Is it not cruel for God to kill His Son in place of us?

The doctrine of atonement is a stumbling block for some who feel that it not only exemplifies cruelty but also does away with human responsibility. The issue abounds with various questions and attempts to solution.

Questions:
1. If God knew that man would sin and fall, why did He create man?
2. Why doesn't God, if He exists, intervene and stop evil; why just be Judge but not be Governor with proper police security system that minimises the possibility of transgression?
3. How can the death of one particular man atone for the sins of many particular men?
4. Isn't it not cruel to punish an innocent man for the sins of others so that they go free?

Answers that challenge the Christian doctrine:
1. God does not require sacrifice in order to forgive, He can forgive by sovereign authority.
2. Every man must bear his own guilt so that he has a sense of responsibility and possess a genuine reason to pursue good and turn from evil.

Biblical Responses:
1. God's knowledge of human Fall is historical and not potential at par with His knowledge of the creation of man.
2. God is both Governor and Judge but humans live in a status of wilful rebellion and enmity against His rulership but with a choice to surrender or be judged.
3. The death of Jesus can atone for every man's sins because Jesus is the Source of all creation and Head of all things.
4. God is One and the sacrifice of Christ the One God was voluntary self-giving of Love.

1. God's sovereignty doesn't imply the denial of injustice by arbitrary pardoning, in which case the element of injustice is allowed to subsist rather than removed from the moral world. The crucifixion put an end to all rebellion by allowing the Judge Himself to die to rise again as Author of the new Creation with the power to destroy all things that do not submit to Him. The crucifixion and resurrection portray the victory of God over all chaos wrought by evil and injustice in the moral universe.
2. This is not contradicted by the doctrine of confession, repentance, and new life.

How Can Those Already Dead in Sins Die in Christ Again?

And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins (Eph 2:1 NKJ)

In Christ we die to sin.

How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? (Rom 6:2 NKJ)

Christ also did not die in sins; for He is the sinless One. But, He died to sin, i.e. to the condemning power of sin that held over the old creation.

knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. (Rom 6:9-10 NKJ)

Therefore, we are called to reckon ourselves "to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom 6:11 NKJ)

For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection (Rom 6:5 NKJ)

Thus, in Christ, by faith in Him, those who are dead in sins become dead to sin so that they can live to God.

To be dead in sins means to be separated from the life of God because of our sins. But, Christ Himself is Life and in Him is Eternal Life. Therefore, death could never touch Him. Death could not hold Him. By faith in Christ one is made alive in Christ, so that one is now dead to sin and alive to God.

Standing Against Falling Short. His Grace is Sufficient Indeed

Sinful humanity, fallen short of the glory of God, finds remedy in justification freely by the grace of God in Christ (Rom.3:23). However, if one falls short of the grace of God, there remains no more room for repentance (Heb.12:15-17). We know that His grace is sufficient. This is all we need. So, we remain close to His Throne of Grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (Heb.4:16). We are sensitive to the Spirit of Grace who lives in us and yearns within (Heb.10:29, Jas.4:5). We stand in grace by faith (Rom.5:2). And, His grace is sufficient for us (2Cor.12:9).

The Security of the Elect – Is It Possible for the Elect to Fall?

The answer is “No”. But, this is not the doctrine of eternal security as taught by Calvinism. According to Calvinism, God predestines certain individuals to damnation and certain others to salvation. Those whom God has predestined to be saved will endure to the end. Thus, it is not “those who endure to the end will be saved” but “those who are saved will endure to the end.” In other words, the elect will endure; it is not those who will endure that are the elect. We reject the Calvinist explanation of the security of the elect for several biblical reasons stated elsewhere; but, primary, is that it paints a very wrong image of God. In this post, we will try to explain why we believe that the “elect” of God will not fall. Election is not unconditional, but conditional.

