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Becoming A Believer

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Misunderstandings certainly do abound concerning what it means to be a Christian. Some people believe simply being born into a Christian family makes you a Christian. Others think that being a Christian means having to rigorously follow a set of prescribed ethical rules or laws. Many would consider themselves Christian simply because they believe God exists. The truth is, none of these things make you a Christian. Let’s look at what the Bible has to say on the matter, beginning with the problem at hand.

The Problem

Most human beings like to sort things into nice, neat categories to help us understand the world around us. For example we often divide people into two groups – those who are ‘good’ and those who are ‘bad’. Of course, the standards by which we judge good versus bad conveniently place us in the ‘good’ category. We are good(ish), but the guy who intentionally cut us off in traffic – he is bad.

While we might define good on a sliding scale, God measures things according to a very different standard – perfection (Matt 5:48). When the standard for ‘good’ is perfection there is no chance anyone will ever be judged as ‘good’ (Mark 10:18, Romans 3:10). The Bible says in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” This means God calls every person who has ever lived a sinner, and the Bible tells us that any sin separates us from God (Isaiah 59:2). Compounding our predicament is the fact that God is a perfectly just judge, and the mandatory sentence for sin happens to be death (Romans 6:23). No matter how we might identify ourselves, in God’s eyes we are all sinners, and our sin is worthy of judgment. This is a BIG problem.

The Solution

You might think it reasonable, as many do, that you could fix this problem and make things right just by doing more good things. Here is the logic: “If I do more good things than I do bad ones, the balance on the scales of justice will fall in my favour, and God will receive me.” However, if perfection is, in fact, the standard, you will never measure up – no matter how many good deeds you do. The Bible puts this argument to rest by informing us that even the very best of our good deeds are tainted, just like dirty filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). This would leave us in the most desperate and hopeless of situations if it wasn’t for some wonderfully good news. God loves us!

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Those are the words found in the most Googled Bible verse of all time – John 3:16. God loves us, and has demonstrated His love toward us by sending His Son to die and pay the penalty for our sins. He received our punishment, and He died on our behalf. He didn’t do this because we deserved or earned it – far from it (Titus 3:5). Instead, while we were still sinners deserving of judgment, He freely sent His Son to willingly die for us (Rom 5:6-10, Ephesians 2:8-9). This is love on the grandest of scales, and is the solution to our sin problem.

My Response

If God freely satisfied justice and took upon Himself our punishment, what is there left for us to do? Mark 1:15 says it best, “Repent and believe in the gospel.” Our response to His free gift is to believe in what God has done, and to repent of our sins. Believe that we are sinners, and that Jesus freely absorbed all our sin and punishment. Repent, which is to turn away from our sin and turn to God. Repentance and faith go hand in hand.

So how do we take the first steps of repentance and faith? First you need to know it is God who gives you faith to believe, and it isn’t something you need to manufacture (Ephesians 2:8-9, Romans 12:3). However, faith is made evident by our words and our actions. Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.” We can take our first steps of repentance and faith by praying to God. Once we start the journey God is always faithful to carry us through to the end (Philippians 1:6). Here is a sample prayer you could pray:

“Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner deserving of punishment. However, I believe You died on the cross and paid the punishment for my sin. I also believe You rose from the grave to make me a new creation and have prepared for me a place in your presence forever. Jesus, come into my life, take control of my life, forgive my sins and save me. I am now placing my trust in You alone for my salvation and I accept your free gift of eternal life.”

Am I Ready?

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to know if you are ready to take the first steps of repentance and faith:

1) Do I understand and believe that I have sinned and that my sin makes me worthy of God’s judgment?
2) Do I understand and believe that Jesus took the full punishment for my sin upon Himself by dying in my place?
3) Do I understand and believe that Jesus was raised from the dead and is Lord of all?
4) Am I ready to surrender control of my life to Jesus, and confess He is Lord and Savior of my life?

If the answer to these four questions is ‘yes’, you are truly ready to respond to God’s invitation to repent and believe.

Altar Calls & Backsliding

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I love getting questions, they are like candy to me.  I guess it is just the way God chose to wire me.  In any case I received this particular question early this week.  I thought I would share both the question and my answer with you today.  I am a bit long winded, so if you can’t handle the entire post feel free to jump to the last paragraph of my response to get the answer to their question.

 

Q:  A few weeks ago, a guest speaker did an altar call after his message. He asked for people that don’t  know Jesus to come forward but also people that are backslidden.  As born-again believers our heart is good, our sins are forgiven and we can’t ask Jesus to come in our lives again.  My question is: Is it biblical correct to ask” backslidden” people to come forward in an altar call?

