Tag: Son of God

32.s. “How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God”

Matthew 12:30  Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

 Hebrews 10:26    For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,

 Hebrews 10:29    How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?

 Isaiah 1:18   “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

 Isaiah 55:7   let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

 Ezekiel 33:11    Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways

 Jesus removes all illusions about any neutral response to Him or His work. If one is not for Him, then that one is against Him. If one does not work with Jesus, by either active opposition or passive disregard, that one works against Jesus. There are only two forces at work in the world, gathering, and scattering.  Whoever does the one contradicts the other. Being neutral, non-committed, is as if in active and open opposition.

I struggle to fully know or understand the meaning of; “Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven”. A distinction is made between what it means to commit blasphemy against the Son of Man (Jesus) versus the Holy Spirit.  On one hand, Jesus is saying that people, out of their lack of full knowledge and understanding, may partially or fully, knowingly or unknowingly, show contempt of or not revere God sufficiently or appropriately, will or can be forgiven.  Paul, in 1 Timothy 1:13 says; “though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief”. People, out of their lack of full knowledge and understanding, may wrongly commit blasphemy against Jesus and still receive forgiveness. A person is pardoned this/these sin(s) upon repentance, surrender, belief, trust, obedience, and reliance upon Jesus Christ for their redemption, salvation, and forgiveness. 

I struggle with “but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven”, not so much that it was said but what it says a person can do. Essentially, a person can, with full knowledge and understanding, have contempt for God’s Holy Spirit within them. Clearly, God’s Word speaks of such but I can not put my mind around how this happens in a person’s life. How does a person, who has been given wisdom and understanding and knowledge of God’s Holiness and their sin, and who has humbly come before the throne of grace and believed, then turn away in contempt and say the peace, joy, and rest they have experienced deep within their soul was meaningless and worthless, and they now openly have disrespect and contempt for it? It is like someone is able to say, “I know what you have done in my life God and I not only hate you for it but I despise you for even thinking of doing it in my life”. You see it is not just rejection of or lack of obedience to the Spirit of God working in their life. If this were the case we would all be guilty. But, here is a person whose rejection, contempt, and no fear or respect of God has cast out God’s grace, mercy, and love like it was rubbish.  I just can’t seem to wrap my mind around how a person can get to this place in their heart, mind, and soul, but they do. 

We must be mindful of the schemes of satan and be ever diligent in our walk with God through this life. Keep in His Word and set your mind to humbly serve, follow, obey, trust, and rely on Jesus Christ, and in all you say, think, and do – make sure it is done for the honor and glory of Him. 

32.r. “To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God”

 

Matthew 12:22  Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?

 Mark 3:11    And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.”

 Acts 26:18   to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

 Matthew 9:34     But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”

 Mark 3:22   And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”

 Luke 11:15    But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons,”

 The crowds reacted with Messianic expectation, but the religious leaders responded by attributing Jesus’ power to the prince of demons. Both have seen the same thing, the demon cast out and the person healed. How can it be seen so differently by those who witnessed it? Even at times, the unclean spirits cried out, “you are the Son of God”.  

We will normally see what our hearts and minds want to see. When we see everything in creation both on earth and in the universe we are in awe of God. Yet others, spend lifetimes building theories about how a big bang happened billions of years ago that somehow formed all things through time, chance, and evolution. Both of these beliefs must be taken on faith. When seeing Jesus heal this demon-possessed man many displayed their faith by saying can this be the one promised “The Son of David?”  In their faith, they were aware and looking for the Messiah to come. Others displayed their blindness and hardness of heart by shrugging off this healing by saying it was not in the power of God but by Satan. When we were lost and without hope and there was no searching and no desire for things of God, it is only by the grace of God we see and understand things of God. And yet, there are those to whom these revelations are rejected. To the lost soul, it is a time when clarity to the things of God is revealed much like the clouds being rolled back and the bright sun is seen. When we are searching and desiring to serve and honor and glorify Jesus more and more, things of God are shown more and more, the Son keeps getting brighter.

32.m. “How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God”

 

Matthew 11:20 Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”

 Jude 1:11   Woe to them! For they walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion.

