Skip to main content

It matters who you are.

These last few days, we have had a first hand glimpse of the slanted nature of human justice.  The United States has prided itself on the fact that they have no nobility.  This pride has arisen from the belief that the absence of a ruling class has removed the old prejudices that allowed nobles to get away with crimes for which the peasant class would be harshly punished.  However, we have observed that there is still a class system at work in the U.S.  Despite the FBI concluding that a certain presidential candidate was indeed guilty of gross negligence in the handling of top secret material, it was decided that there would be no prosecution for the crime.  If ordinary seaman Jones had been guilty of the same crime, he would have at least been drummed out of the Forces with a dishonourable discharge.  It matters who your are for justice.

In on sense this is not true of God's justice.  All people are sinners and all will justly receive the punishment for their sin.  In another manner it matters immensely who you are when you stand before God's justice.  Romans 5:16-19 tells us that if we believe in Jesus Christ and belong to Him, His righteousness is imputed to us (2 Cor. 5:21).  That means that when the Eternal Judge looks at our case He sees the righteousness of Jesus.  Then based on the perfect righteousness of Jesus, the Judge declares us "Not Guilty!"

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Families' Fridays

Starting a Family Devotion Time by Michael Kelley I haven’t always been a family devotion guy. It’s not because I didn’t want or aspire to be, I honestly did. But we went a long time as a family before pulling the trigger and trying to integrate this practice into the regular rhythm of our family life.  We’ve been doing morning devotions together for about five years now – long enough to where our kids expect that we will. It’s a long road, as are most things with young children I’m finding out. Though revival doesn’t break out every morning over eggs and toast, our continued hope and prayer is that times like these build into the love and discipline our children will have in the future when it comes to God’s Word.  Through those five years, we’ve tried different things, failed at a bunch, and have learned some things along the way. So, as encouragement to those of you just starting out or maybe some affirmation for those of you already in ...

Oops!

I can be a real klutz.  I have very few manual skills and I never grew out of the "tripping over my own feet" stage of life.  I have fumbled and dropped more than my fair share of balls. In other words, "oops" has been a regular part of my vocabulary. It is not only in the physical world that I have fumbled things.  I have messed up relationships.  I have prejudged people before ever getting to know them.  I have used and abused those who love me most in this world.  I have failed and sinned my way into more than one tight corner and created untold disasters.  Oops is not even sufficient for the ways that I have blown it. Perhaps that is why something Paul, our worship leader last Sunday, said resonated so deeply with me this week.  He said "Oops is never said in heaven."  Our God never is clumsy.  He never makes mistakes. His plans never go belly-up.  He never fails.  He never ever has to say oops - and that comforts me.

The Incarnation

This Christmas I have been contemplating a passage that I have never heard preached at Christmas.  It is Hebrews 2:14-18. 14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.   Although there is no baby in swaddling clothes in these verses, they powerfully describe the work of the incarnation - of God becoming man.  Christ came to share ou...