The Beautiful Simplicity of the Gospel

There were many, many aspects of your most recent post that caught my attention and piqued my desire to respond. But one in particular I simply can't let slip by. You wrote:

Our souls are constantly being tested for suitability for Heaven, if we fail the test, we don’t to Heaven, we go to Hell. If things are not a test then we could live any which way without concern for the consequences could we not?

No, dear brother, no. I love you dearly, but no.

It is here we come to the very heart of the Gospel, which means "Good News." Life is not a series of tests that each determine whether we go to heaven or not. That would be a form of daily legalism that would haunt us to our grave. That is what Paul wrote of in that painful lament in Romans 7:21-24:

So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? (Romans 7:21-24, NIV)

In other words, Paul is saying in effect, "I try -- honestly I do -- to do what's right, but I keep failing, time and again. I can't ever seem to scale this mountain; it is too high. Whatever shall I do? The more I strive, the more I realize what a wicked sinner I am. Oh, dear God ... who will save me? Who?"

Paul answers his own question in what many consider the very peak of the mountaintop of the Christian faith:

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1-4, NIV, emphasis added)

I'll paraphrase, in my words:

At the moment Christ died on the cross, the accumulated sins of man were laid on him and Christ -- God's eternal Son -- bore the full weight of God's wrath for the sins of man. Those who know they cannot earn their way to heaven due to the heavy weight of their sins may trust that Christ has done all the work, and that we only need believe that is the case -- that Christ did the work and that we cannot. And by trusting in him we not only gain forgiveness for our sins, but gain the full righteousness of Christ. At that moment we are "born again," becoming true children of God, and are looked upon by God as completely righteous as Jesus Christ himself. And it is by the power of the Holy Spirit, who comes into our hearts and takes up permament residence, that I we might walk the journey of the Christian faith, if we are to just place our full trust and faith in Jesus Christ.

I can't type further without giving thanks to God my Father for so rich a blessing as this. All glory to Him who is our creator, our sustainer, our redeemer and our Lord.

So there are no daily tests. Once we are granted God's "Grace" -- his forgiveness, offered to us not because we earned it but because we simply gave up trying and placed our trust at Jesus' feet -- we are forever His, never to be lost.

This is supernatural stuff, to be sure. This soars well above the reach of any logical constructions or scientific inquiry. This is the Gospel -- the beautiful, glorious, unmatched gift from God our Father through his Son Jesus Christ. Amen!

What stops us from thereafter living simply a life of debauchery, knowing as we apparently do that our salvation is assured? The true believer -- the one who really understands the magnitude of God's mercy in pardoning us and granting us eternal life -- will strive to live their lives in grateful submission to Christ's will. He or she will do so by surrending to the Spirit who lives within them, allowing He who is the Spirit of God to guide our lives. Sure, backsliding and tripping up will occur, but the truly born-again will forever keep their eye on Jesus and strive to get back on "The Way" and walk again with Christ our Lord.

You also write:

Christians expect to go to Heaven, and for others not to go to Heaven.

Perhaps, but the true Christian -- the one who knows what Grace is all about -- will pray fervently for all people to come to Christ and gain eternal life. Christianity is not an exclusive club, though many who call themselves "Christians" treat it as such. The offer of God's Grace through Christ Jesus is available to all who truly turn from their sins and accept Christ as their saviour. That means they give up -- they stop trying to "earn" their salvation -- and simply turn to Christ and say, "I cannot do it. You have done it. Please come into my life and take possession of me, dear Lord."

That is the Gospel -- there is nothing like it in all of history, in all the world. No other religion in the world has the concept of Grace -- unmerited forgiveness granted to those who believe that Christ bore their sins and truly trust in the saving Grace of Jesus Christ.

* * *
I am reminded of a story I once heard, about a small boy who comes upon an old-time revival group packing up their gear. The boy rushes up the minister, who is busy folding tents, and asks, "Pastor, what must I do to gain eternal life?"

The pastor answered, "You're too late."

The boy was crestfallen. "Because the revival is over?" He asked.

"No." The pastor replied. "You're too late because someone already did everything that was necessary for you to gain eternal life. That someone was Jesus Christ."

Thanks be to God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ!

Amen!