 Ezekiel 3:6-7   not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you.  But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart

 Hebrews 10:26-31    For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,  but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.  Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses.  How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?  For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.”  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

“Unresponsiveness to the voice of God is the characteristic of this generation, and will be its downfall.” (France)

It is not only western industrial nations that have had access to the gospel. Technology, computers, internet, websites, translations, radio, TV, etc…. leave no room for excuse. No other society has had access to God’s Word, (Scripture, Gospel of Jesus Christ) at their fingertips, yet they reject and deny it of any value for their soul.

“The people in the cities listed above did not attack Jesus Christ; they did not drive him from their gates; they did not seek to crucify him; they simply disregarded him. In the end, neglect will kill much more than persecution ever did.” (Barclay)

When I read, “But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.”, “ How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God”, “But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.” Here it is implied that there are in fact different degrees of judgment. Some will be punished more severely in the final judgment than others. In fact, those who were living out sin and doing all kinds of fleshly and worldly sinful things will be judged to some lesser degree than those who flat out know the offer of redemption and salvation but not only reject it they deny it any room in their heart for it.  God has opened their heart to the Gospel and they neglect, reject, and deny any need for it. 

It is not hard for me to understand and believe in heaven and hell. What is hard for me to understand is how a person whose heart and mind have been open to the need of salvation and have heard the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and have an understanding of heaven and hell and choose hell. Lost on us is an understanding of eternity. Eternal life or eternal hell. Separated from the love of God forever.  The busyness of life needs to be slowed down in most lives. Being too busy for giving thought to eternity just doesn’t make sense now and for sure will not in the future.

32.a. “Depart from us! We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.”

 

Matthew 8:28   And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs, so fierce that no one could pass that way. And behold, they cried out, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a herd of many pigs was feeding at some distance from them. And the demons begged him, saying, “If you cast us out, send us away into the herd of pigs.” And he said to them, “Go.” So they came out and went into the pigs, and behold, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the waters. The herdsmen fled, and going into the city they told everything, especially what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.

 Job 21:14   They say to God, ‘Depart from us! We do not desire the knowledge of your ways.

 Job 22:17   They said to God, ‘Depart from us,’ and ‘What can the Almighty do to us?’

 Mark 5:17-18    And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region.

 John 15:23-24   Whoever hates me hates my Father also.  If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father.

The work of Jesus had unified the whole city, and they had all come out to meet with and to talk to Jesus, but it was not in a good way. “Here was a whole city against their own blessing… Horrible was their decision, but it was heard, and Jesus departed out of their coasts.” (Spurgeon)

We would think that the people of the region would be happy that these two demon-possessed men had been delivered. Perhaps they were more interested in their pigs than in people. Certainly, the delivering power of Jesus did not make all men feel comfortable. (Guzik)

Their conduct directly from their lips…” leave, depart from our region”, makes me wonder what it is that causes man to reject things of God. Unbelief in God, unbelief in a living God, unbelief in an all-powerful God, unbelief in an ever-present God, unbelief in all-knowing God, comfortable in living after the flesh and reliance in their own power and will for their lives, and having no room in their heart or mind for things of God. They are content with their current way of life and do not see any reason to change. Could it be their prosperity, position, power, the comfort of life and not wanting to rock that boat in any way? 

Whatever the reason, they chose as individuals and corporately to ask the Son of God to leave them and their region. These people have seen first hand what Jesus had done and what the herdsmen told them…that the two demon-possessed men were no longer possessed and the demons fled into a herd of pigs which after being possessed red off a cliff and died. They knew this. They knew something had transpired that no human could do. They knew that person was Jesus and they begged Him to leave. 

How many times have we read the Word of God and get uncomfortable with something we have read? How many times has the leading and guiding of the Holy Spirit been pushed out of our minds?  We may not specifically ask it to leave our minds but certainly, the rejection of it in our life is just the same as “leave, depart”. 

It is an intentional choice to proudly defend selfishness, reject, deny, turn away from, cast aside, go your own way, and disobey things of God. Likewise, it is an intentional choice to humbly surrender, invite, seek, desire, believe, trust, follow, and obey. Are you desiring and seeking or firmly asking all influence of God in your life to leave and depart?

31.o. “Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life”

 

Matthew 7:6 “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

 Proverbs 23:9   Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, for he will despise the good sense of your words.

 Hebrews 10:29    How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?

 Hebrews 10:29    How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?