1. The elect of God are those whom God eternally knows as the ones who are His, i.e. those who have endured to the end in faith (2Tim.2:19).
2. These who are foreknown by God as His are the elect of God according to His foreknowledge (1Pet.1:2), because He predestines these, who He foreknows, to be conformed to the glorious image of His Son (Rom.8:29,30,33).
3. Similar is the case also of the elect angels (1Tim.5:21); they are called “elect” because they stood faithful to Christ as His angels (Matt.16:27) during Satan’s rebellion (2Pet.2:4; Jude 1:6).
4. Those who do not endure to the end, though they may have had faith earlier, are not counted as among the elect (1Jn.2:19). Again, it is not that they failed to endure because they were not the elect; on the contrary, they cannot be called “the elect” because they failed to endure, and because they cast away their faith.
5. In our earthly experience, every believer is accepted as “the elect” or as member of the “election” (1Thess.1:4-5), but only those who are diligent to make their election sure by enduring to the end are the true elect of God according to His foreknowledge (2Pet.1:10; Col.3:12).
6. Election is according to grace (Rom.11:5); however, that grace is not unconditional. Only those who did not bow their knees to Baal were protected by God from annihilation (Rom.11:4). Similarly, those who lack faith are cut off (Rom.11:20; Jude 1:5; Rev.3:5); however, those who continue in faith to the end, stand, because it is by faith that one becomes a recipient of grace. Faith is the subjective aspect of what grace is the objective side. In the same manner that “according to grace” doesn’t mean “according to works”, similarly, “according to faith” doesn’t mean “according to works” (i.e. of human merit). However, faith without works is also dead. We must differentiate between works of faith and works of the law.
7. False Christs and false prophets will try to deceive the elect, if possible, but the elect will not fall (Matt.24:24). The days of tribulation will be shortened for the elects sake and the elect will be gathered at Christ’s coming to God (Matt.24:22,31). But, there will certainly be a huge falling away from faith (2Thess.2:3; 1Tim.4:1). Those who fall away are not the elect of God.

Can the Forgiven Become Unforgiven Again?

Jesus gives the answer to this question in His Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matt.18:23-35). The man was forgiven but his forgiveness became invalid and was withdrawn the moment he showed unforgiveness to someone else who was indebted to him. This man failed to walk according to the grace he received and soon turned to the law when it came to someone else. Jesus told that with the measure we measure out to others, it will be measured back to us (Matt.7:1-2). We are told not to judge. We must be forgiving not just in deed but also in disposition. Forgiveness doesn't mean that we restore people to the same circle of relationship; it means to harbor absolutely no hatred or desire to hurt or of they being hurt.

Forgiveness flows out of mercy and "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy" (Matt.5:7). The entire service of the Temple was founded upon the concept of mercy; the Law only functioned to show people their state of sin. It was at the Temple, at the Mercy Seat, that people received mercy and forgiveness. Therefore, He says, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice" (Hos.6:6). It's because, the person who brings a sacrifice without mercy in his heart blocks himself from the mercy of God. One didn't bring sacrifices to perform the works of the Law but to obtain mercy. Similarly, one who approaches the Throne of Grace in prayer, is appealing to the mercy of God through our merciful High Priest (Heb.2:17; 4:14-16). However, one who approaches the Throne in a legalistic manner will not receive any mercy. To forgive anyone as an act of the law (in a legalistic way) is also unacceptable. One must forgive out of mercy and because we ourselves are recipients of the mercies of God.

Similarly, whoever lives with the attitude, "Oh, they are getting what they deserved!" or "Well, God created them in such a situation; they are "called" to bear it!" is walking according to the law and not according to grace. Our attitudes matter. We are called to show mercy. Those who think that their law (or system) is a hindrance to them from helping the weak and the needy are like the Pharisees who thought the law of Sabbath prevented them from helping a person in need. Jesus rebuked them for such an attitude of mercilessness and self-imposed weakness. We can break through any barriers in order to have mercy and kindness on others.

The Offence of Christianity

Two of the biggest offenses that Christianity poses to the world are:

• The Claim to Uniqueness of Christ as the Son of God
• The Claim to Uniqueness of Christ as the Only Savior

The chief problem is not the moral teaching of Christ. Jesus is regarded by the majority as one of the greatest moral teachers that the world has ever had. In fact, His teachings have made a greater impact on civilization than the ideas of any other man.

