Rejoicing over Repentance

"Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Luke 15:10

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  I have sinned and am therefore a sinner, even as a man who murders is and will always be a murderer.  Even if a man spends 30 years or longer in prison for the crime of murder, after his release the grim fact remains:  he is a murderer.  Time served alone or the paying of fines cannot expunge our permanent record.

I have been forgiven and cleansed from my sins through the power of Jesus Christ and the Gospel.  All born-again Christians have received the blessing of all past and future sins atoned for by the blood of the Lamb.  We have been clothed in Christ's robe of righteousness.  When God looks upon us, He sees righteousness without flaw, choosing not to remember a single sin we have committed.  But because I still live on earth in a body of human flesh, I still sin.  I remain a sinner.  Even if I only walked in holiness and never sinned again during my time on earth after coming to Christ, it does not change the fact that I have lied, cheated, stolen, been an idolator, etc.  I am a sinner.  I therefore need God's help to walk uprightly and the Word of God as a mirror to reveal my flaws through the power of the Holy Spirit.  I would not have known sin but by the Law, and I would never have been convicted except through my conscience and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus told a parable about a shepherd who leaves the 99 to find a single lost sheep.  He then told a parable about a woman who lost one of her 10 coins.  She diligently swept the house until she found it.  Both the shepherd and the woman rejoiced greatly over finding what was lost.  God and the angels rejoice over one sinner who repents:  both the sinner who repents for the first time, and the lost sheep who is already of God's fold who responds in repentance.  The writer of Hebrews say we ought to lay aside every weight and the sin which easily besets us (Heb. 12:1).  It is possible for even Christians to be overtaken in a fault.  This is no surprise to any believer.  It is possible for born again, committed Christians to aimlessly wander and become lost.  We lose sight of our first love, our purpose, and let down our guard, walking directly into enemy attacks.

The call to repentance is a frequent call, not a "one-time" acknowledgement when we first commit to follow Christ.  Even a skilled driver can fall asleep at the wheel, and valiant Christians who have fought long and hard for the cause of Christ make mistakes.  That is why Paul wrote this admonition in 1 Corinthians 15:34:  "Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame."  Paul was not writing to the heathen but to the church.  When Paul tells the church in Corinth to "awake to righteousness," he is not only talking about good works:  he is reminding them to be awake to God!  Earlier in the book Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:30:  "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God--and righteousness and sanctification and redemption..."  Jesus has become for us wisdom and righteousness!  If we grow spiritually weary and sleepy, having removed ourselves from the strength and vitality which only the Vine supplies through the Holy Spirit, we will sin.  In our flesh no good thing dwells.

No matter the struggles we face or the sin which might weigh us down, today is the day of salvation.  Today can be a great day of rejoicing in heaven!  When one sinner repents, Christ, angels, the church, and the sinner who has been delivered rejoicing with exceedingly great joy.  Whenever we do wrong, repentance is the first step to doing what is right.  Those who are of God's own heart - the ones He has graciously indwelt - find repentance to always be in season.  The joy of the LORD will be our strength!

Prepare for the Big One (THAT Day!)

With every passing day, the return of Christ grows nearer.  For thousands of years, the world waited for the Messiah who would save people from their sins.  When Jesus was born to the virgin Mary, it was the sign promised to reveal His arrival in Isaiah 7:14:  "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel."  David wrote as directed by the Holy Spirit when he referred to the coming Messiah as "my Lord" (Psalm 110:1) because Jesus is a King of Kings, far greater than David:  Jesus is Immanuel, God with us.  His kingdom is from everlasting to everlasting.

The Jews had been looking for the promised Messiah, but Jesus did not take the form they expected.  Instead of conquering the Romans and establishing the sovereignty of the nation Israel, He took the form of a servant.  He healed the sick, fed the hungry, cast out demons, preached repentance and righteousness, and even raised the dead.  The religious leaders were envious of Christ's authority and influence over the people.  They falsely accused Him and delivered Jesus to be crucified.  Although all the hosts of the armies of heaven stood ready to intervene at one word from Jesus, He chose to lay down His life in obedience to the Father on Calvary.  Three days later, as He predicted many times, Jesus rose from the dead.  Many believed, and some doubted.  Jesus then ascended to the Father in the presence of hundreds of witnesses.  Acts 1:10-11 reads, "And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, ¹¹ who also said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven."

