What's in a Name?

From the Liberate blog:

On December 30, 2012 at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church Dr. Jono Linebaugh, Assistant Professor of New Testament at Knox Theological Seminary and Director of Content at LIBERATE, offered a sermon on Matthew 1: 18-25. Entitled “What’s in a Name?” Dr. Linebaugh asks, What does the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1 have to say  to the slaughter of innocents in Bethlehem under Herod in Matthew 2? Linebaugh opens up space through Hugo’s Les Misérables and Dostoyevsky’s Brothers Karamazov in order to speak one name to the world’s suffering and pain.

Jesus, The Emobodiment of the Law

Last post, I talked a little about Jesus being the fulfillment of the Law.  Jesus is the completion of the Law in that he did what the Law itself could never do. That is, give new life. Not only was Jesus the fulfillment of the Law, but he was also the embodiment. In other words, the actions of Jesus were perfectly integrated with what he taught. As Frank Thielman puts it,

*all scripture references are to Matthew

"Not only did he urge his disciples to be merciful (5:7), but he showed mercy to others (9:7, 15:22, 20:30). Not only did he bless those who were persecuted for righteousness' sake (5:10), but he himself died unjustly, despite his innocence (27:23). Not only did he tell others to turn the other cheek (5:39), but he refused to strike back at those who arrested him (26:52-53). He urged his followers to deny themselves, take up their crosses, and follow him (16:24), and he took up the cross to suffer death for the forgiveness of others' sins (26:28, 39, 42; 27:26). Not merely Jesus' teaching, therefore, but Jesus himself is the expression-in deed as well as word-of God's will. Because of this Jesus replaces the Mosaic law."


Frank Thielman, Theology of the New Testament: A Canonical and Synthetic Approach (Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2005), 90. 

Jesus, The Fulfillment of the Law

"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; 

I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them."

Matthew 5:17

These words Jesus spoke come right in the middle of his famous Sermon on the Mount. It directly follows the beatitudes and is followed by his teachings on murder, adultery, divorce, and love. In many ways, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is a parallel to the Law (think 10 commandments) given to Moses in the Old Testament. However, in his teaching on the Law, Jesus takes everything further. Whereas Moses taught "You shall not murder", Jesus proclaimed that everyone who is even angry with his brother, or speaks insult is liable to the same judgement. Where the Law of the Old Testament said, "You shall not commit adultery", Jesus said, "everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart."The Old Testament allowed for a man to divorce his wife, but Jesus said that the only legitimate reason for a divorce is sexual infidelity. 

What was Jesus doing here? He seems to be challenging and contrasting the ancient Law of God. These words would have undoubtedly caused his Jewish audience to question such a man claiming to usher in God's Kingdom. How can this be a man from God if he is changing what God has already given us?

This is where Matthew 5:17 comes in. What Jesus is saying here is that he came to fulfill God's own intention in the Law. The Law is meant to lead us in righteousness and point us to God's perfect moral character. Yet, in the Old Testament, the Law served more as a guide and restraint to an imperfect situation. For example, lust is an unavoidable reality among people, but instilling retribution (The Law) for such acts puts restraint on this action. However, this is incomplete; it never really gets at the heart of the action. 

Jesus fulfilled the Law in that he got at the heart of the matter. Jesus wasn't interested in giving his people a minimal standard of rules so that they could live functionally as a society. He came to bring so much more than that. Jesus came to call a new people, to which he would give completely new hearts. These new hearts wouldn't be fashioned after the minimal requirements of the Law, but would be fashioned after God's heart in the Law. Therefore, it was no longer an issue of literally committing murder or adultery, but rather, as God's new people, who have been given new life and new hearts, we are living under God's loving and righteous rule and reign. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law because he did what they Law never could do. The Law could never change hearts and give new life. Jesus came to assemble a new people who had the Law written on their new hearts, and who were free to follow God in righteousness. 

Simple Instruction from Jesus to His Disciples

"You received without paying; give without pay."

- Matthew 10:8b

The Life You Save

"What God says, is 'The life you save is the life you lose.' In other words, the life you clutch, hoard, guard, and play safe with is in the end a life worth little to anybody, including yourself, and only a life given away for love's sake is a life worth living. To bring his point home, God shows us a man who gave his life away to the extent of dying a national disgrace without a penny in the bank or a friend to his name. In terms of human wisdom, he was a Perfect Fool. And if you think you can follow him without making something like the same kind of a fool of yourself, you are laboring under not a cross but a delusion." - Frederick Buechner

What Do You Treasure?

