| January 23, 2000 |
Vol. II, No. 39
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“And whom he called, these he also justified” (Rom. 8:30). Since, by design, the gospel’s call is always received gladly by the humble, and since it is God’s will to bring such hearts to His side, it would seem the easiest thing in the world for God to have His people. What more could be needed to complete the divine purpose than a willing God and a willing people? Nothing, if those willing hearts have always been willing; if they have not polluted their lives with sin.
The greatest obstacle to God’s eternal purpose was sin. Without this ugly blot for which there is no justification either in ourselves or our environment, the divine purpose could have begun and ended in Eden. The glory of the Creator would have settled upon man forever, Gen. 3:22, and Moses’ dark and tragic history of human wickedness and violence would never have been written. To our shame, it did not happen that way and to the glory of God’s grace, he did not let our story end, as it should have, in disgrace and destruction. But it was not easy for Him.
Sometimes men who have lived so comfortably with sin both in others and in themselves have struggled to understand why God cannot readily accommodate Himself to iniquity. We struggle to grasp fully the implications of a Being who is utterly righteous, Psalm 119:142. It is difficult for us to fathom the deep revulsion which sin stirs in the heart of God, Heb. 1:9. His hatred for selfishness, lust and pride is as absolute as His own holiness. He is, as Habakkuk said, “of purer eyes than to behold evil” and cannot “look on perverseness” (1:13), and if He should ever enter into league with sinners it would be the end not only of His own righteousness but of the righteousness of the universe. Very simply put, He cannot do it, 1 John 1:5-6. His holy nature demands that sin be condemned and punished. The wickedness of the wicked cannot and must not be justified, Ex. 23:7; Deut. 25:1.
And this was God’s dilemma as He foresaw the universal sway that sin would hold among men. If He was to have a people of His own, they would have to be taken from among sinners; but how was He to have fellowship with sinners without approving their sin and compromising His own holy nature? Caught between His love for His people and His hatred for iniquity, God had to find a way to justify sinners without justifying sin.
The plan that formed in the divine mind before times eternal was both wonderful and horrifying. He would offer His own sinless and holy Son as a propitiating sacrifice for the sins of all men, 1 Pet. 1:2, 10-11, 19-20. The immensity of human wickedness as seen by God is reflected in the horrors of that sacrifice. No mere death would suffice. Only the cross would satisfy. “All we like sheep have gone astray... and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6).
But if such an awful price for our justification testifies to God’s deep hatred for sin, it bears witness even more eloquently to the greatness of His love for us. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son...” What a price He paid so that He could have us for His own! Righteousness and peace have kissed each other in the cross, Psalm 85:10. In this greatest of all historical acts, God has both shown Himself “just” (sin has been punished) and become the “justifier” (Jesus died for us) of the sinner, Rom. 3:25-26. Having satisfied His righteousness by this great propitiation, He freed Himself to forgive the guilty without justifying their iniquity. “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past tracing out” (Rom. 11:33).
So, the call of the gospel is a call to forgiveness, a forgiveness grounded in the cross and granted to all who humble themselves and believe the gospel, John 3:16; Mark 16:15-16; Rom. 3:26b. Men and women who are forgiven in Christ need fear no accuser. So far as God, the great judge, is concerned, they are innocent of all charges. Satan, the great accuser, Job 2:9-11; Zech. 3:1-5, has been completely disarmed. He can no longer accuse God of injustice nor forgiven men of sin. God’s magnificent act of justification in Christ is the ground for such assurance to His called out people that it moves Paul to hurl at all opposing forces the challenge of three unanswerable questions: (1) “If God is for us, who is against us?” (2) “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” and finally, (3) “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” (Rom. 8:31, 33, 35). Indeed, who??!
--Paul Earnhart, Christianity Magazine
In Matt. 13:44, Jesus said, “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
The story of finding a buried treasure was not an unlikely one in the time of Jesus. Back then there were few places of safety where money could be deposited, so often the best place to secure treasure was in the ground. In the parable of the talents, recorded in Matt. 25, the man who had the one talent, wanting to play it safe, hid his money in the ground.
In the parable of hidden treasure, a man somehow stumbles upon a treasure of great value. He was overjoyed. What should he do? He decided to cover it back up, go and buy the field, and then the treasure would unquestionably be his.
There are three lessons we want to observe in this parable. First, the treasure. The kingdom of heaven is like treasure. Having a right relationship with the King of the universe is indeed a treasure. Its value is supreme. Many people confess that they ought to be seeking the kingdom. Especially in times of grievous sickness with death drawing near, people want Christ and His kingdom to be near. At that point in time, they realize its supreme worth. But if the kingdom is of value at that time, it is always of great value.
The second lesson we want to notice is that of commitment to a purpose. The man who found the treasure “goes and sells all that he has and buys the field.” He makes any and every sacrifice necessary to obtain the valuable treasure. No price is too high to pay. Jesus tells us in Matt. 16:24, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Sometimes the cost may be great, but it is never greater than the treasure obtained.
The third point we would make is the joy of the man who found the treasure. It is significant that the man does not regret selling all that he has in order to get the field. He does not complain about the sacrifice. He gave much for the field, but he gets far more in return. Any pain of parting with his goods is far outweighed by the joy of obtaining the treasure. The joy described is the joy that comes into the life of a person when he gives himself wholeheartedly to Christ. A man who is genuinely converted does not grudgingly give up the past. He gives up the past for something better. The apostle Paul explains, “What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. But indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him...” (Phil. 3:7-9).
--CRJ
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.