The Righteousness of God 09/05/2013 The Bible uses big words to describe what happened at the Cross: reconciliation, propitiation, justification, and redemption. These are the big four, and they are used throughout the New Testament. Unfortunately, they are fairly uncommon in everyday modern English, so most people assign little meaning to them. In such a short article, we cannot even begin to address individual passages, but we can put them in their place on the biblical timeline. The Cross happened in context to the Day of the Lord—God is patient with sinful humans not wanting any to perish because he loves them (cf. 2 Pet. 3:9f; Jn. 3:16). The Day of the Lord is described throughout the Scriptures in three ways: 1) Day of Wrath, 2) Day of Judgment, 3) Day of Recompense. These correspond to the royal, judicial, and economic aspects of God, life and creation. If someone sins against us, we get mad, press charges against them, and make them pay for damages done. We function like this because we are created in the image of God. So too will redemptive history unfold. The Cross then satisfies these three aspects. “Propitiation” is the appeasement of wrath (cf. Rom. 3:25; 1 Jn. 2:2; 4:10). “Justification” is the acquittal of judgment (cf. Rom. 3:20ff; 5:1ff; Gal. 2:16ff). “Redemption” is the payment of debt (cf. Rom. 3:24; Eph. 1:7; Heb. 9:12). In each case God put forward his Son on our behalf to satisfy the wrath, judgment, and retribution of God, that we might find “reconciliation” with the Holy One (cf. Rom. 5:10; 2 Cor. 5:18f; Col. 1:20f). When we truly believe these things and cast ourselves at the Cross by faith, we are “declared righteous” (cf. Rom. 2:13; 3:20) in God’s sight, and thus we become the righteousness of God (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 3:22; 10:3). Thus we have confidence in anticipation of the return of Jesus. A Holy Ambition 06/09/2013 We all have to get out of bed in the morning. And we all do this because of ambition—some ambitions being godly, some not so much. Because we are the offspring of Adam, most of our ambitions, from the time we get up to the time we go to sleep, are selfish—some kind wrangling for money, honor, pleasure, etc. However, God has called us to a holy ambition, an ambition for the sake of his name and his purposes. This is why the Cross is so controversial, because it embodies the character and nature of God (Col. 1:19ff) and it represents what God is doing in this age (1 Cor. 1:27ff). Thus, the ambition of honoring Christ crucified becomes an ambition quite contrary to the ambitions common to this age—making followers of men (cf. 1 Cor. 1-3), peddling truth for money (cf. 2 Cor. 2:17), envy and self-exaltation (cf. Phil. 1:15), flattery for the praise of men (1 Thess. 2:5f), etc. Unfortunately, the church has been wrought with such perverse ambitions throughout its history. This is simply reflective of the nature of humanity. However, we are called to crucify such ambitions and cry out for the Holy Spirit who gives holy ambitions. No man can stir up such things—it takes the Holy Spirit to impart ambitions that get us out of bed for the right reasons. So let us daily die to the “elementary principles of the world” (Col. 2:8, 20) which give rise to so many false “appetites” (Rom. 16:18; Phil. 3:19). With Paul we say, “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” (1 Tim. 1:5) The Divine Arrangement 05/14/2013 Jesus said it was “necessary” that he suffer before entering his glory (Lk. 24:26). Likewise Paul said, “it was necessary for the Christ to suffer” (Acts 17:3). It happened “according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23), and it was considered as of first importance: “that Christ died in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:3). The Messiah was sent according to a divine arrangement, which involves the sins of humanity, the holiness of God, and the judgment to come. The necessity of the death of the Messiah was based primarily upon the sacrificial reality (cf. Rom. 3:25; Eph. 5:2; Heb. 10:12), for “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins” (Heb. 9:22). Though generally foreign to the modern mind, atonement was the cornerstone of apostolic thought. Humanity is alienated before its Creator, and there is an ordained plan for reconciliation. This sacrificial plan is laid out in the Old Testament through direct prophecies (cf. Is. 53; Ps. 22; Dan. 9) and by various types: the Passover Lamb (Ex. 12; 1 Cor. 5:7), the daily sacrifice (Ex. 29:38ff; Heb. 10:11), the snake on the pole (Num. 21; Jn. 3:14f), etc. In each of these situations, God is the one who decides how the effects of sin will be resolved. And it is always a straightforward arrangement. Those who accept his plan and obey are saved; those who reject it receive wrath. So also is the death of the Messiah understood as a straightforward prescription for the sin of man. As all are under divine condemnation and await eternal judgment (cf. Rom. 3; Eph. 2), “so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” (Heb. 9:28) Those who accept the divine arrangement of the Cross by faith will be saved at the Day of the Lord (cf. Rom. 5:1-9; 9:30ff). Those who “set aside the grace of God” (Gal. 2:21) will be found on that Day with only “a righteousness of [their] own” (Phil. 3:9). Like those during the Passover who refused to put blood over their door, they will be found in violation of the arrangement. They will be considered “enemies of the cross of Christ” (Phil. 3:18), and their end will be destruction. In such a light, let us believe the Scriptures and “submit to God’s righteousness” (Rom. 10:3). Let us leave behind our own schemes and press on by faith to take hold of the prize of eternal life (Phil. 3:13f). The Biblical Witness 02/04/2013 The biblical witness is a simple one. It is an historical witness: past, present, and future. It witnesses to the acts of God throughout history—to creation, the covenants, the cross, and the consummation at the Day of the Lord (see top pic). The biblical witness remembers creation and looks forward to the “new heavens and new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Pet. 3:13). The biblical witness hopes for salvation in the return of Jesus above all else—the “blessed hope” (Tit. 2:13). It also boasts in the cross of Jesus alone for forgiveness in the sight of God—the “righteousness of God” (Rom. 3:21; 10:3f). The biblical witness thus emphasizes the first and second comings of Jesus in all its various forms of proclamation: preaching, teaching, writing, etc. A simple witness, attainable and proclaimable by the least educated, yet holding in its narrative infinite knowledge and mystery. The christoplatonic witness has a much more confusing witness (see bottom pic). Its ultimate end is immaterial heaven rather than a new earth, a perverse form of “eternal life”. Thus, the return of Jesus is rarely emphasized. Though the cross sometimes receives attention, righteousness often degenerates into humanistic self-help philosophies—“three principles” of this or “five keys” to that. Moreover, the christoplatonic witness often becomes radically shortsighted, seeking its inheritance in this life—“kingdom now” and dominion theology—with a perverted view of God’s sovereignty. Sadly, when believers loose sight of eternity, their walk with God becomes reprobate, for in the end, “the man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” (Jn. 12:25) Biblical Theology Overview 10/02/2012 Below are the notes from a weekend with friends in Redding, CA. Its a brief introduction and overview of the Scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. Session 1 examines Genesis 1:1 and the biblical worldview. Session 2 develops a biblical theology of a new heavens and new earth based upon a biblical worldview. Session 3 works through messianic expectation and the kingdom of God within that framework. And Session 4 addresses the means of attaining eternal life and inheriting the kingdom of God based upon the Cross and justification by faith. session_1_-_biblical_worldview.pdf Download File session_2_-_biblical_theology.pdf Download File session_3_-_biblical_hope.pdf Download File session_4_-_biblical_righteousness.pdf Download File
Posted on: Mon, 25 Aug 2014 01:11:56 +0000
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