9:27
There is a stark declaration of reality, and then an interesting parallel drawn between this and what Christ has done. We are all destined to die once and then to face judgement. We would all do well to remember that, and the world as a whole would do well to remember that. We will all die. We may try to put off the day, and there are some nutters who through things like cryogenics seek to avoid it altogether, but virtually everyone accepts the truth of this. However, with our modern world view, many in the West may think, or perhaps hope, that death is the end. Death is not the end, there will be an account to give afterwards for how we have lived. Now we are saved by grace, and justified through Christ’s death on the cross, but the New Testament is also clear that what we do with this life matters. So any (mis)understanding of the gospel that effectively says we will not have to give an account is seriously in error.
9:28
The parallel with Christ is then drawn. He died once, sacrificing Himself. We die once, there is one sacrifice. He died to deal with our sins. Jesus will return, but this time not to bear sins. There are some who think that people who refuse to believe will be given a second chance in some form. We need to recognise that there is no support for such a view in the Bible. He will return to bring salvation to those who believe, those who are waiting for Him. It has often been said that we are saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved. We were justified the moment we believed, we were born again of the Holy Spirit, we became a new creation, we were adopted into God’s family. We are being saved. The Holy Spirit is at work in our lives cleaning out the rubbish, replacing it with good stuff, changing us from one degree of glory to the next. When Christ returns this work will be completed, and we will be given new bodies.
No comments:
Post a Comment