Jesus Is Strong: Part 1

Jesus is coming quickly. He will return soon.

What reaction do you have to those statements?

I ask because today, especially in Western culture, many think that Jesus is a perpetually peaceful, gentle, meek, smiling man. We fancy that He never frowns, always speaks softly, and is a dedicated pacifist. Although God raised Him from the dead, we think Jesus is still gentle and meek and mild today, and that He always will be.

We who think of Jesus merely in these terms are wrong.

The Apostle Paul rebuked the church at Corinth for failing to respect Jesus' authority demonstrated through the Apostle Paul:

I have previously said when present the second time, and though now absent I say in advance to those who have sinned in the past and to all the rest, that if I come again I will not spare, since you are seeking for proof of the Christ who speaks in me, and who is not weak toward you, but mighty in you.

For indeed He was crucified because of weakness, yet He lives because of the power of God.

For we also are weak in Him, yet we will live with Him because of the power of God toward you.

(2 Corinthians 13:2-4)

It is definitely important to realize that Jesus died for us, and that at one time He refused to show His strength so that He could save us.

But it is also important, I think even more important, to realize and believe that He did not remain dead, and that today He is revealed to us as incomparably strong.

We believers should know that our Savior is not just the Lamb who gave His life for us; He is also the Lion. He is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

His coming again should strike deathly fear into the hearts of unbelievers and motivate those of us who believe in Him to live pure lives in submission before Him.

If we look in the book of Revelation, we can see Jesus as He is today, and as He will be in the near future. This book was written by a man named John, a bond-servant of Jesus Christ. It is the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:1).

Look with me at how John describes Jesus:

John to the seven churches that are in Asia:

Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, The Faithful Witness, The Firstborn of the Dead, and The Ruler of the Kings of the Earth.

To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood — and He has made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father — to Him, the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him.

So it is to be. Amen.

“I am The Alpha and The Omega,” says the Lord God, “Who Is and Who Was and Who Is to Come, The Almighty.”

I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.

I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, like of a trumpet, saying,

“Write in a book what you see, and send to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”

Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me.

And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the middle of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash.

His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire.

His feet, like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice, like the sound of many waters.

In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.

When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man.

And He placed His right hand on me, saying,

“Do not be afraid; I am The First and The Last, and The Living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.

"Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things.

"As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches."

(Revelation 1:4-20)

This is hardly the meek and humble Jesus we are accustomed to hearing about.

No, this Jesus has eyes, "like a flame of fire" and "feet, like burnished bronze." His voice is "like the sound of many waters," and "out of His mouth comes a sharp two-edged sword." His face is "like the sun shining in its strength."

And His authority is immense. He holds authority over the angels of His churches, and over the churches themselves. He is "The Ruler of the Kings of the Earth." Not only that, but He has "the keys of death and of Hades."

Jesus is "The Living One." Jesus is "The Alpha and The Omega." Jesus is "The Almighty."

"To Him, the glory and the dominion forever and ever!"

Yes, it is this mighty Jesus who is "coming with the clouds." Even the ones who pierced Him will see Him, and "all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him." When Jesus returns, all will see Him, not in weakness and humility, but in glorious power and authority.

John saw Jesus, and he "fell at His feet like a dead man."

But this passage also shows us Jesus' love and mercy. Although He is The Almighty, He also knows how to keep His power under control. Here, He comforted John, placing His right hand on him. Then He let John know that he had a job to do: To write the Revelation of Jesus Christ so that we, His bond-servants, would receive and heed the testimony (Rev. 1:1-3).

As we close, notice again John's words at the beginning of this passage: "Grace to you and peace" — to whom? Not to unbelievers, but to believers — "to the seven churches that are in Asia." For those who are not in Christ, who have not been "released from" their "sins by His blood," there is no grace, nor peace, but only judgment and wrath.

Again, the fact that Jesus will return should strike deathly fear into the hearts of unbelievers and motivate those of us who believe in Him to live pure lives in submission before Him.

If the Lord Jesus wills, we will continue this series in the near future.

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Browse this series: PART 2

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Scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB).
All boldface emphases are mine.
Added (italicized) words in the original NASB text have been omitted.
Some punctuation and capitalization has been altered from the original NASB text.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Conclusion

JESUS Is Our Peace with God

Conclusion

We have finally come to the place from which we started. We have examined our natural state before God, who His Son is and what He did for us, and the importance of believing in the name of Jesus. If we believe in Him, we know that we will be raised with Him (2 Corinthians 4:14).

However, before concluding this series, I'd like to discuss one last point. One thing that continually amazes me is the relationship of Gentile (non-Jewish) believers to God through Jesus Christ. As a Gentile believer myself, I find this topic to be quite staggering.

In the letter to the Ephesians, after explaining that we who believe in Jesus are saved by the grace of God and that we are created in Christ Jesus for good works, the Apostle Paul addresses Gentile believers specifically:

Ephesians 2:11-12

Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh,
called "the uncircumcision" by what is called the circumcision,
which is made in the flesh by hands —

remember that you were at that time separated from Christ,
alienated from the commonwealth of Israel
and strangers to the covenants of promise,
having no hope and without God in the world.

Jews, God’s chosen people, were given the Jewish Law by God. Circumcision showed that they belonged to Him and were entitled to the benefits under His covenant with them.

However, Gentiles like myself had no such connections to God. We had no Law and no hope. We were “separated from Christ ... strangers to the covenants of promise [found in the Jewish Law], having no hope and without God in the world”.

But something happened to allow us Gentiles, who didn't know God, to have access to Him.

Ephesians 2:13-18

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off
have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

For He himself is our peace,
Who has made us both one
and has broken down in His flesh
the dividing wall of hostility
by abolishing the Law
of commandments and ordinances,
that He might create in Himself one new man
in place of the two,
so making peace,
and might reconcile us both to God
in one body through the cross,
thereby killing the hostility.

