Today I was reading a great sermon by Charles Finney based on John 3:16John 3:16
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16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  

WP-Bible plugin.  That verse is probably one of the most recognizable Bible verses in the entire Bible, known by believers and unbelievers alike.  It says:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16John 3:16
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16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.  

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In the sermon Finney said some very profound things.  He did away with the notion that Christ only died for some, namely the elect.  He also did away with the other end of the spectrum, which is universalism (a very popular heresy making it’s rounds again in our time) saying:

About atonement only for the elect:

“For whom was this great donation made? ‘God so loved the World,’ meaning the whole race of men. By the ‘world’ in this connection cannot be meant any particular part only, but the whole race. Not only the Bible, but the nature of the case, shows that the atonement must have been made for the whole world. For plainly if it had not been made for the entire race, no man of the race could ever know that it was made for himself, and therefore not a man could believe on Christ in the sense of receiving by faith the blessings of the atonement. There being an utter uncertainty as to the persons embraced in the limited provisions which we now suppose to be made, the entire donation must fail through the impossibility of rational faith for its reception…”

And about universalism:

“Let us next consider attentively the nature of this love. The text lays special stress on this — God so loved — His love was of such a nature, so wonderful and so peculiar in its character, that it led Him to give up His only Son to die. More is evidently implied in this expression than simply its greatness. It is most peculiar in its character. Unless we understand this, we shall be in danger of falling into the strange mistake of the Universalists, who are forever talking about God’s love for sinners, but whose notions of the nature of this love never lead to repentance or to holiness. They seem to think of this love as simply good nature, and conceive of God only as a very good-natured being, whom nobody need to fear…”

But in my opinion probably the most profound thing Finney stated was about sin itself.  His comment has been going through my head all day and I hope it’s not something I will soon forget.  He said:

“Sin is the most expensive thing in the universe. Nothing else can cost so much. Pardoned or unpardoned, its cost is infinitely great. Pardoned, the cost falls chiefly on the great atoning Substitute; unpardoned, it must fall on the head of the guilty sinner.”

And in his remarks he said:

“Again, sin is the most expensive thing in the universe. Are you well aware, O sinner, what a price has been paid for you that you may be redeemed and made an heir of God and of heaven? O what an expensive business for you to indulge in sin.”

This made me think of what the prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 52:3Isaiah 52:3
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3 For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.  

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“For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.”  Isaiah 52:3Isaiah 52:3
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3 For thus saith the LORD, Ye have sold yourselves for nought; and ye shall be redeemed without money.  

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Before we go on in attempt to gratify ourselves apart from our loving Savior, we need to remember what our salvation cost.  It cost the very blood of the only begotten Son of God.  Indeed as Finney stated, “sin is the most expensive thing in the universe.”

To what will we sell our souls for? And as I ask myself, I hope you’ll do the same.  Is it worth it? Momentary pleasure in exchange for death, for the wages of sin is death, for sure.

I hope these thoughts are not soon forgotten in our hearts.  Let’s not be apathetic towards the wisdom of previous generations and take heed to learn from them.  I hope you would take the time to read Finney’s entire sermon entitled “God’s Love For A Sinning World.”  From his book, “Sermons On Gospel Themes.”

And let us continue to look to Jesus Christ the Author and Finisher of our faith.

-Chris

Sin is very much like anti-freeze.  It looks like lime Kool-Aid that I used to drink as a kid.  So it gives the appearance of being great.  Anti-freeze also (from what I’m told) has a sweet taste to it too.  This is why I’m told dogs and cats will drink it up if it’s left out, and not only drink it, but enjoy it while they are.  In the end you always get the same result, death.  So you see why I would find great similarities between anti-freeze and sin.

Sin always equals death, every time and death can’t be cheated.  All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23Romans 3:23
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23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  

WP-Bible plugin).  So death is a debt that all must pay. It’s not a debt that can be escaped or reasoned out of, the payment must be made.

