Grace, faith, and new life

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

I used to think that was a silly question because the Bible says God created the birds and therefore they came first — with an ability to make eggs and more birds. Now I understand this question probes our belief systems. It challenges the theory of evolution. It also challenges the idea that there is no Creator.

A similar question pops to mind concerning salvation. What comes first, new life so a person can say YES to God, or saying YES and then receiving new life?

Both propositions are supported by Jesus’ statement, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him . . . .” (John 6:44) That is, no one can come to Jesus because even the religious people of Jesus’ day refused to come. He said to them:

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” (John 5:39–40)

However, God lovingly persists. He orchestrates circumstances so a rebelling sinful person is ready to cry ‘uncle’ and let God have His way. As today’s devotional writing says, He changes the sinner’s nature making him or her perfectly willing to receive Christ as Lord and Savior.

The devotional writer also says that by nature we humans have neither the will nor the ability to come to Christ for salvation. If God the Holy Spirit does not effectually call us to Christ, we never will come because we cannot do it.

This sounds more like the first proposition, that God changes hearts and with a changed heart, yielding to Christ is not only possible, but it is easy and natural, even irresistible. I came to Christ because He came to me — in my mind there was no other option, just as Jesus said:

“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” (John 6:37)

Pastor and author John Piper believes that both new life and saying YES to God happen at the same instant. God brings us to the place where our hearts have stopped resisting Him, then gives us the new nature we need for that last step that takes us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of His dear Son.

I’m observing this in the life of a friend. Her view of God is changing as her need for His love and forgiveness increases. She has not said YES yet, but she wants to. When she is ready, she will come to Jesus and He will receive her as His own.

Today’s Word from the Lord invites me to consider Jesus, first as the light shining in a dark place, but also continually as the Sent One who is permanently in my life to intercede for me . . .

“Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession . . . .” (Hebrews 3:1)

^^^^^^^^

Jesus, what a delight to consider You, the Author and the Completer of my faith. You allowed those life-changing circumstances that would draw me closer, preparing me to want You. Also, You waited for the right moment to open my eyes to the reality of Your love and grace. Like many, I thought that I was choosing You, but now realize that it was You who called me, changed me, and enabled me to come to You so that You could share Your life, Your eternal life, with me.

Rest for the weary

Cold weather makes me tired. So also does a day of hard work without a nap. This is a good verse for me today:

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28–30)

Most theologians interpret these verses to address the human need for salvation, the redemption from sin that takes us away from exhausting self-effort and gives us a restful trust in Jesus Christ.

I agree, yet as a Christian, I need to review what it means to come to Jesus, for God tells me to walk with Him in the same manner . . .

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.” (Colossians 2:6–7)

Whether my coming is about a need in my own life or the burden of someone else, all that heavy stuff is to be laid at His feet, trusting Him to take care of everything in His own way and in His timing.

Today, God reminds me of how I came to Jesus. First, He made me a new creation who is both aware of Him and aware of my lost condition without Him. He gave me a strong sense of both His presence and His power to save me. For me, this is not about going forward after hearing a message about salvation. While people who do that may truly be saved, in Jesus’ day many came to Him physically but their hearts were resisting Him. Coming to Him is more about seeking His will, being aware that without His grace, I totally do not fit in His kingdom, but mainly responding to that invitation of trust rather than trying to do it my way.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Matthew 7:21–23)

Coming to Jesus is about knowing Him. This is a personal relationship that goes beyond intellectual belief. The Bible says, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” (James 2:19) Coming to Jesus means coming for His saving power. The powers of evil acknowledge that He exists, but they are not in a saving relationship with Him.

As Fortner says, coming to Jesus is the response of the heart to the sovereign, life-giving power of God. It is that act of the soul whereby I left my sins and self-righteousness and fled to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is trusting His righteousness to be mine, His blood to atone for my sin. It involves repentance, denial of self, believing the truth, and submission to His lordship.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Jesus, now that I’ve received Your saving grace, the description still fits. I must come to You  daily as You bid me to hear Your voice and rely on You for all of life. And in coming, You draw me away from worries, agitations, and my complaints. Your yoke is easy and Your burden is light. When life becomes heavy and difficult, I know what to do, and I’m learning to do it before things become too much for me!

The medium is the message

Several years ago I met a woman whose life was a mess. Her husband had left her and her children were out of control. She was selling bits and pieces of her home so she could buy groceries. She accepted what help I could give her, yet was independent as much as she was dependent.

At that time, we were in a church that trained people how to present the gospel. I was applauded for doing a good job of it, and that gave me confidence to tell my friend about Jesus. It happened in a telephone conversation. I totally flubbed it and felt like an idiot when I got off the phone. A few days later, she told me that she had decided to follow Jesus. She figured she was a good person, but realized no one, including herself, met the standard of God. She needed the saving power of Jesus Christ.

Since then, this passage of Scripture has become precious to me:

And I, when I came to you, brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (1 Corinthians 2:1–5)

Chambers says that if I substitute a clear explanation of salvation to take the place of confidence in the power of God in the Gospel, I will actually hinder people from faith in Jesus Christ. It is only when I rely on the certainty of God’s redemptive power that He creates new life in those who hear His gospel message.

Not only that if my faith is in my ability or in my experiences then when I fail or my experiences become negative, my faith is shaken. But if my faith is in Jesus Christ and His Almighty power, then nothing will upset me. This is because my ‘power’ is unreliable and uncertain, but the power of God cannot be shaken.

This is an eternal security; I am secure because God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Being bound up in Him instead of myself means that I cannot be moved. It also means that the message of His saving power is not about me, nor is it necessarily about how well I present it.

That said, this is not an excuse to be a bumbling idiot. Presenting the gospel is not about being persuasive, but it is about being a living demonstration of what God can do with a yielded life. Since He is not the author of confusion, what I say should have some resemblance of clarity BUT I cannot depend on my ability to be clear. It is God who uses His truth to change the human heart. I cannot do that, no matter how clearly I spell out the wonderful story of Jesus.

A Canadian named Marshall McLuhan purports that in good communication, “the medium is the message.” He meant that “the form of a medium embeds itself in any message it would transmit or convey, creating a symbiotic relationship by which the medium influences how the message is perceived.” In the case of the gospel, he is truly unto something — but this is only true when the medium is not me or my ability. Instead it must be the power of the Holy Spirit, not the power of any human tongue!