A:

Let me start off by addressing the idea or concept of an Altar Call.  Fair warning, but I am about to mess with your traditions.  You will not find the idea of an altar call anywhere in the Bible.  The altar call, as you and I would think of it, really didn’t come into practice until the beginning of the 19th century.  Up until that point preachers would simply preach the Word and make a call to repentance (Acts 2 style).  Conversion would take place in the hearts of those in the audience who repented and believed the preached Word of God.  Eventually the congregation could identify those who were ‘truly converted’ simply by the objective fruits in the believer’s life (i.e. a confession of faith, seeking baptism, a growing love for God and the brethren, increasing in obedience to God’s Word, et cetera).

As the 19th century rolled in popular preachers wanted some method of determining whom, and how many of their listeners had been converted.  This would be the beginning of what we would understand as the ‘Altar Call’.  In the 1830s the altar call gained mainstream popularity with the preaching of Charles Finney, who used the tactic as part of his “new measures” techniques.  These were practices designed to elicit a response from his listeners.  According to Finney, the idea was to have the listener make one step that would identify him with the people of God.  Finney’s methods have since gained such widespread acceptance and popularity that they are all but universally practiced in the evangelical world.

One of the problems that arose from Finney’s teachings and methods was the overemphasis on the individual’s response, such that it ended up redefining salvation as simply a choice one makes.  Thus the individual’s assurance of salvation tended to be based on their decision as opposed to being founded on repentance and faith in Christ’s completed work.  Salvation merely became walking an aisle, making a decision, and saying a prayer.  In other words the steps they took, whether a prayer or walking the aisle, as opposed to faith in God’s grace, became the thing that identified them with the people of God.  You can still see the results of Finney’s philosophy today.  If you have ever inquired if someone was a Christian and they responded, “Sure, when I was younger I (Pick one or more -> walked the aisle, said the prayer, made a decision)” you have witnessed this problem first hand.  A decision apart from a transformed life does not characterize a Christian, but rather a false convert (Matt 7:16-20).

I share all this with you simply because it leads nicely into the concept of a backslidden Christian.  Since backsliding is a word only found in the Old Testament it would be advisable to define what one means when they refer to a New Testament Christian as backslidden.  Some define a backslidden Christian as a believer living in a season of spiritual recession, dullness, and disobedience.  Others refer to a person as backslidden whom has professed faith in Christ, yet is indifferent to the fact they continue to live in perpetual disobedience and willful rebellion.  The former, I believe, is a biblical description of a true believer that is backsliding, the latter is a description of a false convert.

All believers go through times when they lack evidences of spiritual growth and are set back because of their sin.  However, the Christian life should ultimately be a changed one and the trajectory of a believer should be, over time, towards holiness and spiritual growth.  We would have every reason to question a person who claims to be a believer yet chooses to live a lifestyle that says otherwise.  Yes, a true Christian who falls back into sin is still saved, but at the same time a person who willfully lives a life controlled and dominated by sin is not truly a Christian.  The Bible tells us there will be some who will discover too late that they had deceived themselves into believing they were something they were not (Matt 7:21-23).

This leads to what I believe is the heart of your question.  What should our response be to fellow believers who are backslidden?  When it comes to unbelievers (and I lump false converts in here as well) we already understand our obligation is to call them to repentance of their unbelief and sin, and to put their faith in Christ.  In like fashion, with a backslidden Christian, we are to call them to repentance and faith.  For the unbeliever, theirs is a repentance that leads to salvation (2 Cor 7:10) and a faith in Christ’s completed work (Rom 10:8-10).  For the backslidden, theirs is a repentance in keeping with salvation (Rev 2:5) and a faith in God’s promise to forgive them and cleans them of their sins (1 John 1:8-9).  The “coming forward” in an altar call, in and of its self, is neither scriptural nor unscriptural.  Where it would become unscriptural is if the individual making the call gave the impression that forgiveness and salvation were contingent on anything other than God’s magnificent mercy and grace.  I hope this answers your question.

 

 

Is Everyone Righteous?

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Discussing Universalism (Warning: Long Post)

I just got back from our monthly young adults Bible study, and boy is my head swimming. As always we participated in a long, passionate and heated discussion. It is important for Christians to critically examine their beliefs to ensure they are consistent with scripture and sound biblical doctrine. However, this time around some questions were asked and concepts debated that might have left some people with more questions than answers. Therefore, in order to further our understanding I will take this opportunity to address what was discussed, and to unpack what scripture has to say on the topic.

