ALL GOD WANTS FROM US 1
The Christian life can be confusing at times, so many requirements… do this, do that… be this, be that! It’s no wonder people sometimes give up.
God’s people, under the Mosaic Covenant, had 613 laws to obey to become “righteous”. Even then, if they did obey all 613 laws all the time, their righteousness would only have been ceremonial, not spiritual.
Hebrews 9:9-10 NIV
[9] “This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. [10] They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.”
Hebrews 9:13 NIV
[13] “The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean.”
Hebrews 10:1, 3-4 NIV
[1] “The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason, it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship….
[3] But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. [4] It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.”
God’s conclusion about all of humanity is,
Romans 3:10-12 NIV
[10]… “There is no one righteous, not even one; [11] there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. [12] All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”…
[18] “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
The law was never intended to make people righteous. Rather, it was given for another purpose.
Romans 3:20 NIV
[20] “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.”
Now, that’s helpful! What good is it if we are constantly being reminded of our sinfulness with no solution?
It’s little wonder, then, that most of God’s people didn’t even try to keep His laws. They simply followed their evil hearts.
God’s solution to this dilemma is both effective and permanent.
Hebrews 10:11-14 NIV
[11]”Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. [12] But when this priest (Jesus) had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, [13] and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. [14] For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.”
Our faith in Jesus and what He did for us by dying on the cross, forever absolves us from trying to keep the law. Instead, we rest in His work and respond to His grace by paying it forward.
So, what does God want from us?
He swept away all 613 laws with one stroke and replaced them with two requirement that encompass everything He expects from us.
Requirement number one:
John 6:29 NLT
[29] Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
Requirement number two:
John 13:34 NLT
[34] “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.”
In John’s first letter, he puts these two commandments together…
1 John 3:23 NLT
[23] “And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us.”
O yes, the New, Testament writers fleshed out those two commandments for so that we would clearly understand what believing in Jesus and loving one another really mean but, He lays no burden of dos and don’ts on us. In fact, John assures us,
1 John 5:1-3 NLT
[1] “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too. [2] We know we love God’s children if we love God and obey his commandments. [3] Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.”
There it us, laid out for us in the simplest way possible. Jesus really meant it when He said, “I will give you rest.” Real rest is in Him. No more struggling to please Him because we now know that what really pleases Him…our faith.
Hebrews 11:6 NLT
[6] “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”
Tag Archives: no one righteous
NO FEAR OF GOD
NO FEAR OF GOD
As it is written, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.’ (Psalm 14:1-3) ‘Their throats are open graves; their tongues practise deceit.’ (Psalm 5:9) ‘The poison of vipers is on their lips.’ (Psalm 140:3) ‘Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.’ (Psalm 10:7) ‘Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know.’ (Isaiah 59:7. 8) ‘There is no fear of God before their eyes.’” (Psalm 36:1) Romans 3:10-18.
Wow, Paul! These are strong words against humanity! But Paul didn’t write them; he only quoted them from the words that others had written. This was God’s diagnosis of the state of the people of the world.
Paul sandwiched the description of the human race between two statements which summed up what the world was like then and what it is still like now:
“There is no one who seeks God…There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
It all comes back to the problem of the human heart which Paul stated at the beginning of his discourse. When people want to live their sinful lives, they conveniently forget that God exists; that there are consequences for everything they do and that they are accountable to Him for their actions. Refusal to acknowledge God does not make Him go away, nor does it make Him ignore them.
Paul’s conclusion is that those who insist on doing things their way have no fear of God. What does it mean to fear God? Are we supposed to be terrified of Him because of what He can do to us?
The fear of the Lord is a big subject, too big to discuss here, but it would do us good to grasp a few of the elements of godly fear if we want to live our lives in peace.
To fear God is to honour and revere Him because He is holy and because He knows everything about us. We cannot escape His scrutiny or His judgement. It is to live transparently before Him, in submission and obedience to His ways because it is the right thing to do. Righteous living honours Him and benefits us, bringing His blessing and favour on our lives.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10.
“Beginning” here is the foundation or building blocks of wisdom – like the alphabet is to learning. Wisdom, in very simple terms, is doing what works.
“To fear the Lord is to hate evil.” Proverbs 8:13.
Since God is holy, completely separate from everything imperfect, and He made us to have fellowship with Him, He requires that we also separate ourselves from everything that offends His holiness.
“Come out from among them and be separate,” says the Lord. “Touch no unclean thing and I will receive you.” 2 Corinthians 6:17.
Jesus is a perfect example of one who feared the Lord. It was prophesied of Him in Isaiah 11:2, 3 – “The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him…the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord – and He will delight in the fear of the Lord.”
Compare His life with the lives of those who ride roughshod over God’s commandments and pollute everyone and everything they touch. People who ignore God leave misery and suffering in their wake, while Jesus and those who follow Him bring blessing and hope to unhappy people.
God created us to be one with Him. We cannot live in harmony with Him and with the world around us unless we honour Him and do what He requires of us, remembering that He is the inescapable God. Whether we face Him in honour or in judgment, we will face Him and receive from Him the reward for our deeds.
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”2 Corinthians 5:10.
Acknowledgement
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