Gospel

Hard Law, Hot Gospel 3a | Foolish Galatians

by Ben Zornes · Mar 2, 2025

Introduction

Perhaps you’ve had the frustrating experience of being in a crowded reception, making small talk with someone you barely know. The music and crowd noise is deafening. The lips of your interlocutor are moving, but you only catch every other word. Trying to piece together what they are saying takes all your focus. Even then you nod politely, offering the obligatory “oh yeahs” and “for sures”. This is the opposite of the Gospel proclamation. When the Gospel is proclaimed faithfully, it is not only crystal clear, but it is forcibly potent to display Christ before formerly blind eyes.

The Text

O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain. […]
Galatians 3:1-14

Summary of the Text

The Apostle Paul is still at a fever pitch. The Galatians are called fools for being bewitched, and this bewitching resulted in their disobedience from looking in faith to Christ crucified (v1). They are confronted with a series of rather embarrassing rhetorical questions: did they receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by the hearing of faith (v2)? Are they really so foolish as to try to perfect what the Spirit began by means of the flesh (v3)? Why have they endured sufferings for the Gospel, only to vainly toss it aside (v4)? Lastly, Paul confronts them with a piercing question about whether the Spirit which was poured out upon them, and the wondrous signs done in their midst were accomplished by the arm of fleshly might or by the hearing of faith (v5).

To prove that justification is not by works of the flesh but by the power of the Spirit working faith in us, Paul points to Abraham’s example of faith (v6, Gen. 15:6). Then he makes a bold statement: those who believe are the true children of Abraham, full stop (v7). Paul proves that this doctrine is not newly minted, but is more ancient than the Law itself. He does this with a sequence of six proof-texts. The heathen being included in the blessings of faith in Christ was foretold when the gospel was preached to Abraham (v8, Gen. 12:3 & 18:18). By faith you share with Abraham the blessing promised to him (v9). That the blessing came by faith and not law is obvious because a curse was upon those who failed to keep everything contained in the law, a certainly impossible task (v10, Deu. 27:26). Paul says this is plain as day, Habakkuk said so, don’t you know (v11, Hab. 2:4)?!

This is set in contrast to the doing which the law demands for those who would obtain life (v12, Lev. 18:5) But since none is righteous in their doing of the Law and therefore under the curse, Christ came to take the curse for us upon Himself (v13, Deu. 21:23). Christ did this for us (the Jews) in order that the Gentiles might be showered with all the blessings promised to Abraham. The central promise is that of the Spirit and which we receive by faith alone (v14).

The Hearing of Faith

Visual media is predominant in our age. But up until the printing press was invented, most people who lived never read a book. Rather, the tales were told and retold. The herald would come to the town square with the king’s decree. This was how most people in ancient times received news and instruction. It is interesting that Paul here rebukes the Galatians for not seeing what he had set before their eyes: Christ crucified. How did Paul set Christ crucified before their eyes? By heraldry. By preaching.

The blindness and deafness of unbelieving Jews during Jesus earthly ministry, which Isaiah had foretold (Is. 6:9), was contagious. The Galatians had succumbed to this infectious moral disease. So Paul grills them with his series of questions. Notice what he contrasts the works of the Law with: the hearing of faith. This is a bit of a curious phrase, that I think we can take two ways. You might simply say: believe what you’ve heard. This would be quite true. Nevertheless, Paul’s phrase “the hearing of faith” seems to have more meat on the bones than just “believe what I told you.” Tying it back to the “faith of Christ” we saw in the last chapter, we can see that for Paul, hearing the story of Christ is more than just relating historical facts. Proclaiming the message of Christ’s faithfulness is potent. You want to see Christ? Then listen to the Gospel of His perfect faithfulness, His perfect faith, as displayed by all that is contained in Christ crucified. Hearing of Christ, hearing of the Word made manifest, is hearing that the New Creation, promised in ancient times has now burst onto the scene.

