WHO NEEDS CHRIST'S MERITS?

To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.  Eph. 1:6.

The question Who needs Christ's merits? is not a cocky question like Who needs taxes?  It is a very serious question.  Who is benefited by Christ's merits?

We often hear it said, "God has accepted us by virtue of the merits of Christ."  It is good news indeed to find that we are accepted, but just how do Christ's merits fit in?  What part do they play in the transaction?  Do we assume that God is impressed with merits?  Are we suggesting that since God can't see our rebellious past while we "hide" under the perfect record of Jesus we are therefore accepted?  Seriously, does God need Christ's merits in any way to relate differently to us?

Or perhaps we are to see His merits as necessary in order to balance some books in the heavenly courtroom.  This would suggest that salvation requires a certain amount of merit.  We are obviously short of merit, and so we borrow large amounts from Jesus' account since He has a vast surplus.  The Father, in this scenario, checks the books to make sure the bottom line comes out even.  Is this really the nature of the sin problem?

I would like to suggest that the concept of being accepted in Christ's merits is simply one of heaven's better illustrations of how God views man.  Since some people can think of loving acceptance only in terms of its being deserved, God accommodates their concerns by showing them how totally He accepted Jesus.  Then He says, I will accept you just as fully, for you are, "accepted in the beloved."  Jesus stands as a type of all humanity in revealing how much God loves us all.

The concept of merit, then, is for our sake.  We are the ones who need every available illustration of God's positive attitude toward humanity.  We need to sense His attitude as illustrated in how He relates to the Son of man.

Some might protest, "Jesus was perfect.  No wonder God could love Him.  But I'm a sinner."  Yet this is the exact point where we can best see the meaning of unconditional love.  God's love for us is absolutely not influenced by who we are or what we do.  And since forgiveness and acceptance are but manifestations of love, they are offered freely to all.

CLEANING THE LENS

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.  Matt. 5:16, R.S.V.

My friend Chuck works on a giant fusion research project.  In massive buildings that cover acres of staggeringly expensive equipment, brilliant men are trying to reproduce the same process that happens inside the sun: the release of energy through atomic fusion.

In this project a tiny target is blasted with the energy of huge laser beams, focused through an array of unusual lenses.  These lenses are made of a special plastic material designed specifically for laser energy levels.  One of Chuck's jobs is to make sure that every one of the hundreds of lenses is spotlessly clean each time the target is fired upon.  If there is so much as a tiny speck of dust on them, two things will happen: The first problem is that the tiny speck of dust will diffuse light, keeping it from reaching its target.  Several pieces of dust will measurably cut down on the efficiency of the whole project.  Thus it requires even more laser energy to create fusion in the target.

But the more serious problem is that the speck of dust that stops the light from going through the lens turns the light energy into heat energy.  That heat leaves a tiny black burn mark on the lens.  The next time that incredibly strong burst of light hits the lens, the tiny burn mark stops even more light, creating a still bigger scar.  Before long, a single burst of light will instantly destroy the lens.

Francis Ridley Havergal, in a profoundly insightful hymn, suggested how Christians view themselves: "I, the transparent medium Thy glory to display."  Perhaps she had been reading about the fourth angel of Revelation 18 who would lighten the earth with his glory.  She knew that the word glory applied specifically to the knowledge of the character of God.  And she knew that God wanted to use His people as the channels for such powerful truth about Himself to cover the whole earth.

I think that God is cleaning His lenses, for both the above reasons.  He wishes for His gracious character to be known, without distortions, through the people who bear His name.  And perhaps there is also a hint in this analogy of how the persistently rebellious will be destroyed by the same brightness that brings rejoicing to the righteous.

DISCOVERING HIS ACCEPTANCE OF YOU

I will go to the king, though it is against the law; and if I perish, I perish.  Esther 4:16, R.S.V.


Courageous Esther!  Motivated beyond selfish concerns, she entered her husband-king's court to plead for the lives of her people.  Without summons from the king himself, her act carried the penalty of death.  That is, unless she found favor with him and he held out to her his scepter.

The story reveals that the king was delighted to see Esther!  He was willing not only to hear her request, he was willing to share with her his kingdom.  Does this tell us anything about our God?

We cannot earn God's favor.  And there is no way we can approach Him by reason of any compliance to rules.  "No human being will be justified in his sight by works of the law" (Rom. 3:20, R.S.V.).  Taken by themselves, the rules condemn us!

We must remember that there was an active relationship between Esther and the king, the love relationship of marriage.  Her access to him in privacy was to be expected.  However, when she went before him in his court, he was to her as he was to all: the ruler of the Medo-Persian Empire.

