A Time to Laugh

Changing Grace

From Humanity, Christ, and the Redemption, Lecture 26 on the Atonement: 

There is a man at God’s right hand and when Satan attacks you and rightfully accuses you of sins: “There she goes again, another sinful thought. God, please damn her.” One stands up for us and shows His wounds (I know this is somewhat figurative, but the picture is good). The Son of God says, “Atonement has been made” and the accuser’s accusations, although they are correct in a sense, are silenced because our Savior is there, praying for us, always presenting His sacrifice, always keeping us safe. We ought to please God. We ought to desire to be good people, but only out of gratitude for what He has done. We can never add one iota to Christ’s saving work. As a matter of fact, it is an insult to think so. You mean I can just utterly rest in what He did for me? Would that lead me to inactivity? No, that would lead you to giving your all to Him who purchased you with His blood. God knew what He was doing. He knew how to break down the strongholds of our hearts and that is by loving us like that. Some of us can hardly accept a love like that because we have not known it in our upbringing and we may not know it in our marriages or in our friendships. Every friend is going to let us down. What the Bible is teaching in both Testaments is that the people of God have been loved with an everlasting love. We can let ourselves go because of that everlasting love girding us up; we can actually make significant progress in all of our relationships. We are never going to be perfect husbands, wives, children, or parents in this world, but by God’s grace, we can be pretty good ones: to His glory, by the power of His Holy Spirit applying the death and resurrection of Christ to us again and again. There is no other antidote for sin and there never will be, so do not try to add to your salvation. Rather, out of gratitude for grace, enjoy it and glorify God. Share with neighbors and friends and fellow workers and even family members the good news of Jesus who saves sinners.