Of course, God’s people, even under the Law, were summoned to hear and believe God’s covenant promises: “Hear, O Israel…”. Paul is insisting that it isn’t the works of the Law, but the hearing of faith by which the Galatians received the Spirit. The Judaizers wanted the Galatians to go backwards in time, to start the board game where the Jews started it. As we’ll see later, the Gentile nations don’t have to go through the same course which the Jews did. Luther’s remarks on this is glorious: “The human heart does not understand or believe that such a great treasure-namely, the Holy Spirit—is given only by believing what we hear.” And so this begs the question, what had the Galatians heard? For that it is worth looking at what Paul proclaimed to the Galatians when he first established churches there (Acts 13:14-14:23). Paul had heralded that Christ had obtained for all nations what Isaiah had foretold: the sure mercies of David (Is. 55:3-5). This preaching was marked by both the believing Galatian Jews and Gentiles being filled with Joy and the Holy Ghost (Acts 13:52).

Doing or Believing

It is a perennial temptation to find a righteousness we can point to and take credit for. Here’s my good behavior, my tithe record, my church attendance, my voting record, my degrees and certifications. But you are not justified by reciting the catechism properly. You are not justified by knowing the doctrine of justification by faith alone. You are blessed with faithful Abraham by trusting in God as he did. Paul says that the Gospel was preached to Abraham. What was that Gospel? It was that God’s blessing––the blessing of the Spirit––would be poured out upon all the nations. And how was this accomplished? Through Christ crucified. Nothing else. Not your filthy rags or mine. You want to see your salvation? Look to Christ, and only to Christ, not to your attainments, no matter how impressive.

This is what your baptism is a promise of. The deep and inner washing which only the Spirit of God can bring about. This washing gets in every corner. It cleanses every crevice. It purges the filth of the most beastly sins as well as the most respectable sins. All nations are welcome to the Spirit’s washing. Christ’s death and resurrection really did hush the Law’s loud thunder, so that you can unmistakably hear what He declares: you are clean. So, having heard of Christ, having heard of His faithfulness, believe that He gives you the washing which comes by His Spirit of holiness dwelling in you.

CHARGE & BENEDICTION

It is utterly important that we understand the order of salvation rightly. It really is believe first, do second. Legalism says do first, believe second. Believe that Christ really has washed you by His Spirit, and you didn’t contribute anything but the filth that needed washing.

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Ephesians 3:20-21

Other Sermons in this series

Hard Law & Sweet Gospel

by Ben Zornes · Jan 28, 2025

By God’s good design, this table confronts you with the severity of sin and the sweetness of the Gospel. Like the Israelites of old, standing upon the twin mountains of blessings and curses, we stand here to say “amen” to the covenant terms which God has kindly made with us.

Upon this table is hard law. “Cursed be the man that obeys not the words of this covenant (Jer. 11:3).” You see here that sin deserves death. The paycheck that comes along with toiling in the fields of sin is death. Signified upon this table is the torn body of Jesus, and the blood he spilt upon Golgotha’s tree. He died, and did so joyfully, because we all had sinned, and had done so with a twisted gladness.

Set before you is the severity of God towards sin. He hates your sin so much, that He sent His Son to die for you. You don’t taste the sweet wine of the Gospel’s salvation without having tasted the bitter cup of the Law’s condemnation. “Be holy, for I the Lord your God, am holy” echoes in our ears, even as we see the dingy gray of our own pathetic efforts at holiness, and the soiled garments of our sin. As one poet put it, “When legal fears shook me, I trembled to die; No refuge, no safety in self could I see.”

The heavy word of the Law ought not to be despised. For it is followed by the easy burden of the Gospel Word: come unto me, all ye who are weary and heavily burdened, for I will give you rest. Simultaneously, here is a meal of rest. Wine well aged. Bread well baked. A table of true leisure, rest, and welcome. Truly, the severity of the Law makes the sweetness of the Gospel deeper and richer.

So come in faith and welcome to King Jesus…

Confession for Conquerors

by Ben Zornes · Mar 13, 2023

The Gospel we proclaim here isn’t a Gospel meant for the back of the junk drawer. We don’t proclaim the remission of some sins, if they qualify. This isn’t some divine lottery where only one in a million have hope of hitting the jackpot. Nor is it a web of bureaucratic red tape, requiring a team of lawyers to sort through in order to find the loophole to avoid tax penalties.