Jesus is coming and all men ought to ready themselves.  No man knows the day or the hour, and it will be at a time no one will expect.  For this reason we ought to be prepared.  I was born and raised in Southern California where for many years people have been expecting "the big one."  Because of the close proximity to the active San Andreas Fault, plus the history of destructive earthquakes in the last century from San Fransisco to Los Angeles, people are encouraged to be prepared.  With increasing frequency people are told to put aside emergency supplies of water, wind-up radios, flashlights, and non-perishable foods.  It is recommended to have an evacuation plan, a spanner accessible to shut off the flow of natural gas to the home, and bags packed with toiletries, a first-aid kit, parkas, and a utility knife.  It is not a matter of "if" another big earthquake will occur:  it is a matter of when.  Since no one can precisely predict the timing of a future disaster, it makes sense to prepare beforehand.  Some laugh off the warnings, while others choose to prepare.

The same Jesus who ascended to the heavens will return.  But it will be another side of Jesus that will be revealed.  The first time Jesus came preaching the Gospel of salvation:  this time He will return to take vengeance upon those who hate His rule by persistence in their sins.  Those who love Christ will rejoice in His return, while those who hate Him will face unspeakable destruction.  When a body becomes sick, the safest remedies which promote healing are best.  But when it is discovered that deadly flesh-eating bacteria is to blame for infection, drastic action must be taken.  On the day when Jesus returns, every gentle remedy will have been proudly refused.  Only the most brutal action will be appropriate to rid the world of the sin Jesus shed His own blood to cleanse.  You do not want to be the enemy of the King of Kings.  Today you must choose, for you are either for Him or against Him.  No decision is a decision against God.  No man knows the day of this reckoning, and no man knows when his life on earth will come to an abrupt halt.  If you die without Christ, if you die in your sins, you will loathe that day.  You will hate it because it will end with eternal death and torment in hell - a preventable tragedy that brings God no pleasure.

But for those who have repented and trusted in Christ, it will be a glorious day.  Isaiah 26:1-5 reveals, "In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks. ² Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in. ³ You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. ⁴ Trust in the LORD forever, for in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength."  The world will ultimately be destroyed, but we Christians have no hope in this world.  Our hope is in Jesus.  Even as Jesus Christ was mocked, scorned, tried, hated, and murdered, so have Christians been from the beginning.  Christ's coming will not so much be a vindication of His people, but the open and undeniable glorification of Jesus as the Most High!  His loyal subjects will rejoice in that day.  It is a joy to be entered today which will continue for eternity because Christ makes His followers citizens and co-heirs with Him in heaven.

To become a citizen of another country, a process must be completed.  It is required to provide appropriate documentation, to pay a fee, to take a test, and go through a ceremony.  Some countries allow for dual citizenship, while others require a renunciation of any other citizenship.  Becoming a citizen of heaven is similar but with notable distinctions.  The required documentation to enter into heaven is a confession you are a sinner.  We must admit we have disobeyed God's written commands.  The fee for anyone to obtain citizenship in heaven has already been paid through the blood of Jesus Christ.  Once we make a decision to trust in Jesus Christ for salvation, our faith is tested by the trials and difficulties of this life.  Should our faith by God's grace prove genuine, we will enter into heaven as citizens when our life on earth is through.  We must renounce all allegiance to all upon this earth, even ourselves.  It is Jesus who says in Matthew 16:24-25, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ²⁵ For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."

Are you prepared?  Are you ready?  Jesus says in Revelation 22:12, "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work."  The world has never anything like it, and never will again.  100 on the Richter scale is nothing compared to THAT day!

What is the Church?

The church is not a place but an living organism:  it is the Body of Christ of which He is the head.  Even as a body is diverse, made of many members united as a whole, so the church is comprised of different races, cultures, and people with a single point of unity:  faith in Jesus Christ as LORD and Saviour.  When I write "the church" I am not speaking of membership or attendance, but those who are born again Christians who have been bought with the blood of Jesus.  Going to a church does not make a man a Christian, but only Christians are part of Christ's Body.  Being a Christian is not a claim of perfection.  Actually, it is the exact opposite.  A Christian is someone who is acutely aware of his sin, is aware of the eternal punishment he justly deserves, and the desperate need for forgiveness and reconciliation with God.

The church isn't perfect.  We serve a perfect God, but everyone in the church are marked with flaws.  If we were perfect in ourselves we wouldn't need redemption or salvation.  We wouldn't need deliverance or accountability.  Jesus came not for the righteous but to call sinners to repentance.  If God only used perfect people, not a single person on earth would measure up.  It is the imperfection, weakness, and foolishness of the vessels which best display God's redemptive and transforming love, forgiveness, grace, mercy, and power.  1 Corinthians 1:26-31 reads, "For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called.²⁷ But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; ²⁸ and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, ²⁹ that no flesh should glory in His presence. ³⁰ But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God--and righteousness and sanctification and redemption-- ³¹ that, as it is written, "He who glories, let him glory in the LORD."

