“If we confess our sins,” writes John (1 John 1.9), “God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
But do we need to confess our sins – be repentant – before God will forgive us? Jesus taught us to pray, “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” (Matthew 6.12) The precondition to God forgiving us is not that we confess our sins but that we forgive others. Jesus emphasises this point in the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18.23-35), where the King cancels a servant’s debt simply because the servant has no way of paying it back. But then the servant goes out and refuses to cancel a miniscule debt that a fellow servant owes him – and as a result the King un-cancels the debt the first servant owes to him, and throws him into prison. Confession and repentance aren’t even mentioned in the parable.
Jesus went about forgiving sin – whether or not the sinner repented. For example the man who was let down through a hole in the roof (Mark 2.1-12). The first thing Jesus did was forgive his sin. The man had not even been given an opportunity to confess his sin.
Another example: the parable of the lost son. The Father didn’t even give his son an opportunity to make his penitent speech – it didn’t matter to him (Luke 15.21-22). He was forgiven, whether or not he was penitent.
And then there’s Jesus’ own prayer: “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.” (Luke 23.34) Did God answer this prayer? Those who hammered the nails into his wrists didn’t repent. The Jewish leaders who condemned him to death had no desire to “confess their sins”. But Jesus forgave them.
If God just forgives everyone whether they ask for it or not, whether they want it or not, we have universalism: everyone will wind up in heaven. But it’s unlikely that people would be forced into heaven who have no desire to be there. On the other hand (as Dallas Willard writes) God is unlikely to turn away from heaven anyone who would sincerely like to be there. Heaven is a place of grace, of forgiveness. Those who prefer ungrace, unforgiveness would not feel at home there. Perhaps that’s the general principle of who winds up in heaven – like the parable of the unforgiving servant: those who choose unforgiveness wind up in the place of unforgiveness while those who choose forgiveness wind up in the place of grace and forgiveness. By choosing forgiveness I am choosing to forgive those who sin against me. By choosing unforgiveness I am choosing to not forgive those who sin against me.
Showing posts with label LoveGraceTruthLight. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LoveGraceTruthLight. Show all posts
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Winderness Hike
My portrait was taken when I was on a wilderness hike in the summer. Two fathers. Two sons. (In case you're wondering: despite my T-shirt, I am not Welsh, but I did live in Wales for three years. And despite the fact that I'm living in Finland, I am not Finnish - but I have been living here for the last three years.)
There's a song by Iona called The River Flows. It includes the line, "Down through the ages, the truth will survive."
Down through the ages, the truth will survive. God can take care of that. At the same time truth is self-evident. The truth that Paris is the capital of France. The truth that E=mc². The truth that God exists. The truth that he is good. The truth that I fall short. The conclusion that therefore I need to throw myself onto his mercy.
At the same time, fathers and sons together. In earlier times our fathers and forefathers were the guardians of the truth. They may not have got it spot on. I may not have it spot on. My son may not get it spot on. But down through the ages, the truth will survive. One generation may have one emphasis; the next generation may have a different emphasis. Some expressions of the truth will look quite different from others. But God will ensure that down through the ages the truth will survive. The truth will adjust itself to different cultures and contexts. The wrappings may change but the truth will never change.
Down through the ages the truth will survive
Turning the pages the light cannot die
Michael
There's a song by Iona called The River Flows. It includes the line, "Down through the ages, the truth will survive."
Down through the ages, the truth will survive. God can take care of that. At the same time truth is self-evident. The truth that Paris is the capital of France. The truth that E=mc². The truth that God exists. The truth that he is good. The truth that I fall short. The conclusion that therefore I need to throw myself onto his mercy.
At the same time, fathers and sons together. In earlier times our fathers and forefathers were the guardians of the truth. They may not have got it spot on. I may not have it spot on. My son may not get it spot on. But down through the ages, the truth will survive. One generation may have one emphasis; the next generation may have a different emphasis. Some expressions of the truth will look quite different from others. But God will ensure that down through the ages the truth will survive. The truth will adjust itself to different cultures and contexts. The wrappings may change but the truth will never change.
Down through the ages the truth will survive
Turning the pages the light cannot die
Michael
Sunday, October 01, 2006
The truth sets you free
Apologies to all my readers that five days have gone by and I've not posted anything. This week has been hectic and non-stop. For your meditation today, though, some thoughts from John 8:
Action: Keep on obeying my teachings.
Result: You will know the truth.
Long-term impact: You will be set free. (The truth will set you free.)
These are continues actions, like “If you go on believing in him you will go on having eternal life.” It was the long-term impact (you will be set free) that the people challenged. Being set free, it seems, didn’t meet a felt need. If I think I’m already free I will have no desire to follow a route designed to set me free.
