Not Guilty AND Righteous!

The Gospel is so good it is staggering.  When we repent and trust in Jesus Christ, our sins are cleansed by His blood.  "Not guilty" only describes one effect of Christ's regenerating work.  By God's grace we are deemed righteous and without fault.

I remember being in a university classroom on 3 October, 1995 when O.J. Simpson was declared "not guilty" of a double homicide by a jury after a nine month trial.  Most people in the class were outraged.  With the circumstantial evidence presented, they could not believe Mr. Simpson was innocent.  Similar comparisons have been drawn in the recent case of Casey Anthony and the death of her daughter.  After incredible media coverage, Casey went from incarceration and facing the death penalty to being declared "not guilty" and was released with time served.  Though I am not living in the United States, the negative public view of the verdict is felt across the world.

Without going into details of either case (which would be inconsequential to this post), it would be safe to say the media coverage influenced the opinions of the general public that a guilty verdict was justified.  Though both declared "not guilty," both Mr. Simpson and Ms. Anthony will live the rest of their days under a dark cloud of suspicion.  Both plead innocent, and after much deliberation and expert testimony both were declared "not guilty" by judge and jury.  Because there was reasonable doubt of guilt does not mean the accused were completely guiltless.  It is a sobering to consider that some will only remember these two because of the accusations leveled against them.  Even their staunchest supporters questioned their innocence.  To some they will always be monsters, regardless of the trial's legal outcome.  Even 50 years served in prison will not erase the "priors" of a convicted felon.

Now consider the natural condition of you and I before God.  There is no question we have ALL broken His perfect Law completely, willfully, and repeatedly.  Romans 3:23 tells us, "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  The Bible also teaches us the penalty for breaking a single of God's righteous requirements:  death!  Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  There was reasonable doubt in both the cases of Mr. Simpson and Ms. Anthony, but there is no doubt all have sinned before God.  Evidence of a single indiscretion in either word, deed, or thought is grounds for eternal damnation.

When we repent and trust in Christ as LORD and Savior, God declares us "not guilty" and justifies us from our sin.  Not only that, but He declares us righteous and holy!  I would say "Imagine that!" but this is a reality!  We are seen by God not only as "Not Guilty," but "Righteous!"  The cloud of sin and damnation that condemned us has been obliterated by the grace, mercy, and justice of God.  1 John 1:9 reads, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  God does not reserve suspicions of guilt or hold our sins against us, for Christ has made us righteous!  We will face no punishment for our sins because Christ has offered Himself as our Substitute, and not even a shred or memory of our guilt remains.  We are as righteous as God Himself, for our life is hid in Jesus Christ.  We can hardly appreciate how good this is!

No matter how the rest of Casey Anthony's life unfolds, people will be quicker to associate her with O.J. Simpson than with Mother Theresa or Princess Diana.  But the fact is for every sinner who repents and trusts in Christ for salvation, God associates us with God made flesh:  Jesus Christ.  Read for yourself in Romans 3:21-26:  "But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, ²² even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵ whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, ²⁶ to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus."  Praise God for such Good News of grace!  What eternal riches God gives to any who repent and trust in Him!

The Ligament of Love

"But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection."

 Colossians 3:14

I am continually in awe of the dynamic descriptiveness of the Bible, the divinely inspired Word of God.  It is a book no man can master:  it is a book which masters us.  Learning the Bible and the truths it contains is not the end, but the chief end of scripture is to introduce us to Jesus Christ as our LORD and Saviour.  We learn of the perfect Law of God, the fallen state of all men, and how we are separated by God due to our sin.  We learn that God is righteous, just, and holy, and is no respecter of persons:  the soul that sins shall surely die.  But we also read that God is not willing that any should perish, and has revealed His great love for us through the death of Jesus while we were yet sinners.  If anyone repents and relies upon Christ as Saviour and is born again, the same will be delivered from death and provided eternal life in heaven.  The Gospel certainly is Good News!