And He came and preached
peace to you who were far off
and peace to those who were near.

For through Him we both have access
in one Spirit to the Father.

Now that Christ Jesus has accomplished the work of "abolishing the Law of commandments and ordinances," only those who trust Jesus will have peace with God. Jesus is the only one who perfectly obeyed and fulfilled the Law to God's satisfaction. Again, a Jew's obedience to the Law cannot save him or her; otherwise, God would not have sent Christ to save us all.

Even before He obeyed His Father by going to the cross to die, Jesus spoke to the Jews who wanted to kill Him after He had healed a man on the Sabbath:

The Jews therefore marveled, saying,
"How is it that this man has learning,
when He has never studied?"

So Jesus answered them,
"My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me.

If anyone’s will is to do God’s will,
he will know whether the teaching is from God
or whether I am speaking on My own authority.

The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory;
but the One who seeks the glory of Him who sent Him is true,
and in Him there is no falsehood.

Has not Moses given you the Law?
Yet none of you keeps the Law.
Why do you seek to kill Me?"

The crowd answered,
"You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill You?"

Jesus answered them,
"I did one work, and you all marvel at it.
Moses gave you circumcision
(not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers),
and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.

If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision,
so that the Law of Moses may not be broken,
are you angry with me because on the Sabbath
I made a man’s whole body well?

Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment."

(John 7:15-24)

While these Jews were angry that Jesus had healed a man on the Sabbath, ostensibly breaking God's Law, Jesus argued that He was perfectly in line with God's will and that the Jews themselves did not keep the Law. I think these Jews had lost sight of the fact that obedience to God has more to do with the heart than it does with outward appearances.

We cannot be saved by observing the Sabbath, or by offering animal sacrifices, but only by trusting the One who became our ultimate sacrifice and who is also Lord of the Sabbath (Matthew 12:8).

The writer to the Hebrews argues powerfully for the superiority of Jesus over obedience to the Law as a means of earning or receiving peace with God.

Hebrews 10:1-14

For since the Law has but a shadow of the good things to come
instead of the true form of these realities,
it can never, by the same sacrifices
that are continually offered every year,
make perfect those who draw near.

Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered,
since the worshipers, having once been cleansed,
would no longer have any consciousness of sin?

But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin every year.

For it is impossible
for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Consequently, when Christ came into the world, He said,
"Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired,
but a body have You prepared for Me;
in burnt offerings and sin offerings
You have taken no pleasure.

Then I said, 'Behold, I have come to do your will, O God,
as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.' "

When he said above,
"You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in
sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings"
(these are offered according to the Law),
then He added, "Behold, I have come to do Your will."

He abolishes the first in order to establish the second.

And by that will we have been sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

And every priest stands daily at his service,
offering repeatedly the same sacrifices,
which can never take away sins.

But when Christ had offered for all time
a single sacrifice for sins,

He sat down at the right hand of God,
waiting from that time
until His enemies should be made
a footstool for His feet.

For by a single offering
He has perfected for all time
those who are being sanctified.

Jesus was not born to offer animal sacrifices. He was born to offer Himself, in a life of perfect obedience to God and a sacrificial death to atone for the transgressions of both Jewish sinners and Gentile sinners. And Jesus' offering for sins was completely sufficient. It was superior to all animal sacrifices, since, unlike those offerings, Jesus' offering actually took away our sins, and only needed to be done once. His offering truly pleased God.

After His offering of His own body and blood was complete, "Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until His enemies should be made a footstool for His feet." Jesus Christ reigns today as Lord of all, Jew and Gentile alike.

The Apostle Peter, having been convinced by the Lord Jesus that God's grace had indeed extended to those outside of Israel, preached the following message to a group of Gentiles.

So Peter opened his mouth and said:

"Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,
but in every nation anyone who fears Him
and does what is right is acceptable to Him.

As for the word that He sent to Israel,
preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ
(He is Lord of all),

you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea,
beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed:
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Spirit and with power.

He went about doing good and healing all
who were oppressed by the devil,
for God was with Him.

And we are witnesses of all that He did
both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.

They put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree,
but God raised Him on the third day
and made Him to appear,

not to all the people
but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses,
who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead.

And He commanded us to preach to the people
and to testify that He is the One appointed by God
to be Judge of the living and the dead.

To Him all the prophets bear witness
that everyone who believes in Him
receives forgiveness of sins through His name."

While Peter was still saying these things,
the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.

And the believers from among the circumcised
who had come with Peter were amazed,
because the gift of the Holy Spirit
was poured out even on the Gentiles.

For they were hearing them
speaking in tongues and extolling God.

Then Peter declared,
"Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people,
who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?"

And he commanded them to be baptized
in the name of Jesus Christ.

Then they asked him to remain for some days.

(Acts 10:34-48)

The Lord Jesus Christ validated His sovereign decision that the Gentiles should be added to His body in a visible, audible manner. He poured out His Spirit on these new Gentile believers, and they began "speaking in tongues and extolling God."

This "amazed" the "believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter" - that is, the Jewish believers who had come with the Apostle Peter. They witnessed firsthand the amazing grace of the Lord Jesus in saving Gentiles through the simplicity of the Gospel.

The Apostle Peter did not preach about the Jewish Law to these Gentiles; he merely told them the good news about Jesus Christ. These believers, having been baptized with the Holy Spirit, were subsequently baptized in water in the name of Jesus Christ.

Let's return to Ephesians to conclude this series.

Here, the Apostle Paul continues to address Gentile believers.

Ephesians 2:17-22

And He came and preached peace to you who were far off
and peace to those who were near.

For through Him we both have access
in one Spirit to the Father.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens,
but you are fellow citizens
with the saints and members of the household of God,
built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,

Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone,
in Whom the whole structure,
being joined together,
grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

In Him you also are being built together
into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

We who trust Jesus for our salvation, whether we are Jew or Gentile, are truly blessed!

