Matthew 19:25-26–"When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished, saying, 'Who then can be saved?' But Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'"
Throughout the New Testament, particularly in the mouth of Jesus, the limits of man are stated, affirmed, restated, reaffirmed, declared, exhorted, taught, and asserted. And the chief limitation of man is in the highest: that man is wholly unable to achieve or earn a morally right standing before a holy God. In more clear words, the human being possesses no strength of will or fortitude of character so powerful as to be able to earn or merit salvation upon himself.
The Jews of Jesus' day thought that if the laws were understood or articulated sufficiently then the human being could pull himself up by his moral bootstraps, so to speak, and be righteous. Jesus, however, asserts an entirely different position: that man is wholly unable to please God in His flesh–remember these two statements: the flesh counts for nothing (John 6:63-65), and that man must be born again (John 3:3).
Quite plainly, it is impossible for the natural man to claim any righteousness or holiness of his own volition; it is not merely improbable to be so holy of character and will, it is utterly impossible. This is central both to understanding the necessity of Christ but also for the human person to recognize the reality of his or her actual spiritual condition. The great distance between the holiness of God and the depravity of man is not merely a difference of degree as much as it is a complete dissonance of constitution and kind.
We cannot please God because we are wholly unable to please or even choose to please Him apart from a primary Divine intervention that transforms and compels our beings to become inclined towards Him–again, remember that no one can come to God unless or until God Himself grants him or her to do so (John 3:27; 6:44, 65).
In no ambiguity, then, the whole of Christianity rests upon what God has done first. Our election, our predestination, our conversion, our faith; its framework and impetus rests solely upon God's intervening in our beings and transforming our natural inclinations away from the flesh and to Him. To be sure, this calls for nothing less than absolute praise at the overwhelming grace of God, and our complete devotion to His majesty. After all, a miracle has occurred! This is why it is such a profound thing to think that what is an impossibility for man is not only possible for God, it is amazing!
No comments:
Post a Comment