In his autobiography, Gandhi confesssed Christ's teachings to have had very strong impact on his life. "But the New Testament produced a different impression," he wrote, "especially the Sermon on the Mount which went straight to my heart." However, when it came to the doctrine of the uniqueness of Christ as the Son of God and the only Savior, he disagreed. He confessed:

My difficulties lay deeper. It was more than I could believe that Jesus was the only incarnate son of God, and that only he who believed in Him, would have everlasting life. If God could have sons, all of us were His sons. If Jesus was like God, or God Himself, then all men were like God and could be God Himself. My reason was not ready to believe literally that Jesus by his death and by his blood redeemed the sins of the world. Metaphorically there might be some truth in it. Again, according to Christianity only human beings had souls, and not other living beings, for whom death meant complete extinction; while I held a contrary belief. I could accept Jesus as a martyr, an embodiment of sacrifice, and a divine teacher, but not as the most perfect man ever born. His death on the Cross was a great example to the world, but that there was anything like a mysterious or miraculous virtue in it my heart could not accept. [See Excerpt]

Similarly, Islam also accepts Jesus as a great Prophet sent by God. However, it finds difficulty in understanding Christ's position as the Son of God in the Triune Godhead. The Quran rebukes the people of the book for using the term "Three" in relation to God (An-Nisaa: 171). Certainly, the idea of Trinity cannot find any analogical help for understanding from knowedge of the things in the world: there is nothing in nature that can help us understand the idea of the Oneness and the Threeness of God. However, though in one verse, Jesus prophesies His death and resurrection, another verse states that Jesus wasn't killed by the Jews, though they thought it so. Perhaps, it can be resolved by turning to Jesus' claim in the Gospel of John that no man could take His life from Him, but that He Himself lays it down and takes it back. Also, Jesus is spoken uniquely as someone who worked miracles by the power of the Holy Spirit. Further, the Quran affirms the Torah and the Gospel. However, popular Islam in general finds the idea of Jesus as the Son of God and as the Savior of the world offensive. Therefore, the arguments continue that the Gospels have been perverted in the course of history and that Christian doctrines are erroneous. The offense still remains. [See Jesus in the Quran]

For the Jews, certainly, the offense was too great, despite the fact that their Scriptures did prophesy about Christ's suffering and atoning sacrifice. Paul said that the Cross became a stumbling block to the Jews and the doctrine of salvation by grace through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross became an offense (1Cor.1:23; Gal.5:11).

There are a few groups like the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Christadelphians who reject the doctrine of Trinity and the deity of Jesus Christ. There are others who hold on to the deity of Christ, but reject the doctrine of Trinity. Thus, even among those who accept the Bible as the Word of God, there are logical difficulties with the doctrine of the Sonship of Jesus Christ. Also, there are disagreements with regard to the nature of the atonement and salvation through Christ. Any group that fails to fully appreciate the doctrine of the deity, humanity, and atoning work of Christ is regarded by Christians in general as being heretic and cultic.

But, why is the doctrine of the Sonship of Christ and Salvation through Christ alone so offensive to many?

• Because the doctrine of Trinity doesn't make logical sense to them.
• Because the Sonship of Jesus as monotheistic looks rationally offensive. Of course, polytheism has stories of sons of gods; but, Christianity doesn't accept the validity of those stories. Christianity is monotheistic; it teaches the existence of only One God; and, Christ is not "son of God" in the sense that polytheistic mythologies speak of the sons of God. Jesus is eternally the Son of God. He was never born. He is not another God. There is only one God who subsists in three Persons; and Jesus is the Third Person of the Trinity. This idea doesn't make logical sense to many in general.
• Because the idea of someone dying for someone else' sins seems impossible to many. The idea of someone dying for the sins of the whole world seems even more impossible. Not that the idea of atonement, sacrifice, covenant, and peace with God is absent from religions. But, there have been difficulties in relating them to the sacrifice of Jesus. In places where one has been able to relate the concepts successfully, people have found no difficulty in accepting Jesus as the Savior. One good example of this is the story of the Peace Child among the Sawi People as told by Don Richardson.
• Because the religions believe that man is responsible for his acts; and that there are other ways in which, through works or meritorious or self-emancipatory acts, man can save himself from his sins. Of course, some of these ways have been found to be too difficult, and some rituals very agonizing as well; and, so other ways (like the way of charity, devotion, and mysticism) have emerged. In essence, the idea of self by self-efforts seems more plausible to some.