This Gospel, which the church is tasked to believe & proclaim, is a Gospel for the whole world. It is a Gospel not of defeat. It is not Good News but only if you squint. Rather, Christ died for the sins of His people. You are clean. Your death for sin has been died. Christ has arisen, to eternal life, and by faith you share in that life. Christ is at the Father’s right hand, thrones & angels are made subject unto Him, and You are in Him. The God of peace, we are told, shall soon crush Satan under your feet.

As we prepare to confess our sin, we ought not to do so as whipped puppies. Yes, we’ve sinned against our Lord, and we should grieve. But we should come boldly, even audaciously. Where else can you find forgiveness for your sins, but in the One who took your sin by the throat, dragged it into the grave, and emerged alive without your sin.

The saints of God are more than conquerors. The church isn’t just an accountability group to commiserate over our blasted failures. Rather, we’re those who’ve overcome this world, because we’ve laid hold of Christ the triumphant, Christ the overcomer, Christ the King. So when you kneel to confess your sins, you do so as a beloved & forgiven child. When you rise, you remain in the bright glory of God’s favor. So, act like it.

The Lord, after all, hasn’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and a sound mind. All too often, we go about as if the Gospel wasn’t efficacious, as if we still dwelt in Old Testament darkness, as if we were still slaves to sin. But the Lord promises to us true and lasting forgiveness for all our sin, past, present, and future; if we confess. As we confess, our Father fortifies our hearts so that we rest assured that in this grace which He pour upon us is not just forgiveness for the sins we confess, but grace to grow in grace, grace to slit the throat of our lusts, pride, envy, greed, and gluttony. He gives us all this, because He has given us Christ.

The Christian life is summed up in that wonderful quote from the famous hymn-writer and former slave trader John Newton: “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner — and that Christ is a great Savior!” So, though you have sinned, God, in Christ, reckons you a saint. And if a saint, more than a conqueror.

Jesus

by Ben Zornes · Dec 26, 2022

Introduction

We’ve looked at Joseph & Mary as embodying the best of Faithful Israel’s longing for God to bring salvation. We’ve looked at the Wicked Dynasty of Herod which the text of Scripture intends to be viewed as the incarnation of Man’s Satanic Rebellion. But now, we must look at the babe which was born a child, and yet a King. The Lord Jesus. All of history was leading up to His birth, and history ever since has been in reference to Him.

The Text

And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
Luke 2:21

Summary of the Text

The One by Whom all things were called into being is here given a name. He who separated the Light from Darkness, is here separated from the unclean world by the sign of circumcision. He who established the covenant with Abraham, receives the sign of that covenant (Gen. 17:12). He who ordained the Laws of Moses, is here submitted to the Laws of Moses (Lev. 12:3).

The eternal Christ was not ashamed to count us His brothers (Heb. 2:11), and so received an earthly name. The Omnipotent, and eternally begotten Son of God, who, by His God-hood, only ever knew true freedom, here becomes a debtor to all of Moses’ Law. And we might ask why did God determine to do all this? The answer is found in the explanation for this name which the Angel declared to Joseph: “thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins (Mt. 1:21).”

Jehovah was, is, & shall be Salvation

Jesus would have been a common enough name in Israel. It is effectively the same name as Joshua. If we drill down into what the name means, we find it means Jehovah is salvation. Jehovah had always been the salvation of His people. The Ark in Noah’s day revealed that Jehovah is Salvation. The Ram in the thicket, upon Mt. Moriah, revealed to Abraham & Isaac that Jehovah is Salvation. At Penuel, Jacob wrestled with God Incarnate, only to find that Jehovah is Salvation. Genesis closes with Joseph delivering not only his own family, but the “entire world” by God’s grace, letting all peoples know Jehovah is Salvation.

Moses led the people out of Pharaoh’s bondage, and the Red Sea was cleft in two, and thus the great host of delivered Hebrews saw the Right Hand of the Lord bared, and could rightly sing, “Jehovah is Salvation.” Of course, Joshua leads the covenant people on a conquering romp in judgement of the Canaanite sins, and certainly in this we see Jehovah is Salvation. The Judges were continually raised up to summon the people to return unto the Lord, and wrought mighty deeds which left it without question: Jehovah is Salvation.