My flesh and Satan would so often remind me of how fun a particular sin is or how much I will enjoy it. And yet never remind me of how much it will hurt me (or so often those I care about as well).  That’s what lust is and what sin does, it diverts and perverts. The lust of any sin can so easily blind us from the consequences of it when our attention becomes so focused on it and diverted from where we should be.

It also perverts by taking something great and created by God like food, sex, or worship; and seeks to twist it and use it in a way that God never intended, a way that will lead to death.  Remember that God is our Creator and if something can be enjoyed then He meant for it to be enjoyable, but only within the context that He chose.  As our Creator He has that right.

A wise man once said, “Sin isn’t wrong because it’s a sin, it’s a sin because it’s wrong.”  Remember sin equals death, always.

In my above examples of food, sex and worship; I referred to them as something that were created by God to be enjoyed (He didn’t have to create taste buds for example), but can easily be perverted when taken out of their intended context.  With food obviously it can be enjoyable and good.  We even need food to live, which make it necessary.  Many different flavors for foods were also created by God.  Jesus Himself often ate with His disciples (and other sinners), and in the Bible food is often used to picture fellowship, and is involved in fellowship.  However we can take food outside it’s natural and normal level and make unhealthy decisions with it.  Like eating chocolate cake at every meal,  or just constantly overeating.  I’m not really an advocate for only eating organic foods, or being overly-obsessed with healthy eating either (if you ask me I think you ca go too far that way too), but I think you understand my point.

In my example of sex, God created it and meant it to be enjoyed.  He’s not the cosmic kill-joy, by inventing sex then telling us not to do it, as some have accused Him of.  (If that’s what you think about the subject then you really need to read the Bible for yourself to see what God’s heart is on the matter).  According to Ephesians 5, marriage is supposed to be a picture of our relationship with God through Christ.  We can truly only share a close relationship with the Creator in the covenantal promise of grace through faith in Christ and in no other way, there’s no going around it.  In a similar way (please don’t twist what I’m trying to say)  God chose the closest relationship that two people, a man and a woman, can share with each other to be contained within the covenantal promise of marriage; any other way leads to death, pain and suffering.  Christ is typologically the bridegroom and we the church are in the same way the bride.  That is simply what God’s word says.  Sex doesn’t exist just for our own enjoyment, and neither do we.  Which leads me to my last example.

Worship.  Worship can be easily perverted.  We were made to be worshipers and so we will worship, it’s in our nature.  Some worship themselves, some worship other people (celebrities are a good example), some worship creatures (Romans 1), some worship created things (cars, houses, toys), and including these others worship false gods.  Satan himself was expelled from Heaven for desiring to be worshiped and really worshiping himself (Isaiah 14; Ezekiel 28).  The point is we will worship, but it’s very important who or what we do end up worshiping.  A side point is, we so often become like what we worship, but in a lesser form.  I don’t really have time to take this thought to it’s complete progression, but I made it nonetheless.

I said before, “we were made to be worshipers,” but I should have completed it by saying “we were made to be worshipers of God.”  If we worship anything but God it will lead to disappointment death and sorrow.  Worship of anything else in this world will leave you hopeless, but only the Creator is the true place where our hope rests and where it was meant to rest.

You may say “But God has disappointed me!”  But my answer would be (and I mean this with compassion and sincerity) that God didn’t disappoint you, but your sense of who God is and what He was supposed to do for you is what probably disappointed you.  In a sense you created for yourself your own god and that god (lowercase g-o-d) is what let you down (Exodus 20).

Even in our desire to worship the True and Living God, the God of the Bible, we can pervert that.  This can happen when we seek to divert our attention to ourselves or someone else, instead of magnifying God.  We are all sinners and are only saved by grace through faith.