However, the logic of the Bible is clear:

• Sin is moral failure with eternal repercussions.
• Since, sin is primarily sin against the Creator; no one except the Creator can forgive sin. The only alternative is to deny the existence of a Creator and turn to natural resources for a mechanical, mantrik, or action solution.
• To forgive sin means to have mercy and love.
• God cannot know love if He was impersonal or was eternally single, since love is a subject-object affection.
• God cannot be eternal if He was not One; since to be infinite means to be without a similar other.
• Therefore, God is both one and at the same time not a monad. God is Love. He is the First, the Second, and the Third Person of Love.
• To forgive means that someone pays for what someone else has incurred. For God to forgive man means that He chooses not to demand of man the debt of his sin; which, consequentially, means that the debt is paid by someone else, God Himself.
• Jesus as Creator brought grace and mercy to man when He incarnated and paid the debts of human sins through the eternal sacrifice He made by the Eternal Spirit.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (Joh 1:14 NKJ)
And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (Joh 1:16-17 NKJ)

Salvation

The Gospel or Good news proclaims that all humans can be saved from their sins by faith in Jesus Christ. God sent Jesus Christ His Son into this world to be the sacrificial Lamb of God that would atone for the sins of the world (Jn. 1:29). The body of Jesus Christ was a sacrificial body anointed and separated by the Holy Spirit (Lk. 1:35; Heb. 10:5). The Holy Spirit revealed the sufferings of Jesus Christ, which He was to suffer for our sins, to the prophets of old (1Pet.1:10,11). Christ became the Mediator between man and God through His incarnation and atoning death; thus, through the sacrifice of His body by the Eternal Spirit (Heb. 9:14) He opened a way for us into God’s presence (Heb. 10:19,20).  Through His atoning death and resurrection Jesus Christ has become the path of reconciliation between God and man (Rom. 5:10; Heb. 1:3).

Those who reject this offer of salvation will remain in their condemnation and will ”be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power” (2Thess. 1:9). Those who accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior are delivered from the power of darkness into the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ (Col. 1:13). They are given the right to sonship and are co-heirs with Jesus Christ (Jn. 1:12; Rom. 8:17).

The blessings of salvation are as follows:
Forgiveness from sins (Eph.1:7).
Justification (Rom. 4:25; 8:1)
Adoption (Jn.1:12; 1Jn.3:1)
Eternal life (Jn. 3:16)
Citizenship in Heaven (Phil. 3:20).
Eternal inheritance (Heb. 9:15).
Authority over demons and diseases (Lk. 10:19).
The fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22,23).
The presence and power of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:26; 2Tim.1:7)
A glorified resurrection (1Cor. 15:51-54).

Adoption

Adoption means "placing as son" and is an important theme in the story of man's redemption.

The word "teknon" means "child" and the word "huios" means "son". A son is one who is mature and is considered able to take over responsibility in the household.

There are at least five aspects of adoption:
1. Right to be called the children (teknon) of God (John 1:12). Those who receive Jesus into their life are granted the right to be called the children of God. In other words, all legal indictments against them are cancelled and they have a legal position as God's children. This is what Jesus procured for us on the cross.
2. Spirit of adoption sent into hearts of believers (Romans 8:14, 15,16). The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are the children (teknon) of God.  Those who obey the leading of the Spirit are the sons (huios) of God.
3. We are being conformed to the image of the Son (Romans 8:29). Through the Spirit we are being transformed in conformity to the image of the Son (2 Corinthians 3:18). This refers to the process of spiritual growth into the likeness of Christ (Ephesians 4: 13,14).
4. The manifestation of the sons of God (Romans 8:19-23). This is also known as the "glorious liberty of the children (teknon) of God", "the redemption of our body", and "the revealing of the sons (huios) of God". This is prospective and will happen at the end of the age. At the coming of Christ, this mortal body will put on immortality and will be transformed into the likeness of the body of Christ (Philippians 3:21; 1 John 3:2; 1 Corinthians 15:46-54)
5. Rule with the rod of iron (Revelation 2:26-28). The one who overcomes will rule with Christ and have power over the nations in the coming Kingdom.

12 Qualities of Eternal Life

1. IT IS UNRIVALED, UNIQUE, & EXCLUSIVE - There is nothing like it. It is divine.
"In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. (Joh 1:4 NKJ)
"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. (Joh 17:3 NKJ)

2. IT IS SUPERNATURAL - Not this-worldly. It is heavenly.
"The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly." (1Co 15:47-48 NKJ)

3. IT IS IMPERISHABLE & INCORRUPTIBLE
"Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed-- in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." (1Co 15:51-52 NKJ)

4. IT IS INVALUABLE & PRECIOUS
"knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." (1Pe 1:18-19 NKJ)

5. IT IS IMMORTAL
"For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." (1Co 15:53-54 NKJ)

6. IT IS ETERNAL - Without Beginning or End
"And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son." (1Jo 5:11 NKJ)