• We have His Holy Spirit indwelling us.
• We have access to the Father in that one Spirit.
• We are continually being “built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
• We are a part of God’s glorious redemption of mankind through Jesus Christ.
• We have peace with God.

But none of this is because of something we did that impressed God.

Notice that Christ Jesus Himself is "the cornerstone" - that is, the most important stone in the entire building, the one without which the building could not and would not exist.

That building is the church, composed of God's adopted children. Not a physical brick-and-mortar building, nor a church organization or denomination, nor a political party, but "those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours" (1 Corinthians 1:2 b).

• Only in Jesus are we “joined together” and grow “into a holy temple in the Lord.”
• Only in Jesus are we “being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.”
• Only in Jesus do we have peace with God.

Jesus is our peace.

Glory to God through our Lord Jesus Christ, our Peace with God.

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All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
This is the last part of this series!
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Part VII

Life in Christ Jesus, our Peace

So what are believers in Jesus supposed to do, anyway?

Well, trusting Jesus is more than a one-time decision. It is a change in lifestyle. Some believers call it a "walk," while others call it "living right" or "living holy" or "living saved."

Although I am no expert on this new lifestyle, I would like to offer some Scriptures and some of my thoughts here to help fellow believers, and perhaps clear up some misconceptions about our life in Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 5:21

For our sake he made Him to be sin who knew no sin,
so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

We're not saved just to gloat about being saved, nor so that we can be free to sin without guilt. We are to “become the righteousness of God.”

This is not to be confused with earning our own salvation through good works; instead, because we are legally declared righteous before God, we are called to act righteous in our daily lives. One preacher said that we are to "become what we are" in Christ; that is, we should live in a righteous way because God considers us righteous in Christ.

Writing to believers, the Apostle John reminds us of what God has already done and what we are waiting for:

1 John 3:1-3

See what kind of love the Father has given to us,
that we should be called children of God; and so we are.

The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.

Beloved, we are God’s children now,
and what we will be has not yet appeared;
but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him,
because we shall see Him as He is.

And everyone who thus hopes in Him
purifies himself as He is pure.

This is a wonderful Scripture about why we should live in a new way. We didn't earn our peace with God or eternal life; Jesus purchased them for us. And in what His Son did for us, God showed His love for us.

Notice that God has loved us in this wonderful way: He made us His children through what Jesus did for us. And we are waiting for Jesus to return. We are waiting to "see Him as He is."

On that day, we will be changed. Writing to believers, the Apostle Paul writes below about the resurrection of the dead:

1 Corinthians 15:42-49

So is it with the resurrection of the dead.
What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable.
It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory.
It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power.
It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

Thus it is written,
"The first man Adam became a living being;
the last Adam became a life-giving spirit."
But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural,
and then the spiritual.

The first man was from the earth, a man of dust;
the second man is from heaven.
As was the man of dust,
so also are those who are of the dust,
and as is the man of heaven,
so also are those who are of heaven.
Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust,
we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

Here, the Apostle Paul lets us know that, someday, we who believe will "bear the image" of Jesus! We'll have resurrection bodies that will be imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual. Then, the Apostle Paul gets more specific about when this will happen:

1 Corinthians 15:50-58

I tell you this, brothers:
flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God,
nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

Behold! I tell you a mystery.

We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed,
in a moment,
in the twinkling of an eye,
at the last trumpet.

For the trumpet will sound,
and the dead will be raised imperishable,
and we shall be changed.

For this perishable body must put on the imperishable,
and this mortal body must put on immortality.

When the perishable puts on the imperishable,
and the mortal puts on immortality,
then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

"Death is swallowed up in victory."

"O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?"

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers,
be steadfast, immovable,
always abounding in the work of the Lord,
knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

When Jesus returns, believers will inherit our spiritual resurrection bodies. These bodies will be imperishable, like the body of Jesus. If we have died, we will be resurrected. If we are alive, we will be changed. God decided that those who believe in Jesus will be with Him, have immortal, imperishable bodies, and claim victory over death forever. Jesus purchased these gifts for us through His perfect life of obedience, His death on the cross, and His resurrection.

All of this was done by God's grace; we did not earn it. But, since God did this for us, we also have a responsibility to uphold: that is, an obedient lifestyle to our Owner and Master, Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:8-10

For by grace you have been saved through faith.

And this is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God,
not a result of works,
so that no one may boast.

For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand,
that we should walk in them.

Again, we've done nothing to earn salvation. We've already seen throughout this series that religion, self-effort, moral goodness, or any such things cannot earn us peace with God. Jesus is our only hope to have eternal life and the assurance of an eternity of peace with God and His Son.

While this is all true, the passage above from Ephesians makes clear that we are "His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

As far as I understand, the term "good works" refers to things that believers do to benefit others, primarily others who are also saved. It refers to a lifestyle, not just a few scattered acts. Depending on who we are and what situations we find ourselves in, the specific good works will differ from believer to believer, but they share several things in common:

• We can't be saved by doing good works, but since we are saved, we are actually equipped by God to do them as we live this new life.
  
• The passage states that we are the workmanship of God. Therefore, God, working through Jesus, is really doing the work. The credit for our good works does not go to us; all glory goes to God through Jesus Christ.
• God is the One who prepared our good works for us, so we don't need to worry about whether we're capable of living up to God's standards for good works. If He moves us to do them, He also equips us to handle them.
  

Through our good-working, we should remember why we are able to do these good works, and Who we are doing them for. The Apostle Peter writes the following:

Therefore, preparing your minds for action,
and being sober-minded,

set your hope fully on the grace
that will be brought to you
at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

As obedient children,
do not be conformed to the passions
of your former ignorance,

but as He who called you is holy,
you also be holy in all your conduct,
since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."

