The Final Walkthrough

For the past week my family and I have been in the throes of moving.  We are most thankful for the help we have received from church family as we packed, hired a truck, loaded and unloaded our belongings at the new residence.  We were also able to do most of the cleaning of the old house in a single day, thanks to many people pitching in.  Now that the internet is up and running along with changing our phone and electricity providers, and most of the change of address notifications done, things are almost beginning to seem normal.  But not really.  Despite all the work done, there is much more to do!

After a trip to Bunnings today for the necessities - more roach spray and to cut new keys for a new deadbolt I installed - I went by the old house to better clean the oven, range hood, dishwasher, exhaust fans, and shower doors.  When Laura went on the final walkthrough with the agent, he was ridiculously thorough - as I expected.  The list of demands seemed to go on and on, and most of them were reasonable.  Unfortunately for us, we were not so thorough when we moved into the property as he has been upon our leaving.  Though we are leaving the house in much better condition than when we arrived, the improvements we have made are not taken into account.  I know it's his job to ding us wherever he can, force us to pry his sticky fingers from our bond money, and he is good at what he does.  I cannot fault the man for doing his job.  But needless to say, we will be noting every possible thing wrong with our current property so we won't be on the hook when it's time to move on.

As I cleaned today, an interesting parallel came to mind.  When we walked away from the property on Sunday, I was quite confident going into the final walkthrough.  With walls washed, paint touched up, floors mopped, and everything looking shiny and clean I was certain it was good enough.  But not so fast!  The agent started opening appliances and noting things I wrote off as normal wear.  As he went through his checklist he snapped picture after picture to show the owner:  hard water spots, the length of the grass, and inside the gas burners on the cooktop!  The house wasn't new or nearly as clean as when we moved in so I figured some things would be good enough.  But item by item, the list grew.  It reminded me of the scriptures which tell us it appointed for man once to die and then face judgment.  Most people are fairly confident in saying they are basically good enough to get into heaven.  What they do not realise is their words, actions, and motives will be judged against the perfect standard held forth in scripture.  Every filthy deed will be uncovered; every single wicked thought exposed and brought into the light of God's perfection.

Imagine being destitute and being offered a modest home for free.  The landlord agreed to handle all the cost for electricity, water, phone, and rubbish removal.  The landlord even offered to supply money to handle repairs, to buy food, and appliances.  The roof leaked a little, the carpet was a bit worn with an occasional rip, and a couple of the taps dripped.  Despite the imperfections, it sure beat living on the street!  Let's say that you stayed in this home for a whopping 70 years!  Over the course of living in the home for seven decades, you did some improvements on the property.  You added on a room here, more lights in the garage, and had new carpet installed.  The roof still leaked a little, but the bucket worked just fine!  A few cracks had opened in the foundation, but hey - it was free!  After 70 years, you are told by the landlord it is finally time to check out.  His generous offer was finally up.  Nothing could prepare you for the final walkthrough.  The agent did not bring merely a list - he hauled out a massive book with countless things to check off.  He noted everything wrong with the property, even things that were wrong when you first arrived!  The dialogue could go something like this:

"Hmm, that leak been there for awhile?  Quite a bit of water damage - dry rot and mildew.  Didn't you notice it?"

"Yep, roof's been leaking since I moved in.  After a while you just learn to deal with it, right?"  You laugh, hoping to reduce the tension that has been building.  He didn't even smile.

"Unfortunately for you, you are liable for all damage to the property even if it happened before you arrived.  The landlord expects the entire property to be immaculate - not just like new or improved in your estimation, but completely new."

Your eyes opened wide.  "What?  That's ridiculous!  Doesn't the room I built count for anything?"

"Actually, that room is a serious problem.  It's not built to code and will incur additional fines."  As he continued to turn the pages, noted every single mark on the walls, and took pictures of everything, dread knotted like snakes in your gut.

"I thought because of what I did to make the house better it would compensate for faults the house came with," you reasoned.

Tears welled in the eyes of the agent.  "Yes," he said softly.  "Most people do think that.  But it doesn't change the facts that you are on the hook for all the damage.  I have never met a single person able to pay the fees according to the exorbitant exchange rate.  You are in serious trouble."

"What will happen to me?  How was I to know you would charge me for dust in the attic, every single scratch on the wall, every fibre of carpet out of place, cockroaches I never saw, or for smudges on windows I can't even reach?"

"Because you lived here, you are liable for all.  You will be sent to prison to spend eternity in solitary confinement.  If you remember, the same landlord who lent you the property free of charge provided the funding necessary to make all things new.  But instead of investing in eternity you ignored his correspondence and offers and now you find yourself doomed.  He called you every day.  You cannot blame him for refusing to answer and act on his offer."