Do you really want to know who makes up the church?  Here is the stark reality:  we are addicts, drug dealers, proud, lying, thieving adulterers and adulteresses, deceivers and deceived.  We are fornicators, alcoholics, suicidal, porn junkies, fools, rapists and murderers.  We are foul-mouthed haters, perverts, homosexuals, self-injurers, gang members, and back-stabbers.  We are self-righteous bigots, ignorant, gluttons, prostitutes, johns, and pimps.  We are traitors, selfish, blind, violent, judgmental, and hypocritical.  The list goes on and on.  We were lost in the dark, confused, helpless, and hopeless.  But every one of us has been washed totally clean in the blood of Jesus Christ.  We have all been forgiven by His grace and mercy.  The long record of our sins has been purged through Christ's sacrifice.  The church is made of people who have taken God at His Word as it is written in 1 John 1:9:  "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."  We have come from darkness into the light.  We are clean, pure, free, and holy.  Instead of regrets and shame the joy of the LORD is our strength.  Instead of being condemned to hell for eternity we have been promised eternal life with Jesus Christ in heaven as an adopted child of God!  Every one of us has an incorruptible inheritance reserved for us in heaven which cannot be stolen or lost.

Once we are born again we are called and enabled to live according to Christ's righteous standard.  We must make a clean break with our old sinful lifestyle and follow Christ, honouring Him with our lives.  When we fall into sin we are called to admit it and repent.  Every day we are to feed on the good Word of God, making disciples of all nations.  We are called to join in fellowship with other believers, holding each other accountable with love and grace.  Instead of being defined by our faults we are to live as the express image of Christ on this earth, being ambassadors for His Kingdom.  We are to boldly proclaim the Gospel to those who remain in bondage, praying for all people.  We are to exercise the spiritual gifts granted us through the Holy Spirit who indwells us, glorifying God and edifying the Body of Christ.  Praise the LORD He has given us all things which pertain to life and holiness.

Do you want to be set free from sin and become part of God's family?  It doesn't happen by going to church on Sunday, listening to Bible studies, or becoming a member of a local church fellowship:  it happens when you acknowledge your sins and repent, trusting only in the blood of Jesus Christ to cleanse you.  When you repent, trusting in Christ alone for salvation, the Holy Spirit will take up residence within your heart and make you a new creation as a living child of God.  God transforms people from within!  Praise God for His love and forgiveness!  What does the church look like?  See for yourself!

A Useful Tool

Tools are designed for specific purposes.  Pliers, for instance, are excellent for tying wire or holding a bolt steady.  A wrench or spanner is great for busting bolts, but useless for tying wire.  I have seen many good tools used and abused by improper use.  I have a nice 10" Crescent spanner (not as nice as it could be!) that will not open fully because of when I used it as a hammer!

Christians can be compared to tools in the hands of the Master Craftsman.  God could have designed things that at the moment of conversion people would be immediately whisked away into eternity.  But God has manifold purposes for allowing us to remain upon the earth:  to share the Gospel with others, to glorify God through good works, to disciple others, to further sanctify us in preparation for future service, and to encourage, strengthen, and edify the Body of Christ.  It is important for us in the Church to have the singular focus we see demonstrated in Jesus Christ and His followers.  Jesus came to seek and save the lost, having been sent to the "lost sheep" of Israel.  Paul recognised God had called him to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles that they too might come to faith in Christ and be saved.

Jesus always operated in the will of the Father, faithfully walking in obedience and submission to Him.  Sometimes I feel like a spanner that chucks itself into running machinery rather than tightening bolts!  I can forget God's purpose of why He has graciously left me here on earth.  I pray that my lapses of looking away from Christ grow less and less frequent!  Last night before bed, it was as if the LORD pulled back the veil from my eyes to see myself in light of His glory and it was disgusting what I saw.  But thanks be to God who can fashion these flawed vessels into instruments for His glory and use!  It is not amazing that God is able to use weak vessels, but that He chooses to.

So what's your purpose for living?  Are you working to fulfill God's call upon your life?  Everybody may be working for the weekend, but we ought to say in truth with Paul:  for me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.  1 Corinthians 15:57-58 reads, "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁵⁸ Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."  May it ever be so!