|
WEEKLY
Volume 1 Number 13
27 August 2006
Ye Are Washed, Sanctified, and
Justified
(Message delivered by Pr Hien
Nguyen at the Sunday Worship Service, 2 pm, Aug 20, 06)
Text:
1 Cor 6:9-11
We are to meet some qualifications
to enter a country as a migrant, and each country has its own policies,
regulations, requirements and limits on immigration, e.g. passports,
visas, age limit, good health certificates, good conduct certificates,
skills, finances, etc.
How about
the kingdom of God and the qualifications? Would you and I like to
migrate to God’s kingdom? The atheists deny God and anything relating to
Him while followers of this world’s religions have different concepts
and beliefs in their “gods” and a better place for their souls in
“heaven.” They believe that following their religious rites and
practices, doing some good works, giving some offerings and so on may
secure a place for them in “heaven.” Many others are so “liberal” that
they accept everything, thinking that all religions are good and all
ways can lead them to “heaven” as long as they do not commit any
serious crimes according to their
own “moral standards.” It is so sad and regretful for a person if at the
end of his life or in front of the living and true God on the Judgement
Day, he realises that he is wrong and was deceived or misled, but it
will be too late for him then! Therefore, it is so vital for us to know
the truth about the living and true God and His only Way for us to
Heaven through the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ alone (John 14:6; Acts
4:12). How can we know the truth? Thank God so much that God’s Word is
truth (John 17:17). Only through God’s Word the Holy Bible may we know
the truth. We will not be disappointed nor regret later if we believe in
God’s Word and submit to His Word forever.
What does the Bible say about the
kingdom of God and how can we enter it? May God help us to understand
this wonderful truth so that we may praise and thank God, live a life
worthy of His kingdom, and look forward to it when our Lord Jesus
Christ, the King of kings, comes back again very soon.
The Kingdom Of God
The
expressions of “the kingdom of God” and “the kingdom of heaven” in the
Bible are used interchangeably with the same meaning. Our Lord Jesus
came to preach “the kingdom of God/heaven” (Matt 4:17; Mark
1:14-15), and warmly welcomed little children, “for of such is the
kingdom of
God/heaven”
(Matt 19:14; Luke 18:16). However, when talking about the Millennial
Kingdom or the Messianic
Kingdom, the Holy Spirit guided Mark and Luke to use the term “the
kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25; Luke 22:18) and Matthew to write, “my
Father’s kingdom” (Matt 26:29), which is also Christ’s kingdom and will
be established on earth when our King Jesus Christ comes back again
(Matt 6:10; Rev 5:10; 11:15; 19:11-16; 20:4-6). If you and I are living
and serving the Lord in this blessed hope, we will not build our home in
this world, but regard ourselves as “strangers and pilgrims” (Heb
11:13; 1 Peter 2:11), looking forward to the coming of our King with our
prayer, “Thy kingdom come” (Matt 6:10).
Spiritually, God’s kingdom is not
of or from this world (John 18:36), but is in the hearts of believers
(Luke 17:21), not eating and drinking but “righteousness, and peace,
and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom 14:17). While earthly kingdoms have
passed away and will pass away, God’s everlasting kingdom shall never be
destroyed but stand for ever under the sovereign rule of God Himself and
our King Jesus Christ (Ps 103:19; 145:13; Daniel 2:37-44; 1 Tim 1:17;
6:15; 2 Peter 1:11; Rev 17:14; 19:16).
At this moment, is the King of
kings reigning over you and me? Are we living in His kingdom of peace,
joy and righteousness? Are we looking forward to Christ’s Millennial
kingdom of peace at His coming? If so, we are tasting and enjoying the
kingdom of heaven on earth while waiting for our blessed inheritance in
heaven.
Citizens of God’s
Kingdom
God is holy and righteous, and His
kingdom is holy and righteous, so His citizens are to be holy and
righteous. Then are you and I qualified to dwell in His kingdom as His
permanent residents?
The Unrighteous
Shall Not Inherit the Kingdom of God
In our
Bible text, 1 Cor 6:9-11, the expression, “the kingdom of God,” is used
twice. Some believers in Corinth thought
that they were saved while still living in sin and
immorality. The apostle Paul had to remind them of this truth, “Know
ye not (Do you not completely know) that the unrighteous shall
not inherit the kingdom of God?”
with a commandment, “Be not deceived (misled)” by thinking that
they were all right in sins. Our Lord Jesus still warns, “Not every
one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of
heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven”
(Matt 7:21).
Then the apostle Paul listed what
the unrighteous were: fornicators (sexually immoral
persons), idolaters (not only worshipping idols but also
covetous, disobedient, rebellious, stubborn, going against God’s Word –
Col 3:5; 1 Sam 15:22-23), adulterers (unfaithful husbands
and wives, even having lustful desires in their hearts – Matt 5:28),
effeminate (transsexuals), and abusers of
themselves with mankind (homosexuals), thieves
(persons who steal by fraud and in secret), covetous
(persons who want more, greedy for wrongful gain), drunkards
(persons who are addicted to and controlled by alcohol), revilers
(persons who intentionally abuse others with speech – blasphemers,
insulters), extortioners (persons who are violently greedy
– robbers), shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Who Is Qualified?
Then who is qualified to enter
God’s kingdom? Sadly but truly, no one is qualified! The Bible confirms
that “there is none righteous, no, not one” and that “all have
sinned, and come short of the glory of God” and that “we are all
as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags”
in the sight of God (Rom 3:10, 23; Isa 64:6).