Jesus elaborates, “Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Freedom from slavery; freedom from sin. Again the aspect is continuous: “whoever goes on sinning”. Then Jesus says, “A slave is not a permanent member of the family.” What a liberating statement! What a liberating statement! I may be a slave to sin, but I am not a permanent member of the family of sin. Since I’m only a slave of the family of sin and not a son in the family of sin I can be set free! And Jesus gives me the route: obey his teaching which will help me know the truth which will set me free: the slave is liberated.
I am a son in the household of God, and a slave in the household of sin. My home is where I am a son. But it took my big brother to come and rescue me from the other household where I was a prisoner. And if my big brother sets me free – he’s the Son with a capital “S” – I will indeed be free. No doubt about it.
Enjoy his freedom! Michael
Action: Keep on obeying my teachings.
Result: You will know the truth.
Long-term impact: You will be set free. (The truth will set you free.)
These are continues actions, like “If you go on believing in him you will go on having eternal life.” It was the long-term impact (you will be set free) that the people challenged. Being set free, it seems, didn’t meet a felt need. If I think I’m already free I will have no desire to follow a route designed to set me free.
Jesus elaborates, “Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” Freedom from slavery; freedom from sin. Again the aspect is continuous: “whoever goes on sinning”. Then Jesus says, “A slave is not a permanent member of the family.” What a liberating statement! What a liberating statement! I may be a slave to sin, but I am not a permanent member of the family of sin. Since I’m only a slave of the family of sin and not a son in the family of sin I can be set free! And Jesus gives me the route: obey his teaching which will help me know the truth which will set me free: the slave is liberated.
I am a son in the household of God, and a slave in the household of sin. My home is where I am a son. But it took my big brother to come and rescue me from the other household where I was a prisoner. And if my big brother sets me free – he’s the Son with a capital “S” – I will indeed be free. No doubt about it.
Enjoy his freedom! Michael
Monday, September 25, 2006
God be merciful to me a sinner
God be merciful to me a sinner. God be merciful to me a sinner. God be merciful to me a sinner.
The illogic of grace as someone put it. If God worked logically he’d zap us all rather quickly; well, me at least. You sin – you get punished. The End. Simple cause and effect. But God chooses to show mercy. He chooses to forgive. He chooses to give me a second chance. And a third chance, and forth, and fifth and 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 etc. The Christian life is not a matter of believing certain things but of living a certain kind of life. A life centred on loving God and responding to his love.
How can I love God? Well, first and foremost, as Scripture says, by doing what he says. “If you love me you will obey my commandments.” So why do I find it so hard to put this key revelation into practice, and so routinely fail to do what I know God wants?
Secondly I can show my love of God by respecting him and all that he has made. If I claim to love God but do not give two hoots for the world he has made and the millions made in his image across the world, I am no more than the Newhaven fog horn letting off steam.
Loving God is not giving mental assent to the “truth” I love God. Loving God is a matter of action. Just as having faith in God is not a matter of giving mental assent to a bunch of doctrines. It is a matter of action. Why do we get so bogged down in the mechanics of the Christian life that we omit to live it? Like having a brand new iPod, and working out as exactly as I can how it works and why it can achieve what it does – but failing to fill my soul with the beautiful music it was designed to produce.
God have mercy on me a sinner. God have mercy of me a sinner. God have mercy on me a sinner.
The illogic of grace as someone put it. If God worked logically he’d zap us all rather quickly; well, me at least. You sin – you get punished. The End. Simple cause and effect. But God chooses to show mercy. He chooses to forgive. He chooses to give me a second chance. And a third chance, and forth, and fifth and 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 etc. The Christian life is not a matter of believing certain things but of living a certain kind of life. A life centred on loving God and responding to his love.
How can I love God? Well, first and foremost, as Scripture says, by doing what he says. “If you love me you will obey my commandments.” So why do I find it so hard to put this key revelation into practice, and so routinely fail to do what I know God wants?
Secondly I can show my love of God by respecting him and all that he has made. If I claim to love God but do not give two hoots for the world he has made and the millions made in his image across the world, I am no more than the Newhaven fog horn letting off steam.
Loving God is not giving mental assent to the “truth” I love God. Loving God is a matter of action. Just as having faith in God is not a matter of giving mental assent to a bunch of doctrines. It is a matter of action. Why do we get so bogged down in the mechanics of the Christian life that we omit to live it? Like having a brand new iPod, and working out as exactly as I can how it works and why it can achieve what it does – but failing to fill my soul with the beautiful music it was designed to produce.
God have mercy on me a sinner. God have mercy of me a sinner. God have mercy on me a sinner.
