The Truth About
Obedience And Love
Part II
What does the Lord require of you?
n the ultimate
sense obedience is an issue of the heart, of purpose, and motive. The
apostle Paul stated that the whole law can be summed up in the word "love"
(Rom. 13:10). As Finney said:
"Now this cannot be true, if the spirit of the whole law does not respect intentions only. If it extends directly to thoughts, emotions and outward actions, it cannot be truly said that love is the fulfilling of the law." (1)
If the attitude of your heart is founded
on God's love, then the fruit that is produced will be good and pleasing
to God. You don't have to feel excited all the time; you can be close to
God while being calm or even broken and contrite. Realizing this has saved
me from much false guilt. Even more importantly, I no longer spend time
trying to psyche myself up or hoping that the church will get me excited. His
joy is still my strength; but it is no longer a focal point by which
to assess my spiritual standing before God. I now realize
that whatever heart I have, being devoted to God is sufficient. To quote
Finney once more:
"God loves with ‘the strength of his infinite nature. He requires us to love with the strength of our finite nature..." It seems to me that the law of God requires that all our power, and strength, and being be honestly and continually consecrated to God, and held, not in a state of the utmost tension, but that the strength shall be expended and employed in exact accordance with the mind's honest judgement of what is, at every moment, the best economy for God." (2)
God's Strength
As I have said, part
of the problem lies in definitions. It is as wrong as it is confusing
to tell people that they should be obedient only to follow it up by telling
them that they still have to sin everyday. People are occasionally told
that they should rely on the Lord for strength to live holy lives. Then
they are told that it is impossible to do, and furthermore that they are
really deceived if they think that God is going to help them all the time.
This is a very deceptive argument, sometimes known as "lip service." The
tactic is to pay homage to one thing while pursuing another. In this case,
pay homage to obedience but excuse our sins.
"His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords." Ps 55:21
Our life should be
characterized by obedience. That this seems so incomprehensible to a man
as respected as Hank Hanegraaff greatly saddens me. He has already stated
that we have to sin. I would like him to clarify the following for me:
do we have to lie, manipulate people, and misrepresent God? This is an
important question. Do I have to commit every sin, or just the ones I
feel like doing? This whole idea causes people to treat sin much too lightly.
There is ample testimony in God's permanent record demonstrating that
He does not consider sin to be a trivial matter. In Acts 5, Ananias and
Sapphira sinned. In response, Peter did not say, "Don't worry; you had
to do it," Rather, he treated their sin seriously, and so did God - taking
their lives as a result. God is patient and often gives second chances,
but we don't deserve His mercy and should not take it lightly.
Lust
Probably the primary
sin that men fall into is that of lust and I am sure that the underlying
reason why they believe they have to sin is due to defeat in this area.
In other words they are overcome by lust and then seek to conform the
word to their experience. While I admit that this is an incredible temptation
to men, including myself, this is not beyond the power of our redemption
in Christ. To start we must consider the issue of desire in general. First
of all we need to know that the bible does not say continue sinning until
you don't feel like it anymore. But it does say put on the lord Jesus
Christ and make no provision for the flesh and it's lusts. It says, "Dear
friends I urge you as aliens and strangers in this world to abstain from
sinful desires which war against your soul." 1 Peter 2:11. In other words
while experiencing desire is a given, the command is don't give in to
them.
Most people are not
aware that God has used two very important words to describe the relationship
between sin and desire. The most common word for desire is used in James
1:13-15. Epithumia; here desire is addressed as a temptation, each one
is tempted when he is dragged away and enticed. In this passage an evil
desire is not called a sin, until it conceives a word defined as clasping
or seizing.
"When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death."
The word used in Matthew
5:28 is "Epithumeo" it carries the meaning of setting your heart on a
desire. This is clear in the Greek but is also somewhat evident in our
English translations. "But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman
lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." NIV "But
I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already
committed adultery with her in his heart." NKJV "but I say to you, that
everyone who looks on a woman to lust for her has committed adultery with
her already in his heart.' NASB In this verse the word does not imply that
experiencing a desire for sex (lust) is in itself a sin. The word means,
to set your heart on the desire. It had been noted that adultery was wrong
Jesus here has said not only is the act wrong, but even looking at a woman
and being willing in your heart, setting your heart on the desire,
is wrong. In other words when we consider both passages we should see
that sin involves an acquiescence of the heart. While we may not
experience complete freedom from temptation, we
can and should refuse to surrender ourselves to lust. In
this context we should aim to be like Job who made a covenant with his
eyes not to look lustfully at a woman. We should be encouraged by Joseph
who ran from Potiphers wife, but fear when we consider David.