""The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. 

When a man found it, he hid it again,

and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." 

The notion of hidden treasure may seem a bit antiquated for modern times. I mean, we aren't the pirates of the Caribbean, and none of us are Jack Sparrow. Yet, I don't think the hot pursuit of hidden treasure is that far from our hearts. Think about it. We are all after something. Whatever it is that we value most, we will chase after. Whether it be the pursuit of money, a career, a football scholarship, recognition, respect, or simply academic success. Whatever is precious to us, we will be willing to sacrifice and chase after. 

This raises the question: What do you treasure? In other words, what do you value most, or what is most precious to you? In this passage, the thing that was most valuable to the man was the hidden treasure. He chased after it with all that he had, even selling everything that he owned just to get this treasure. This brings us back to the question, what do you treasure?

In life, just as with the man in this short parable, we can tell what our treasure is by what we are willing to give up to get it. When something is supremely valuable to us, we are willing to sacrifice for it, we are willing to spend time and energy to get it. This treasure will captivate us and we will be drawn to it in such a way that we are willing to follow it with everything we have. 

So why would Jesus tell this short parable to a large crown in Matthew 13? How is the Kingdom of God like this hidden treasure? I think what Jesus is telling us is that being in a relationship with Him is a lot like finding that treasure. Knowing God is more valuable, more precious and more captivating than anything else in this world. So much so, that if we come into this relationship, we will be so drawn to Jesus, so captivated by His glory and beauty, that all the  treasures in this world, the treasure we so often chase, will soon loose their appeal. Jesus is the supremely valuable treasure that we are all looking for. 

Lastly, if we look at God's actions, what does this say about what or who he treasures? Based on the criteria of what you are willing to sacrifice for, you treasure, it is evident that God treasures us. We know this  because he was willing to give everything for us. And this is the good news; God so loves and treasures each one of us, that he sacrificed his only son, that we could discover him as the true treasure. 

Do Not Presume

"Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, 

'we have Abraham as our Father,' for I tell you, 

God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham."

Matthew 3:9

In this passage, John the Baptist is speaking to the Pharisees and Sadducees as they came to him to be baptized. John's message to the religious leaders was clear (like it was clear to the other people he preached to in Matthew 3:1-2). They needed to repent. In this case, it meant repenting from their presuming upon God. What exactly was their presumption ?

According to the passage, the Pharisees and Scribes assumed their position with God based on their religious heritage. They presumed that they were children of God because they were from the same bloodline as Abraham. They were good with God because of their tradition.

I love the gospel because it speaks to each of us in our self-inflated efforts to gain God's acceptance. It bids us to repent; to literally turn from trusting ourselves, to trusting in Christ. To those who think they are good with God because they are moral people, the message of repentance is that we could never be good enough to earn God's acceptance. In fact, the only one who did that was Jesus. Therefore, we must turn from our own moral record and trust Christ's moral record on our behalf. To those who try to be their own god, the message is repent. Turn from trusting yourself as god and turn to the one true and living God. To those who think they are good with God because they come from a rich religious tradition, God's message is repent. Your religious heritage cannot save you; only I can. So, stop trusting in yourself and turn to trust in me. Don't assume you are a true child of Abraham and thus a child of God because of your families religious tradition.

This makes me ask, in what ways do I presume upon God? In what ways do I think my self-efforts earn my acceptance with God. To me, I can imagine this passage saying something like, "Do not presume to yourself that you are a child of God just because you go to seminary, or because you are an active member at a church, or because you are in ministry."None of those are bad things. However, when we trust in these 'things' to give us acceptance before God, they are wrong. The gospel is that we are only accepted by God by grace through faith. It is Christ's finish work that gains our acceptance. There is nothing we could ever do to earn it. To attempt to do so, is to minimize Jesus Christ as our Savior. This is what this passage demands we repent of. Join me in doing so. 