"It just isn't fair!"

"No, it isn't," the man continued, "and it was never meant to be.  It is all of grace.  You had this house to live in all this time at no cost to you, with everything graciously provided at his expense.  You loved the house instead of the landlord who gave it to you.  In a way it was all a test:  he gave you 70 years to answer his call.  Some people have far less time than that!"

The Bible teaches every person who walks the earth will one day be required to settle accounts with the Almighty Creator, the righteous God who is a just Judge.  He has given us bodies, a world that supports life, and the means to know His righteous requirements through the scriptures.  We are all imperfect, having broken His law.  Seeing that no man had the means to be reconciled to God - to be made new, perfect, and acceptable according to the divine code - God became a man:  Jesus Christ.  Because God put on human flesh, Christ's sacrifice was able to atone for His fellow humans who would repent and trust in Him.  For those who are born again, all has been made new.  We will not face the same consequences of the final walkthrough of those who are forced to check out before they have answered the call of the landlord to repent.  Even though our salvation is secure through Christ, Christians too will face judgment and answer for our stewardship.

Still not convinced?  The words of Christ still ring true.  Matthew 12:38-42 says, "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." ³⁹ But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. ⁴⁰ For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. ⁴¹ The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. ⁴² The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."  Are you confident to appear before God?  Will you be found perfect?  Only those who answer the call to repentance and are born again by grace through faith will be found flawless, for our righteousness has been imputed by Jesus Christ!

As a Man Thinks...

During my time at the Calvary Chapel Bible Institute in Rotorua, New Zealand, a point often discussed was the need for our minds to be changed.  In our sinful, natural condition our minds are completely opposed and actually hostile to God.  The first part of Proverbs 23:7 says, "For as he thinks in his heart, so is he."  Jesus taught that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  Consider a man who smashes his finger with a hammer and curses in pain.  Is the hammer to blame for the cursing?  One man will curse in his pain, and another will praise God despite suffering.  Pain was the mechanism to bring to the surface what already festered in the heart of the man.  As a man thinks, so he is.  Thoughts precede action, and even our automatic reactions are good indicators of what hides within.

The sinful nature of a man works to corrupt his mind.  Even those who have been born again and filled with the Holy Spirit must contend with their own flesh and the lure of the world.  James 1:13-15 states, "Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. ¹⁴ But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. ¹⁵ Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death."  Things seen with our eyes put ideas in our minds.  Like a fish slowly circling suspended bait, in our minds we examine the idea from all angles.  We think about potential consequences.  We weigh carefully the positives and negatives.  "That would be fun...but what if he or she found out?"  Our reasons for denying the lusts of flesh can be far from holy, can't they?  When we recognise our motivation to do good or avoid evil are impure, we must repent of sin.  Biblical repentance starts with a change of mind, leading to a change of heart, and ultimately a changed life.  The process starts in the mind, for as a man thinks so he is.

Because of the filthiness of this world and how sticky our minds can be, once an idea is sown into our minds we will likely move towards acting out on it.  It is not surprising that pedophiles often are discovered to have an abundance of child pornography in their possession.  We should not be shocked when fantasies spill over into real life.  As Christians, we must do battle upon those thoughts before they are given a chance to take root or bear fruit.  2 Corinthians 10:3-7 reads, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. ⁴ For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, ⁶ and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled."  The mind is the seat of knowledge, and there is a battle raging for the mind of every human being.  Through subtle suggestions or overt temptation, Satan battles for control of the mind.  Boxers taught traditionally know the value of working the body.  Those heavy blows landed on the stomach may not produce an immediate knockout, but they begin to add up with a cumulative effect.  Every shot to the gut is like making a deposit in the bank which can be withdrawn in later rounds.  "Kill the body and the head will die."  Body shots slow down an opponent, make it harder to breathe, and open up easy chances for big uppercuts and hooks to the chin - power punches that put a man flat on his back.

Christians are often already defeated in their minds before they choose to participate in overt sin.  Wandering hearts always precede wayward feet.  How important it is to set a guard over our minds and hearts!  Our eyes and ears are without filters so we must diligently bring "every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ."  God has revealed Himself through scripture and the indwelling Holy Spirit so we might know Him and make Him known.  Sanctification begins in the mind, not through externals.  Let us recognise our sin according to scripture, repent, and think upon things that glorify God.  Paul exhorts in Philippians 4:4-8:  "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. ⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. ⁸ Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things." As a man thinks, so he is!

Hate and Love

"I have loved you," says the LORD. "Yet you say, 'In what way have You loved us?' Was not Esau Jacob's brother?" says the LORD. "Yet Jacob I have loved; ³ but Esau I have hated, and laid waste his mountains and his heritage for the jackals of the wilderness."

