Rescued
Have you ever been rescued from a perilous situation? Some of us have and it definitely can be a life defining moment for each us. Personally, I have had a few opportunities to do the rescuing and I know how rewarding an event like that can be. Even so, there was a time in my own life when I needed a rescue and I didn't quite realize it. My spiritual life was in shambles and I seriously doubted whether I was even a Christian at all.
My first rescue opportunity involved a young boy. I was in attendance at a birthday party for my best friend. I was ten. It was a pool party and we were all having a blast. Soon, we were called out of the pool and into the house for gifts and cake. Feeling a bit chilly, I made my way back to the pool to retrieve my t-shirt. And to my shock, I saw a young boy just a few years younger than myself floating in the pool. His arms were stretched out wide, his eyes closed, and his cheeks puckered up full of air. He was completely still just floating there with only the hair on the top of his head above the water and his feet just inches from touching the bottom.
I was driven to act, yet at the same moment I wondered why he had given up trying to save himself. I immediately rushed to him and lifted him above the water. He inhaled a big gasp of air and grabbed ahold of me. I pulled him to the steps and we both climbed out of the pool. He thanked me with a big sigh of relief, and the two of us returned the party’s festivities.
Similarly, I was involved in another situation where I was able to save my cat from an almost tragic event. I once had a little kitten that was the most playful thing ever. One day she was playing on top of our living room end table. It was recently polished with furniture polish, and she was having the time of her life slipping and sliding about. She was swatting and leaping at the cord that hung down from the mini blind. And, sure enough within minutes she had slipped and fell off the table. As she was falling, suddenly out of nowhere she stopped mid-air with a sudden jerk. When she fell off the table, she was entangled in the cord, and about halfway down in her fall the cord had tightened around her neck and caught her mid-flight. She struggled violently thrashing about back-and-forth trying to free herself from the self-inflicted noose that had wrapped itself around her neck.
From across the room, I witnessed the event unfold and quickly ran to her rescue. I thought to myself and wondered if she was going to be able to free herself, all the while knowing full well that I would reach her and free her at any second. But, to my amazement she suddenly stopped thrashing about and went limp. She remained still as dead air. As she hung there completely limp eyes open wide staring right at me, she had completely given up. Her eyes were locked on me and she did not budge. She remained motionless just hanging there in a helpless state. I can only imagine what was going on in her mind. What was she thinking? Once again, I pondered, had she given in to deaths grip and resigned in her struggle to stay alive, or was she hoping for some kind of a rescue to come from outside of herself. I didn't know. As I reached her, I grabbed her and lifted her up and removed the cord from around her neck. I set her back down on the ground, and she instantly darted off continuing to play as though nothing had ever happened.
My becoming a Christian had followed the typical pattern as is often prescribed in Evangelical circles today. I was a young boy, not yet a teenager and a message of salvation was shared with me that went something like this. I was told that I was a sinner and that my sin had separated me from God. I needed to repent and invite Jesus Christ into my heart, make Him the Lord of my life, and vow to not live for myself anymore. And so, I did. I was genuinely excited as my new-found life in Christ was off and running.
Things seemed to go pretty well for several years and in time all the trouble had begun. I heard messages that called me as a believer to examine and question my sincerity in the faith. These same questions kept popping up in sermons and at Bible studies: “Had I given every part of my heart or every area of my life completely over to Christ?”, “What was I holding onto?”, “Was there still sin in my life that I would not let go of?”, “Was I fully committed to Christ?” I was encouraged to examine myself daily and employ a variety of spiritual disciplines to assure myself that I was genuinely in the faith. I was counseled into a more devout prayer life, witnessing and calling on more people to invite Christ into their lives, prolonged quiet times, and the daily reading of the Scriptures along with a stronger resolve to obey God’s Word. All fine goals, yet I continued to wonder if I was doing enough and if all my efforts were truly earnest.
All along, I thought that it was me who was the catalyst that brought about my salvation. It was my decision to accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Never realizing that at the moment I had accepted Christ, God had already completed the work. Behind the scenes and unaware to me, Christ was at work instilling faith and turning me from myself and sin and toward Himself in belief. It wasn’t until about half-way through my Christian life that God rescued from myself. For all those years, I had taken matters into my own hands as I fruitlessly tried to work out my salvation. “When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.”, Acts 13:48 NIV. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.” John 6:44 NIV.