After a person is born again by grace through faith in Jesus, he or she becomes an individual part of the corporate Body of Christ, the church of which Christ is Head.  Ephesians 4:15-16 teaches us, "...speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ-- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love."  All the different denominations, home groups, and people who have repented and trusted in Christ make up His unified body on earth.  Christ is physically in Heaven preparing a place for us, and the Holy Spirit has been sent to empower us to fulfill God's will and glorify Jesus.  The love of God must not be divided from the normal operation of each individual Christian or the church as a whole.  1 John 4:7 exhorts, "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."

After reading the Colossians 3:14 passage, I wondered what Paul exactly meant when he described love as the "bond of perfection."  When I looked up the words in my Word Search Bible program, I found the phrase is literally, "uniting, controlling, ligament of completeness."  The word "ligament" caught my attention in light of the Ephesians passage which describes the body of Christ as being "joined and knit together by what every joint supplies."  Then I briefly looked up medical definitions of what a ligament is.  From what I read, a ligament is a connective tissue designed to stabilize and control the range of motion of joints.  Ligaments also support the bones and joints, maintaining the proper alignment while moving.  In addition, ligaments hold internal organs in the correct place.  It is easy to say that ligaments provide an invaluable, necessary function in a healthy body.

What an intriguing thought this is!  While the Spirit of God provides the strength, power, and life, the love of Jesus Christ is to be the stabilizing, supporting, aligning influence in the lives of every Christian and the church.  Instead of having a structure of authority like a corporation, federal government, or monarchy, the church is to rule through love.  Sounds almost bizarre, doesn't it?  Jesus says in Matthew 20:25-28:  "...You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave-- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."  On the night Jesus was betrayed, He girded Himself with a towel like a slave and washed His disciples' feet.  Jesus did not threaten His disciples with damnation, nor did He manipulate or bribe them with heavenly glory.  He loved them and met their most basic needs with joyful humility.  Love is not an emotion but compassion in action.  Jesus saw dirty feet and He washed them without grumbling or complaining.

Love can be compared to a strong, flexible ligament.  As ligaments keep the body in alignment, so love keeps the church and all followers of Christ in alignment with their Head, Jesus Christ.  A church which does not operate wholly in love is out of joint with the Head.  For those of you who have experienced chronic back and neck pain, you have deep appreciation of the value of proper spine alignment.  Love is not some soft, wishy-washy feeling which allows anything.  Our bodies would be racked with pain if our ligaments were too flexible and yielding.  We would not even be able to stand!  Joints would be over-extended, muscles torn, and internal organs ripped from their places.  How insightful this is, that love is the ligament of the Body of Christ!

May we be mindful as members of the Body of Christ to led by the Spirit and governed by love.  Sometimes ligaments can be torn or damaged, and sometimes we choose not to walk in love.  Praise God that we serve a God who is a Healer and a Restorer of souls!  When we look to Jesus and follow His example through the Holy Spirit, we can regain the alignment necessary to live a life which pleases and glorifies Him.  May we love one another as Christ loves us!

Quote from D.L. Moody

When I was in the States, my folks bought me an Amazon Kindle which I have enjoyed very much.  Today I "kindled" The Overcoming Life by D.L. Moody.  It was not long before I read a memorable and valuable illustration I am happy to share:

A gentleman in India once got a tiger-cub, and tamed it so that it became a pet.  One day when it had grown up, it tasted blood, and the old tiger-nature flashed out, and it had to be killed.  So with the old nature in the believer.  It never dies, though it is subdues: and unless he is watchful and prayerful, it will gain the upper hand, and rush him into sin.  Someone has pointed out that "I" is the centre of S-I-N.  It is the medium through which Satan acts.

