Saturday, November 20, 2021

Inherit the Kingdom – Part 2

 

Ephesians 5:1-6 “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”

 

I didn’t understand the Gospel message and thought that the ticket to Heaven was through behavior modification. I didn’t understand what Romans 6:23 meant by “death”, when it said, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” I was ignorant of Ephesians 2:1-3’s explanation that, “you God made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.” I didn’t grasp in John 3, when Jesus said “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The Son of Man must be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

 

I didn’t have the complete picture. I didn’t pave the way to Heaven by good works or provide the gate in. Ephesians 2:4-8 explained, “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God.” It was only by God’s Plan of Salvation that there was a Way to the heavenly kingdom at all. That narrow gate was Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. God provided the gate.

 

2 Corinthians 5:21 makes it clear, “For [God] made [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” There is a transformation and exchange involved in repentance of sin, trust, belief and faith in Jesus Christ, from lost to restored by God and inheritance of the kingdom. Either Jesus pays the wages earned by our sins, or we do. Now, 1 Peter 2:24-25 makes sense, “who [Jesus] Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 

 

In Christ, Brian

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