Unfortunately, my life as a Christian was being lived out in light of my decision to invite Christ into my life. And, since it was my decision that brought me into the faith, then it would be my continued decisions and efforts that would keep me in the faith. I was subjected to a performance-based salvation that was up to me to live a life worthy of being Christian. ”You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—” John 15:16 NIV.
I was encouraged to live a life of daily repentance. Repentance, as I was taught was the spiritual practice of me changing my iniquitous behavior. This could be accomplished by abstaining from the desires of the flesh, turning from my sin, fleeing from the devil, and resisting the temptations of this world. It was about me making a l80 degree turn from sinning to not sinning and from disobedience to obedience. In essence, it was all about me purging sin out of my life in total obedience to God. Again, all well intentioned objectives, but over the years I was beginning to feel the burn.
Repentance was my work of changing myself, and over time and it had taken its toll on me. You see, I was constantly examining my life and looking inward to see if I had truly repented, resisted sin enough, and had completely given my life over to God. It was a tumultuous and trying time in my life as a Christian. Soon, it began to chip away at my confidence and my assurance in the Christian faith. I had realized that I just couldn't keep up. My being a Christian, my salvation was in doubt. I would often ask myself, “Was I even a Christian at all?”
Over the next several years, this doubt led me to be re-baptized several times, participate in multiple re-dedications, and make many sincere commitments determined to try even harder. All of which turned out to be short lived, and I was given into a faith of despair. “Surely, I was not a Christian!” I thought to myself. “How could God be pleased with my constant shortcomings and failure?” I became less and less interested in Christianity, for it just seemed too difficult to carry on. I was on my way out because I was suffocating in my own disappointment. I was at the end of my rope hanging on by a thread with no hope in sight. Much like hanging in mid-air with a noose around my neck incapable of freeing myself form its deadly grip, or drowning just beneath the surface of the water unable to push myself up for a breath of air.
But by the grace of God, He reached into my life and rescued me just at the right time. The good news for me was coming to the realization that my salvation was not dependent on me, rather it rested entirely upon the work of God. You see God was at work rescuing me from myself. He delivered me from the delusion that Salvation came by way of choice on my part, rather than by a total rescue on His part.“It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.” 1Corinthians 1:30 NIV.
My assurance and security in the faith was not based upon my performance, what I was doing in the faith. Rather, it hinged entirely on the sacrifice of Christ in His sinless life and sin bearing death on the cross on my behalf. Upon realizing this, I was soon relieved from all the demanding and burdensome work, nagging shame and guilt, and unending doubt. Our greatest need in life is to be released from the grip of sin and death, that has plagued us all, and be pulled back to life. A life that is filled with assurance, hope, and peace.
Here is what I have since learned that has completely changed my life. These are core truths upon which the Christian faith is founded. I speak about them often because they are absolutely critical in the life of the believer to live out a sustaining and fruitful existence in the faith. They are all interconnected and compliment each other. Therefore, one cannot be spoken of without the other.
§ Salvation is the gift of God where He calls us, chooses us, and grafts us into His family.
§ Salvation or repentance is the ongoing work of God turning us away from sin and toward Himself in faith.
§ The Law and the Gospel are the two key doctrines upon which all Scripture is to be interpreted.
§ The Christian is to be understood and embraced as possessing a dual nature, that is being sinner and saint both at the same time.
Salvation: The work of God alone!
Salvation is our inauguration into the Christian faith. It is also referred to or known as conversion, repentance, illumination, regeneration, rebirth, quickening, and making alive among other terms. We are given into Christianity in Baptism by faith through the work of the Holy Spirit. Here, I will use the terms salvation and repentance interchangeably.
It is beyond our reach to ascend to God, know Him, or even relate to Him by our own choice simply because we can’t. Sin has obstructed the communication pathway between us and Him. Our will is bound because of our sinful condition, Original Sin.