7. IT IS MEASURELESS, ABUNDANT
"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." (Joh 10:10 NKJ)

8. IT IS FULLY SATISFYING
"Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." (Joh 4:13-14 NKJ)

9. IT IS INVINCIBLE, UNCONQUERABLE - Victorious
"For if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.) (Rom 5:17 NKJ)
"so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.(Rom 5:21 NKJ)
"For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-- our faith. (1Jo 5:4 NKJ)

10. IT IS SPIRITUAL
"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (Joh 3:6 NKJ)
"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. (Joh 6:63 NKJ)

11. IT IS ILLUMINATED, ENLIGHTENED, FULL OF LIGHT
Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (Joh 8:12 NKJ)

12. IT IS FRUITFUL
I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (Joh 15:5 NKJ)
"the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." (Gal 5:22-23 NKJ)

What Will Happen To Those Who Have Not Heard the Gospel?

The question is usually approached through an analysis of the three major views regarding other faiths. We can't accommodate that discussion here, but let me point some of my earlier writings that deal with the views, viz pluralism, inclusivism, and exclusivism or particularism as preferably known.

Theology and Philosophy of Religion
Three Divisions of Philosophical Theology
Poll Results: Are all Mission Fields "Harvest Fields"?

There is also an extension of this discussion around the debate between Calvinism and Arminianism; the Calvinist stance usually maintaining that salvation is the sovereign act of God that involves divine predestination, unconditional election, and irresistible salvific grace. Some may see that such a view can render the preaching of the gospel meaningless, as in the voice of the man who countered Carey's proposal to evangelize the heathen: "Sit down, young man, if God wants to save the heathen, he will do it without your help or mine!" However, Calvinists affirm that the preaching of the Gospel is much more obligatory because God has appointed it as the means of conveying the Gospel. One may see that the view of divine sovereignty in human salvation will play an important role in any discussion between Calvinists and Arminians (and those in that spectrum) about the condition of those who have never heard the Gospel. If God has chosen someone before the foundation of the earth to be saved, then His sovereignty will render unnecessary the discussion of what happens to those who have not had the chance to hear the Gospel. The conclusion is deductively and analytically arrived: the elect will be saved anyway in God's own sovereign way.

We'll refrain from a discussion of who's right among the both for the present. What I wish to do here is to slightly expand on a simple answer to this question given to us by one of the teachers to our Seminary, Pastor. Matthew Samuel¹, several years ago. The answer is a scripture from 2 Thessalonians 1:7,8.

when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We find here that there are two groups of people to be judged here: (1) Who do not know God, (2) Who do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. This indicates that there are two criteria of judgment since people are only responsible for what they know and not for what they do not know with regard to the way of salvation. Thus, those who have not had the opportunity to hear the Gospel will be judged in accordance to their faith in (knowledge of) God. Will they be saved then? Yes, those who believe in the Gospel of salvation through faith in the salvific work of God. This means that the Gospel is available to all people everywhere in some form or the other, though not in the form that the New Testament teaches; and they are obliged towards it with the same force as the Israelites were obliged to the Gospel they heard in the Old Testament.

Some may ask, did the Israelites have the Gospel? The answer is, yes, though not in the form of the Revelation of Jesus Christ that we have today. Yet, the Gospel was able to save them by faith in Jesus Christ even in the Old Testament. See the following scriptures:

just as Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed." So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham. (Galatians 3:6-9)

The Bible tells us here that it was Scripture that preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, and that he was justified by faith.

Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. (1Corinthians 10:1-4)

We are told here that the Israelites did experience the salvation of Christ in the Old Testament. But, of course, many of them were not able to enter the rest of God because of their unbelief:

the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. (Jude 1:5)

For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said:
"So I swore in My wrath,
"They shall not enter My rest,"'
although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. (Hebrews 4:2-3)

Interestingly, we are told here that "the gospel was preached to us as well as to them", i.e. the Israelites. The RSV has a better rendering the "good news came to us just as to them". Thus, there is not a qualitative difference with regard to salvation at all: "the works were finished from the foundation of the world."

Now, with regard to the "knowledge of God", Paul tells us in his epistle to the Romans that God has revealed Himself to all people of the world in, at least, two ways, and people are judged with regard to what they do with this knowledge:

(1) God has revealed Himself, His nature, to people through the things He has made.