Friday, September 22, 2006
Fire: the character of God
God forgives sin because of who God is. His character. See Exodus 34.6-7: "Yahweh, Yahweh, a God compassionate and merciful, long-suffering, ever faithful and true, remaining faithful to thousands of generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion and sin but without acquitting the guilty, one who punishes children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation for the iniquity of their fathers!" Note in passing that forgiveness lasts for thousands of generations but punishment for only three or four. Maximum.
Dallas Willard says, “I am thoroughly convinced that God will let everyone into heaven who, in his considered opinion, can stand it.” And continues: “But ‘standing it’ may prove to be a more difficult matter… The fires in heaven may be hotter than those in the other place.” (The Divine Conspiracy, p330) Which means that a) Steve Chalke may be write when he says that the only thing that keeps us out of heaven is our own refusal to respond to God (or something like that); and b) my own "our God is a consuming fire" thesis may not be too far wrong after all.
Our God is a consuming fire is a book I have drafted bits of but never got round to working on properly. Its argument is that "hell" (Dallas's “the other place”) is not separate from God himself. If there are fires in heaven (which is rather likely since our God is a consuming fire) what need is there of another place (hell) with fire in it? What we know as "hell" is the flip-side of God. God is a consuming fire. Get on the wrong side of him, and his fire will consume you (consume, NOT torment endlessly); get on the right side of God and his fires will complete the refining process that he is already doing in you.
God forgives sin. He does that because it is ingrained in his character. Jesus’ death is the means by which he forgives sins but not the reason why he forgives sin. And so on that basis everyone, anyone is welcome into heaven. “If you can stand it.” Or it may be that the fires of heaven are too hot and our God who is a consuming fire will consume you. It seems likely that if I have got used to living in the light, looking to the light, moving closer to the source of the light, that I will survive the fires of heaven. For fire gives light. Light gives heat. The two cannot be separated. More than that, the Light is the Centre of my being. I love the Light. The Light shines in me and through me. And so when I approach the Light, the Fire in heaven, it will be a coming home.
Michael
Dallas Willard says, “I am thoroughly convinced that God will let everyone into heaven who, in his considered opinion, can stand it.” And continues: “But ‘standing it’ may prove to be a more difficult matter… The fires in heaven may be hotter than those in the other place.” (The Divine Conspiracy, p330) Which means that a) Steve Chalke may be write when he says that the only thing that keeps us out of heaven is our own refusal to respond to God (or something like that); and b) my own "our God is a consuming fire" thesis may not be too far wrong after all.
Our God is a consuming fire is a book I have drafted bits of but never got round to working on properly. Its argument is that "hell" (Dallas's “the other place”) is not separate from God himself. If there are fires in heaven (which is rather likely since our God is a consuming fire) what need is there of another place (hell) with fire in it? What we know as "hell" is the flip-side of God. God is a consuming fire. Get on the wrong side of him, and his fire will consume you (consume, NOT torment endlessly); get on the right side of God and his fires will complete the refining process that he is already doing in you.
God forgives sin. He does that because it is ingrained in his character. Jesus’ death is the means by which he forgives sins but not the reason why he forgives sin. And so on that basis everyone, anyone is welcome into heaven. “If you can stand it.” Or it may be that the fires of heaven are too hot and our God who is a consuming fire will consume you. It seems likely that if I have got used to living in the light, looking to the light, moving closer to the source of the light, that I will survive the fires of heaven. For fire gives light. Light gives heat. The two cannot be separated. More than that, the Light is the Centre of my being. I love the Light. The Light shines in me and through me. And so when I approach the Light, the Fire in heaven, it will be a coming home.
Michael
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Jesus, be the centre
Hi there! Aplogies to all my faithful followers that I didn't post anything last night. My ISP was down. Just come home now from a Grieg concert. Rousing, passionate stuff.
I feel as though I’m on the edge of something big, something important, something exciting, mind-blowing, life-changing. To live one’s life oriented around Jesus, the centre.
Jesus is the centre. All mankind is around him, some close, some far away. Imagine him as the light – don’t need to imagine, He is the Light. And his radiance goes out to the ends of the earth, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never mastered it.” What is important isn’t how close you are to the Light. That is not your fault (as it were). What is important is which way you are facing. Are you looking to the Centre or are you looking away? Looking toward the Light or into the darkness? And more than looking: which way are you moving? Jesus is the Centre. He is the One. He is the one around which all revolves, all must revolve, I must revolve, to whom I must be looking. Am I drawing closer to him, getting further into the Light, or am I moving away from him? That is what is vital.
A journey, not a position.
“Jesus be the centre” must be the key to experiencing God’s freedom, and then setting others free to experience his freedom. Even now, it’s only as much as I put Jesus at the centre that I am able to experience freedom and help others do the same.
Authenticity.
All for now! Michael
I feel as though I’m on the edge of something big, something important, something exciting, mind-blowing, life-changing. To live one’s life oriented around Jesus, the centre.