The Promises of Sin vs. The Promises of Christ

At the heart of sin is attempting to put something in the place of God. Let's take the example of sexual lust. According to Jesus, sexual lust is clearly a sin, 

"But I say to you that everyone who looks at a women with lustful intent

has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Matthew 5:28

A common misconception of both Christians and non-Christians alike is to assume that sexual lust is a sin because sex is bad in itself. This couldn't be further from the truth. Sexual lust is a sin because it is taking something that God made for our good, and perverting it. Sexual lust is a sin because it is looking to find our ultimate need for intimacy in sex. It is trusting in sex to fill a void only God was meant to fill. 

Sexual lust promises a false intimacy. Lust says, "Long for what you cannot have and you will be happy."

The gospel promises true intimacy. The gospel says, "Rejoice in what you do have in Jesus, and you will be happy."

Our desire for intimacy is not wrong. But, it becomes sin when we look to fill this need with something other than God. Jonathan Dodson points out in his book, "Gospel Centered Discipleship" that we need to continually remind ourselves of the false promises of sin verse the true promises of Christ. Lust will never satisfy. It leaves us feeling empty and craving more. It never truly quenches. Jesus truly satisfies. He delivers on his promises. 

*much of the above was taken from Jonathan Dodson's, "Gospel-Centered Discipleship."

I'm Good

Love this song from Trip Lee's new album, The Good Life. Check out the official music video.

Suppressing the Truth

"For the Wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.....

because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen."

Romans 1:18-19, 25

These verses capture the very essence of insanity. Paul gives us a swift kick to the face in these verses as he describes just how delusional our sinful, default worldview is. In our sinfulness, we suppress the truth about the Sovereign, Holy, Gracious God of the Bible. As R.C. Sproul puts it in his book, Defending Your Faith, the problem with Atheists is not an intellectual problem or a lack of information. Rather, it is a moral problem. We love ourselves more than we love God. Though God has made himself plain to us through the revealing of himself in nature, in the Scriptures, and in Jesus, we chose to deny him. Just as a child who is covering their ears and closing their eyes while shouting "NO! NO! NO! I DON'T WANT TO KNOW", so we too suppress the obvious truth of God's existence and character. We refuse to acknowledge God as God. In our ignorance, we love ourselves more than we love God. We want God on our terms.

And this has been our reality from way back. Ever since our parents, Adam and Eve, were deceived, so we too choose a self-centered worldview. God gave Adam and Eve everything, yet they thought they needed to find a higher, more divine meaning. They were created in God's image, that they might know their all-loving Creator. Yet, as the creatures, they wanted to fit God into their image rather than vice-versa. They wanted to flip the Creator-creature relationship. 

We still do the same thing today. At the heart of suppressing the truth, at the heart of sin for that matter, is  trying to fit God into our image. As Paul puts it, it is "worshipping and serving the creature rather than the Creator" (Romans 1:25). We know God exists, yet we only want God on OUR terms. We want God  as long as he fits our life, our image, our plans. We want Truth as long as its easy and godless. We will accept things as truth only if it allows us to continue our self-worship and unrighteous living. The second something demands change, we label it as intolerant.

This is why the post-modern worldview is so attractive to a sinful people. Everything is true as long it doesn't bring a real God into the picture. An 'all roads lead to Rome' worldview is a prime example of us trying to preserve our own self-worship. If truth is completely relative, then I don't need to change, and I can continue worshipping the creature rather than the Creator. This is insanity. 

Post-modernity may mask itself in humility, yet it exemplifies pride in its most basic form because it gives us the position of god. This is the definition of insanity. On the contrary, the gospel returns us to a position of true humility. It brings us back to our role as creatures made in God's image. It brings us back to a position where we can worship and serve the True and Living God. To many, this might sound like oppression, like God is a bully who demands that we bow below him. However, this couldn't be further from the truth. As stated, we were created in God's image with the purpose to know and worship Him. This is what's best for us. God wants us to return to him, not because he's a bully, but because he loves us more than we could ever know. Our hearts will always be restless when we worship our selves, the creatures. Our hearts were meant to find their rest, peace, joy, life, worship in God. This happens when we turn from ourselves and to God. 

This is contradictory to our default nature of suppressing the truth, but this is exactly why Jesus said, 

"Whoever finds his life will lose it,

and whoever loses his life for my sake

will find it" Matthew 10:39

The Mortal Resurrection

With the passing of Christmas and the new year, I believe the holiday season certainly leads to an inevitable increase in religion. Whether it is going to church on Christmas and having to face the question of why Jesus came, or coming up with a new years resolution to be a better person, the combination of Christmas and new years brings with it an occasion for renovation. But, how much of this actually has to do with Jesus?