David beheaded a mighty Giant, expanded the border of the Promised Land to its fullest extent, established a house of worship on Mount Zion, and filled it with melodic Psalms which proclaimed, “Jehovah is Salvation.” His son Solomon built a resplendent temple for all people everywhere to come and worship the true and living God, inviting all to come and behold that Jehovah is Salvation. The Prophets called the people to repent from their sins, warned of exile, and insisted that in Jehovah alone is Salvation. And then Nehemiah & Ezra rebuilt Jerusalem, renewed the covenant so that it might be indisputable that Jehovah is Salvation. All of Israel’s history declared that Jehovah is Salvation, but now Jehovah was Salvation. Salvation in the flesh. Salvation had a name, a face, a body…just like ours.

What is in this Name

The New Testament goes on to tell us all that is contained in the name, person, and work of this child we celebrate today. If you would be saved, you must call upon this name (Acts 4:12, Rom 10:13). One day every knee will bow before this name, and every tongue confess this name, Jesus, as the Lord King of the earth (Phi. 2:11-12). Indeed as Solomon the Wise once taught, this name of the Lord is a strong tower, which the righteous run into and are saved (Pro. 18:10). By this name the Apostles summoned lame to leap and commanded demons to flee.

By faith, you bear this name. The saints are often reproached for bearing His name, but Peter tells us to rejoice when we partake of the scorn which the world holds for Jesus (1 Pt. 4:14). Wicked politicians and corrupted priests sought to restrict the teaching of the Apostles in the authority of the name of Jesus (Act 4:18). If you receive this name, you bring down all manner of accusation and scorn upon you. The enemies of God in history have hurled all manner of slander upon Christians: cannibals, atheists, rabble-rousers, trouble-makers, disturbers of the peace, devils. In our own time, holding fast to Jesus and His teaching makes you a hater, someone who needs to check their privilege, a Right-Wing Extremist, Domestic Terrorists.

But the Good News of Great Joy, which the Angels declared, and which the Apostles spread out in the world to herald, and which the church militant has faithfully taught the nations is this: “And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment (1Jo 3:23).” Here is God’s command to you: believe on the name Jesus.

All Things Are His

Jesus grew up in despised Nazareth. Jesus’ ministry was plagued by legal problems, assassination attempts, he was betrayed by a close friend, traded for a murderer, crucified and numbered among the transgressors. Jesus’ name was brought to utter ignominy. Jesus’ name was brought low in the grave, by the raging of wicked rulers and envious rivals. And yet, despite it all, through it all, by the power of God, Jesus is the Name above all names. Today we rejoice in this great salvation which Jehovah brought to us. As one of Wesley’s hymns puts it:

1 Jesus, the Name high over all,
in hell or earth or sky;
angels and men before it fall,
and devils fear and fly.
Jesus, the Name to sinners dear,
the Name to sinners giv’n;
it scatters all their guilty fear,
it turns their hell to heav’n.

2 O that the world might taste and see
the riches of His grace!
The arms of love that compass me
would all the world embrace.
Thee I shall constantly proclaim,
though earth and hell oppose;
bold to confess Thy glorious Name
before a world of foes.

3 His only righteousness I show,
His saving truth proclaim;
’tis all my business here below
to cry, “Behold the Lamb!”
Happy, if with my latest breath
I may but gasp His Name,
preach Him to all, and cry in death,
“Behold, behold the Lamb!”

As we exchange gifts, spread our feasts, enjoy our new toys & tools & ties, we are celebrating a Name. A Name who has the only lawful claim on all things. When you hand a gift to another, or pass around the cheese & bacon-topped potato-skins, you’re simply passing around the lawful possession of Christ the King.

He has, in His kindness, given us all things to freely enjoy. It’s like when you are visiting some enormous Ice Cream shop with dozens and dozens of flavors. You might try a flavor and say, “Oh you’ve got to try this one.” As created beings, that is all we can do. All of our giving is derivative giving.

It is imitative giving. It is tasting and seeing that the Lord is good and then handing around goodness to those around us and saying, “Have you seen this shadow-glory yet? Have you tasted this appetizer of eternal joy yet? Can you believe that this too is our birthright in Christ? This fudge is glorious, but is light as a feather compared to the eternal weight of glory which shall cascade upon us right around the corner.”

All these joys are enjoyable, because God made peace with you by the blood of Jesus. We must not overlook that the central message of Christmas is that Jesus (Jehovah is Salvation) is coupled with Emmanuel (God with Us). God’s deliverance of His people was by God taking the place of His people. You are saved by Jehovah because Jehovah is with you.