Jesus is the centre. All mankind is around him, some close, some far away. Imagine him as the light – don’t need to imagine, He is the Light. And his radiance goes out to the ends of the earth, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never mastered it.” What is important isn’t how close you are to the Light. That is not your fault (as it were). What is important is which way you are facing. Are you looking to the Centre or are you looking away? Looking toward the Light or into the darkness? And more than looking: which way are you moving? Jesus is the Centre. He is the One. He is the one around which all revolves, all must revolve, I must revolve, to whom I must be looking. Am I drawing closer to him, getting further into the Light, or am I moving away from him? That is what is vital.
A journey, not a position.
“Jesus be the centre” must be the key to experiencing God’s freedom, and then setting others free to experience his freedom. Even now, it’s only as much as I put Jesus at the centre that I am able to experience freedom and help others do the same.
Authenticity.
All for now! Michael
Monday, September 18, 2006
Helping others join the dance
I've been realising more and more clearly that it’s right here in my current job that God wants the vision to come true. In my current job I can be setting others free to be filled with and transformed by the Spirit so they can join in the dance. Back in 2003 when I was in the UK the "Prophetess of Birmingham" said that:
* God would use me double
* He’d call me to do a new thing
* God hadn’t finished with me in Russia (where my current work is)
What she didn’t give were the specifics. The vision recorded on Day One of this blog pointed to the nature of what God wanted me to do: set others free. In His strength, and having been set free myself by the Spirit of God. My friend in the the vision... I have a close friend here in the Russian work; we identified the same passion, and continue to share freely with each other. Is he the one?
And then the more recent "prophetic word". The message confirmed that God had given me his message. I wasn’t to wait for further revelations. God had spoken. The ball was now in my court.
And so recently I’ve taken specific steps. If I’m to be involved in liberating folk in my current work to join in the dance I need to equip myself. I’ve asked someone to mentor me in mentoring and doing growth plans. And she’s started on the mentoring in mentoring bit. Growth plans will follow soon.
How else can I liberate people in my current work? (I’m aware that I’m not really free myself: I need to address a number of fronts.) Is my close friend a key? Liberation comes together, in community, in the context of God’s worshipping people. However when I went to minister to someone in the vision it was by myself. And then came the incredible thirst – thirst for God.
“The truth shall set you free.” I’m seriously searching after truth. Real truth. The foundation is the truth that God is Love. That is who/what he is. He himself declared that in Exodus 34.6 when he gave his name to Moses (“The LORD, the LORD, a God compassionate and merciful, long-suffering, ever faithful and true”). That is why he forgives sin. It is in his very character. It is who he is. And so even the Psalmist could be so sure, the Psalmist who had never heard of Jesus (“As far as east is from west, so far from us has he put away our offences.”) God doesn’t forgive our sin because Jesus died. He forgives sin because of who he is. Jesus life and death in some mysterious way is simply part of the mechanics.
Looking forward to your comments . . . Michael
* God would use me double
* He’d call me to do a new thing
* God hadn’t finished with me in Russia (where my current work is)
What she didn’t give were the specifics. The vision recorded on Day One of this blog pointed to the nature of what God wanted me to do: set others free. In His strength, and having been set free myself by the Spirit of God. My friend in the the vision... I have a close friend here in the Russian work; we identified the same passion, and continue to share freely with each other. Is he the one?
And then the more recent "prophetic word". The message confirmed that God had given me his message. I wasn’t to wait for further revelations. God had spoken. The ball was now in my court.
And so recently I’ve taken specific steps. If I’m to be involved in liberating folk in my current work to join in the dance I need to equip myself. I’ve asked someone to mentor me in mentoring and doing growth plans. And she’s started on the mentoring in mentoring bit. Growth plans will follow soon.
How else can I liberate people in my current work? (I’m aware that I’m not really free myself: I need to address a number of fronts.) Is my close friend a key? Liberation comes together, in community, in the context of God’s worshipping people. However when I went to minister to someone in the vision it was by myself. And then came the incredible thirst – thirst for God.
“The truth shall set you free.” I’m seriously searching after truth. Real truth. The foundation is the truth that God is Love. That is who/what he is. He himself declared that in Exodus 34.6 when he gave his name to Moses (“The LORD, the LORD, a God compassionate and merciful, long-suffering, ever faithful and true”). That is why he forgives sin. It is in his very character. It is who he is. And so even the Psalmist could be so sure, the Psalmist who had never heard of Jesus (“As far as east is from west, so far from us has he put away our offences.”) God doesn’t forgive our sin because Jesus died. He forgives sin because of who he is. Jesus life and death in some mysterious way is simply part of the mechanics.
Looking forward to your comments . . . Michael
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