I have never felt so deeply the motivating weight of responsibility of the precious Gospel that has been entrusted to me. I wanted to share the opportunity God provided me and this awesome crew to go to the D. R. with Filter of Hope. It was not us, but Christ working through us.
We each have a sin debt towards a perfectly just God - our consciences bear witness to this. (Rom 2:15)
Just like in a court of law, a good judge cannot let a criminal go, or he would be unjust. A criminal cannot just confess to the judge of his sins, or bring up some "good things he's done." EVEN if the earthly judge wanted to show compassion on the criminal, the judge cannot dismiss the charges without compromising his own character. He would be a corrupt judge. How much more is our perfectly Holy and Just God of creation unable to leave our sin unpunished?
God is perfectly Just, yet He is perfectly loving and merciful. (In fact, He IS love itself. He IS justice.) What did God do to offer a way for sinful humans to be forgiven of their debt while remaining Holy and Just?
Imagine that as you stand in the courtroom, the judge stands up, and welcomes his son into the room. The son stands next to you and, in love, willingly offers himself to take your place. To pay the fine for your debt. To die in your place. And so the judge who sent his son says you can go free - not because you deserve it, not because you earned it, but because he loves you. (John 3:16)
As fully God and fully man, Jesus offered himself as a once-and for-all perfect sacrifice for mankind. Being the only perfect man to ever live, he was the only man who didn't need to pay for his own sins - he paid for yours. (Heb 10:11-12) He took on every single one of your past, present, and future sins. If you repent and believe in Christ, your debt was paid for on the cross. Canceled out. Gone. (Rom 5:8) If you believe in Christ, HIS perfect life, the fulfillment of the law, the righteousness he earned, will be imputed, or transferred on your account! (Rom 4:20, Isaiah 53: 11-12). What a glorious exchange!
And that is how God can be the Just and the Justifier of all who believe (Rom 3:26). That is how at the cross, perfect justice and perfect mercy meet.
But if Jesus is not yours, then forgiveness of sins is not yours. If you do not have Christ, you are still in the courtroom with a sin debt on your account. The Bible says that you are separated from God, and an enemy of Him because of your sin, and because His Son is standing next to you with open arms, willing to take your place, and you refuse (Col 1:21-23). You will not be able to say that you didn't know (Rom 1:20).
In unimaginable love, the judge is offering his son as a sacrifice for you and he is calling you to accept the gift. The gavel has not fallen yet - but it could for you tonight. The most uncertain thing in life is life, and the most certain thing in life is death.
To accept Christ, you don't present to God the "good things you've done." You do not clean yourself up before taking a shower (Luke 5:31). The Bible says all you must do is repent of your sins, and turn to Christ. Believe in the Son as the only way for your sins to be forgiven. Cry out to God and accept the gift He has mercifully given in his Son. Believe He is the only way, the only truth, the only life (John 14:6).
The Bible says that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord WILL be saved (Rom 10:13).
"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." (Eph. 2:8-9) Come humbly before God, not offering any good thing in yourself, but with a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:17).
In a moment you can go from everlasting death to everlasting life. And God the Holy Spirit will enter you and transform you from the inside out. You will still sin, but for the first time you will have the power to conquer sin. It will not enslave you anymore. He will give you new desires for the things of God. He will seal you and give you true assurance of your salvation - a deposit guaranteeing that you have been forgiven (2 Cor 5:17, Eph 1). When you sin, you can now come humbly and yet with confidence to God as his child, knowing that Christ's perfect life is covering yours, and that you already have been forgiven, once and for all (Heb 4:16).
And you will find rest for your soul (Matt 11:28). Instead of being a slave to your own desires, you will finally find satisfaction in serving and worshipping the Trine God who created you and loved you and redeemed you. You were created to worship Christ! (Col 1:16)
“If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.” ― C.S. Lewis
Have you ever met a christian who regrets surrendering their life to Christ? They only regret not having done it sooner.
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16 июл 2024