For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; for although they knew God they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. (Romans 1:19-21)

This Self-revelation of God, specifically in each persons understanding, leaves them "without excuse".

See also Acts 14:17

(2) God has revealed His Law in the hearts of all people

All who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus. (Romans 2:12-16)

Paul says that the Gentiles who do by nature (Gk. phusis) what the law requires show that what the law requires is written on their hearts. In other words, God has embedded moral knowledge into the very nature of man, that is why man is inescapably a moral being. And, despite all psychological attempts to explain the nature of "conscience", the fact of the conscience as man's inner witness remains indisputable. Much has been said and written on this topic which points to its irresistible reality. Wherever man has lived, there has been a sense of morality, justice, and judgement.

The two facts, the knowledge of divine nature and the knowledge of the moral law, are not said to be something that are arrived at by reasoning. They are stated to be intrinsic to the primal experience of man.

In addition to that, the Bible also talks of divine witness among all men through various means: Melchizedek who was the Priest of the Most High, Balaam who was a prophet among the non-Israelites, Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus who were chosen by God and knew Him, Epimenides of Crete who spoke to the Athenians and the Cretans, the Magi who saw the Star and came to Bethlehem. Space permits us not to speak of the many ways in which we are surprised to see that God has been dealing with His people all over the world, regardless of language or nationality. Thus, the no.1 criterion of knowing God is the primary obligation. The Greek word used there is eido which means to see with perception. It carries the sense of being godly minded, the sense of godliness. In other words, the knowers of God are actually those who seek Him. In addition, it also carries the sense of actual, intuitive, and complete knowledge in contrast to a progressive one (ginosko, The Complete Word Dictionary by Spiros Zodhiates); which indicates their passing the test of being those who know God. They are the confirmed godly. In the judgement, they will receive the justice of a God-governed eternity, a godly one. The rest of the confirmed godless will receive the justice of a godless eternity, that is separation from the presence of God.

These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power. (2Thessalonians 1:9)

It is destruction because it will be the condition of utter lawlessness (violation of law) and chaos. They will be removed from God's presence because they can't stand it owing to their final decisive state.

Concluding Remarks
1. Those who have not had the opportunity to listen to the Gospel will be judged according to their knowledge of God, and their relationship with Him. It doesn't matter which "religion" or people group they belong to, the Bible tells us that the Spirit of God is active among all people.
2. However, they do not have the experience of the blessing that those who have heard and obeyed the Gospel of Jesus Christ have, and which God desires all people to experience. For He "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1Tim.2:4), "to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Eph.4:13).

And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
(Heb 11:39-40)

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¹Pastor Matthew Samuel (1933-2016) was a distinguished scholar, teacher, and pastor who served in India for several years before moving to New York where he served as pastor of the Elim Full Gospel Assembly. (Feb 6, 2016)

Salvation from Sin

"The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved." (Jer 8:20)


He who lives in sin doesn't fall in sin; he who falls in sin doesn't live in sin. The slip and the fall were momentary.

He who is born of God doesn't desire to sin; he who desires to sin is not born of God. The slip and the fall were involuntary.

No lover of Christ ever desires to displease Him; no displeaser loves Christ. The slip and the fall were a hateful lapsing.

Nothing hurts and damages as the deceitfulness of sin; nothing heals and builds up as the truth of God.

What man of God desires wickedness? He desires to avoid evil, but desire to avoid is powerless before the desire to fulfill. He who focuses on avoiding sin rather than on fulfilling righteousness is overpowered by sin. Where there is no light, there is darkness all the time.

Sow Your righteousness in this soul of Your purchase, Lord!

Salvific Transformation (Dimensions of Salvation)

Four dimensions in which salvation can be seen:
1. Transcendent Dimension – the eternal purpose of God and the slaying of the Lamb before the foundation of the world, predestination, justification, adoption.
2. Historical Dimension – the Fall, the Covenants, Israel, Incarnation, Death, and Atonement.
3. Empirical Dimension – conversion, regeneration, sanctification.
4. Eschatological Dimension – glorification, consummation, eternal life.

Our Focus: Empirical Dimension – Conversion, Regeneration, Sanctification.