What I mean is this: It is common for people to think that Jesus primarily came to conveniently make our lives better by improving our behavior and making us 'nice' people. For many of us, our new years 'resolutions' will probably follow this pattern as well. They will be aimed at trying harder to be a better person. For the typical church goer, Christianity primarily equals moral renovation. Therefore, Christmas and new years becomes just another attempt at trying to re-prioritize our lives. However, the Bible tells us that what we need is not a moral renovation, but a mortal resurrection. We don't need to re-prioritize our lives, we need to be spiritually brought from death to life. So I ask this, is your Christmas or new years resolution aimed at some form of moral improvement, or is it aimed at mortal resurrection? Jesus didn't come to merely improve our behavior, or make us look better on the outside. Jesus came to give us completely new life. 

We far too often think of Jesus as a docile 'Dr. Phil' or 'Oprah' character who is safe, comfortable, convenient, and doesn't want to cause any real change. This couldn't be further from the truth. Jesus comes to us and tells us that we are dead, and the only way to be brought to life is through him. Listen to these words Jesus speaks to the Pharisees. Keep in mind, the Pharisees were the most moral, religious people of their day. They followed all the rules. They were the kind of people who, if they made new years resolutions, would keep them perfectly. Yet, Jesus says they are dead.

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, 

which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead peoples bones and all uncleanness.

So you outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness"

Matthew 23:27-28

We can re-prioritize our lives and can strive for moral renovation all we want. Without the mortal resurrection that Christ gives, we, like the Pharisees are 'whitewashed tombs'. We are dead, and Jesus calls us to a radical new life by putting our faith in him. How many of us are trying to improve ourselves by being a good, religious, moral person. It's like spraying cologne on a corpse. We are dead, hopeless, helpless, and are in need of completely new life. This life is found in Christ alone. 

Christ was Forsaken For Our Acceptance

"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land

until the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour

Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, 

'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' that is, 

'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'

Matthew 27:45-46

At the cross, for the first (and only) time in eternity, the Son experienced abandonment. Jesus called out to his Father, but got no answer. Jesus looked to his Father, but only saw his turned back. Jesus cried out to him, but received no comfort. Only absolute abandonment. The Son was forsaken. 

This is the grave, yet beautiful truth of Christ's substitution. Jesus experienced the pain of having the Father turn his back on him, so that we wouldn't have to.  Because Jesus turned to God and only saw the back of the Father, when we turn to the Father, all we experience is open arms. Whereas Jesus reached for the comfort of His father but received none, when we reach for the Father, we receive comfort. Though we were the ones who deserve absolute abandonment, Jesus' love is so great that he came to earth to experience the forsakenness we deserve, so that we would be united to Him. The Father turned his head away from Jesus so that he would never have to turn his head away from us. Jesus saw the Father's back; closed off and forsaken. We see the Father's face; open, and ready to embrace sinners who  turn to Him. 

Jesus, The Ransom For Many

"Truly no man can ransom another 

or give to God the price of his life,

for the ransom of their life is costly and can never suffice,

that he should live on forever

and never see the pit."

Psalm 49: 7-9

"even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, 

and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Matthew 20:28

Our ransom is a price so costly that no man, nor we ourselves are able to pay it. This psalm tells us that no man is able account for ransom price of ones life, in order that they should live forever. Yet, most of us spend our entire lives trying to justify our existence and in some sense 'ransom' our lives. The previous verses in this psalm reminds us that regardless of physical wealth, we are still not able to pay the price. We need the same reminder. The comfort of having physical 'things' and possessing earthly wealth  will not solve this problem. In the same way, many of us try to pay our own ransom, that we should live forever, with the wealth of our good works. We figure if we do enough good things, or are good, upstanding citizens, then surely this is enough that we should live forever. But the truth remains, no man can suffice for his own, or another's ransom. We cannot pay the price.