Malachi 1:2-3

Over the weekend a visiting pastor referenced this statement from the book of Malachi.  He said some people fault God for hating Esau, but they would do better to question his love of Jacob - the conniving, supplanting, deceitful heel-catcher!  God is not unrighteous to hate sin and those who commit abomination.  Yet God has shown mercy and grace to all through the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus Christ.  His love for Jacob was all of grace.  Man cannot question God's sovereign choices, nor can man rightly blame God for any evil.  When we are faced with difficult questions or situations which seem impossible to reconcile, we should not abandon faith for what we do not know.  We are to cling to what God has divinely revealed of Himself through His Word, and hold it closer still.  When the divine wrestler touched Jacob's hip and put it out of joint, Jacob did not ask "Why did you do that?"  He hung on, desiring a blessing.  You know what?  He received it!

God's dealings with His people, His lofty thoughts, and His sovereign plans are far above our ability to understand in full.  It is natural to have questions when we face difficult seasons, trials, and persecutions.  It is hard when we have done our best to love others and are met with harsh opposition.  I know too well the sting of not meeting the expectations of others.  But I am so comforted by the unfailing truth of the Word of God:  "By the grace of God, I am what I am."  Anything which is praiseworthy, pure, wise, or good in me is solely by God's grace.  I rest easy in the knowledge that God does whatever He wants, because I know He will always do what is righteous.  Paul lays out the heart of the matter in Romans chapter 9, an echo of the heart expressed by godly Job:  "Though He slay me, yet I will trust in Him."

God is angry with the wicked every day, and one day will judge this world in righteousness.  Everyone will have to answer before God for every thought, word, and deed weighed against the unyielding law of God.  Even believers saved by grace through faith in Christ will be brought before His judgment seat.  Acts 17:30-31 reads, "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, ³¹ because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."  Through the resurrection we have assurance of Christ's divine power of life and also the assurance of judgment.  This truth goads us to do what God loves, not what He hates.  Praise God that He is a Redeemer, a Restorer of souls!  He has shown love to all people, for while we were still sinners Christ died for us.  It is important we remember our frail frame and humbly submit to God as slaves, serving one another in love.

Hang on, believer!  Lay hold of Him and do not let go!  The blessings of God sometimes come with a permanent limp.

From Death to Life

I have entered the final day of my trip to New Zealand.  It has been an absolute delight visiting with friends, speaking with the students from the Calvary Chapel Bible Institute, and witnessing the power of God to transform minds and lives.  Most of the week has been filled with rain, but this morning is clear and sunny.  My time here has been inspiring and refreshing as I have received and held forth the timeless truths of God's Word.  I cannot be the same, for I have tasted and seen again the goodness of God.

When I travel, one of the aspects I enjoy the most is being an eye-witness of God's work in every place.  There is not a place in the world outside the reach of God's miraculous power to redeem and save.  No one is beyond the love, mercy, and grace of God to transform.  I heard the testimony of someone yesterday who God delivered months ago out of addictions and a destructive lifestyle.  This person was trapped in a generational cycle of sin.  This individual was distant from God, stubbornly resistant to the message of the Gospel, and yet has completely been transformed through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.  My eyes welled with tears as I heard the testimony of the saving grace of my God who has extended this salvation and redemption to all who will repent, believe, and receive.

As I read the Bible this morning, I came across this passage in 2 Kings 13:20-21:  "Then Elisha died, and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. ²¹ So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet."  In the space of these two verses we read of a radical, unbelievable transformation.  Elisha the prophet of God died and was buried.  After some time had passed, another man had died and a grave was being dug.  As they worked, the diggers become aware of a band of raiders.  They abandoned their excavation and hurriedly placed the man's remains in the tomb of Elisha.  When the corpse of the dead man came into contact with the bones of the prophet Elisha, life returned to him.  He "revived and stood on his feet."  This transformation was not merely improbable:  it was impossible!  What a change, to go from being dead to being alive!

This is the transforming change that occurs to anyone who comes in contact with Jesus Christ through receiving the Gospel.  The bones of Jesus are not in a tomb somewhere, but was resurrected and lives!  He still seeks out those who are lost and dead in sins, desiring they would repent and be saved.  No one is too far off to be brought near to God by grace through faith; no one is "too dead" to be born again.  God does an inner work inside all people who respond to His call, and how glorious it is to see it firsthand.  If we are in Christ we are a new creation.  Every Christian is like that man who was dead and then was miraculously restored to life.  I tell you truly:  he could never be the same.  He lived with an understanding of his own mortality, and had a new life laid before him.  Every day was a precious gift to be treasured.  He was no doubt glad to have been touched by a dead man's bones:  how much more should we glorify the living God because He has chosen to touch us?