It is of no little significance, however, that his response to her was because he loved her.  "When he saw Queen Esther standing in the court, he was pleased with her" (Esther 5:2, N.I.V.).  She was no stranger to him; she was his wife.  And he held out to her the symbol of his power, for she would be blessed, and not condemned, by it.

God is more than the ruler of the universe; in Christ He portrays Himself as our bridegroom.  He is pleased with us, not because we have been able to meet divine requirements but because of our relationship to Him.  He holds out to us the scepter of His power and offers us His kingdom.

God sees our trembling hearts.  He knows that though He has proclaimed us His bride, we are not yet convinced of His enduring love. 


"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32, R.S.V.).

ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTION

For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.  John 3:17, R.S.V.

Read these three questions and see if you can find what they have in common: How many 3-cent stamps are there in a dozen?  Have you stopped beating your wife yet?  Did Jesus accept Peter when he denied his Lord?

Did you catch what it was that they have in common?  In each case the question itself implies a misleading assumption.  Being so concerned to give a right answer to the question, we fail to stop and analyze the assumption critically.

It's the false assumption in that third question we need to look at today.  It assumes that the only way Jesus can relate to a deliberate denial is through rejection.  It assumes that God's condemnation of the sinner is itself the major consequence of all sin; that if God didn't reject the sinner, He wouldn't be dealing adequately with sin.

One of the most persistent emotional myths is the belief that love does not deal directly enough with sin.  This myth holds that sin needs stern, harsh firmness if it's to be eradicated.  It believes that love is too passive, too gentle, to do that.  Perhaps we have picked up these ideas from parents or teachers whose discipline methods held only one weapon in the arsenal: harsh rejection.  More likely, not many of us have ever really experienced the potent vitality of love, and we resort to rejection simply because we know nothing else.  Unfortunately, we expect God to do the same in His dealing with us.

People who study the learning patterns of young children, especially what blocks learning, have agreed on one vital fact: Mental anguish inhibits learning.  To condemn as a means of teaching will assure that learning won't take place.  People burdened with guilt cannot hear the teacher's message, and to fail to accept is to condemn.  Since Jesus came to this planet to teach us about His Father, is it any wonder that He came not to condemn?  Would people hear His gracious message if every sermon brought new condemnation?  He could not both condemn and save,

Did Jesus reject Peter when he denied his Lord?  We should ask, "What purpose would it have fulfilled?  Did Peter need more pain in his heart than he had just inflicted upon himself?  Did he need an extra burden of rejection?"  How, then, could he have learned of his Friend's forgiveness?

GETTING GOD'S BLESSINGS

Blessed are they that do his commandments.  Rev. 22:14

There is no doubt but that God possesses infinite blessings and that He wants to make them available to His people.

But it is not always clear how these blessings become ours.  Have you noticed the way in which we customarily pray about blessings?  We pray, "Bless this food to our health."  But what are we assuming?  Is the blessing "sprinkled" down from heaven like holy water until it becomes part of the food?  Would God implant that blessing as readily in a green salad as He would in deep-fried squid?  Is the food less healthful if we don't ask for the blessing?

Perhaps it would be more fitting to begin praying as we are pushing the cart through the grocery store.  We could affirm to God that we are willing to be reminded to select those foods that are inherently healthful.  Then at mealtime we could thank Him for such good food and for the wisdom to prepare it healthfully.There are three general approaches to the question of how we obtain God's blessings.  They could be summarized in this way:

Blessings are earned......God is obligated to us by our works.
Blessings are coaxed......God is enticed by our begging.
Blessings are inherent......God is wise in teaching us.

Much of our praying for blessings falls into the second category.  We assume that God retains large quantities of "blessings," which He arbitrarily dispenses (as department store Santa Clauses dispenses candy to children) to those with whom He is pleased.  The flip side of this idea, of course, is that He also can reach into His bag of curses and inflict a few of those upon people with whom He is displeased.

According to either reasoning, God uses His resources to manipulate us.  Worshipping a manipulative God, we in turn become manipulative.  We try to "stroke" Him with our eloquent prayers or impress Him with our array of good behaviour.

Under the third approach to God's blessings, we see God as describing to us the path of inherent blessing.  Those who obey are blessed by virtue of the fact that they walk in those paths.  This implies that God always asks His people to do that which will, in the doing, bring the best of physical, social, spiritual, and emotional health.  Obedience, then, brings its own reward.  Thus neither blessings nor cursings are the acts of an arbitrary God.

​CONTENDING FOR GOD

Will ye accept his person? will ye contend for God?  Job 13:8.


