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Part 5 - Resting by Faith
Faith in the Creator
The believer is called to both a rest in Christ and to love and good
works. This may at first seem like a contradiction. How can one rest and
work at the same time? This calling however is not only logical and
consistent, but the latter depends upon the former. Genuine love and good
works depend upon a rest in Christ. Indeed, love and good works spring forth
because of a rest in Christ. They are the fruit, and response, of one who
through faith has found rest in the Creator. Rest in Jesus Christ is a
rest from trying to duplicate the work of Christ. Christ accomplished the
work of redemption. His work establishes the believer in God's kingdom. It
brings forgiveness of sin and new life. It establishes the believer as being
righteous before God. Christ's finished work includes sanctification where
the believer has been separated unto God and consecrated to God's purposes.
Christ's finished work includes the giving of the Holy Spirit as the
provision for God's purposes to be fulfilled. To rest in Christ is to not
try to establish a separate standing before God but to receive the standing
that Christ provides. This is received solely through faith. Love and good
works are the fruit of being established in God's kingdom. They are the work
of God's Spirit who works through the believer. It is thus not the believer
who is working but God who is working through the believer as he rests in
the place that Christ has delivered him into. Because the work is God's
part and faith is the believer's part, faith in Christ is the key element in
both resting in Christ and producing love and good works. Entering the rest
comes only through faith. Entering God's kingdom comes only through faith.
Works have no part in it. Inheriting the Kingdom of God
The Bible shows what does not enter, or inherit,
God's kingdom. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Do you not know
that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be
deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Cor. 6:9-10).
Paul makes similar statements in his letters to the Galatians (Gal. 5:19-21)
and to the Ephesians (Eph. 5:3-6). The wicked will not inherit the kingdom
of God. These verses however are not complete lists of that which does not
inherit God's kingdom. They are used as examples as Paul exhorts believers
about following that which is expedient toward God's calling. This list is
expanded upon in Galatians: "For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no
longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise" (Gal. 3:18). Not
only do those who break the law not inherit God's kingdom, those who try to
keep the law are not the ones who inherit it either! If the "inheritance is
of the law," then it is not through the promise that God made to Abraham.
Galatians says, "And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the
Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, 'In
you all the nations shall be blessed' " (Gal. 3:8). Inheriting God's kingdom
comes not through the law but through the promise that God gave to Abraham.
There is a comprehensive list of that which does not inherit God's kingdom
in the book of First Corinthians: "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and
blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit
incorruption" (1 Cor. 15:50). This is the complete list: flesh and blood.
This is the same as saying corruption does not inherit incorruption. In the
fall of Adam and Eve all was corrupted. Mankind's nature was corrupted as
was the whole creation. None of this will inherit God's kingdom. If one were
to look around, all that one sees, whether the heavens and earth, whether
the lost, or even whether God's people, all that one sees will not be seen
in God's kingdom. Even God's people on earth are cloaked with unredeemed
flesh and blood and an accompanying fallen nature.
Corruption does not inherit incorruption
The reason one cannot
inherit the kingdom of God through the law is this: corruption does not
inherit incorruption. The Bible says, "Every one of them (the children of
men) has turned aside; They have together become corrupt; There is none who
does good, No, not one" (Psalm 53:3). There are none who keep the law to the
extent of perfection. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God." The righteousness of the law is not just to refrain from doing a list
of outright and grievous sins - it is perfect love to God and a love to
one's neighbor that is as great as love to oneself. It is not just refraining
from negative actions, but also perfect love. Sin is not just
those sins of commission, but also sins of omission. This is
reflected in Jesus' answer to the rich young ruler who thought he had kept
the law: Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you
have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come,
follow Me" (Matt. 19:21). Failure to keep the law is also the state
of those who become believers and have been born into God's kingdom. None
measure up to its perfection. The believer lives solely and only under the
mercy and grace of God. The believer does not inherit God's kingdom based on
works because only perfection is acceptable to a perfectly just and holy
God. To think otherwise is to walk in deception about oneself. To be able
to inherit God's kingdom through works (the law) one would have to keep it
perfectly. Galatians says, "For as many as are of the works of the law are
under the curse; for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who does not
continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do
them.' But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is
evident, for 'the just shall live by faith.' Yet the law is not of faith,
but 'the man who does them shall live by them' " (Gal. 3:10-12). To be
blessed under the law requires the keeping of the whole law, for "cursed is
everyone who does not continue in all things." James wrote, "For whoever
shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all"
(James 2:10). Any sin puts one into the category of "sinner" to which comes
the curse of the law and not its blessing. The promise of the Spirit
Galatians continues: "Christ
has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for
it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree'), that the blessing
of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might
receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Gal. 3:13-14). There is
another way to inherit God's kingdom, but first sin and the curse of the law
had to be dealt with. Jesus did this, having taken the curse upon Himself
and dying on the cross. Those in Christ cannot lose their inheritance
through the curse of the law because Jesus Christ redeemed them from it.