Our sin problem must first be dealt with before any kind of relationship can take place. It is beyond us, virtually impossible to bridge that gap by any means on our part weather by reason, intellect, emotion, or will. We are helpless, our plight is hopeless, and we are unable to reach out to God frankly because He won’t allow it. That’s why I speak in terms of a rescue, because that is exactly what our situation calls for. We are in dire need of a total rescue. God must reach down into our lives, break the will, renovate the heart, and turn us in a new direction. “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Galatians 1:3-5 NIV.
Neither, can we please God with our works or deeds simply because God cannot be bribed. God can only be approached through Christ by faith. The problem is that all works done apart from faith cannot please God because they have the dirty fingerprints of our sinfulness all over them. The truth is that we cannot earn salvation, merit God’s favor, or work our way into Heaven. “However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.” Romans 4:5 NIV. The harsh reality of the Law with its rigid demands, rules that right out. “Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law…” Romans 3:20 NIV. The only thing that we can contribute to our salvation is our sin, resistance, rebellion, and hatred for God. That’s the best that we have to offer.
The only way man can come to salvation is by faith, and it can only happen in God’s grace by a total rescue on His part. God in His holiness demands sinlessness and perfect obedience to His Law for man’s salvation. Jesus was born a man all the while retaining His divine nature of God. He lived a sinless life and kept the Law at every point. He was the only one in the history of the world who has ever done this. We have not! Even so, Jesus, at the end of His life allowed Himself to be hung on a cross and die for the sins of all. In His wrenching sacrificial death on the cross, Christ bore in His body God’s full indignation and punishment for all sin, and He has set aside God’s wrath and anger toward the sins of all mankind. Christ in His sinless life, perfect adherence to the Law, and death and rising from the dead earned on our behalf the righteousness God so justly requires and demands for our salvation. A righteousness that is now fitted upon us like a well-worn garment for all who believe. “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” Romans 3:22 NIV. Christ’s righteousness is imputed (credited) to our account as our sins imputed to Him, and now through the prism of Christ can God look upon us with favor.
With much gratitude, I have learned that Salvation comes to us with no assembly required, no decision required, and no works required. Yes, God chooses us for salvation and puts it all together on our behalf. As for works, yes good works will come to those who are now redeemed in Christ. Works are never the means to our salvation, but good works will follow as a result of our salvation.
In short, salvation works something like this. God sent His son Jesus into the world to be the sacrificial lamb who took upon Himself the sins of the whole world. Now, through His son, God reaches into people’s lives and rescues them from sin and death, and He makes them His very own. In the offering of His son, Jesus, God demonstrates His love for us. It is by His love for us that He pursues us, chooses us, restores us, saves us, and adopts us into His family.
God works repentance
So, exactly how does this salvation come to us? The understanding of it all is found in God’s work of repentance.
The word for repentance in the Greek is “metanoia”, which means “a change of mind”. Repentance is not behavioral in nature. Rather, repentance is cognitive, of the mind. It is a new way of thinking about ourselves and sin, and God and faith.
Repentance pertains to what we believe to be true about ourselves and Christ, not about how well we are behaving. “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24 NIV, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2 NIV, “But we have the mind of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 2:16 NIV.
Repentance is a reorientation of the mind, a new understanding. First of all, that we are sinful by nature totally unable to resolve our sin problem. Secondly, that the solution to our sin dilemma comes to us alone by faith in Christ. Repentance is not something that we do. Rather, it is the work of God moving us from unbeliever to believer, from doubt to faith. It is entirely God’s work of completely turning us from sin and death to life and holiness in Christ. It is a being turned from I don't believe this, too I do now believe that this is true of me and for me. When a person has come to understand that he cannot make a change in regard to his sinfulness and has trusted in Christ with all that He has promised him namely the forgiveness of his sins, eternal life, and salvation, he has had a change of mind. He has repented. Of coarse, in time there will be a change in behavior, but that alone is the work of God daily working in our lives through His Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Repentance is being turned a full 180 degrees from unbelief to belief (faith), away from something (self and sin) and toward something else (Christ and forgiveness). Repentance results from both contrition and faith working independently, yet simultaneously to bring about our salvation. Contrition is the work of the Law turning you away from yourself and sin, and faith is the work of the Gospel turning you toward Christ in trust and belief. Contrition and faith together bring about the full 180 turn in repentance. Both the Law and the Gospel are actively at work bringing sinners to repentance or salvation.
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