part in the matter?