In Job we find a story of four very religious men.  One of them, Job, found himself subjected to a series of unexplainable tragedies.  To his three God-fearing friends, these signaled that God was punishing Job for having done something extremely wrong.  And they wanted him to make it right--if they could just get him to admit what it was!  They felt compelled to explain the character of God to Job, who seemed to have forgotten.  But he just didn't get the point.  Instead, he told them that they make miserable comforters!  (Job 16:2).

The fact is, Job had incredible faith in God.  Every outward evidence that he was in right relationship with God had vanished, yet he knew that God would not deal with him as his friends represented.  In our text today, Job challenges his friends, "Will you accept his person?"  That is, will you accept who God really is?  [Do you even know who He really is?]  How can you contend for Him if you don't even grasp what He is like?

Job knew what God was like, in spite of his current circumstances.  "If you and I were to change places," he told his friends, "I could talk like you; how I could harangue you and wag my head at you!  But no, I would speak encouragement, and then my condolences would flow in streams" (verse 4, 5, N.E.B.).  That's how God is, even when we have done wrong!

Though Job experienced bouts of terrible weariness and sometimes uttered words of despair, he always cried out to God, never against Him.  Listen: "If only I knew how to find [God], how to enter his courts, I would state my case before him and set out my arguments in full" (chap. 23:3, 4, N.E.B.).  He knew that God was reasonable!  He was not afraid to talk to Him about his problems, or his feelings and ideas.

"Then I should learn what answers he would give and find out what he had to say.  Would he exert his great power to browbeat me [as my friends are doing]?  No; God himself would never bring a charge against me" (verses 5, 6, N.E.B.).  The King James Version says, "He would put strength in me" (verse 6).

Was Job right?  To his friends God said, "You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has" (chap. 42:7, R.S.V.).

HOW TO BE A SELF-WILLED CHRISTIAN

You must work out your own salvation in fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you, inspiring both the will and the deed, for his own chosen purpose.  Phil. 2:12, 13, N.E.B.


Let's imagine a large chart with three positions clearly marked on it.  These three positions portray three stages of our Christian walk.

Start down in the lower left corner of the chart with Position 1 and label it "Selfish will."  This represents pre-Christian values.  It's the independent, "I'll-do-what-I want" will of the rebel.  This needs no explanation; we've all been there.

Next draw a sweeping line (like the arc of a pendulum) to the far right of the chart and mark it Position 2.  Give it the title "No will of my own."  This is the experience of many new Christians who remember with tears the days of their independence from God.  With absolute sincerity they vow never to move outside God's will.  When asked what they might wish to do, they would say, "It's not what I want, it's what God wants that matters; I must crucify myself."

For those at stage two, any thought of doing what one wishes to do, brings back painful memories of their pre-Christian days, and they recoil at the idea.  Obedience means meekly submitting to whatever God wants, interposing nothing at all of one's own wishes and desires.  God originates all instructions and plans.  Interestingly, God--and not the individual--is then accountable for what happens!

Once again, use your marker to draw a line to the top and center of the page, and locate Position 3.  Give this one the label "Sanctified will."  This represents the position of the mature Chrstian, the one whose values and goals have been edified by Christ, who indeed has the mind of Christ.  This is the one who finds, to his sheer delight, that what he most wants to do is the very thing that Jesus wishes for him to do.

God designs Position 2 to be only transitional.  He does not wish to do our thinking and choosing for us.  Rather, He wishes to equip us to do our own best thinking and to bear accountability for our own choices.  Paul was presenting this idea when he told the Philippians to trust the working of God in their own hearts and--with due respect and reverence--go ahead and make their very own decisions.

GOD HAS ACCEPTED ME!

He will convince the world concerning...righteousness...because I go to the Father.  John 16:10, R.S.V.

Jesus has always worn two hats, as it were.  But, then, doesn't any competent mediator?  But with Jesus, both hats are worn for the benefit of the same party.

In the situation of an estranged couple, a good counselor will try to bring reconciliation by getting each party to see the other's viewpoint.  To do this he will mediate between the two, standing in the place of first and then the other.  By this gentle substitutionary shifting, the counselor allows the offended parties to work through their animosities and fears without having to deal directly with each other.

In our estrangement from God, Jesus is the mediator.  God has taken the first step in our direction by stating that He is holding nothing against us.  Paul wrote, "Our message is that God was making all mankind his friends through Christ.  God did not keep an account of their sins, and he has given us the message which tells how he makes them his friends" (2 Cor. 5:19, T.E.V.).

God doesn't need to have His mind changed concerning us!  In every way possible He lets us know that He accepts us.  Why, then, do we need Jesus to mediate for us?  The answer is simple: we feel the need to "test the waters" in our return to God.  So Jesus dons the hat of mankind and goes into the Father's presence, not to win over the Father but so that we can be convinced of the Father's response.

