Michael writes of the Gospel's clarity on “What Christians are supposed to do”; defining the moral high ground. He points out that the Old Testament emphasizes the Law of God's righteous judgment and the consequences for sin. However, the gospels teach that for Christians who confess that Jesus is Lord, Christ is the end of the law. Since Jesus has covered our sins, how then shall we understand what's right and what's wrong? A related question is, "How do we respond to and treat people who consider us their enemy?"
The answer to these questions is found in Romans chapter 12. When Paul wrote this epistle to the believers in Rome, he was writing about people in their own communities and in their own families. In Romans 5:9-11 Paul said, “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 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. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.”
Even though we who were called of God, pushed God away, Jesus paid the price for our sins and reconciled us in spite of ourselves. Christ paid for sin on our behalf with his innocent blood in exchange for our guilty blood. For he who was without sin became the perfect payment for sin on our behalf that we may be made the righteousness of God in him. Therefore because of Jesus' intercession on our behalf, we have been “born again” of God's spirit, Christ in us the hope of glory and are now sons and daughters of God. As children of God, the gospel says to work for the salvation of those who treat us like an enemy.
Romans 12:14, “Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.”
Before his conversion, Saul (who later became the Apostle Paul) persecuted Christians. He even oversaw the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian martyr. While he was traveling to Damascus to persecute Christians, he had a life-changing encounter with the risen Christ. Even though Saul was an enemy of the faith, Jesus had a different plan for his life. Stephen's martyrdom was a powerful witness of his Lord Jesus Christ. He said while his executioners were stoning him to death, "lay not this sin to their charge." He understood Jesus' command: “Bless them that persecute you and despitefully use you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake....for great is your reward in heaven”. The witness of Stephen's execution showed Saul that the way to bless your enemy is to work for their salvation.
The proper response to an enemy is in Romans 12:15-16. This means that those who perceive us as an enemy have to objectively observe our righteous heart and actions as a follower of Christ. They need to see how we exemplify the gospel of salvation. Our first objective is to give a proper testimony to those who perceive us as their enemy. The first thing they need to see is empathy according to verse 15: “Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.” Jesus' example was that we take up our yoke because He is our true yoke fellow. Because of His labor of love and His sacrifice on our behalf, He pulls the majority of the load. We couldn't do it on our own. In that while we were yet sinners, and enemies of God, Christ died for the ungodly.
The second objective is to live in harmony with those who disagree with us. Harmony goes way beyond unison. God created us harmoniously fitted together within the body of Christ. Even though we each sing a different part, harmony reinforces and glorifies God. When we sing His praises in harmony, the sum of our blended voices is much more glorious than when everyone simply sings in unison. Harmony builds on our common nature: the nature of God in Christ in us the hope of glory. The object is to set aside our differences and focus on our common purpose and our common nature, while we each glorify God according our own individual calling.
The Third objective is to keep ourselves humble. Haughtiness and pride are contrary to the nature of Christ in us. This is the theme of Philippians chapter 2. Jesus humbled Himself as a man and became a servant to serve God's people from a heart of love. To exemplify and testify objectively that He was the object of God's gospel message; that He himself was the meaning of truth incarnate.
Let's continue Michael's message on "Right and Wrong" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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