 Acts 13:46-47  And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.  For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

In the previous 1-5 vs Jesus talks of being self-righteously judgmental and not being able to assess one’s self with the same judgmental awareness. Here Jesus is reminding us that we are not to suspend all discernment. It seems as though we should be able to discern those who have hardened their rejection of the good news of Jesus Christ. The person who is Holy Spirit led and is living in all things of their life speaking, doing, and thinking so that Jesus Christ is honored and glorified will know when not to speak of the precious things the kingdom of God. This type of discernment comes when our heart, mind, and soul are desiring to show grace, mercy, and love to others so that Jesus Christ is honored and glorified. It is not with a judgmental heart or mind. Yet, it is with this same Holy Spirit heart and mind that leads us to discern people who will trample underfoot godly pearls from the Word of God. 

The Gospel was preached and taught by the disciples to the Jews who were hardened in their hearts and spoke evil of Jesus Christ. They would not reason or discuss the prophecies and fulfillment. They denied Christ was the Son of God. They rejected Jesus in person and in His death and in His resurrection. Paul left them and went to the Gentiles. He no longer would cast the pearls of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those hardened against it. 

In our own abilities, we are not able to make discernments that only the Holy Spirit can lead us in. We would do well to seek to continually be filled with the Holy Spirit with a desire to be led in all wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and discernment. In this way, our hearts and minds will not be temped with worldly or self-led judgment. The light of Jesus Christ shines bright in the lives of those who show discernment throughout all aspects of their lives for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ. 

I can’t help but think about when I was once one of those who rejected and trampled underfoot things of God. I wonder how many times people were talking with me but the Holy Spirit kept them from speaking about salvation because I was set firmly in my own ways and would have nothing to do with things of God. How many times??? It is hard to tell, it could be 5 times or 10,000 times but this I know, God did not leave me in my hell-bound ways. He brought me to a place in my life where I was ready and He placed people in my life, right at that time, that spoke the Word of God, the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  All I can say is that we need to have discernment when to speak and when not to speak.  When the Holy Spirit leads us to speak we need to speak boldly and when the Holy Spirit leads us to be quiet we need to be quiet.  

30.h. “And the tempter came”

 

Matthew 4:2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Be gone, Satan! For it is written, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to him.

When the tempter (Satan) came and the circumstances that preceded the temptation of Jesus is something we should make a special note of. Jesus had just engaged in an act of obedience to His Father, He had been shown to be the Son of God, He was filled with the Holy Spirit, He was separated from crowds or people. Scripture does not tell us the happenings during these forty days when Jesus separated Himself, went into the wilderness, and fasted forty days and nights. It was at the end of the special time with God, He was tempted.  This is very important. When we have determined and committed to serving God when we have separated ourselves from earthly passions when we seek and desire leading by the Holy Spirit when we have set our heart, mind, and soul on things above when we are intentionally choosing to honor and glorify Jesus Christ in all we say, think, and do, it is in this deep-rooted and holy committed humble surrender that the tempter will come at us hard. We will be tempted with pride, lust, greed, anger, fear, power, self-reliance, self-worth, self-importance, etc……. Paul tells us that Satan is like a roaring lion seeking to destroy our communion, commitment, worship, and our witness to Jesus Christ. I fear that satan does not have to tempt far too many Christians today.  They are already following after the lusts and passions of this world and need no tempting because they so easily give in to their sinful nature due to their complacent commitment to humbly surrendering, following, obeying, studying, trusting, and relying on and to Jesus Christ. This is so sad. It is sad and disappointing that far too many can’t even discern temptation from either self or satan. 

We honor and glorify Jesus Christ when we are daily deeply grounded and rooted in His Word and are able to discern and fight against temptation. 

29.i. “Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ”

 

Colossians 2:6  Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.

 Isaiah 2:5    O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the LORD.

 John 14:6  Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

 Galatians 2:20  I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

 Ephesians 5:1-2   Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.   And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

 Philippians 1:27  Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

 1 John 2:6   whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him: This is a wonderful rule for Christian living. We cannot perfect in the flesh what was begun in the Spirit; therefore just as you received Jesus, walk in Him in the same way. The simple things of the Christian life provide continual and reliable spiritual fuel for growth. We always have to be reminded of the things we have been taught. So walk in Him, rooted and built up: Paul used a curious combination of metaphors. As Christians, we walk, but we are also rooted, and we are also built up. The metaphors are somewhat mixed, but the message is clear: be established and keep growing. 

