Without Excuse

In the ancient world, the Jewish nation was unique because of their God and His laws delivered to them through Moses.  They exerted themselves to keep His commands and even went beyond the letter of the Law with traditions embraced for millennia.  The lives of the people were governed in ways foreign to many people today, impacting everything from the clothing they wore, how they harvested their crops, what was considered clean and unclean foods, marriage, the observance of feast days and the Sabbath.  The Law contained blessings and curses, directives for necessary worship of God and the punishment of evildoers.  The Jews who kept the Law were very particular about avoiding anything unclean and maintaining a blameless image according to their traditions.

When Jesus ministered in Israel, He preached about the kingdom of God and did countless signs to show the truth of His claims.  For instance, after a paralysed man was brought to Jesus He said to the man, "Son, your sins are forgiven."  The scribes and Pharisees bristled at the statement, for they knew only God could possibly forgive sins.  Who did this man think he was?  Jesus answered the secret thoughts of their hearts by miraculously healing the paralytic.  So they would know the Son of Man (Jesus) had the power to forgive sins (and thus was God in the flesh), Jesus said in Mark 2:11-12, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." ¹² Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!"  Perhaps some of them were more amazed by the sign than what it pointed to:  that God Himself put on human flesh and walked among them in the person of Jesus.

The teaching and miracles demonstrated by Jesus had another effect mentioned in the Gospel of John.  It exposed the truth concerning the hearts of people who were blameless under the Law:  it revealed they actually hated the God they professed to love.  Their self-righteousness and condemnation of others covered up the fact their hearts were distant from God.  Jesus said in John 15:22-24, "If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. ²³ He who hates Me hates My Father also. ²⁴ If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father."  The rejection of Jesus Christ as the Son of God was actually a rejection of God Himself, for Jesus is in the Father and the Father is in Him.  The words of Jesus are also relevant concerning people today who are law-abiding citizens, generous, considerate and thoughtful people who refuse to trust in Jesus as Saviour.  Their refusal to believe Jesus is God is inexcusable because Jesus has spoken and done mighty works no one else has ever done.

It was ironic the Jewish rulers who believed the Law of Moses was the word of God refused to believe the Jesus Whom Moses wrote about.  Jesus said the people of Nineveh would rise up in judgment against the Jews for their unbelief in Him, for the Ninevites repented at the words of Jonah.  One greater than Jonah preached repentance to them, yet they refused to repent.  The Queen of Sheba would also stand in judgment against them, for she traveled a great distance to hear the wisdom of King Solomon--and One greater than Solomon stood in their midst they refused to hear.  Paul wrote people are without excuse concerning belief in the existence of God Who created all things because all creation displays His glory.  The words and deeds of Jesus have exposed all those religious and decent people who reject Jesus for what they truly are:  haters of God, without excuse and under judgment.  It is not the "good" people who receive Christ in faith, but those who realise they are wicked and sinful.  It is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance, and having been convinced Jesus is God in the flesh we worship, love and obey Him.  We too are without excuse to do our joyful duty before God.

For Christ's Sake

The command of Jesus to His disciples to deny themselves, take up their cross daily and follow Him is vital to this day.  By faith in Christ we can deny our fleshly feelings, desires and identity, and in doing so we embrace being the new creation God has designed us to be.  No longer is our primary loyalty to our own family, friends or feelings but to Jesus Christ our LORD we seek to follow, glorify and please.  For much of our lives we were slaves to sin and ourselves, and coming to Jesus for salvation, forgiveness and righteousness ought to shift our allegiance and identity to Him.

Sam Allberry expressed this necessary shift in the lives of those who are born again.  As someone who has experienced same-sex attraction, Allberry realised he was more than his sexuality and Christ's command was for him and all other believers.  He wrote:

"And as someone in this situation, what Jesus calls me to do is exactly what he calls anyone to do.  Take another well-known saying of Jesus:  "Then He called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said:  "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Mark 8:34)

It is the same for us all--"whoever."  I am to deny myself, take up my cross and follow him.  Every Christian is called to costly sacrifice.  Denying yourself does not mean tweaking your behavior here and there.  It is saying "no" to your deepest sense of who you are, for the sake of Christ.  To take up a cross is to declare your life (as you have known it) forfeit.  It is laying down your life for the very reason that your life, it turns out, is not yours at all.  It belongs to Jesus.  He made it and through his death he has bought it.

Ever since I have been open about my own experiences of homosexuality, a number of Christians have said something like this:  "The gospel must be harder for you than it is for me," as though I have more to give up than they do.  But the fact is that the gospel demands everything of all of us.  If someone thinks the gospel has somehow slotting into their life quite easily, without causing any major adjustments to their lifestyle or aspirations, it is likely that they have not really started following Jesus at all." (Allberry, Sam. Is God Anti-Gay?: And Other Questions about Homosexuality, the Bible and Same-Sex Attraction. The Good Book Company, 2015. Pages 11-12)

Christians are called to love one another, to forgive, serve and speak the truth for the sake of Christ.  Instead of rallying around political, social or even moral issues, we are to identify ourselves as the followers and servants of Jesus.  All careers, hobbies, relationships and pursuits are to bow before our LORD, and He leads us to navigate all the situations of life with grace, mercy and righteousness.  It is impossible to earn or live up to the standard of the Gospel by the efforts of our flesh, but being born again by faith in Jesus changes us from within by the Holy Spirit.  Knowing Jesus is our life, we are enabled to deny ourselves and experience the abundant life He promises.

