A person who is a believer, with God’s Holy Spirit living
within them, cannot continually and unrepentantly reject God’s Holiness within
them without burning their conscience and departing from the truth.
But what if our desires constantly and consistently deviate
from God’s clear and explicit commandments? The Bible and especially Jesus is
clear: We must die to those desires. Jesus Himself gave us this example.
“Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.
Nevertheless, not My will but Thine be done,” He prayed.
After all, is not the symbol of our faith a cross? A
cross at that time stood for death, excruciating death, from which we get the
very word “ex-cruc-iating” (“cruc” means “cross”).
What does the cross stand for? Merely that Christ
died and we do not have to? No, for if that were the case, why
would Jesus explicitly teach otherwise?
“And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me
is not worthy of Me.” Matt. 10:38.
Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to
come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.”
Matt. 16:34.
Shall I go on? I could you know…
If a person claims to be a Christian and utterly refuses to
follow His clear commands (see Matt. 7:21-23 below), that person should
seriously question his or her faith.
“How dare you say that? Who are you to judge?”
I did not say it. The Bible did in 2 Cor. 13:5. Examine
yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know
yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.
“Oh I am not disqualified! I prayed a
prayer when I was a kid! I am saved by grace and faith, not by works!”
Where did we first learn about salvation and grace and
faith? THE BIBLE. So, can we claim some parts of the Bible as true and other
parts false? How is that consistent?
Let’s look how Paul (who wrote the most about salvation
through faith and grace) how he tells us to examine and test ourselves.
Did he really teach that we can pray a prayer as a kid and then live according
to our desires and never feel a twinge of guilt? Never repent? (Jesus’ first
sermon was, “Repent for the Kingdom of God is near.”)
Here is the entire 1 Cor. 13 passage in the New Living
Translation. Does this sound like you or I can pray a prayer and then live a
life of rebellion or compromise or disobedience and still “pass the test” of
true salvation?
5 Examine yourselves to see if your
faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus
Christ is among you (literally “in” you); if not, you have failed the test
of genuine faith. 6 As you test yourselves, I hope you will
recognize that we have not failed the test of apostolic authority.
7 We pray to God that you will not do what is
wrong by refusing our correction. I hope we won’t need to demonstrate our
authority when we arrive. Do the right thing before we come—even if that makes
it look like we have failed to demonstrate our authority. 8 For we
cannot oppose the truth, but must always stand for the truth. 9 We are glad
to seem weak if it helps show that you are actually strong. We pray that you
will become mature.
10 I am writing this to you before I come, hoping
that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use
the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.
Paul is saying, “Don’t make me pull over the car! Don’t make
me come down there and correct you! I would rather appear weak and not have to
correct you rather than be the tough guy and demonstrate that your bad behavior
will force us to exercise authority. Show that you are in the faith by living
to the commands of Christ. If you oppose the truth, the truth won’t conform to
you (sorry Os Guinness), you will fail and show yourself as disqualified from
the faith!”
We are saved by faith and kept saved by faith and grace, but
we prove the validity of our faith by our works, for which God saved us. If we
show otherwise, we prove our faith is false. This is not sinless perfection.
This is “saved to serve, not saved by serving” theology.
“Once saved always saved” hinges on one very important
truth: ONCE SAVED.
If we fail the test of examination here and now or fail to
examine ourselves and change, there will be a final test, and it is pass or
fail. Jesus will be the examiner. Jesus said to those who practice lawlessness
but still called Jesus “Lord, Lord” in Matthew 7:21-23—“I NEVER KNEW YOU.”
The cross of Christianity is not a shiny gold medallion to
wear. It is a rough, splintery life to bear.
This is so hard to write because I am writing to a particular
loved one whom I greatly love. I see why Paul said “I would rather be weak than
strong, but if you force me I will say some strong things.” And He had
apostolic authority. He had the truth. He wrote the majority of the New
Testament. If you reject what Paul said, you reject the Bible and without the
Bible how can you pick and choose what is right and what is wrong. You reject
the martyred lives who laid their lives down in response to the cross, without
which we would not have the Bible at all. You make God in your own sinful
image, no longer a Father who loves through disciplining us for our own good
and His own glory. We submit to Christ, not only for a FREE SALVATION but also
for CRUCIFIED LIVING. We follow a crucified Christ, who carried the cross and
calls us to go and do likewise.