Galatians continues: "Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He
does not say, 'And to seeds,' as of many, but as of one, 'And to your Seed,'
who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and
thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by
God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect" (Gal. 3:16-17).
The promise is this: through the Messiah, a descendant of Abraham, comes a
blessing available to all the world. This promise was made by God before the
law of Moses was given. Therefore the promise is not based on the law and it
cannot be annulled by the law.
Heirs according to the promise
Abraham "believed God, and it was accounted
to him for righteousness" (Gal. 3:6). It is through faith that one gains the
inheritance: "So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing
Abraham" (Gal. 3:9). This chapter concludes, "For you are all sons of God
through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into
Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither
slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in
Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise" (Gal. 3:26-29). The Apostle Peter
exhorts the believers to love one another, "having been born again, not of
corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and
abides forever" (1 Pet. 1:23). The inheritance of God's kingdom is not
to that which is of the fallen world, but it is to these: those who have
been "born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible." Nothing of the
fallen creation inherits the kingdom. One must be born into it as a new
creation. A person becomes a new creation through faith in Jesus Christ, and
this makes one an heir "according to the promise." Jesus Christ is not only
the creator of the heavens and earth, He is the creator of God's people.
They are not self-made; they are a creation of God. Now here is the point:
rest in Jesus Christ must be the basis for a walk with God that produces
love and good works. Hebrews states, "For we who have believed do enter that
rest" (Heb. 4:3). The blessing that comes through Christ includes the
"promise of the Spirit." Jesus redeemed His people from the curse of the
law, "that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ
Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith" (Gal.
3:14). One is born again into God's kingdom through the Holy Spirit. It is
in the Spirit filled life where rest is found. This is where God Himself is
the resource in one's life. This is where love and good works originate.
The guarantee of our inheritance
Paul wrote to the Ephesians who believed in Jesus, "In Him you also trusted,
after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom
also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who
is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the
purchased possession, to the praise of His glory" (Eph. 1:13-14) (emphasis
added). God's guarantee that one will inherit His kingdom is the indwelling
Holy Spirit. This is proof that one has been born into His kingdom. Romans
states, "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are
children of God, and if children, then heirs; heirs of God and joint heirs
with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified
together" (Rom. 8:16-17). It is the children of God who inherit God's
kingdom. Jesus said of the unregenerate, "You are of your father the devil,
and the desires of your father you want to do" (John 8:44). The natural
state of mankind is to not be a child of God but rather a child of the
world, of whom the devil is the father. One must be born "again" to be a
partaker of the kingdom and a joint heir with Christ. The evidence of the
Spirit
There are several evidences that one is born of
God's Spirit into His kingdom. These have to do with the presence of the
Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. One evidence is love. The Apostle
John wrote, "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and
everyone who loves is born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:7). Love is the
fruit of the Spirit and agape love will be manifested if He is
present. God's overwhelming characteristic is lovingkindness. The Bible
says, "God is love." Those who come into a living relationship with God will
be touched and changed by His love. Another evidence is the writing of God's law upon the mind and
heart of the believer. Jeremiah prophesied of the new covenant to Israel,
"Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; not according to the
covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the
hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke,
though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that
I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will
put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their
God, and they shall be My people" (Jer. 31:31-33). The believer is not
under the law for righteousness, but it is the standard of God's
righteousness. An evidence of being born of the Spirit is love for the
righteousness of God. A believer's righteousness is the righteousness of
Christ imputed to him, but nevertheless the work of the Spirit is to conform
the believer to the image of Christ. The Spirit therefore instills a love
for God's law and the righteousness it speaks of. A believer will be grieved
by sin, just as the Holy Spirit is, because the Spirit has written God's law
in his heart. Conviction and correction
A third evidence of the presence of
the Holy Spirit is conviction of sin. Jesus is the lord of the believer and
He is leading and guiding him. The Spirit will convict the believer when he
turns aside from the lordship of Christ. The conviction of the Spirit is
that which speaks to the believer that he is going the wrong way and must
turn back toward Christ. This is opposed to the condemnation of the devil.