God's Good Purposes

Today we sang in church, "You make all things work together for my good."  This is entirely biblical, yet it does not mean we always actually believe this is true.  If we believed this was true without fail, we would receive every trial and trouble in life as a gift from our good and gracious God.  There would be no angry venting over what frustrates us, bitterness over what grieves us, or complaining.  Fear, worries and anxiety over unknowns because of our God we know and knows us.  Like Paul's exhortation to the Philippians, believing God makes all things work together for good enables us to rejoice in the LORD always, even when we experience sorrow and pain.

In the moment we cannot change the feelings or emotions that flood through our bodies or the thoughts that pepper our minds, but the born again Christian can build our entire lives upon the reality of God and His word.  God has revealed His goodness, power and sovereignty over all in His word, and these facts enable us to reject ungodly thoughts and replace them with God-honouring ones.  Even our feelings can be addressed by examining our hearts with the aid of the Holy Spirit Who guides us into all truth.  Knowing God makes all things work together for our good is a decent start, yet examples from the Bible actually go further.  The death and resurrection of Jesus did not only work together for the glory of Jesus Christ, but for the good of all who trust in Him forever.

Romans 8:27-30 says, "Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. ²⁸ And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. ²⁹ For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. ³⁰ Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified."  This "working together for good" is connected with the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of born-again Christians.  Jesus makes intercession for saints (Christian believers) according to God's will, and we can be assured all things work together for good to those who love God.  We are those God knew before we knew Him, has predestined us to be conformed into the image of Jesus, and we are made His brethren--adopted into the family of God by faith.  Our future through Christ has been determined, and we are complete in Him.

Since God is working all things together for our good and His glory, we labour to do what pleases God.  The most fundamental work we can do, according to Jesus, is to believe on Him.  Regardless of how we feel or what happens (or seems to take forever to happen!), we can know God's good plans and purposes are being brought to fruition.  A thing that seems bad in itself, when coupled in context with good purpose, is acceptable to us--like the necessary incision of a surgeon who aims to cut out all the cancer.  Realising God and His ways and thoughts are above ours brings us to a place of contentment and rest in Him, even when we do not understand why God has allowed something or how to respond to it.  Praise the LORD He makes all things work together for good to those who love God, and may we be numbered among those who love Him because He is good.

Born Again and Belonging

A new baby being born is a significant event because a new person has come into the world.  This addition will have a huge impact on parents and family members for a lifetime.  The existence of one person has the power to make a difference in the lives of others long after their lives on earth are over.  Just yesterday I opened a book compiled of journals written in 1738 by John Wesley and I was positively affected by what I read.  Even when a child is conceived and sadly miscarried shortly thereafter, the parents will always remember what happened.

The teaching of Jesus to Nicodemus concerning the need of sinners to be born again to enter the kingdom of God is necessary and profound.  Being born again by faith in Jesus is a more incredible spiritual change as it is a physical change from a baby in utero to being a walking, talking adult.  Being born again is not gradual or progressive but in an instant going from being dead in sins to being raised to new life, made righteous by receiving the Gospel.  The Holy Spirit floods into our being, having been forgiven of all sin, deemed righteous by God's grace, and we are adopted into the family of God.  Our bodies retain the same flesh that is perishing, but our inward man is renewed daily by the presence of God within us.

Jesus addressed Jewish people in Jerusalem who were offended He claimed God was His Father, and they mocked Him as crazy and demon possessed.  Still, they wondered if Jesus actually believed He was the Messiah.  John 10:25-28 says, "Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. ²⁶ But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. ²⁷ My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. ²⁸ And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand."  Jesus identified Himself previously as the Good Shepherd, and the refusal of His hearers to believe Him showed they were not His sheep.  Some would write-off these unregenerate people as doomed to destruction in hell, and indeed they were.  But they did not need to remain that way!  They also could be born again if they would humble themselves and believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God!

In the preceding passage Jesus said in John 10:16:  "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd."  Jesus is LORD of all and the Good Shepherd to Jew and Gentile alike.  Whosoever will receive Him is given the right to become a child of God according to His will (John 1:12-13).  There was hope by faith in Jesus even for those who rejected and crucified our LORD, for He died to atone for the sin of the world.  Every believer was once an unbeliever, and the end of the chapter illustrates well the power of Christ to change hearts and minds after He went beyond the Jordan in John 10:41-42:  "Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true." ⁴² And many believed in Him there."  People who took up stones to slay Jesus in Jerusalem later believed in Him beyond the Jordan.  These who previously were not His sheep were born again, accepted in the beloved and belonged in His fold (Eph. 1:6).  Praise God for the new birth provided by His grace!