So Merry Christmas in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.

The Charge

It’s all about Jesus. Jesus is the central point of not only Christmas but of History. This only becomes a cliche or a trite saying if we say it without believing it and living in accordance with it. And living in accordance with this truth includes giving generous gifts, having two (or even three) extra Christmas cookies, and laughing like those who are truly free, those who truly rest under the peace on earth which Jesus’ reign has brought about.

1 John 4:1-3 | Stranger Danger

by Ben Zornes · Dec 2, 2022

1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but prove the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 In this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. 3 But every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God; and this is that antichrist that you have heard should come and even now is in the world already.
1 John 4:1-3

John moves on to addressing a question which his last statement (3:24) might raise. How do I know that it is indeed the Spirit of God which dwells in me? You know that you dwell in Christ by faith because Christ gives His Spirit to you. False prophets (the word here is literally pseudo-prophets) have gone out into the world, and those who heed such charlatans will be tempted to misgivings about whether they indeed have the Spirit of God dwelling in them. Beyond that, false teachers will endeavor to convince true saints that the real Spirit of God is over here, in this white, windowless van. John is giving the “stranger danger” talk to his beloved children.

So John tells us to prove the spirits. The word here is used elsewhere in Scripture and is used more broadly to describe the testing of a counterfeit coin against the genuine. It was not uncommon for ancient coinage to have bits shaved off in order to gradually produce more (but fraudulent) coins. John says to hold up an objective truth against a spirit and by this test determine whether it is the genuine Spirit of God, or the spirit of Antichrist.

That which confesses that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God. Now this might seem overly simplistic, but here is the basic Christian confession: God became man, He was name Jesus, and He was the Christ who died, but by the power of God rose again. In other words, this “test” John gives is a proto-creed. Did the eternal Christ come in the flesh as the man Jesus of Nazareth? Yes. And this, it should be evident, is the Gospel Comfort which the Spirit of God takes from the Father and the Son and shows unto us (Cf. Jn. 16:13-15).

Therefore, it follows quite logically that the central lie of heresies is that Jesus Christ is not come in the flesh. In other words, antichrist spirits want to dodge and evade the plain testimony that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. Put plain as day, it isn’t of God to deny the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Notably absent in much of the modern evangelical infatuation with “the Antichrist” is that it misses this central error of false prophets. It thinks of Antichrist as some political figure. But John tells us that this figure (which I take to be Cerinthus in particular) was already in the world, and that his teachings which denied the incarnation of Jesus Christ must be kicked to the doctrinal curb. This antichrist spirit was already in the air in John’s day, and we know the central error of that “hydra-like” doctrine.

The practical application here is that the Christian is not stuck in an endless esoteric guessing game. The Word, the same Word which made heaven and earth, came in the flesh. By faith, you partake of the triune God’s divine joy. Any imaginative gymnastics routine which tries to reject the Gospel that Jesus Christ came in the flesh (and by implication lived, died, and rose again for our salvation) can, not so politely, be told to touch grass.

A Guilt-Free Feast

by Ben Zornes · Nov 23, 2022

Introduction

Earthly joys are like an elevator. They can only go so high. They are intended to leave us longing for the eternal joys found in the presence of the Most High, and the pleasures at His right hand. Sinful man keeps trying to make the trip to the top floor last just a bit longer, but he’s always disappointed when he must return to the lobby. Instead of being content with the fleetingness of the shadow-glories, he tries to live in the elevator. As a result, he has filled it full of his stench and filth.

The Text

But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.

Romans 4:5-8

Summary of the Text

This text is full-proof Gospel. It is high-octane Gospel. It is 24-karat Gospel. Paul, using Abraham as the archetype of all the righteous, argues that faith is the means whereby the saints in all ages are reckoned as righteous. It is not the works of righteousness that justifies you (v5a), rather, by believing on Christ who justifies the ungodly you receive righteousness not your own (v5b).

