Friday: Further Thought – No Condemnation
Further Thought: “The plan of salvation does not offer believers a life free from suffering and trial this side of the kingdom. On the contrary, it calls upon them to follow Christ in the same path of self-denial and reproach. . . . It is through such trial and persecution that the character of Christ is reproduced and revealed in His people. . . . By sharing in the sufferings of Christ we are educated and disciplined and made ready to share in the glories of the hereafter.” – The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, pp. 568, 569.
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
“The chain that has been let down from the throne of God is long enough to reach to the lowest depths. Christ is able to lift the most sinful out of the pit of degradation, and to place them where they will be acknowledged as children of God, heirs with Christ to an immortal inheritance.” – Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, vol. 7, p. 229.
“One honored of all heaven came to this world to stand in human nature at the head of humanity, testifying to the fallen angels and to the inhabitants of the unfallen worlds that through the divine help which has been provided, every one may walk in the path of obedience to God’s commands. . . .
“Our ransom has been paid by our Saviour. No one need be enslaved by Satan. Christ stands before us as our all-powerful helper.” – Ellen G. White, Selected Messages, book 1, p. 309.
Discussion Questions:
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It is all about surrendering to God. We know nothing! We Control nothing. And our character must be tested. We must be molded.
So, after this week’s study, how do we answer the questions of (1) what is the specific source of the “condemnation”, and (2) what is the corresponding cure for that condemnation - so that there is no longer any condemnation?
Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God. 1 John 3:21
Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. Romans 2:1
Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. Romans 14:22
A good man will obtain favor from the LORD,
But He will condemn a man who devises evil. Proverbs 12:2
“The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here. The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. Matthew 12:41, 42.
Looks like the condemnation is pretty well universal. The solution is to be "in" Jesus.
The Greek word here translated "in" can mean: in, with, by, through, at, or among. It can have a broad range of interpretations, but most commonly is translated "in", however the context here would point to the word "with" as being a more appropriate rendering of the meaning of the verse. So my answer to your question #2 is to get with Jesus. To allow Him to decide the course of your life and how you should behave. To rely on His power to change you into the person that He wants you to become. It would have to mean a complete submission and reliance on Him. Hope this helps. steve
With Jesus, what does that intail? Christ said: Abide in Me and I in you. John 15:4. One of my favorite quotes that answers my question is: Through the right exercise of the will, an entire change may be made in my life. By yielding up my will to Christ, I ally myself with the power that is above all principalities and powers. I will have strength from above to hold me steadfast, and thus through constant surrender to God I will be enabled to live the new life, even the life of faith. SC 48.1. What does the life of faith bring? No condimnation, peace, joy, traits of Christ, Christlike nature, happyness, not to mention, eternal life. Curtis Hall brings us a quote that adds one word to your words, 'with Christ'. “The only condition upon which the freedom of man is possible is that of becoming one with Christ. “The truth shall make you free;” and Christ is the truth. Sin can triumph only by enfeebling the mind, and destroying the liberty of the soul. Subjection to God is restoration to one’s self,—to the true glory and dignity of man.” Ellen White, Desire of Ages 466.
Phil the condemnation is death, the wages of sin. But eternal life is the gift of God Romans 6:23. Jesus paid the price on the cross to remove that condemnation. That gift is available as long as we live. There will always be a judgment when there is an end, and Jesus returns. He is our salvation.
God wants to save us "by any means necessary". Our character is the only thing we will leave earth with. This character must have the desire to love, worship, and obey God only. Tests and trials may come, but they are there to make us strong. Some of us are running with the foot soldiers, some are running with the horses, but the swelling of the Jordan is still to come. Jeremiah 12:5. I know it's hard running these last few miles, but hang in. God has promised never to leave or forsake us and to give us eternal life if we stay the course. God be blessed!
It appears to me that Christians may have two characters. The first character we develop was developed through the natural motivation of selfishness. The next Character we have, as Christians is the supernatural character we develop when the Spirit of Jesus is allowed to be our motivation for thoughts and feelings.
Now we have the two characters available to choose from in any given issue and at any moment. Our salvation depends on which character we choose to develop in the moment--moment by moment. The Character we choose to embrace for our life will be the one we will take with us in the resurrection either to eternal life or to eternal death.
Let's choose life moment by moment by choosing to let God's Love motivate us as we walk after (in) His Spirit.
I really liked the sermon our pastor gave a couple weeks ago. In it he pointed out that we need to be daily, hourly asking, "God, what is Your will in this situation, this moment, for this business deal, that relationship, my role in others' life?" I think if we continually seek to glorify God throughout our day, it will help us to become the people God created us to be.
This is a tough thing to do, especially when you don't want to be some place,
You know?
Thank YOU very much for sharing this
Yes, Jim, it is very tough. It's like choosing to die. The difference is that when we choose to give up the ghost of selfishness to receive the Holy Spirit, allowing God's Love to motivate our thoughts and feelings, we receive infinitely more than we gave up.