However, the gospel tells us that this is exactly why Jesus came. Our sin has created a debt that we could never repay, whether with physical wealth, or spiritual. Jesus is the only one qualified to pay this ransom. No man can pay for another mans ransom, because each man himself is sinful, and is in need of being ransomed himself. Yet, Jesus was fully man and fully God. He himself was sinless. Therefore, he is qualified to pay this ransom price. And how did Jesus pay the ransom? He ransomed us from the price of our sin by dying on the cross. He payed the debt for our sins by taking upon himself, the iniquity of us all. 

So, this morning, let us be reminded that in ourselves, we are helpless and hopeless. We are sinful, and could never ransom ourselves that we may live forever. We are sentenced to the pit. But, in the gospel, we have hope. Jesus lived the life we should have lived, and died the death we should have died, in order to ransom us from the reign of sin. Jesus tasted death, so that we could live forever, and not see the pit. Let us look away from ourselves this morning, let us look away from our self-justifying attitudes and ego-centric hearts, and let us look to the cross, where Jesus so lovingly paid our ransom. This is our hope, joy and peace. 

Observation #6: Justification Involves the Imputation of Christ's Righteousness to Us

This idea of imputation is indeed critical to understanding the biblical doctrine of justification. The word imputation in itself is a legal term. It means to reckon to the account of another. The previous observation dealt with Christ's substitutionary work on our behalf. Imputation is the outworking of this substitutionary work. 

In regards to justification, imputation works in two ways. We talked earlier about Christ dying in substitution of our place. This is one of the ways in which imputation is present in the Gospel. Our sins are imputed upon Christ. In other words, even though Jesus was perfect, He became a curse for us (Galatians 3:15) and our iniquity was laid upon Him (Isaiah 53).  This is the negative aspect of imputation. Christ has taken upon our sins. Our sins deserved God's wrath, but the wrath that we deserve was reckoned to Jesus on the cross. That is why Jesus had to suffer the way he did, because our sins were imputed to Him.

The positive aspect of imputation is the imputation of Christ's righteousness to believers. By the righteousness of Christ, I am referring to the merit that Christ possesses based upon His perfect life of obedience and His divine sonship. 

Martin Luther called this concept the 'great exchange'. Christ took upon himself our sins and unrighteousness,  and in exchange we receive Christ's perfect righteousness. Both of these are imputed. 

This idea of righteousness being  'imputed' or 'reckoned' to us is seen all over Scripture. For example,

With Abraham: "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness" Genesis 15:6

With David: " Blessed is the  man to whom the LORD imputes no iniquity" Psalm 32:1-2 (RSV, quoted in Romans 4:8)

With Isaiah: "Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities." Isaiah 53:11

With Paul: "Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness" Romans 4: 4-5

The reason that righteousness must be imputed or reckoned to us, is because it is an 'alien righteousness'. In other words, it is a righteousness that we haven't earned. This is so because in our own power and will, we could never live a perfect life of righteousness that merits a right standing with God. Therefore, it must be a righteousness apart from us, that is freely bestowed upon us. The righteousness is the righteousness possessed by Christ. Chris lived the perfect life that we should have lived. Christ is the perfect son that Adam was supposed to be. God the Father says of Jesus, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). When we come to faith in Jesus, we receive this merit. God now sees us and treats us as beloved sons. This is not accomplished by works. It is a gift that is imputed to us out of God's benevolent grace. Though we are broken, sinners, God graciously bestows upon us, or imputes to us, a righteousness and a position of sonship that we could have never earned. This is good news. I end with a verse I know I've posted a few times already, but it is a verse that so clearly lays out justification. 

"For our sake he made him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in him, we might become the righteousness of God."

2 Corinthians 5:21

Till He Has Mercy On Us

^"1To you I lift up my eyes,
   O you who are enthroned in the heavens!²Behold, as the eyes of servants
   look to the hand of their master,
as the eyes of a maidservant
   to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the LORD our God,
   till he has mercy upon us.

 ³ Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy upon us,

   for we have had more than enough of contempt.⁴Our soul has had more than enough

   of the scorn of those who are at ease,

   of the contempt of the proud."

Psalm 123

Receiving restoration or forgiveness requires two things. First, it requires that we acknowledge our need for mercy, our brokenness, our spiritual sickness. Second, it requires knowing who alone can grant this mercy, and turning to them. We do not receive mercy by trying hard to make up for  mistakes. Rather, it is simply coming to God, knowing that we have nothing to offer, that we are poor sinners who are in desperate need of God's restoration, and laying ourselves before him in repentant helplessness. Take an example from the faith of the Canaanite woman in the gospel according to Matthew, and the repentant tax collector in Luke 18. Notice both their recognition of their need for mercy/healing, and their recognition that God alone could provide this. Not their own effort, not their own goodness, not what they deserve. Only grace.