Paul isn’t innovating some new-fangled doctrine. This doctrine is evident in the Old Testament in both Abraham’s example and in David’s Psalms. Paul summarizes the 32nd Psalm: David is describing the blessing of receiving imputed righteousness through no works of our own (v6). Paul quotes Psalm 32:1-2, which extols the blessedness of our sins being forgiven, our guilt being covered, and our ledger being purged by the graciousness of the Lord (vv7-8).

It is worth noting what else is contained in Psalm 32. When we try to hide our sin, the hand of the Lord is heavy upon us (Ps. 32:3-4). But when we confess our sin, and flee to Jehovah we find Him to be a shelter from the flood, and a symphony of redeeming love (Ps. 32:5-7). While the wicked are encompassed by sorrow (Ps. 32:10), those who trust in the Lord are marked by hearty rejoicing (Ps. 32:11). In other words, God clears the guilty by offering them the righteousness of Christ. Those who receive this righteousness by faith enjoy true blessedness.

The Earth is the Lord’s

Mankind has two ways in which he treats earthly joys. The first is by devouring them feverishly, as if eternal life is found in them. The other is the ascetic who tries to float two inches off the ground, lest he be soiled by the ickiness of matter. A mark of the moralist is trying to locate moral righteousness in our relation to the stuff of creation instead of in our relation to the Creator. Put differently, sinful man has discovered many clever ways to play a shell game with his guilt.

One of the primary places this tendency shows up is in regards to food. It’s not uncommon to speak of food in moralistic terms: good for you; junk food; guilty pleasure; clean eating; natural (as opposed to what? Unnatural?); those brownies are just sinful. It might be concluded that if you can have guilt-free Whipped-Cream, maybe you don’t need to confess that simmering malice towards your co-worker.

All of this is the nervous tic of a culture with a guilty conscience. The soul plagued by the guilt of unconfessed sin, and without the assurance of imputed righteousness, will endeavor to find righteousness somewhere. Our culture has refused to come to Christ, and are now endeavoring to find moral righteousness anywhere other than in Christ. Shampoo bottles labeled “no guilt”; clothing made of ethically sourced materials; the mob cajoling everyone to get on “the right side of history.” In regards to this, CS Lewis once stated, “I do not dispute that History is a story written by the finger of God. But have we the text?”

All this sort of thing is an attempt to hide our sin from God and concoct a homemade brew of righteousness. If you eat the right sort of food, in the right amount, wearing the right clothing, from the right places, having washed with the right soaps, all while thinking all the right thoughts and embracing all the Correct Sentiments (handed down to you from I Support the Current Thing, Inc.) you imagine that your guilt is cleansed & righteousness is obtained.

But Scripture teaches us that it isn’t what goes into you that defiles you (Mt. 15:11). Sin isn’t in the stuff. Sin isn’t a disease that needs to be eradicated. Sin isn’t a mental illness that needs therapy & chemicals. Sin is lawlessness (1 Jn. 3:4). Likewise, righteousness isn’t found in the right clothing, the right sentiments, the right voting record. Righteousness is found in Christ alone.

Understanding that the only ground to stand before God is to be given Another’s righteousness then enables you to say with the Psalmist, “The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein (Psa 24:1).” You no longer fret about what you eat or drink or wear or where you will go or for how long (Cf. Mt. 6:31-34), not because you’ve turned into an apathetic hippy. Rather, you walk in the knowledge that all these earthly joys are the sampler platter for the eternal joys, which those who are justified by faith in Christ will enjoy in eternity.

Without Malice & Bitterness

We must reject both the asceticism & gluttony of the guilt-riddled, self-righteous world. God’s favor isn’t found by turning up a pietistic nose at the world’s pleasure. Nor is God’s wrath avoided by slurping up every last pleasure without a shred of gratitude. When we come to God, through Christ, we are assured that our sins are covered and the earth is ours.

Paul exhorts us to keep the feast, the Lord’s Supper, without malice or bitterness (1Co 5:8). This spiritual feast should be imitated in our earthly feasting. At the Lord’s table, there isn’t a VIP section that gets special treatment. Your sins are forgiven. But this means that your spouse’s sins against you are forgiven too. The sister who you feel gets all the attention, the friend who is more popular, the family whose Christmas card arrives on December 1st with bright-white smiles staring back at you, if they are Christ’s, their sins are forgiven too. You don’t get to come to this table holding on to the sins of others which God assures them He has forgiven them of.