What keeps us from growing and being established?  Fleshly and worldly things will hinder our growth and erode our foundation. Are we truly satisfied with a single grape worth of fruit and a shallow foundation unable to build upon? Day after day we are continually exposed to worldly and fleshly things. They are all around us and coming at us all of the time.  It can be from those we choose to be around, what we choose to watch and read, or what we choose to think about and allow our minds to dwell on.  How are we to discern that which is true, right, holy, and beneficial from that which is meaningless, worthless, tempting, deceitful, and false?  Being committed to be in the presence of God at all times with a heart and mind deep desire to, in all things, honor and glorify Jesus Christ is the fertile soil and rock-solid foundation that gives us discernment and understanding for that which is right, true, holy, and beneficial.  Water your roots and dig deep into your foundation through daily reading and studying God’s Word.

27.o. “So that we may no longer be children”

 

Ephesians 4:13  until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

Paul did not command a structural or organizational unity, but a spiritual unity around a common faith. People are given spiritual gifts (they are equipped) for building up and equipping Christians to maturity in faith, knowledge, understanding, and intimacy with Jesus Christ. Remember Paul telling the Corinthians that they were still babies in faith and though they should be on solid food they were still infants on milk concerning things of God.  Maturity in faith does not just happen.  It must be cultivated, watered, and fed. Spiritual maturity, knowledge, understanding, discernment, and wisdom grow when the heart and mind and soul intentionally choose to deny self and worldly lusts, pleasures, and schemes but rather chooses to humbly surrender to the will of God, seeking and desiring to be led by Him, obeying, following, trusting, and relying on Him for the ever-growing and maturing want to honor and glorify Him in all that is thought, spoke, or action taken.

26.j. ““You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit.”

Hebrews 10:29   How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?

 Isaiah 63:10   But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit; therefore he turned to be their enemy, and himself fought against them.

 Matthew 12:32   And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.

 Acts 7:51    “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.

One reason some people give for not believing in hell is that hell is just too severe a punishment for wrong beliefs. They say, “Isn’t God overreacting just a little bit? Is a good, moral father who tries to live a good and moral life really going to be condemned to an eternity of suffering in the same way as a man who abuses children?” It seems too much that people are going to hell just because they have not believed the right things about Jesus. But when we say that, we really do not understand what a person is doing when he rejects or even neglects the gospel. Look at Hebrews 10:29: “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?” The writer was saying when you reject Jesus Christ, you are treating His death as worthless. They are saying the death of His Son is worthless. When a person says no to the gospel of Jesus Christ, he is saying the blood of God’s own Son has no value. When a person rejects or simply neglects the gospel, that person is continually rejecting the Holy Spirit of God who is moving in his heart to invite themm to accept the gospel.

26.g. “How then can man be in the right before God?”

 

Galatians 2:15  We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

 Job 9:2-3   “Truly I know that it is so: But how can a man be in the right before God?

 Job 25:4     How then can man be in the right before God? How can he who is born of woman be pure?

 Psalms 130:3-4   If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?  But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.

 Acts 4:12     And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

 John 20:31    but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

We all grew up observant to do what is right and good. Yet somehow we think we are considered right before God because of doing right and good – justified – by these works of the flesh that we did. We should know that we, even though we grew up as observant of doing right and good, we are only considered right before God by faith in Jesus Christ. It will be a sad day for those who, in self-reliance, trust in doing right and good on judgment day.

“‘Faith in Jesus Christ’, then, is not intellectual conviction only, but personal commitment. The expression in the middle of verse 16 is (literally) ‘we have believed into (eis) Christ Jesus.’ It is an act of committal, not just assenting to the fact that Jesus lived and died, but running to Him for refuge and calling on Him for mercy.” (Stott)

Self-righteousness and self-reliance will never justify a person before God. There is but one way – belief in and through Jesus Christ.  This belief is more than a piece of intellectual knowledge, it is a life surrendered.  Casting away any thoughts of self-reliance and self-righteousness, and clinging to, relying on, trusting in, following, obeying, and living to honor and glorify Jesus Christ.