The other hat Jesus wears is divinity.  Coming to us, He portrays our God as warm, forgiving, accepting, and extremely desirous of reestablishing friendship with us  "He who has seen me," Jesus told His disciples, "has seen the Father" (John 14:9, R.S.V.).  So He is God's gracious substitute, even as He is ours.

Both hats are for our benefit!.  And the ultimate statement of God's acceptance of us is to have Jesus, our Substitute, living in God's presence today.  We can be totally convinced that our relationship has been set right because Jesus has gone to the Father and has been accepted as us!  No wonder Jesus said later, referring to the time He would once again be with us, "In that day you will ask nothing of me" (chap. 16:23, R.S.V.).  It will no longer be necessary; we will be one with the Father, just as He is!

​DOING US A FAVOR

He also said to them, "The Sabbath was made for the sake of man and not man for the Sabbath: therefore the Son of Man is sovereign even over the Sabbath."  Mark 2:27, 28, N.E.B.


I like to imagine Jesus' face as He was saying this to His disciples, because I'm sure His expression revealed His feelings.  I picture a hint of a playful smile at the edges of His mouth, as if to say, "Are you ready for this one?  You're going to like it!"

And the tone of His voice--it was straining to open their minds to this precious insight: You think the Sabbath is a ritual you've been doing as a favor to God.  But you've got it all wrong.  My Father likes to do favors for His friends.  And this one's for you!

The Sabbath had been such a burden for them as they tried to impress God with their diligence in keeping all the rules.  Jesus' point was that His Father was already so impressed with His people that He was making a deliberate appointment to spend special time with them.  Of all the things that God could do for the benefit of His people, no blessing could be greater than His personal fellowship with them.

Think of all the things God could be doing with His time!  He is, after all, in charge of the whole universe.  Yet He counts it no sacrifice from His busy schedule to set aside one seventh of each week exclusively for the benefit of His friends.  (We sometimes think that we are making the sacrifice from our schedules to do Him the favor of our ritualistic worship!)

Could we fully grasp what Jesus is saying, we would cry with David, "What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest hm? (Ps. 8:4).  The question deserves an answer, too.  To see our Father going to such lengths to enjoy fellowship with His creatures should tell us that he views us as capable of bringing satisfaction and delight to His heart through that fellowship.

No one knew better than Jesus the fellowship with the Father that the Sabbath celebrates.  That's why He calls Himself "the Lord...of the Sabbath."  Let's celebrate with Him.

FRETTING CHRISTIANS

The Lord answered, "Martha, Martha, you are fretting and fussing about so many things; but one thing is necessary.  The part that Mary has chosen is best; and it shall not be taken away from her."  Luke 10:41, 42, N.E.B.

There's no doubt that Martha was a good woman.  Religious people enjoyed having her around and never questioned the sincerity of her devotion.  But these good, church-going folks weren't as discerning as Jesus was about the nature of the fire that burned inside Martha's heart.  What they labeled as religious zeal, Jesus saw for what it really was.

Martha was trying to impress Jesus by earnestly caring for Him.  She wanted to be sure He noticed the sincerity of her devotion.  She wanted Him to change His opinion of her.  In a word, she was a legalist.  And legalists are always fretting and fussing, for they are never sure that they have accomplished their goal.

But an even more telling sign of the nature of Martha's religious experience was her attitude toward her sister Mary.  You see, one who is filled with anxiety about one's standing with God cannot understand those who are sitting, joyful and relaxed, at the feet of Jesus.  Martha was certain that Mary wasn't taking religious matters seriously.  If Mary was taking sin seriously, she'd join Martha in her anxious bustle to demonstrate her righteousness.  Martha fits my favorite definition of a legalist: "Someone who has a haunting fear that somebody, somewhere, is having a good time."

And was Mary ever having a good time!  She basked in the warmth of Christ's friendship, falling ever more deeply in love with Him whom to know is life eternal.  Jesus spoke to the real issue when He said, "It shall not be taken away."  There is rich security in a friendship, especially when the Friend is constant in His attitude toward us.  But when we endeavor to earn that friendship, we shall be perpetually anxious.

When Jesus said that Martha was fretting over "many things," He was talking not only about the beans and potatoes.  The legalist lives in constant dread that anything he does, even good deeds, may induce the frown and displeasure of God if they are not done perfectly.  Any momentary feelings of peace one may find can be taken away quickly the moment one gets a deeper understanding of God's requirements.

I'm so glad Jesus said there is a better part!