For the benefit of those who were not in attendance, I will try and summarize the discussion. The evening began with me posing the question, “What is the one thing you struggle with the most?” The group produced a variety of answers, but it was when I gave my response that the bearing of our conversation was set. I shared that I had always struggled with the doctrine of eternal punishment. I struggled with it not because I refused to believe eternal judgement exists, but rather I wrestled with the implications of the fact that it does. I would love to believe that everyone makes it and that no one falls short of the glory of God. I would love to believe it, but I just can’t afford to live that way. In the process of the conversation it became apparent that I was not the only one to struggle with with this.

For those of us who might struggle with the doctrine of Hell and eternal punishment, we have three potential options; ignore it, deny it, or accept it. I am finding more and more Christians are opting out of the traditional concept of judgement and Hell. Given an unbeliever does not hold the Bible as their standard for truth, I can easily understand why they would choose to ignore or deny the notion of Hell. Believers, on the other hand, should require scriptural support when establishing their understanding of the concept. During the process of our discussion two arguments were made in defense of universalism, which is ultimately door number two in our three options.

The scriptural argument put forth at our Bible study basically centered around the idea that if Christ died for the world, and paid the price for all sin, would that not make all men righteous (John 1:29, Rom 5:12-18 – emphases on vs 18, 1 Tim 2:6, 1 John 2:2)? This would be a logical conclusion if words like “all”, “every” and “world” were without qualification or exception. If one was to take these verses in isolation, and did not interpret them in light of the full counsel of scripture, you might have reason to believe “all” and “every” meant without stipulation. However, God left plenty of scriptures (Dan 12:2, Matt 25:31-46, 2 Thes 1:9, Rev 14:10-11, Rev 20:10) speaking of eternal death and judgement such that one would have a difficult time holding to the idea that all men were made righteous without exception.

The second argument used to defend universalism was one I can honestly say I had never heard before. It was argued that the Greek word translated “eternal” was actually age specific and it did not mean everlasting or without end. Essentially if this was true eternal punishment would not go on forever, but rather it would only last for a set span of time (or age). After this set period of time those who denied Christ in this life would receive him as saviour postmortem, which is supposedly the point in time when Rom 14:11 is fulfilled. In order for this to happen a lot is riding on the meaning of one Greek word. Isn’t that the way it always is with theology?

This argument hinges on the meaning of the Greek word aionios. Aionios shows up 70 times in the new testament and is translated into words such as eternal, everlasting and forever. If we are to dispute the original meaning of a Greek word we will have to approach the problem the same way the scholars and translators do. When it comes to understanding the usage and meanings of words translators customarily go to other period texts to confirm the conventional usage of the word. Since aionios is used 70 times across multiple books of the Bible it is a pretty safe to say that one should be able to determine how the original Greek audience would have understood the text. Strong evidence that scholars have properly translated aionios can be found in 2 Corinthians 4:18, where it is used in contrasting transient and eternal things. The weight of this verse would be lost if you simply understood it to mean some things are more transient than others. Aionios is also used to describe eternal life (Matt 25:46), God’s eternal nature (Rom 16:26), Jesus’ eternal dominion (1 Tim 6:14-16), Christ’s eternal salvation (Heb 5:9), secured eternal redemption (Heb 9:12), our eternal inheritance (Heb 9:15), Christ’s eternal glory (1 Peter 5:10), Jesus’ eternal kingdom (2 Peter 1:11) and his eternal gospel (Rev 14:6). If we were to believe “eternal” is better understood as a set span of time we would also be forced to believe God’s kingdom, dominion, glory and nature were no longer eternal. In order to treat aionios in an intellectually honest fashion we would need a consistent understanding of its meaning, one which does not deviate unless the text demands it. Since aionios is so intimately associated with God’s nature and authority we would risk downgrading him if we were to understand it to mean anything less than eternal.

In order to both address the original question of man’s righteousness, and to bring this post to a conclusion, I would like to highlight what both Jesus and John said in scripture.

John 3:16- 18 (Jesus speaking) 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 3:35-36 (John speaking) 35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

In both of these sections of scripture you see statements that use seemingly comprehensive words like “all” and “world”. However, we discover they are not without qualification. If we do not believe in the Son we are yet condemned and his wrath remains on us. Although it would be nice to believe that Christ’s completed work upon the cross made every man, woman and child righteous, scripture will not allow me. The good news of the gospel is God has imputed Christ’s righteousness as our own. It is a free gift of the highest quality, sufficient for the remission of the sin of every man. However, it is only effective for those who believe. That is where scripture leads us, and where I must be satisfied.

 

Q & A: Why Does God Allow Evil And Suffering?