And if you call on Him as Father
Who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds,
conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile,
knowing that you were ransomed
from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers,
not with perishable things such as silver or gold,

but with the precious blood of Christ,
like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

He was foreknown before the foundation of the world
but was made manifest in the last times for your sake,
who through Him are believers in God,
Who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory,
so that your faith and hope are in God.

(1 Peter 1:13-21)

We believe in Jesus; therefore, we believe in God. Let us not lose sight of our Savior as we live to please Him.

One last Scripture before we part for now:

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ
has been born of God,
and everyone who loves the Father
loves whoever has been born of Him.

By this we know that we love the children of God,
when we love God and obey His commandments.

For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.
And His commandments are not burdensome.

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world.
And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

Who is it that overcomes the world
except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

(1 John 5:1-5)

"The world" refers to the evil environment we live in, which constantly attempts to persuade us to sin. But this Scripture, written by the Apostle John, gives us hope. Through "our faith" in Jesus, you and I are guaranteed to overcome the evil temptations and sinful patterns of the world system. We will prevail, not because we are mighty, but because Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, our Savior, and the Lord of all, has already overcome the world.

If He wills, we'll conclude this series soon. May our Lord Jesus Christ bless you.

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All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
For the final part of this series, go here.
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Part VI

A Relationship with Jesus
and God, His Father

Believing in the Lord Jesus Christ means that we enter into a new, positive relationship with Him and with His Father, who is God. We are saved from the wrath of God, and we have peace with God. And we finally acknowledge that Jesus, who is already Lord of all, is also our personal Lord, our Master, and that He should govern our lives from here on out.

If we believe in Jesus, God will no longer hold our sins against us, because His Son paid our debt in full by His death. But we must trust in the name of Jesus and depend fully on Him, not on what we have done. As we've seen, our actions, whatever they may be, can never earn us peace with God. Only Jesus could, and only He did.

What does the choice to believe look like? The Apostle Paul explained it in these words:

…you
turned to God
from idols
to serve the living and true God,
and to wait for His Son from heaven,
Whom He raised from the dead,
Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

(1 Thessalonians 1:9-10)

Notice here: We must turn "to God." In order to do this, we must turn "from idols"— anything that we think can earn us salvation other than the One Whom God has appointed and sent. Our idols include our misdeeds, our sinful lifestyles, and also our misguided attempts to save ourselves. Only One can deliver us "from the wrath to come": Jesus.

Jesus alone is our peace with God, and God vindicated His Son by raising Him from the dead, which the Apostle Paul here points out. When we believe in Jesus, both as a one-time act and as a continuing lifestyle, we "serve the living and true God."

Moreover, we "wait for His Son from heaven, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come." One day in real history, Jesus will return to judge the wicked and take the righteous to Himself. The wicked will be judged for their own sins, and the righteous will be saved in spite of their sins because Jesus paid for them in full on the cross. Therefore, the Apostle Paul states that Jesus "delivers us from the wrath to come."

For unbelievers, Jesus will come to execute the wrath of God, but for believers, Jesus has already taken the wrath of God upon Himself. Therefore, He is our peace with God and our deliverer. We wait for Jesus to return, so that "our joy may be made complete" (paraphrase of 1 John 1:4) as we enjoy the peaceful presence of God and our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ. All these things go together as one package, but the key is Jesus.

The Apostle John addresses this as well:

And we know that the Son of God
has come and has given us understanding,
so that we may know Him who is true;
and we are in Him who is true,
in His Son Jesus Christ.

He is the true God and eternal life.

Little children, keep yourselves from idols.

(1 John 5:20-21)

If you confess Jesus, you confess that He is the Son of God and that God is His Father. And in so doing, you repent—you turn away from idols that cannot save you, as well as from your other sins, and you turn to Jesus, who can save you completely, assuredly, and eternally. And you are accounted to be “in” Jesus, like a part of His body. And only in that way can you have peace with God, because God loves His Son.

Do you still stand in expectation of God’s judgment? You may be saved if you turn from your sins and trust Jesus. The Lord Jesus Christ is ready to forgive all who humbly come to Him.

Romans 10:9-13

...if you confess with your mouth
that Jesus is Lord
and believe in your heart
that God raised Him from the dead,
you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes and is justified,
and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

For the Scripture says,
"Everyone who believes in Him
will not be put to shame."

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek;
the same Lord is Lord of all,
bestowing His riches on all who call on Him.

"For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved."

Notice: "For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." It does not depend on our background, our education, our money, our age, our ethnicity, or any other criteria. If we call on the name of the Lord Jesus, He will save us.

Notice, though, that calling on His name does not merely mean uttering the words, "Lord Jesus," without any inner conviction. The passage makes clear that we must believe and confess:

• We must believe in our heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. In doing so, we implicitly acknowledge that Jesus was a real man who died for our sins -- that is, the Christ -- and that God approved of His Son enough to raise Him from the dead.

• We must confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord. Once God raised Jesus from the dead, He made Jesus the Master of everything and everyone. Therefore, if we confess Jesus to be Lord, we admit that we are not our own masters. We admit that we are not capable of saving ourselves. We're not good enough to earn peace with God, but Jesus is, and He did. Instead of trusting ourselves any longer, we trust Jesus alone. Moreover, we agree that we will turn from the sins that Jesus died for.

When we believe that Jesus, the Son of God, died for us, was raised for us, and presently reigns as Lord, and turn from our sins to ask for His forgiveness and help, we can call upon His name in prayer and tell Him so. There is no magic formulaic prayer that you must pray in this regard. Simply come, and confess that Jesus, and Jesus alone, is Lord.

Some may feel unworthy to call upon the name of Jesus for salvation. Well, none of us are worthy. But our salvation does not depend on us; it depends on God, who has mercy. And He gives mercy to all who call on the name of the Lord Jesus.

