Here is a clip from a sermon I preached on 6-13-10. How do we guard the Gospel of Jesus from falsehood that is common in our time? It comes from Matthew 9:9-17:
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3 Comments
I was waiting for others’ comments first. Anyway . . . Right on Mike! You speak well of “the righteousness of God which comes by faith”. It is the righteousness of Christ freely called our own “apart from (our own supposed) works”. This is called “a foreign righteousness” and is the obedience of the divine Someone else, even the justifying life of “the Savior of the world”. Jesus’ Gospel is big enough to save any and all who throw their trust away from self. BUT I’m wondering about adding the phrase “AND radically living in the forgiveness of sins”. That would only be the result of a complete justification. Some Christians will never live radically. Especially in the view of those who think they are now living radically! There is a wide range of lifestyles that ensue once we are justified. They must all be embraced as normative. I know you don’t mean to say these two things must occur together to START the Christian life . . . for this is what you said up to this point!
Thanks Phil!
Yeah… the comment on “radical” might be a little misleading. We have been in Matthew where the call to follow Christ IS radical. They leave father, mother, job, life, and everything to follow Him. If you stay to bury your father, you are not worthy.
What I have been saying is that all Christians have a radical calling, but it doesn’t always look like selling everything, being a foreign missionary, etc. Serving your family for the sake of Jesus is radical, evangelizing to your neighbor is radical: following Jesus is radical, counter-culture, swimming against the tides of our hearts and the world, kind of stuff.
So also, you are right. Forgiveness of sins come first, then whatever life God has called us to comes after.
Thanks for the encouragement!
Yes, yes. Every day brings a”new providence” which requires a new application of the old wisdom of the Scriptures. The Gospels show Christ at work to show the people around Him how to do this . . . once they are His chidren.