© Domenic Marbaniang, February 14, 2006

Sword and Salvation (Matthew 26:52)

Then said Jesus unto him,
Put up again thy sword into his place:
for all they that take the sword
shall perish with the sword. Matt. 26: 52

Introduction

1. The Sword is not The Answer. It is only a Temporal Answer. It has no Eternal Effect. Destruction of the wicked is not the answer to the problem of evil. Such procedure requires a cyclical repetition (Also e.g. avatars). The answer is still earth-bound and has no eternal cosmological benefit. If sword were the answer, Christ had legions to assist Him towards that end. Christ came to deal a permanent and final blow to the problem of sin. 1Jn 3:8.
2. The Sword is an Incomplete Answer. The sword serves the political and judicial purpose in this life but does not deal with the spiritual dimension of evil in the world. As such it is unfulfilled and incomplete. Violence is indispensable in judgment. However, violence doesn’t serve the eternal divine goal for man to be in loving fellowship with God. The rule of sword was not God’s actual design. It was only accommodative. The real and complete answer to the human predicament was provided when the Son of God stepped down to the earth and bore all the violence of divine wrath on Him to succor humanity from hell and reconcile man to God.
3. No Man is Worth to Wield the Sword. The sword of God’s wrath hangs over the head of every man. Man is doomed to perish. His wielding of sword in such fated context is absurd.
4. The Sword is Symbolic of Human Government often severed from divine will. It is the human and only possible way in a world of evil. Might has often been right and the rule of the strong is the rule. And as the mightier always supercedes the mighty, they that take the sword shall perish by the sword.



Domenic Marbaniang, October 16, 2005

The Story of The Prodigal Son (Deliverance from Sin) - Homily

Text: Luke 15:12-32

I. What Sin Is

A. Sin is Selfish Desire (Luke 15:12)
- "My" "mine" - "I" elongated
- A desire for independence from the authority and rule of God
- A desire to enjoy life in one's own way

B. Sin is Going Far Away From God (Luke 15:13)
- You become separated from Him
- You are away from His protection, love, counsel, provision
- You are away from His discipline and control

C. Sin is Wastage and Wrong Use of God's Gifts (Luke 15:13)
- It is using God's gifts to displease Him /or in a way that displeases Him
- It is using God's gifts in a way that doesn't glorify Him
- It is using God's gifts in a way that would defame Him
- It is using God's gifts for impermanent goals/pleasures

II. What Sin Does

Famine Reveals Your Condition; Hope, Severity

A. Sin Sucks Out the Sap of Your Life (Like Madagascar Tree, Octopus)
- It robs you of your physical health
- It confuses your intellect and debases your reasoning ability
- It disturbs you emotionally: guilt, loneliness, frustration...
- It drains you spiritually - Godless life is a lifeless life

B. Sin Makes/Turns You Into A Destitute
A poor man has at least something; a destitute has nothing
"What shall a man profit if he gains the whole world but loses his own soul?"
- A moral destitute
- A spiritual destitute
- An eternal destitute
- Truthlessness, Hopelessness, Affectionless, Powerlessness, Godlessness, Joylessness
- No Home, No Money, Torn Rags, No Food, No Friend

C. Sin Makes You Serve The Thing You Hate - "Uncleanness" - And Gives You Nothing In Return - Only Husks
- A labor that costs you everything but profits nothing
- You can get no sympathy from the swine you serve
- It will kill you - and you are already dead (Rom.6:21)
- Why such labor: Eccl. 2:1-11; 12:1-7; 11:9
-Evil ensnares: Prov.5:22; Gen.4:7; Jn.8:34; Ro.6:13-16; 2Pet. 2:19,24

III. What You Must Do

A. Realize - Come to Your Senses (Luke 15:17) 
- That you still have everything in your Father
- That you do not need to remain here

B. Resolve (Luke 15:18)
- To get out of all this
- To go back to your Father

C. Repent (Luke 15:19)
- Repentance is an action - action of turning your back to sin and your face to God
- Repentance out of a broken heart must express itself in confession of what you are
- Repentance means you do not demand but commit yourself to God's mercy and grace - you are not worthy (Luke 15:21)

IV. What God Does For You

A. He Accepts You As You Are (Luke 15:20)

B. He Restores You and Makes You a King (Luke 15:22)

C. He Celebrates And Is Merry At Your Coming (Luke 15:23-24)

CONCLUSION

- You do not need to keep wandering as a destitute because your Father is waiting for you.

- Come home, O sinner come home! His arms and His house are open for you.

Ill: A boy left his home --After may years wanted to come back-- "I'll come by train. If you want me back, tie a red cloth to a tree..." When he passed thru, he saw red cloths in every tree.."Come back!"