Some think that we must make ourselves more presentable to God before asking for salvation, that we must 'clean ourselves up' or be completely perfect before daring to pray for redemption. But this isn't true.

The whole point of this series is that we cannot clean ourselves up; we are hopelessly unclean in and of ourselves. Jesus alone can clean us, and He will. He simply asks that we turn to Him as children, acknowledging our imperfections, but agreeing to trust Him instead of our own efforts.

We are commanded to turn from our sins, but the power to do so does not come from our own strength or wisdom. Rather, once we ask Jesus to save us, He will give us His Spirit, who will equip us to live better lives. But that comes later. For now, let us take an initial step of faith and trust the One who died for us and lives for us.

If you have read this far and are convicted to act, I am convinced that God is for you, and He wants you to take this step. God says:

"Those who were not My people
I will call 'My people,'
and her who was not beloved
I will call 'beloved.'"

"And in the very place
where it was said to them,
'You are not My people,'
there they will be called
sons of the living God."

(Romans 9:25 b - 26)

So, call on the name of the Lord Jesus! If you trust in Jesus' name, God accepts you as His own adopted child. It’s all thanks to His only begotten Son, Jesus!

The Apostle Paul rejoices with us:

Romans 5:1-2

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Through Him we have also obtained access by faith
into this grace in which we stand,
and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

I pray that you have taken the step of calling on the name of the Lord Jesus, beginning your new relationship of peace and life with Jesus and God. If you have done this, whether recently or in the past, you may be wondering what's next. Well, if the Lord wills, in the next section we will look at some of the things that believers are supposed to do.

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All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
For the next part of this series, go here.
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Part V

The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus

Before He died, Jesus spoke these words:

"Truly, truly, I say to you,
an hour is coming, and is now here,
when the dead will hear
the voice of the Son of God,
and those who hear will live.

For as the Father has life in himself,
so He has granted the Son also
to have life in Himself.

And He has given Him authority
to execute judgment,
because He is the Son of Man.

Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming
when all who are in the tombs
will hear His voice and come out,
those who have done good
to the resurrection of life,
and those who have done evil
to the resurrection of judgment."

(John 5:25-29)

These would have been quite ironic words for someone to say if he was soon going to be dead himself. But, Jesus did not remain in the tomb. On the third day, God raised Jesus from the dead.

Not only that, but God gave Jesus the highest position of authority in heaven and on earth, to judge and to reign over all.

After He was raised, Jesus told the eleven men He was sending (the Apostles) to preach about Him:

“All authority in heaven and on earth
has been given to Me.”
(Matthew 28:18b)

And the Apostle Peter took this message to the people:

"Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain
that God has made Him both Lord and Christ,
this Jesus Whom you crucified."
(Acts 2:36)

Later, the Apostle Paul expounded further on the authority of the Lord Jesus:

Have this mind among yourselves,
which is yours in Christ Jesus,
who, though He was in the form of God,
did not count equality with God
a thing to be grasped,
but made Himself nothing,
taking the form of a servant,
being born in the likeness of men.

And being found in human form,
He humbled Himself
by becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.

Jesus did what we could not and would not do, and His humility did not go unrewarded by God.

Therefore God has highly exalted Him
and bestowed on Him
the name that is above every name,

so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

(Philippians 2:5-11)

Since Jesus humbled Himself beneath us all in His death, God exalted Him above all in His resurrection. Jesus, who Himself never deserved anything but perfect fellowship with God, suffered abandonment by God and absorbed God's wrath for our sins. So, God put Him in charge of us.

The Greek term translated "Lord" could equally be translated "Master," as in the master of servants. The last passage from Philippians states that "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

In other words, everyone must submit to the truth that Jesus, the One who paid for our sins on the cross, is not only the Savior but the Master of every person.

This is unusual.

It makes sense for God to be our Master, since He is our Creator.

It also would make sense for Jesus to be the Master of those who believe in Him.

But for Jesus, Himself a man, to be the Master of everyone who has ever lived seems extreme. However, since God is the One who gave Jesus that authority, I, for one, am not going to disagree with God.

The Apostle Peter proclaimed the following message to a group of Gentiles:

“Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,
but in every nation anyone who fears Him
and does what is right is acceptable to Him.

As for the word that He sent to Israel,
preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ
(He is Lord of all),

you yourselves know what happened
throughout all Judea,
beginning from Galilee
after the baptism that John proclaimed:
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Spirit and with power.

He went about doing good
and healing all who were oppressed by the devil,
for God was with Him.

And we are witnesses of all that He did
both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.

They put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree,
but God raised Him on the third day
and made Him to appear,
not to all the people but
to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses,
who ate and drank with Him
after He rose from the dead.

And He commanded us to preach to the people
and to testify that He is the One appointed by God
to be Judge of the living and the dead.

To Him all the prophets bear witness
that everyone who believes in Him
receives forgiveness of sins through His name.”

(Acts 10:34b-43)

What is the significance of these things, and what do they have to do with Jesus being our peace with God?

I would say this: Not only is Jesus alive, but He holds absolute and final authority over every single person’s fate. Therefore, the issue of peace with God is not something only “religious” or “spiritual” people should be concerned with. Rather, we all must come to terms with who the Son of God is, or else we wait for judgment.

One of the passages above states that God "has given Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man." Jesus knows what it is like to live a human life. He knows how hard it is to do what is right. He knows the pain and suffering. He knows hunger and weeping and weakness and betrayal. He understands it all. And this is comforting to Christians, for He sympathizes with us and can help us. But it is another reason for terror among unbelievers, for there is no excuse for rejecting Him if He went through the difficulty of a human life and did it perfectly—on our behalf.

Jesus stated:

"The Father judges no one,
but has given all judgment to the Son,
that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.

Whoever does not honor the Son
does not honor the Father who sent Him.

