Freedom In Christ

I woke up this morning thinking about the subject of our salvation. I have often struggled with articulating the Gospel that I believe is understood by so few people. Some questions that came to my mind are:

(Please answer these these question as you read through them.)

Why did Jesus die?
What sin did Jesus die for?
If Jesus died for your sin, why would God still punish you for your sin by sending you to hell for them?
Is there an unforgivable sin?
Is there a sin Jesus could not die for?
What would be the implication if that sin was not unforgivable but instead Jesus paid the price for that sin?

I want to answer those questions and you can see how different my answers are from yours. 1.) Jesus died for my sins. 2.) He died for all my sins. 3.) God won't send to hell for my sin because Jesus already paid the price for them. 4.) Yes, there is one (1) unforgivable sin. 5.) Yes, Jesus could not die for the sin of unbelief. 6.) The implication would be people could not go to hell for unbelief because Jesus would have paid for that sin. That means people would be in heaven who do not believe.

I hope my thought process is beginning to make some sense. There is only one unforgivable sin - unbelief. Hebrews chapters 3 & 4 tell us the reason for the people of Israel not being allowed to enter the promised land was because of the "sin of unbelief". We're then told to make every effort to enter into that rest by not hardening our hearts. "Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts." If you understand this subject you begin to see why we're told that there is freedom in Christ. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. It's because our righteousness, our salvation is not dependent upon us or our ability to keep from sinning. It's based solely upon the finished work of Christ upon the cross. Our righteousness is based on what Jesus did, not what we do. I need not worry or be concerned with any of my failures and sin causing me to loose my salvation. I only need to be concerned with believing and trusting in Jesus the Christ and what He did for me.

Once again I quote Martin Luther:

Be a sinner and sin boldly, but believe and rejoice in Christ even more boldly for He is victorious over sin, death, and the world. As long as we are here in this world we have to sin. This life is not a dwelling place of righteousness.

02-05-2009 06:14

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