"And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." ²³But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us." ²⁴He answered,  "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."²⁵But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." ²⁶And he answered, "It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs." ²⁷She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table." ²⁸Then Jesus answered her, "O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her daughter was healed instantly." Matthew 15:22-28

^"9He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰"Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.' ¹³But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' ¹⁴I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other." Luke 18:9-14

Philippians 3:12-16 (part 2)

"Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. ¹⁵Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. ¹⁶Only let us hold true to what we have attained." Philippians 3:12-16

Besides forgetting what lies behind, the Apostle Paul also says he presses on by straining forward to what lies ahead.

What is it that lies ahead? The Apostle tells us in verse 14, writing, 'I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.' and also in verses 10 and 11, 'that I may know him and the power of his resurrection.....that I am attain the resurrection from the dead'. Paul's goal is to be in perfect fellowship with Jesus. He presses on to attain this resurrection, in which he will be perfect fellowship with His God. Now that Paul has been transferred from the kingdom of darkness, and is now a citizen of heaven (Colossians 1:13), he presses on towards the marvelous inheritance that awaits him.

Furthermore, why is Paul so willing to fervently strain forward to this. What is it about the end prize that motivates Paul to speak so strongly about it. In verse 8, Paul writes, 'Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.' (Phil. 3:8). I talked last post about how this is the reason why Paul was able to forget his past. Well, it is also the reason why he so passionately presses forward. Because knowing Jesus is infinitely more valuable to Paul than anything else in his past, present of future, he makes it his one desire. Paul can echo the words of King David in Psalm 63, "Your steadfast love is better than life" (Psalm 63:3). For Paul, being found in Christ is more precious that anything.

Think about it. We chase what is most precious to us. We will pursue what we ultimatley value. If it is money, we will work long and hard for it. If it is security, we will arrange our life to achieve it. If it is respect, we will demand it at all costs. For Paul, it was Jesus. That is why he counts everything as loss, forsaking his past, straining forward towards the prize, knowing nothing but Jesus. Do we value Jesus like Paul did? Do we treasure Christ above all else? Is he precious to us?

Jesus told a metaphor that illustrates what Paul is saying. In Matthew's account of the Gospel, Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." (Matthew 13:44).

When we are captivated by the treasure that Christ is, our response will be nothing less than Paul's. We will strain forward to what lies ahead. When we catch a glimpse of even a fraction of how beautiful Christ is, we won't be able to take our eyes off of Him. They will be fixed on Him, as we press on.

It is also important to realize the reason why Paul was so captivated and gripped by Christ. It's not some intellectual conclusion Paul reached, or something he attained by His own strength. Rather, Paul writes, "I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own" (Phil. 3:12). We are able to press on to Christ, because Jesus pressed on to make us His own. This is the Gospel; that God has relentlessly pursued rebels and made them His own. The whole Bible tells 1 big story of God pursuing sinners. From Adam, til now. Israel was called to be God's people, yet time and time again they turn their backs on God. Despite all the mighty works God did on their behalf, they went their own way. Yet, God remained faithful. In fact, He saw from the beginning that this would happen, and out of love, had a better plan. He sent Jesus. Jesus would be the fulfillment of everything Israel should have been. Jesus would come and reverse the effects of Adam's fall. Jesus would make a way for God's people to be brought back to Him, once and for all.

The reason Paul strains forward with such an intense focus, is because he knows what he was, and he knows what he is. He knows he is nothing but a poor, rebellious, hopeless, self-loving, God hating sinner by nature. He would have never sought God. Yet God, being rich in mercy, out of sheer grace, pursued Paul. This is love. Paul has tasted of this love. He has tasted the excellence of this grace. There is nothing better. There is no greater joy. When a sinner is called by God and made His own, there is no other response than to worshipfully follow him. Paul's been made God's own and he presses on in absolute delight. Everything else pales in comparison. How could he chase after anything else? If we've been made God's own, how can we chase anything else?

