Chapter 11 - People Who Need People
It often seems like we read the first part of the story of Jesus and liked it so much that we just got stuck there and never read the rest of it. We have become so enamored and focused on salvation that we have missed much of God's purpose. Yes, salvation is wonderful and it is important and it is true and it is inviting, but, it is not the whole story.
The story of man does not begin at the fall. It begins at creation. God did not create people in order to save them. If that was His intention, He would have created us as sinners in the first place. We only become sinful through Adam's choice. God had much more planned for creation in the first place and Adam's mistake has not slowed down His plan. That's the rest of the story...
Yes, salvation and the forgiveness of sins in true, but it isn't complete. Forgiveness of sins was accomplished through Jesus' sacrifice; His death on the cross. But what was accomplished by His resurrection? Many of us have missed that part. If salvation is all there is to the story, wouldn't Jesus' death have been enough? Jesus' death reconciled us to God and from there creation continues on to His conclusion.
Scripture is full of references to the reason Jesus came for reasons above and beyond the forgiveness of sins.
"I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of." John 10:10 (Msg)
"That everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life." John 3:15
"For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." John 6:33
"For you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." Col 3:3
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus." 2 Timothy 1:1
"He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son does not have life." 1 John 5:12
"...I no longer live but Christ lives in me." Gal 2:20
"To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." Colossians 1:27
These can go on and on from so many different angles. And this is probably not the proper place to go into an in-depth study of God's eternal purpose. But doesn't it appear there is something going on beyond only salvation? Even these few scriptures paint a picture of something that is happening now. Not after we die. Not somewhere in the future. (Doesn't something "eternal" have to have already started?) The picture is so clear that God speaks of a transformation today. That we are transformed in Christ the moment we believe. That His purpose is that Jesus will live in every believer and Christ will be multiplied many, many times over. "...that He might be the firstborn among many brothers." Romans 8:29 Doesn't this say that He is the first and there will be many others? That's us! Christ in us! And together we form the church; the ekklesia; the bride of Christ (but that's another story). Its not about later, its about now! Jesus in us, with us, through us, to us now! Wow!
As we begin to realize and accept that exchanged life and God's eternal purpose are so much larger than our minds can even comprehend and we move to simply accept, rest in, and believe what the Bible tells us in plain black-and-white we begin to know grace. And isn't our response simply, "Thank you Lord!" Kind of like Mary after hearing from Gabriel, I don't understand what's happening but, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." Luke 1:38 Watchman Nee writes that maybe our whole outlook in life should be like Mary's, "Maybe I do not understand how the death of Your dear Son and the precious blood He shed can cleanse my heart from sin and clear the record -- but this is what you have said! Be it unto me according to Your Word! Maybe I do not fully understand how You can come by your Holy Spirit to live in me, making me a partaker of the very life of Jesus Chrsit Himself, so that He through me can reveal the invisible God to a visible world, but this is what you have said! Be it unto me, O God! -- be it unto me according to Your Word! Do that and the onus is on God to keep the promise He has made and to do what He has said! You can't -- but He can!"
The free and undeserved gift of Jesus. The exciting, invigorating, challenging, looking-forward-to life that Jesus desires to live through us today! When we grasp the enormity of this grace-gift we can hardly keep our mouths shut about it! Evangelism is simply contagious excitement about Jesus. He invites into a life-transformation that begins today -- and He accomplishes it too!
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