Much of the time, when things go sideways at family gatherings, it’s due to all manner of rivalries, gripes, unconfessed sins, grievances, and contentions that are tangled up worse than the strands of Christmas lights. This isn’t how Christians should feast. Because of what we celebrate on this table, we can feast at our own tables in peace. Christ has covered your sin. God does not impute your sin to you. So stop bringing up that slight from 14 years ago, cover it.

The Blessing of Being Guiltless

While the world insists that blessedness is found in indulging all our carnal lusts, or in presenting the soiled garments of self-righteousness to God, you must rest in the knowledge that Scripture teaches that blessedness is found in being guiltless. This means, you need to stop looking at yourself. Stop licking your lips, craving only your self-gratification. Stop smugly relishing that sense of moral superiority because your cupboards have no trace of seed-oils. Self-righteousness is like trying to clean yourself up with manure. Self-gratification is like trying to convince yourself that the cardboard you’ve been munching on is actually pretty tasty.

A blessed life is a guilt-free life. How can you be held guiltless? By faith alone, in Christ alone. Not by self-indulgence or self-abnegation. Christ, the only guiltless-one, became guilty in your stead so that you could be righteous. Not only that, but because you are counted righteous and your guilt is forgiven, you can enjoy that extra slab of pecan pie without a moral crisis; you can retell the Pilgrim story without being plunged into a struggle session over white privilege. You are free. You are clean. You are righteous.

All your guilt, both real & imagined is dealt with by the cross of the Lord Jesus. This doctrine doesn’t water down our enjoyment of earth’s joys. It thickens them up. The joys are fleeting. But your sins are forgiven. So pass around the gravy, sing a few loud psalms, toss the football, take a nap, and do it all to the glory of God.

1 John 1:8 – Deluded or Delivered

by Ben Zornes · Mar 4, 2021

If we say we have no sin, we delude ourselves and the truth is not in us.
1 John 1:8

Back in verse 6 John begins a rapid fire set of â€œif/thens.â€ Verses 8-10 continue that rhetorical tack. John is setting sail in the glorious sea of Gospel conquest. The first question that arises in setting out on that voyage is obvious: how should the one who is now in fellowship with God understand their relationship with sin (Î±Î¼Î±ÏÏ„Î¹Î±)? Are they still under sinâ€™s dominion if they still commit sinful actions?

John is interested in proclaiming the Gospel which deals with sin. The Gospel doesnâ€™t turn a blind eye to sin, neither does it redefine sin so as to get us off the hook. Two tendencies frequently arise in church history, either legalistic self-righteousness or permissive self-indulgence. One insists that everything is a sin, the other that nothing is. Legalism tries to overcome indwelling sin by looking to oneâ€™s own righteousness, and thus must redefine their sin in clever ways, they call it â€holy indignationâ€ instead of an outburst of wrath, or a â€mistake in judgementâ€ rather than an act of selfishness.

The libertine denies there is such a thing as sin at all, clearing the way to indulge in every vice. along with thinly veiled allusions to Godâ€™s overwhelming love and kindness. One spits in the face of Christâ€™s righteousness, the other spits in the face of Godâ€™s justice. Both are fundamental misunderstandings of the saintâ€™s relationship to sin.

Though we are delivered from the power of sin and the penalty of it through Christâ€™s precious blood, yet there remains indwelling sin which must be resisted and overcome. Later on, John will flesh out how the saint overcomes the world (1 Jn. 5:4). What is being established here in the beginning, however, is that denying the presence of remaining corruption in the believerâ€™s life is self-delusion. It is like poking holes in the bottom of the ship and wondering why it ended up in the bottom of the harbor. The Westminster Confession of Faith is profoundly eloquent on this point: â€œIn which war [with sin], although the remaining corruption for a time may much prevail, yet, through the continual supply of strength from the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, the regenerate part doth overcome: and so the saints grow in grace, perfecting holiness in the fear of God (Chapter 13, Sec. III).â€

All this to say, denying your sin while professing to be a believer is to prove that you are not a believer. Truth doesnâ€™t dwell in you. The saint acknowledges their sin (the very next verse, 1 Jn. 1:9), and so proves that they are a child of the True God. Godâ€™s people are those who bring their sin into the Light of Godâ€™s truth.