Sunday, January 25, 2009

Could You?.......Did You?........What Then?

If you could live your whole life to the fullest and honestly love everyone (not just LOOK like you love everyone), yes, God would have to let you into heaven...the only problem is that you've already blown your chances at a pure, holy life, because somewhere along the line, you have broken God's law:

Have you ever told a lie (or a "half-truth")? Have you ever stolen something? (I have...and I was raised by God-fearing Christian parents). Have you ever used God's name as a curse word? Have you ever hated your brother? (Jesus said that to hate someone is just the same as murdering them). Have you ever looked at a girl (or a guy) and lusted after her (or him)?...that's adultery (or fornication) Have you ever envied your neighbor's (or brother's/sister's/friend's/etc.) stuff?

If you (like me) have broken even one of these laws, you are a lawbreaker...and God doesn't let criminals into heaven - you can't make it if you've messed up just once...and if you don't make it into heaven, there is only one place left for you.

BUT...there is a way. Because God loves us humans so much, He wanted there to be a way for us to be saved ('cause by our own works, there is no way we would make it). So He sent His Son, Jesus (who didn't sin), to become human, just like the rest of us, to live a perfect life, and then to be sacrificed, so that God could forgive us.

Now, in order to make up for a sin that I've done, I would have to do over and above what God's law requires of me. But since it was hard enough to even live up to the law, it would be absurd to think that I could surpass it and do more good than the law requires...so how can my sins be forgiven, if I can't make up for them?

Jesus had not sinned even a single time...he did not have to die...but He chose to die -- this was the one thing that He could do that was over and above His duty...Jesus had to keep the law just like everyone else - He couldn't obey for us (He had to obey for himself), but since He had never broken the law, he didn't need to be punished. Jesus suffered in order to "make up" for my (and your) sins; public justice was satisfied - this means that all could see that God upholds the punishment of the law, and at the same time, was willing to forgive people who have sinned.

If you have sinned -- you have two options; you can suffer the consequences (not a pretty thought), or, thanks to God's grace (Jesus' sacrifice), you can be forgiven.

How does a sinner receive this forgiveness? It is not by trying our best to do better (we tried that already), and it is not by any merit of our own (we deserve to be punished). It is through faith in Jesus Christ...this means two things: that you believe that He died for your sins (and that He will forgive you), and you repent (this means that you stop serving yourself, and give yourself wholly to God). These two things, repent and believe, are all God requires...these are easy, and yet at the same time hard. There is no work involved (all we can do is accept the gift of forgiveness), but at the same time, we are giving our entire lives to God - we are not our own anymore.

If you have accepted God’s gift, God has said that he will give you the power to actually keep His law, so that, as a believer, you don’t ever have to sin again – “live in holiness and righteousness all the days of your life” is how the Bible puts it – and God will admit you to heaven.

1 comment:

Lydighet said...

We never have to sin again, and through God's grace, we can actually do that; but, we don't. We do sin, even as Christians. We screw up, but "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." But then there's the question: can we (or do we) sin and not remember or notice it? I know I haven't confessed every single sin to God, so what about those? And a simple answer that I can think of to that question is this: "if we confess our sins (notice that it doesn't say 'all' sins or 'every' sin), He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all ('all,' not just the ones we confessed) unrighteousness." Of course, the "all" part could be a sort of omitted statement thing. In other words, the meaning could be "if we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness [comitted in the sins just confessed]," but for the sake of argument, I digress from that argument unless that is the argument you would use.