My question then for myself is, if I know anti-freeze will kill me, and I know the sweet taste is very temporary (especially in light of eternity), then why do I find myself drawn to it and even partaking in it? I can relate definitely with the Apostle Paul who cried out “Oh wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?! (Romans 7:24Romans 7:24
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24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? the body...: or, this body of death  

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I think it has a lot to do with who I am truly worshiping and where I am focusing.  It also usually coincides with whether or not I have been consistently in God’s word.  His word is like food to my spirit and if I haven’t fed my spirit then logically I’ll be weak and more susceptible to give in to temptations.  Just in case you misunderstand me, I’m not talking about a formula or twelve step program to avoid giving into temptation.  It’s merely an observation (and one that I’ve heard older and wiser believers make).  I think the Word of God puts it better than I ever could (and always will).

“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”  (1 Corinthians 10:131 Corinthians 10:13
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13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. common...: or, moderate  

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The question is am I willing to trust God’s word and truly believe Him when He says something?  Will I truly flee youthful lusts (2 Timothy 2:222 Timothy 2:22
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22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.  

WP-Bible plugin) when the time comes to flee? That’s what I need to do truly.  But the answer really is, it’s not about me, it’s about Him.

I’m so thankful for Jesus Christ, “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:” (Philippians 2:6Philippians 2:6
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6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:  

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And also “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:212 Corinthians 5:21
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21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.  

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Though I deserve death and can never pay for it, Christ didn’t owe the debt and yet paid for it in my stead.  That truly is love, should I really be worshiping anything or anyone else?  He came and paid for my debts knowing full well what I was like and what I was capable of doing.  When He cried out “It is finished (tetelestai – paid in full)!” It really was paid in full and finished.

Like it says in Romans 5:8Romans 5:8
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8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.  

WP-Bible plugin, “…while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  He didn’t wait for our own righteousness to manifest itself before he paid for our sin, as it says in Isaiah 64:6Isaiah 64:6
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6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.  

WP-Bible plugin, “…our righteousness is like filthy rags.”  I won’t go into the literal translation of what that means, but trust me when I say, it’s gross and definitely filthy.  The point is we don’t have any right standing before God, and He knew that ahead of time.  It’s not news to Christ that you’re a sinner, now that really is good news.

That brings me to my final thoughts, like Paul said in Romans 6:1Romans 6:1
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6 ¹ What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?  

WP-Bible plugin&2 “…shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?  God forbid!  How can we who are dead to sin live any longer there in?”  If salvation can’t be earned (and it can’t if it’s obtained by grace and His righteousness), then it can’t be lost by my stupidity and sin-nature.

And like it says in Proverbs 24:16Proverbs 24:16
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16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.  

WP-Bible plugina “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again:…”  However I believe I need to be repentant and look to Christ for my salvation, as it is written in 1 John 1:91 John 1:9
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9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  

WP-Bible plugin.  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I’m definitely still walking in this life and by no means have it all figured out, but I know where to look and I know who does.  When I so easily find myself caught up and drinking anti-freeze (sin) again, I need to reach for the only true antidote, Jesus Christ, The Author and Finisher of my faith.  Praise God for His mercy and grace that He’s bestowed upon me.

I’ll leave you with these last few verses that I take comfort in.

“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:221 Corinthians 15:22
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22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.  

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“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” Revelation 21:4Revelation 21:4
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4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.  

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“The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” (1 Corinthians 15:261 Corinthians 15:26
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26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.  

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We are valuable but God does not need us!

It is easy to think that because “Jesus died for our sins” and “God so loved the world” that somehow God needs us. Like God spent all that time out of time lonely and then decided to create us so that He would be loved and cherished. This is false.

To say that God needs us is to say that God is not complete on His own. That in some way God lacks, so He needs in order to be fulfilled. God does not “need” anything. He is perfect and complete in and of Himself.

When we think this through; that God does not need us, we should with more gratitude and thanksgiving be blessed that He cares for us. It is amazing that God even loves us because:

1. We are enemies of God before Jesus came into our lives. (Romans 5:10Romans 5:10
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10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.  

