Tested and Approved

 

 

These days people have major conversations about Covid vaccine testing and some protest that this vaccine could be more harmful than good. Statistics are answering that concern as ICU in hospitals are filling with unvaccinated people, with many of them seemingly more afraid of the vaccination than the virus it was created to combat.

A similar fear exists in the spiritual realm. The enemy is not a virus but sin. The God-given solution to its threat is not a vaccination but faith in Jesus Christ. The protest is similar in that it is based on lack of knowledge, fear and the idea that faith is harmful rather than good. As with Covid, all sorts of ideas fly around about Christianity and what becoming a Christian will do to a person.

Instead of looking at oddball samples of people whose ‘faith’ is associated with weirdness, I’m looking at what the Word of God says about being APPROVED by God. His approval is not based on anything we do, but on what His Son did for us at Calvary. Because He died in our place to pay our penalty for sin, those who believe are approved by God — in Christ, not in our efforts to gain God’s favor. Protest: “I am a good person” with a denial of personal sin and the need for a Savior. Sadly, without this ‘vaccination’ the outcome is eternal separation from God.

However, once faith happens, it gets tested in various ways with God looking for results — because salvation includes receiving Christ — and when He comes into our lives, there will be a reaction and all of it is good. Wonderful is a better word! Some examples:

James 1:3 says this testing produces “steadfastness” (the ability to withstand hardship and stress) and 1 Peter 1:7 says genuine faith is “more precious than gold” as it results “in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (instead of always wanting myself to be honored).

Being tested for God’s approval concerns obedience in everything (2 Corinthians 2:9) and enables those who pass those tests to also have the ability to “approve what is excellent and be pure and blameless when Christ comes, holding fast to what is good” (Philippians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:21). so that I may “approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ” rather than fearful of death and dying.

This entire process is not about judgment over sin but about my behavior — my sin has already been forgiven and God has already “accepted me in the Beloved.” Instead, testing is to chip away all that does not conform to the image of Jesus Christ. I must avoid the mistakes made by some who turn spiritual practices and rule-keeping into my reason for salvation because the kingdom of God is not about that, but about “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men” (Romans 14:16–18). A godly life is favored by most people.

Any notion of making what I do more important than what Christ has done is rooted in pride. Instead, 2 Corinthians 10:17–18 says, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.”

God approves His people and entrusts us with the gospel, not to please people but to please Him. We are not to argue over words but learn to interpret Scripture correctly, avoiding false notions that confuse and turn others away from the truth (just as the false notions about vaccines can turn others away from getting them and wind up putting them in danger of death).

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. Being approved by God in Christ produces great peace, joy even in trials, and access to the wisdom of God rather then struggling with the confusion in this world. I did not earn or deserve His approval; Jesus earned it for me by being willing to die for me, accepting me as His child — an amazing and wonderful grace!

 

God works wonders but so does the enemy . . .

 

Modern technology is full of extraordinary visual tricks that seem to make impossible become possible. Some television commercials make me shake my head and wonder how they did that — at the same time realizing these stunts are trying to influence me to buy their products.

In the OT, the word WONDERFUL often refers to the extraordinary deeds of God. He struck down Egypt with His wonders, and did wonders for His people in the promised land. The psalms are filled with praise for His wonderous works and even the curses sent for disobedience were called wonderful.

This word also points to other activities or ideas that are beyond doing or grasping. For instance, the writer of Proverbs 30:18–19 says, “Three things are too wonderful for me; four I do not understand: the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a serpent on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a virgin.” When referring to Himself, God says in Genesis 18:14. “Is anything too hard (too wonderful) for the Lord?” then tells Sarah she will have a son long after the age of childbearing has past. That wonderful act was the birth of Isaac a year later.

Jeremiah declared, “Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” And God replies, “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything too hard for me?”

In the NT, the ability to perform “signs and wonders” came from God, but it could also come from the evil one. For example:

Mark 13:22. “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect.”

Hebrews 2:4. “God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.”

Acts 2:43. “And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.”

Signs and wonders confirm the authenticity of the wonder worker and God bears witness to His great salvation through wonderful actions such as those found in the gospels and Acts. Yet even though a wonderful deed can create awe, only the Holy Spirit can change human hearts. Not everyone who sees a wonder comes to saving faith, particularly those wonders that are performed by demonic powers. That is, signs and wonders are no substitute for spreading the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this reason, the people of God need discernment and a true understanding of who Jesus is:

1 John 4:1–3. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. 1 Thessalonians 5:21 also tells me to “test everything; hold fast what is good” in the context of “do not quench the Spirit” and “do not despise prophecies” giving me two clues to areas where false ‘wonders’ might fool me. One is when the Holy Spirit tells me something and I stifle or push it aside as if pouring water on His fire. Disobeying God in any area of life makes me open to deception. This is why this verse is written in these steps:

James 4:7. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

I cannot resist the devil when in a state of resisting God. The power to resist him, even discern his activities, is a power that comes only to a heart yielded to the Lord.

Secondly, I’m not to despise or treat with contempt any prophetic utterance. Prophecy can refer to the future but usually refer to telling forth truth about God. Since this is the role of a preacher, then one area of danger is refusing to listen with respect to sermons. As soon as I turn my thumb down in distain I put myself in danger. Yes, the messenger might be a false prophet, but my attitude toward that speaker or the message can make me vulnerable. Contempt for another person is not the way of Jesus Christ. Having such an attitude messes with my ability to discern when God is at work from when the devil is trying to fool me.

Any wonderful event or activity that brings praise to God and glorifies His mighty power and grace should also be shared as such, not glory given to the event or activity or to the persons involved. Failure to do this is not necessarily a sign that God did not do it, but it is evidence that my heart is more interested in drawing attention to the wonder rather than the One who works wonders and is worthy of my praise!