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My word
and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life.

He does not come into judgment,
but has passed from death to life."

(John 5:22-24)

And the Apostle John, sent by Jesus, wrote this:

If we receive the testimony of men,
the testimony of God is greater,
for this is the testimony of God
that He has borne concerning His Son.

Whoever believes in the Son of God
has the testimony in himself.

Whoever does not believe God has made Him a liar,
because he has not believed in the testimony
that God has borne concerning His Son.

And this is the testimony,
that God gave us eternal life,
and this life is in His Son.

Whoever has the Son has life;
whoever does not have the Son of God
does not have life.

(1 John 5:10-12)

The only way to escape the judgment of God, which will be pronounced by Jesus, is to believe God. But believing God does not mean believing that God exists. Rather, we must believe that "God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son."

By believing God's testimony about His Son, we can have eternal life. After all, "this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (John 17:3b). To know Jesus and His Father now, and for all eternity, is eternal life, and peace with God.

Knowing this, what should we do? We must believe in Jesus. We must put our full confidence in Him, in His name, rather than in our imperfect attempts to earn peace with God.

The next few sections will go into more depth on these things. See you then, if the Lord Jesus wills.

---

All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
For the next part of this series, go here.
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Part IV

The Humility of Jesus Christ

John 1:1-2

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.

He was in the beginning with God.

The Word of God has always existed in perfect fellowship—peace—with God, before the world began, before you and I were born.

As we have seen, we deserve death because of our sins. We do not deserve peace with God and cannot earn it by doing good things or by following religion.

God knew that unless He did something on our behalf, we would be condemned to an eternity separated from His holy presence, with no chance of being reconciled to Him whatsoever.

Although He did not have to help us, God chose to love us. And God, Who is love, did so in a way that is at once incomprehensible, awe-inspiring, humbling, and infinitely wise: God gave His only Son. The Word, who was God and was with God, became the Son of God.

John 1:14

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen His glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth.

God's only Son's name is Jesus. He is called the Christ (the Anointed One). He was born of a woman, just like you and I, but His Father was and is God (Matthew 1). He is, therefore, the Son of God and the Son of Man, possessing both a unique relationship to God and a body like ours. So, He did not inherit the sinfulness that we are all tainted with, but He was still a legitimate human being.

Why did God send His Son?

The Apostle John declares,

Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil,
for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.

The reason the Son of God appeared
was to destroy the works of the devil.

(1 John 3:8)

Jesus came "to destroy the works of the devil." These evil works are sins, as the first part of the statement makes clear: “the devil has been sinning from the beginning.”

In order to do this, Jesus had to live a perfect life in place of sinners like you and I who could not and would not do it for ourselves, and then die for our sins, satisfying the justice God requires and allowing us to partake of His righteousness.

Hebrews 5:7-9

In the days of his flesh,
Jesus offered up prayers and supplications,
with loud cries and tears,
to Him who was able to save Him from death,
and He was heard because of His reverence.

Although He was a Son,
He learned obedience through what He suffered.

And being made perfect,
He became the source of eternal salvation
to all who obey Him…

Although it was unspeakably difficult, Jesus did what we could not do: He did not sin. Not only did He do everything that His Father, God, commanded Him to do, but He did nothing that was against God’s will. In other words, He did everything that was right for Him to do and He did nothing wrong. I cannot fathom the difficulty that Jesus experienced in living perfectly up to God’s standards for every second, minute, hour, and day of His life, but He did it.

But a life of perfect obedience, while incredible and necessary for our sakes, was not sufficient to pay the penalty for sin, much less earn peace with God for sinners like you and I. Since “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23a), Jesus had to do more: He had to be obedient “to the point of death” (Ephesians 2:8). And not just any death would suffice; He had to endure death on a cross, because it was the will of God.

Jesus described the manner in which He would die – being lifted up on a cross – and the reason that God sent Him, to save the world through Him. The Apostle John recorded His words:

No one has ascended into heaven
except He who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through Him.

(John 3:13-18)

In accordance with the plan of God, Jesus died an excruciating physical death on the cross, which is possibly the cruelest form of execution ever devised by human minds. However, the slow suffocation and physical torment He experienced on it paled in comparison to what He had to endure on a spiritual level.

Isaiah 53:3-12

He was despised and rejected by men;
a Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as One from whom men hide their faces He was despised,
and we esteemed Him not.

Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

But He was wounded for our transgressions;
He was crushed for our iniquities;
upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with His stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned every one to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

Jesus was not just dying physically in our place; He was experiencing the terrible separation from God that we would otherwise have to experience. And, as the Son of God who had enjoyed constant fellowship with God since the beginning, it was unspeakably terrible.

On the cross, the torment was such that Jesus, despite the suffocation induced by crucifixion, “cried with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachtani?’ which means, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’” shortly before taking his last breaths (Mark 15:34).

The Apostle Paul, a man personally sent by Jesus to preach about Him, wrote this:

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
For one will scarcely die for a righteous person —
though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die —
but God shows His love for us in that
while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

(Romans 5:6-8)

Jesus Christ died for us while we did not deserve it. Nothing we could do would earn us peace with God. We were "still sinners". But, like a king’s son paying the impossibly high debts of foreigners, Jesus stood in our place and took the pain and death we deserved.

It was not a quick and painless act; quite the contrary. Our sins deserved to be punished wholly and thoroughly, painfully and permanently. Jesus suffered throughout His life. He was tempted, mistreated, mocked, tortured, and betrayed. Eventually His sufferings culminated in His death on the cross.

Centuries before all this actually happened, a prophet of God, Isaiah, foretold the sufferings of Jesus:

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush Him;
He has put Him to grief;
when His soul makes an offering for sin,
He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days;
the will of the LORD shall prosper in His hand.

Out of the anguish of His soul He shall see and be satisfied;
by His knowledge shall the Righteous One, My Servant,
make many to be accounted righteous,
and He shall bear their iniquities.