Our old nature is like that tiger in captivity.  We therefore must be vigilant to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus Christ.  As long as we walk this earth in these bodies, there is a potential for a great fall.  Quoting a pastor of mine, "You are only one bad decision away from a fall."  Praise God that He is a God who does not only prevent our falling but our stumbling as well!  Proverbs 3:21-26 reads, "My son, let them not depart from your eyes-- keep sound wisdom and discretion; ²² so they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck. ²³ Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble. ²⁴ When you lie down, you will not be afraid; yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet. ²⁵ Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes; ²⁶ for the LORD will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught."  We are more than overcomers through Jesus Christ!

Keep the Word Pure

Yesterday Laura brought home a "replacement" bunny (now named "Oreo") from the pet shop.  This morning I overheard my son say, "Oreo!  Don't sit in your food pellets!"  One casual observation I have made over the years is rabbits are quite senseless when it comes to maintaining the purity of their food and water.  They will foul their water with their feet, tip over bowls which aren't heavy enough, and throw their food everywhere!  Our rabbits do not respond to verbal cues, but only seem to understand the universal language of food.  Yet as much as they like certain foods, it doesn't keep them from polluting it with their own waste.

Sheep are similar in many respects.  A shepherd must carefully clear the field of poisonous, noxious plants.  In Phillip Keller's book A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, he goes into great detail on this point and in addition the necessity to clean out water holes where the sheep drink.  The shepherd also creates dams to slow the flow of water so the sheep will be able to easily drink.  But like rabbits and other animals, sheep have no comprehension of the labour which went into their food and drink preparation.  Without the care of a good shepherd, the water holes would no doubt soon be contaminated by waste, be filled with litter and debris, and give rise to disease and sickness.

Jesus says that He is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-14).  David writes in Psalm 23:5:  "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over."  Followers of Jesus Christ are lovingly and descriptively called "sheep."  Jesus is the Bread of Life, and has provided in Himself salvation through faith by His atoning sacrifice.  He is the Living Bread which all can eat and live forever, even as the Israelites daily ate manna in the wilderness.  Jesus is also called the "Word of Life" (1 John 1:1) and has given us words of life found in the Bible which is food for our souls.  Even as the presence of the shepherd would ensure good grazing in safe pastures free from predators, our God provides sustenance for our souls and all that pertains to life and godliness.  Jesus says in John 10:14:  "I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own."

If left to our own, we would certainly do no better at reading and understanding the Bible than a rabbit that is senseless to understand how to keep her water pure.  In fact, the Bible warns that many will do just this in the last days in which we live.  An exhortation and warning against heresy is seen in 2 Timothy 2:15-19 which reads, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. ¹⁶ But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. ¹⁷ And their message will spread like cancer. Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort, ¹⁸ who have strayed concerning the truth, saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some. ¹⁹ Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity."  Christians are told to rightly divide the Word of Truth because heresy is a real potential!  We can foul the truth of scripture by our own personal bias, limited understanding, or when we are hardened with the deceitfulness of sin.  To misrepresent the King by twisting His message is a great sin indeed. 

We are told to rightly divide the Word of truth, recognizing that it is of divine origin and therefore necessitates divine aid to do so.  Praise God that He has provided not only the pure Word, but the Holy Spirit who enables us to "rightly divide" the Word of God.  Jesus says in John 16:12-15, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. ¹³ However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. ¹⁴ He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. ¹⁵ All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you."  The purity of the Word has been divinely preserved, and only through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit can we maintain this purity in our preaching and churches.  We are spiritually senseless until the Spirit fills us, and 1 Corinthians 2:12-13 teaches, "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God. ¹³ These things we also speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual."

I appreciate the purity of God's Word!  Proverbs 30:5 states, "Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him." May all take to heart the necessity of being filled with the Spirit and seek to be led by Him so we will not foul it with our flesh!  Unlike rabbits, which cannot comprehend the value of food carefully cleaned and prepared or know how to maintain it, may we be thankful and mindful of what treasure we hold when we open the Word of God!  Have you taken time to let God know you love His Word?  Psalm 119:140 says, "Your word is very pure; therefore Your servant loves it."  We can show our love through reading the Bible, believing, obeying, and teaching it faithfully.  In this God will be glorified!