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2. We are mindful of un-Spiritual things before Jesus (Romans 8:6-7Romans 8:6-7
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6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. to be carnally...: Gr. the minding of the flesh to be spiritually...: Gr. the minding of the Spirit ⁷ Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. the carnal...: Gr. the minding of the flesh  

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3. We are not able to please God without Jesus (Romans 8:8Romans 8:8
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8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.  

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4. We did not belong to Jesus (Romans 8:9Romans 8:9
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9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.  

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5. We are dead in our trespasses and sins without Jesus (Ephesians 2:1Ephesians 2:1
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2 ¹ And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;  

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6 We are disobedient to God without Jesus (Ephesians 2:2Ephesians 2:2
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2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:  

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7. We are children of wrath without Jesus (Ephesians 2:3Ephesians 2:3
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3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. desires: Gr. wills  

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“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love, with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” Ephesians 2:4-7Ephesians 2:4-7
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4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, ⁵ Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by...: or, by whose grace ⁶ And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: ⁷ That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.  

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Our salvation is a product of Gods Love, Mercy, and Grace but not because we were needed by God. We are not needed by God but we are precious in His sight.

You and I were valuable enough to God that “the LORD was pleased to crush [Jesus], putting [Jesus] to grief…” that “for the joy [you and me] set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame…”! God was pleased to crush Jesus on the cross because you and I are valuable to Him. He loves us. Jesus endured the cross and despised the open shame of crucifixion because of the joy that He had knowing it could bring man to God.

So to sum it up:

I should never be prideful enough to think God needs me but humble enough to know I need God. And should never be deceived as to think God does not want me, or love me but be blessed to know that God both wants and loves me.

I was reading in 1 Corinthians chapter 9.  I had a brief thought when I came to verses 22 & 23, and I’d like to share it with you now.

“To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it.” 1 Corinthians9:22 & 23  NASB

I think this verse let’s us in on a little about what Paul (the author of this book) has for a goal in the way he lived his life.  He was constantly looking for ways to proclaim the Good News of the substitutional sacrifice, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

I don’t think he became “all things to all men,” in a way that caused him to sacrifice his morals or beliefs.  Nor did he do it with a fake, plastic personality.  Rather he (I believe) just looked for ways to communicate with people in a way that they could understand.  Though I have to be careful not to project too much of my own ideas into scripture.

Let me get to my point, he did all these things “for the sake of the gospel.”  Paul wanted to win souls.  His goal was to, in obedience to God, bring people from the condemnation of Hell (because of our sin), into salvation by grace through faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ.  All for the sake of the gospel.

I fear that today we (myself every bit as vulnerable as any one else) can easily do the first part, becoming all things to all men, while forgetting the reason why.  Instead of doing it for the sake of the gospel, we forsake the gospel.  We want people to like us, so we leave out the very thing they need most, the truth, Jesus Christ.

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” John 14:6John 14:6
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6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.  

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I see this done in the modern day church with it’s efforts to re-invent Christianity.  In my personal opinion Christianity doesn’t need to be re-invented, it just needs to be lived.  Lived everyday by the grace and mercy of God with full dependence upon Jesus Christ and led by the Holy Spirit.  However, I have just gone down a rabbit trail, let me get back on track.

People need Christ more than anything else in this whole world.  Never forget He is the way, He is the truth, and He is the life.  To know Jesus Christ is to know life, real life.  We can’t be ashamed of the One who was forsaken for our sake.  Remember what Paul said in Romans chapter 1.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Romans 1:16Romans 1:16
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16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.  

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In a world where truth is harder and harder to find, being buried in the philosophies of men and relativism, it’s important for those who know the truth to stick to it.  When the truth becomes relative it’s called an opinion, and ceases from being the truth.  From the stand point that opinions can and often do conflict, but truth by it’s very nature is absolute.

The truth is the truth, embrace it, or should I say Him.

Jesus said “and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

I would encourage my fellow believers to make this your goal, do all, everything, for the sake of the gospel, that some might be saved.  And remember, never forsake the gospel for it is the very power of God through His good news that brought you salvation.