(Isaiah 53:10-11)

Jesus, God's "Righteous One," paid the debts we deserved to pay when He died on the cross. Notice in the last part of the passage above that Jesus would "make many to be accounted righteous" and He would "bear their iniquities."

This is incredible news. Jesus took the punishment for our sins ("iniquities"), so that we do not have to be punished for them.

If we believe that Jesus did this for us and trust Him instead of any of our good works, religion, or anything else, we are "accounted righteous" in God's sight. Because of Jesus' death, we can be declared righteous, and we can be forgiven by God for the sins we have committed.

These are great and glorious truths. However, if Jesus had remained dead, our penalty for sin would have been paid, but we would not have eternal life and peace with God. We would have been freed from the death we deserved to die, but we would not have been granted life, fellowship with God and His Son. Praying to His Father, Jesus stated, “And this is eternal life, that they know You the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3). We could not “know” Jesus if he had remained dead.

It is therefore wonderful that God, in addition to taking out the wrath we deserved on His Son, also raised His Son from the dead, making it possible for us to have eternal life as well. But, not only did God raise Jesus, but He also promoted Him to a unique position; He made Him Lord. The implications of this are quite important.

We'll look at that in the next section, if the Lord wills.

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All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
For the next part of this series, go here.
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.

JESUS Is Our Peace with God: Part III

Can following religion
achieve peace with God?

We've already seen that doing good things cannot earn us peace with God.

Now we'll look at religion. Can dedication to religion - any religion, even Christianity - achieve peace with God?

In this section, I’ll be using the term “religion” in a different sense than it is commonly used. Essentially, religion is an attempt to earn peace with God by observing standards—even God’s standards.

Religion is at odds with the Gospel, because the Gospel presents the fact that only Jesus is our peace with God, while religion asserts that we can earn peace with God by doing good things. Essentially, following "religion" in an attempt to earn peace with God is very similar to attempting to be a morally excellent person, which we looked at in the previous section. However, religion as a means to salvation is particularly problematic, because it affects people who claim to believe in Jesus as well as others.

This distinction may seem strange or confusing. However, I bring it up because there are many people who think they have peace with God because they practice the Christian religion. That is, they may attend church, read their Bibles, or sing in the church choir. But the Christian religion is not necessarily the same as a true positive relationship with Jesus.

Jesus is not just a part of the Christian religion; He is the all-important fundamental Person that must be recognized by everyone, "Christian" or otherwise, in order to have any hope of salvation at all.

We'll examine a religious approach to earning peace with God and contrast it with the Gospel. Then, we'll look at why Jesus is the way, and no religious leader or religious act can commend us to God.

One form of religion is “legalism.” We looked at this a bit in the previous section. Legalism is when a person takes the Law of God, which is intended to point out our sinfulness and our need for a sinless Savior, and attempts to follow that Law to earn peace with God instead of trusting in the Savior.

One can be a legalist using the Law of God revealed in the Old Testament. Or, one can be a legalist by following any other set of rules found in any other scriptures, creeds, or doctrines, even if the person makes them up him or herself.

A legalist ignores God’s offer of eternal life in Jesus and attempts to earn his or her own salvation by obeying the Law perfectly, even if he or she “also” believes in Jesus. Instead of relying on Jesus to save him or her, a legalist tries to save him or herself by their own actions. As we’ve seen so far in this series, that is a foolish thing to do, doomed to end in failure, since none of us are or can be as perfect as God requires.

The Apostle Paul, who was personally commissioned by the Lord Jesus Christ to speak about His death and resurrection, wrote this to believers in the region of Galatia:

Galatians 1:1-10

Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but
through Jesus Christ and God the Father,
Who raised Him from the dead—
and all the brothers who are with me,

To the churches of Galatia:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ,
Who gave Himself for our sins to deliver us
from the present evil age,
according to the will of our God and Father,
to Whom be the glory forever and ever.
Amen.

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting Him
who called you in the grace of Christ
and are turning to a different gospel—
not that there is another one,
but there are some who trouble you
and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a gospel
contrary to the one we preached to you,
let him be accursed.

As we have said before, so now I say again:
If anyone is preaching to you a gospel
contrary to the one you received,
let him be accursed.

For am I now seeking the approval of man,
or of God?
Or am I trying to please man?
If I were still trying to please man,
I would not be a servant of Christ.

The Apostle Paul was convinced that no one--not himself, nor even "an angel from heaven"-- could or would change the Gospel. In fact, he was so convinced of the truth of the one Gospel that he was willing to suffer beatings, stoning, imprisonment, shipwrecks, and execution for his steadfast pursuit of his goal of preaching the Gospel, primarily to non-Jews, all over the world (see 2 Corinthians 11).

That one true Gospel is concisely proclaimed in the earlier part of this passage:

“…the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to Whom be the glory forever and ever.”

“…Jesus Christ and God the Father, Who raised Him from the dead.”

Jesus died. He died for our sins, in order to deliver us from the present evil age and the wrath of God that is coming upon it. This was all done according to the will of God. God, His Father, raised Him from the dead. Implicit in this passage is the fact that we can be called children of God if we believe in Jesus. The Apostle Paul insists that there is no other Gospel, no other way to be delivered from the present evil age, than to accept and truly believe the news about Jesus.

Many have come after the Apostle Paul claiming a different means of peace with God than Jesus. Some add things to the Gospel. Others claim that Jesus did not really mean what He said, that He did not really die, that He was not really raised from the dead, or even that He did not really exist.

However, although many have claimed to see visions from God or heard directly from angels, none of them are speaking the truth if what they proclaim does not line up with the one true Gospel. Unlike those who came after him, the Apostle Paul was personally sent by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself to testify to the truth, and he did not pull any punches in declaring that "even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed."