While we
are totally depraved, lost, hopeless, helpless, and “dead in trespasses
and sins,” (Eph 2:1), thanks be to God for His grace, mercy and
salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ and through the Holy Spirit and His
Word. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Eph 2:8). The apostle Paul
emphasised this great contrast by repeating the
conjunction “but”
thrice: “but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified,
but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the
Spirit of our God” (v 11). Praise the Lord! That is the Gospel
of the kingdom of God, welcoming those who repent and receive the Lord
Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. There is no other way.
We thank God that all of this work
of grace was done in the past and in the name of the Lord Jesus and by
the Holy Spirit.
But Ye Are Washed
This verb is in middle, denoting
the involvement of our responsibility. Truly, we are washed and cleansed
by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, by God’s Word, and by the washing
of regeneration (John 15:3; Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5; 1 John 1:7). However, God
will not cleanse us if we do not acknowledge our sins, forsake them and
confess them before Him for forgiveness and cleansing, “If we
confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9; cf. Ps 32:5).
Therefore, there are commandments requiring us to wash or cleanse
ourselves, “wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be
saved” (Jer 4:14) and “Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify
your hearts, ye double minded” (James 4:8). My dear friends, are
there still any sins that you and I have not forsaken and confessed
before God? “He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy” (Prov 28:13).
The more we read God’s Word, the
more we shall see and be convicted of our sins, unrighteousness and
defilement, and the more we shall need the Saviour Jesus Christ and the
washing and cleansing from His blood. That is the right way the Holy
Spirit uses God’s Word to minister to our souls and hearts, and this is
the first step of regeneration to enter into the kingdom of God, “Except
a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the
kingdom of God” (John 3:5).
We need to
be washed and cleansed from our sins every day because we are defiled by
the wickedness and crimes we see or hear in
this sinful world. We will greatly appreciate the
precious blood of our Lord Jesus when we keep in constant fellowship
with our Holy God (1 John 1:7). It is wise to wash our spiritual robes
and make them “white in the blood of the Lamb” all the time until
our King Jesus Christ comes (Rev 7:14).
But Ye Are Sanctified
This verb “sanctified” is in the
passive voice, denoting the total work done by God alone, His grace
alone and His Word alone. Truly, we are sanctified by the Holy Ghost,
(Rom 15:16), by God’s Truth, which is God’s Word (John 17:17), “through
the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” and by “His
own blood” (Heb 10:10; 13:12), and by our faith in Him (Acts 20:18).
Our part is to trust in the Lord, commit our lives to Him and submit
ourselves to His Holy Word. In our position in Christ, we are sanctified
and called saints (1 Cor 1:2), but it is a process of transforming us
into the image of the Lord Jesus until we shall be like Him when He
comes. It is a process of separating us from sins, self and worldliness,
a process of cleansing us from sins and unrighteousness, and a process
of filling us with His divine nature, His mind, love, holiness and
goodness. Thank God and praise the Lord that “he which hath begun
a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ”
(Phil 1:6). My dear friends, without the Lord and His good work in us,
we are and shall be undone for ever. Shall we not wisely trust in the
Lord, commit our lives to Him and submit to His Word like the clay in
the Potter’s Hand?
But Ye Are Justified
The verb “justified” is in the
passive voice also, indicating the total work of grace from the Lord.
Justification takes place once for all when we sincerely repent and
accept the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Saviour.
As we all have sinned with our
corrupt sinful nature, we can never be justified by any of our good
works or merits or by keeping of the law, “Therefore by the deed of
the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by law is
the knowledge of sin” (Rom 3:20).
Then, what
does it mean to be justified? It means to be declared righteous before
God, and be truly clothed with the righteousness of the Lord Jesus
Christ on account of His obedient life on earth and His sacrificial
death on the cross, and His resurrection. How wonderful God’s grace is
for poor and helpless sinners like you and me! How do we know that
truth? God’s Word confirms that we are “justified freely by his
grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom
3:24), “justified by faith” (Rom 3:28), “justified by his
blood” (Rom 5:9). Truly, “Jesus was delivered for our offences,
and was raised again for our justification” (Rom 4:25). My dear
friends, is it not wonderful and amazing God’s grace for you and me?
Moreover,
with our firm faith in God and His Holy Word alone, not in ourselves nor
in anything else, we can confidently say, “Who shall lay any thing to
the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that
is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh
intercession for us.” (Rom 8:33-34). Praise
the Lord!
It is so comforting to know that our living Saviour Jesus Christ is
making intercession for us! However, we are to humble ourselves,
acknowledging our sinful and lost state, knowing that it is God’s grace
and mercy alone that we are justified in Christ Jesus. Our Lord Jesus
says that the humble and repentant tax collector was justified rather
than the proud and self-righteous Pharisee (Luke 18:14).
Conclusion
My dear
friends, the kingdom of God is holy, righteous, real and true, but only
those who are born again can see it and enter it. We shall never be
qualified to enter God’s kingdom. Thank God and praise the Lord for His
good news in Christ Jesus, “But of him are ye in Christ, who of
God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and
redemption” (1 Cor 1:30). Only in Christ and His Blood and
through the Holy Spirit and God’s Word that we are washed, that we are
sanctified and that we are justified! Shall we not bow down to worship
the Lord for His grace and mercy as well as His good work in us? May God
keep us humble, faithful, obedient and submissive to Him and His Word in
our lives and in His service until our King Jesus Christ comes. May His
kingdom come soon. Amen.
Top
/ Back
|
