I used to hate the “try harder, do better” sermons. I didn’t
find them uplifting, but condemning. I found that I was never able to “do
better.” Instead, I would leave church feeling like a loser, a spiritual
failure, barely acceptable to God.
Slowly, the Lord began to open my eyes to a deeper
understanding of grace – what Christ had accomplished for me on the Cross,
taking all of my sins, inadequacies, and failures upon Himself. Consequently,
the Gospel set me free.
However, I continued to disdain the slightest whisper of an
obedience-oriented message. I knew that
my fruit fell far short of what the preacher was requiring from me. Therefore,
I convinced myself that grace had replaced the need to be obedient and to bear
fruit.
However, I also began to see that it was not just the
preacher who was making demands of me; it was also Scripture. Even the One who
had died for me and who had directed me to just believe (John 6:29; 8:24) was
requiring fruit from me:
·
For I tell you, unless your righteousness
exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of
heaven. (Matthew 5:20)
·
For if you love those who love you, what reward
do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only
your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do
the same? You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew
5:46-48; ESV)
How could I possibly be perfect? I couldn’t, and, once
again, I felt like a spiritual failure. I also began to see that repentance was
not an option:
·
“Unless you repent, you will all likewise
perish. Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do
you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in
Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise
perish.” (Luke 13:3-5)
In fact, so many of Jesus’ parables seemed to demand a high
degree of righteousness as the ticket to enter into heaven. Right after His teaching
about the need to repent, Jesus told a parable about a fig tree that didn’t
bear fruit. After fertilizing it, if it still didn’t bear fruit, He would have it
cut down (Luke 13:6-9). Gulp!
I struggled with the idea that perhaps Scripture was
hopelessly conflicted and that all of my hope was for naught. How could
salvation be a free gift and still be something that we earned through our good
deeds?
My confidence in the Gospel hit bottom. I was in despair
once again until the Spirit opened my eyes to the fact that, while the Good
News of the Gospel still stands, a real faith along with a real new life will
bear fruit as Jesus taught about a good tree:
·
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in
sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by
their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So,
every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A
healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every
tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. (Matthew
7:15-19)
If we are a good tree, by the grace of God, and have a real
living faith, based upon the new life He has given us, then we will bear fruit
as does the good tree. If we continue to bear bad fruit as the fig tree had,
then we are not a good tree and should be cut down.
What then must
biblical preaching look like? The Bible! It must include Gospel and law
(obedience). Although the law, even the law of Christ, is not the Gospel, the
two are inseparable. Faith and obedience always go together, and they should.
If we trust God, we will do what He tells us to do. We will abide in His Word
and keep His commandments. If we do not, we do not have a real living faith,
the faith that comes to us as a gift from God:
·
And by this we know that we have come to know
him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep
his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his
word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we
are in him. (1 John 2:3-5)
While obedience does not save us, it gives us the assurance
that we are in Him. If we do not obey Him, we do not know Him savingly.
In fact, obedience is also necessary for growing in grace. They
are interdependent. How? While trying to obey the Gospel, we reap blessings,
but also frustration. Our failures to live obediently cause us great distress,
knowing that we must conform our lives unto Christ (1 Peter 1:15:16). Even more
troubling, we begin to see how unworthy we are of anything that comes from God
(Luke 17:10).
This can throw us into crisis mode, where we see that our
only hope is in the mercy of God. We therefore confess our sins and repent in
brokenness. Through this humbling process, our Lord lifts us up, so that we can
again see His mercy in neon lights. Encouraged, we recommit ourselves to the
Lord and to obedience to His teachings.
This cycle is something we continue to experience. Each
time, it deepens our appreciation of our incredible Lord and His Gospel.
Please note, that without pursuing obedience, we are not adequately
humbled. Without the humbling, we will not be lifted in order to receive a more
vibrant portrait of the Gospel and recommit to the Lord with ever-increasing
vigor.
What does this
suggest about biblical preaching? We need to preach both the law and Grace,
the Gospel and our complete obedience to it. We must preach to expose and indict
all sin and to comfort with the all-sufficiency of the Gospel.
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