The Apostle Paul did not shrink back from the truth of the Gospel, that Jesus, not legalistic obedience to Jewish laws, is our peace with God.

In fact, even when the Apostle Peter (otherwise known as Cephas), who was likewise personally sent by Jesus, failed to consistently uphold that truth, the Apostle Paul confronted him:

Galatians 2:11-21

But when Cephas [Peter] came to Antioch,
I opposed him to his face,
because he stood condemned.

For before certain men came from James,
he was eating with the Gentiles;
but when they came he drew back and separated himself,
fearing the circumcision party.
And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him,
so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.

But when I saw that their conduct was not in step
with the truth of the Gospel,

I said to Cephas before them all,

"If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew,
how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?

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.

But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ,
we too were found to be sinners,
is Christ then a servant of sin?
Certainly not! For if I rebuild what I tore down,
I prove myself to be a transgressor.

For through the law I died to the law,
so that I might live to God.

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.

I do not nullify the grace of God,
for if justification were through the Law,
then Christ died for no purpose."

Here, the Apostle Paul declares that "works of the Law" (legalism) cannot justify us in the sight of God. The Apostle Paul argues, "I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the Law, then Christ died for no purpose." If it were possible for us to obtain salvation by observing the Law, then Christ Jesus died needlessly, and God was a fool for executing His Son.

The Apostle Paul, prior to meeting Jesus, was a legalistic, committed Jew. He was committed to wiping out believers in Jesus, and he would persecute them and drag them to prison. He knew the Law of God inside and out. But, he didn't realize until after being saved that Jesus is the fulfillment and the end of the Law.

Justification, as the Apostle Paul rightly states, comes not through the Law, but through Christ Jesus. Or to put it another way, peace with God is only found in Jesus, not in obedience to the Jewish Law.

To return now to religion in general, some who have examined the claims of the various religions of the world claim that they are all basically the same. In other words, they claim that the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth are basically compatible with the teachings of other religions and that practicing any religion should amount to the same thing. I’ll not dwell on that argument here, but I will say that the problem with such a perspective is that Jesus Himself disagrees with it, insofar as it applies to having peace with God.

Jesus boldly and categorically declared,

“I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life.
No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
(John 14:6 b)

Having been asked by one of His disciples what the way to God, the Father, is, Jesus did not mention joining a certain denomination of church or reciting a certain creed. He mentioned Himself. No one has eternal life except in Jesus. No one is in the truth unless he or she is in Jesus. No one comes to God except through His Son, Jesus.

Thus far, we have seen that Jesus' Apostles and He Himself testified that He is unique. In addition, His Father, God, validated Him as well. The following passage demonstrates this:

Matthew 17:1-8

And after six days Jesus took with him
Peter and James, and John his brother,
and led them up a high mountain by themselves.

And He was transfigured before them,
and His face shone like the sun,
and His clothes became white as light.

And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah,
talking with Him.

And Peter said to Jesus,
“Lord, it is good that we are here.
If you wish, I will make three tents here,
one for You and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

He was still speaking when, behold,
a bright cloud overshadowed them,
and a voice from the cloud said,

“This is My beloved Son,
with Whom I am well pleased;
listen to Him.”

When the disciples heard this,
they fell on their faces and were terrified.

But Jesus came and touched them, saying,
“Rise, and have no fear.”

And when they lifted up their eyes,
they saw no one but Jesus only.

Although Moses and Elijah were great prophets of God, there is no comparison between them and Jesus. To even speak of them in the same category as Jesus, as Peter did, is disrespectful, and when we lift up our eyes toward God, so to speak, Jesus stands alone.

To sum up, let us consider these words of Jesus:

Matthew 7:21-27

“Not everyone who says to Me,
'Lord, Lord,'
will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but the one who does the will of My Father
who is in heaven.

"On that day many will say to me,
'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your Name,
and cast out demons in Your Name,
nd do many mighty works in Your Name?'
And then will I declare to them,
'I never knew you; depart from me,
you workers of lawlessness.'

“Everyone then who hears these words of Mine
and does them will be like a wise man
who built his house on the rock.
And the rain fell, and the floods came,
and the winds blew and beat on that house,
but it did not fall,
because it had been founded on the rock.

"And everyone who hears these words of Mine
and does not do them will be like a foolish man
who built his house on the sand.
And the rain fell, and the floods came,
and the winds blew and beat against that house,
and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

The will of Jesus’ Father is not that we live a perfect life or do many great things in an attempt to earn our own salvation. Rather, God's will is that we believe in and obey His Son.

John 6:28-29

Then they said to Him,
"What must we do, to be doing the works of God?"
Jesus answered them,
"This is the work of God,
that you believe in Him whom He has sent."

John 3:35-36

The Father loves the Son
and has given all things into His hand.
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life;
whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life,
but the wrath of God remains on him.

Religion cannot save us; only Jesus can.

But, this may be a surprise: Believing in God cannot save us either.

As we know, some people believe in a subjective sense of God. Some people think that they are God, or that everyone is God. Others believe in multiple Gods or Goddesses. Others think God is a state of mind. Some even misquote and misappropriate Scriptures to ‘prove’ these things.

None of those beliefs matter very much in the final analysis. What is most important is not what we believe about God, but what we believe about His Son. If we believe in Jesus, our thinking about God will be corrected accordingly, since we will come to realize that Jesus is God's Son and that God is holy.

The only eternal life that God has given us is in His Son, Jesus. Jesus alone is our peace with God.

Why? What makes Jesus so special? Why is peace with God found only in Him?

We're finally going to get there with the next parts of this series, Lord willing. See you then.

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All emphases are mine.
All Bible quotes are from the English Standard Version (ESV).
All pronouns for God and the Lord Jesus Christ are Capitalized.

For the previous part of this series, go here.
For the next part of this series, go here.
To go to the beginning of this series, go here.