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Given the position I am in I get asked a lot of questions.  From time to time I may post a question along with my answer here on the Tipping Sacred Cow.  If you happen to be someone who has asked a question in the past, don’t worry I will not post it unless I have received your permission.  Be warned I probably will not seek your permission if you have posted my answer on the wall of your Facebook page.  At that point I am assuming permission is implied.  🙂

Today’s question came in on my Facebook account.  The question involves a scenario I am sure many of you are familiar with.  An unbelieving friend asks you, “If God is so loving why does he allow evil and suffering in the world?”  So what do you tell your friend?  Is there any answer which is biblical and will not sound hollow?  I should hope so.  You will see my response below.  I am leaving the original question out of the post in order to protect people’s privacy.  I simply cut and paste my response from my Facebook account, so please do not hold any grammar and spelling mistakes against me.

The Bible reveals to us that God by His very nature is gracious, merciful, good, kind, and loving.  However, most people have difficulty harmonizing these attributes with the ever present reality of evil, pain, and suffering in the world.  The question your friend asked is not an uncommon one.  In fact it is probably the number one question that people ask Christians.  It comes in many different forms and contexts, but ultimately it could be summed up in “Why does God allow evil and suffering to exist?”  There are several ways one could go about answering this.  I will see if I can give you an answer which might bring clarity.

The first thing to keep in mind is that the Bible is relatively mute on the topic of the origins of sin and evil (other than to explain how it first entered man).  The reason why I bring this up is because death, pain and suffering originate from sin (Rom 5:12).  In other words all the suffering we see and experience in the world is a direct result of sin.  I am not saying that every time we personally experience pain and suffering it is because of some particular sin we committed.  What I am saying is suffering and death were birthed the moment man sinned, and continues to exist because sin remains.

I guess this naturally leads to the question “Why does God allow suffering to continue?”  When people ask this question I usually ask them “What would you propose God should do?”  Their reply is almost always “He should put a stop to all evil and suffering.”  This may sound odd, but I typically tell them that we are very lucky that He doesn’t do that.  For God to put a stop to ALL evil and suffering He would have to put a stop to every act and/or every individual that causes suffering.  This list of people whom God would have to stop would include all liars, thieves, murders, adulterers, back biters, slanderers, abusers, etc.  Even thought the ramifications might be “different”, the list would also have to include everyone who has acted selfishly and hurt anyone’s feelings.  The list, although not conclusive, is pretty big.  It gets even bigger when you realize that in God’s economy you are just as guilty when you conceive such things in your heart (Matt 5:27-28).  In fact, I am sure that by my own actions (or inaction) I have caused some of the suffering that exists in the world.  This means that God would have to put a stop to me too, and I am sure I am not alone here.  The necessity of God having to put a stop to me in order to end all suffering is quite sobering.

What we come to discover is that in reality it is an act of mercy that God hasn’t done away with evil and suffering.  I understand this doesn’t make sense, but please stick with me and let me explain.  God takes no joy in pain, suffering, and death.  In fact there will be a day when He gloriously abolishes all three.  However, until that day He patiently tolerates our sin and the suffering we cause so that He might sovereignly save us by His grace.  In other words His mercy and patience in the face of our sin gives us the time we need to change and repent.  He is simply waiting for the fullness of time so that He might save all those whom He foreknew.  Is He capable of bringing the “hammer” down upon evil, pain, and suffering and immediately destroying them for all time?  The answer is a resounding yes.  However, He is too loving of a God to do that when those whom He loves will be destroyed as well.

This understanding has helped me to harmonize how a loving God can allow pain and suffering to exist.  However, I am also fully aware that my answer falls short and will fail to satisfy those who are intimately dealing with pain an suffering.  What do you tell an individual who is personally, or in relationship with someone, suffering or in pain?  What helps me in such occasions is the understanding that this present life isn’t all there is.  The Bible shows us that our lives are indeed but a vapor (James 4:14, Job 7:7, Psalm 78:39), here today and gone tomorrow.  However, it also shows us that when this life concludes another one begins (Matt 25:46, John 11:25-26, 1Cor 15:20-22, 1Cor 6:14).  Sometimes the immediacy of the pain and suffering overshadows the truth of the fact that suffering is temporal, and is not worthy to be compared to the wonderful things God has in store for us (Rom 8:18).

You have to keep in mind there are also aspects of suffering we will never understand this side of eternity.  God is eternal, infinite, omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent.  Since we are not eternal, infinite, omniscient, and omnipresent there will be many aspects of God’s plans we will not be able to wrap our minds around.  Yes, sometimes bad things happen to people who seem undeserving of them. But God allows things to happen for His reasons, whether or not we understand them. Above all, and even in the midst of suffering, we must remember that God is good, just, loving, and merciful. Often things happen to us that we simply cannot understand. However, instead of doubting God’s goodness, our reaction should be to trust Him.  Could God prevent all suffering? Of course. But He assures us that even in suffering “all things work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose” Rom 8:28.