So It Was Thought

"Now Jesus himself was about thirty years old when he began his ministry. He was the son, so it was thought, of Joseph,"

Luke 3:23

Who was Jesus? The second chapter of Matthew's Gospel ends with Jesus growing up in Nazareth. Nazareth was known as a town from which nothing good could come. In fact, the word 'Nazarene' may actually have been a nickname or slang meaning for something that was insignificant.

So what does Luke 3:23 tell us about who Jesus was/is. The phrase 'so it was thought' reveals that to human eyes, Jesus was the son of an unimportant carpenter from insignificant Nazareth. His human resume was not one to boast in. Yet, in reality, Jesus was the beloved Son of God, in whom the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.

"This is my Son, whom I love, the one in whom I am well pleased." Matthew 3:17

"For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him" Colossians 1:19

In God's sight, Jesus was the Beloved Son. This was His true identity. In the same way, our human resume is nothing to boast about. There is nothing great about us. Our identity in ourselves is rather insignificant in the big picture. Yet, when we are in Christ, the reality of our identity is radically different. In God's sight, we are beloved children with whom He is well pleased. This is our true identity.

The Only Way to Qualify

An amazing article written by my friend Dane Ortlund on the Resurgence blog. I admire the way Dane gets grace.

In the upside-down Gospel of Grace, the one thing that qualifies us before God is knowing we don't qualify, and the one thing that disqualifies us is thinking we do.

Four consecutive accounts in Matthew 19 and 20 drive home this counterintuitive truth.

Addicted to Self-Qualification

First, some little kids run up to Jesus but are restrained by the Secret Security-like disciples (Matt. 19:13–15). Next, the rich young man approaches Jesus, trumpeting his moral resume (“All these I have kept”) but refusing to leave his riches behind (Matt. 19:16–22). Then Peter, reminding Jesus that he has lived out the very sacrifice the rich young man refused, wonders what his reward will be (Matt. 19:23–30). Finally, Jesus tells a parable in which workers are hired at different points throughout the day but all paid the same wage, to the dismay of the early-hired workers who have “borne the burden of the day” (Matt. 20:1–16).

In each passage we can detect the assumption that we have to “qualify” to gain corresponding approval.

• The disciples thought little children needed to qualify with age in order to receive Jesus’ attention.
• The rich young man thought he needed to qualify with obedience in order to receive eternal life.
• Peter thought he had to qualify with sacrifice in order to receive a reward.
• The early hired workers thought all employees had to qualify with sufficient work in order to receive a day’s wage.

Upside-Down Grace

Things haven’t changed much.

We roll out of bed every day with a bent to strengthen our qualification before God with some kind of self-generated contribution. Like those in Matthew 19 and 20, we deeply resist free grace.

After all, free grace is perplexing. Dangerous, even. How do we retain any moral compass at all if the only requirement is to stop trying to meet the requirement? Doesn’t this destroy the moral fabric of the universe? Isn’t this a moral free-for-all?

No. The reason why is the very next paragraph in Matthew after the parable of the workers:

And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.’ (Matt. 20:17–19)

You Don’t Qualify. Jesus Does.

On the cross, the one person who ever truly qualified allowed himself to be disqualified, so that you and I, naturally disqualified, can qualify. For free. All it takes to qualify is to acknowledge we don’t, and look to Christ.

To use the categories of Matthew 19–20:

• We can have God’s undivided attention without qualifying with age or other social prerequisites, because on the cross Jesus was rejected not ultimately by his disciples or even the religious authorities but by his own Father.

• We can have eternal life without qualifying with a moral resume, because on the cross Jesus experienced hell despite living the only life that deserved heaven, being the only person who can truly say “All these have I kept.”
• We can have a reward without qualifying with sacrifice, because on the cross Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice that means we freely receive the ultimate reward.
• We can have a full day’s wage without qualifying with comparatively more work than others, because Jesus worked the whole day, “bearing the burden of the day,” and then went to the cross, waiving the wage he deserved.

That’s why qualifying before God is so scandalously free.

In the gospel, the one thing that qualifies you is knowing you don’t, looking instead to Christ, and the one thing that disqualifies you is thinking you do. As Dad put it in a recent sermon, “Hell is full of people who believe they deserve to be in heaven. Heaven is full of people who believe they deserve to be in hell.”

Receive it. Humble yourself. Be free.