The devil's condemnation is that which tries to convince the believer that
he cannot approach God because of sin. The Spirit turns one back to God
while Satan tries to turn one away from God. A fourth evidence that one is
God's child is the chastisement of God. Chastisement is correction. A father
who loves his child will correct him. Chastisement is not punishment. All
punishment for sin has been put upon Christ. The believer does not receive
punishment but he does receive correction. Hebrews states, " 'For whom the
LORD loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.' If you
endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there
whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which
all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons" (Heb.
12:6-8). An evidence of not being a child of God is to not receive
correction for sin. If one is not grieved by sin, not convicted of sin, and
not corrected in sin, then these are evidences that one is not born again of
God's Spirit. Hebrews continues, "Furthermore, we have had human fathers
who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily
be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a
few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we
may be partakers of His holiness" (Heb. 12:9-10). Apart from
punishment for sin, sin in itself is destructive and hurts a person. One may
receive the forgiveness of sins and be accounted righteous in God's sight,
but one will still reap the destructiveness that sin brings if not delivered
from the practice of it. The Bible states, "Do not be deceived, God is not
mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to
his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit
will of the Spirit reap everlasting life" (Gal. 6:7-8). God's laws are not
arbitrary but are given to instruct about that which works against the
righteousness of God's kingdom. Although the believer is justified by
Christ, the Holy Spirit is working to deliver the believer from the
destructiveness of sin. Therefore God's children receive correction. The
correction that God's people receive is not so much a response to any
particular sin, but rather the building up of character so that godliness
will be produced. This oftentimes comes through trials and tribulations, but
may come through something as simple as an exhortation or rebuke.
Paul wrote of the Corinthians after they had received correction: "Now I
rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to
repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer
loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to
salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.
For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What
diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation,
what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things
you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter" (2 Cor. 7:9-11).
Saved in hope
The presence of the Holy
Spirit is a comfort to the believer. He "bears witness with our spirit that
we are children of God." He is "the guarantee of our inheritance until the
redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory." The
believer is still cloaked with an unredeemed body which is a cause of
failure and grief. However Paul wrote, "For we know that the whole creation
groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we
also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within
ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. For
we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does
one still hope for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we
eagerly wait for it with perseverance" (Rom. 8:22-25). Peace with
God
While waiting for the "redemption of our body," the believer can rest in
Christ because He has made peace between God and the redeemed. The born
again believer is not perfect in his walk with God. He can nevertheless walk
in joy and peace with God because of his standing that is established by
Christ. Proverbs says, "But the path of the just is like the shining sun,
That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day" (Prov. 4:18). This is the
walk of the believer, one of walking toward the light of Christ. God is
working in the life of the believer to remove darkness by increasing the
light. This is a process that
lasts a lifetime. It is during this time that one is to exercise faith in
the Creator as not only the one who created the heavens and earth, but also
as one who is making a new creation, a people for Himself. The peace of
resting in the work of Christ through faith is shown by Paul's statement to
the Romans: "Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who
justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is
also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes
intercession for us" (Rom. 8:33-34). Present faith is the assurance of
salvation. Although good works prove the genuineness of past faith, it is
faith that saves and thus a present faith in God's promise that is the
believer's assurance. Because of the believer's unredeemed body, there
will always be a falling short of perfection and thus there will always be a
cause for self-condemnation. But it is God who justifies, not condemns, the
believer. It is the risen Christ who intercedes. The one who is presently
depending upon Christ can rest in assurance by faith, for Jesus said, "All
that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will
by no means cast out" (John 6:37).
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