On a very practical
note this is perhaps one of the best way's to develop a prayer life. What
I mean is this, why don't you switch from lusting without ceasing to praying
without ceasing. It is impossible to live in a vacuum you can't stop doing
one thing without starting to do another. In this case I suggest replace
your lust life with a prayer life. Make it your aim to pray for women
rather then lust after women. Ask God to fill your heart with love for
women, pray that God would pour out his grace on them, and move them to
work for his glory. Make a commitment to pray whenever you are tempted. If you want to be his, why don't you let his heart
become yours. Ultimately it is God that has given us our capacity for
emotions, they were intended to be the vehicle through which we could
enjoy this wonderful life that God has given us. The problem comes into
play when you live to please your desires rather then the God who gave
you them. They were never intended to replace your brain and over rule
your conscience. He gave your emotional capacity to you because he loves you, he gave them
to you so that through them you could know his goodness and love. I pray
that you may see his kindness, wisdom, and love. It is his kindness that
leads us to repentance.
Accidents
What about accidents?
Obviously there is no culpability involved in that which can truly be
deemed and accident. In the Old Testament, murder was a crime punishable
by immediate death. Accidental death, however, was not classified as murder;
for there to be guilt there had to be malicious intent. This truth is
so plain that is has been adopted by virtually every legal code that exists,
including our own.
"This is the rule concerning the man who kills another and flees there to save his life - one who kills his neighbor unintentionally, without malice aforethought. For instance, a man may go into the forest with his neighbor to cut wood, and as he swings his ax to fell a tree, the head may fly off and hit his neighbor and kill him. That man may flee to one of these cities and save his life." (Deut. 19: 4-5)
Innocent Ignorance Vs. Willful Ignorance
The Bible declares that "sin
is not taken into account where there is no law" (Rom. 5:13). You will
not be held responsible for breaking a law that you were not aware of.
Some absurdly argue that death still reigned between Adam and Moses; therefore,
sin was still taken into account where there was no law. However, this
would render the text meaningless; while it is true that death still
reigned, it was on another basis. Before Moses came, everyone still had a
conscience - a conscience which was often enlightened by pre-flood preachers (Enoch, Noah, etc). They were, therefore, accountable for the
light that they had, just as people are today when they haven't heard
the Gospel. For the purposes of our discussion, sin outside of revelation
or choice is innocent and not relevant. Willful ignorance, however, is a
different matter which certainly involves culpability. We are obligated to seek the truth; if
we do not, and evil results, we have sinned on both counts. My concern
is with what I can and should do. Either way, if you do something and
later conclude that it was a sin, confess it, allow Christ to cleanse
you, and continue on.
Paul used the phrase
"Do you not know" many times. He spoke truth in order to bring people
into the light, then holding them obligated to respond. If a person
was truly ignorant and had no feeling of conscience on a particular issue
(if possible), I would expect the Holy Spirit to enlighten them through
the Word, another Christian, or by way of personal revelation.
Said person would
then be expected to stop. I say this because the Bible tells us that no
one born of God will continue sinning; indeed, he cannot, because God's
seed remains in him. In relationship to the Big Picture, it should be
noted that in order to prove my general view invalid,
it would need to be demonstrated that we have to give in to conscious
temptation. In other words, it would have to be proven that first Corinthians
10:13 is not always applicable.
In the language of
the apostles, the concept of "sins one is not aware of" doesn't seem to
have been much of an issue. Most of the verses on ignorance and light,
seem to imply that a believer has light available to him and is not ignorant.
They could make claims of holiness without being concerned about so called
"ignorant" sins. The only time in the New Testament that a possible inference
to such is made occurs in 1 Corinthians 4:4, when Paul states: "My conscience
is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges
me." While an inference to the possibility of ignorant sins could be
implied in this passage, it does not interfere with my own views. God
is clearly the higher court, but until He brings "to light what is hidden
in darkness," He has given us a conscience and His Word. Paul would have
had a much clearer understanding of the issue than I do, yet it did not
stop him from saying that his conscience was clear. For all practical
purposes we can only live within the realm of our continually expanding
understanding. Paul still went on to
tell the Corinthians to stop sinning. My advice
is that whenever you receive light on a moral issue, you should put it
into practice. If truth reveals sin in your own heart, confess it and
don't look back.
"This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardening of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph. 4:17-24)
Notes
1. Charles G. Finney, Finney's Systematic Theology, Ed J.H. Fairchild, (1978), 36.
2. Ibid., 125.
"Through him and for his name's sake, we received grace and apostleship
to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes
from faith. And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus
Christ."
Rom 1:4-6 "God exalted him to his own right
hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness
of sins to Israel. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy
Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."
Acts 5:31-32
"I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Phil
4:13
"I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order
that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his
glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for
us who believe." Eph 1:18-21
"Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:
sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.
Col 3:5-7
"It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should
avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his
own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like
the heathen, who do not know God;"
1 Thess 4:3-6
"Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live
a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as
a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But among you there must not
be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of
greed, because these are improper for God's holy people."
Eph 5:1-3
"the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind
the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake
him, he will reject you forever."
1 Chron 28:9-10
"Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now He commands all
men everywhere to repent." Acts 17:30-31
"As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when
you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy
in all you do for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy' ". (1 Pet.
1:14-16)
"When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of
the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have
the light of life." John 8:12
"For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light
shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God in the face of Christ
2 Cor 4:6
