Q: When we see our brothers and sisters in Christ make mistakes why do we "condem" each other?
A: Christians who condemn one another do so because they are treating others the way in which they believe God is treating them. Misery loves company. And if you believe your right standing before God is based on your ability to perform up to impossible standards you will treat others the same way. You can't love others if you haven't experienced God's love for yourself. If you believe your sins can separate you from God and that God will only accept you if you meet ever increasing standards you will never enter the Sabbath rest He has called you to. And you will feel inclined to put these same burdens you're under on the shoulders of others. It is this "yoke of slavery," the law, that is a burden none of us can bear. If a brother is caught in sin we are to "restore him gently (Gal 6:1)." We are able to do this because we "comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God (2 Cor. 1:4)." But you can't comfort others if you have never received it from God. And you never will if you don't know you are already forgiven, accepted and righteous in His site because of your faith in Christ.
Q: Who the son set "free" is "free" indeed...What does that mean?
A: Jesus said, "you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (Jn 8:32)." Truth is anything that corresponds to reality. And the reality is that mankind is born in the image of Adam, spiritually dead to God, in sin. In an effort to bridge the gap that separates us from God, we have created countless religions and practices designed to try and help us reach up to God in our own flesh. However, Jesus Christ is God's only attempt to reach down in forgiveness and offer us His life. That is why Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (Jn 14:6)." Jesus is the Truth and by knowing Him we have been set free from the curse of the law (religion) which stands against us. We are free from the bondage and condemnation associated with the works of the law and the religion it is contained within. Jesus has set us free from trying to do what we could not do for ourselves. That is why He says "if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (Jn 8:36)."
Q: If salvation is "free" then what will it "cost" you?
A: Let us not forget that while salvation is free for us it cost Jesus His life. It should humble us all that we didn't have a life to give that would satisfy God as payment for our sins, much less the power to raise ourselves from the grave. In turn, what it costs us is the world. Everything we tried to get from the world, in an effort to satisfy the deepest needs of our heart, could only be achieved through sin. But, the unconditional love, acceptance and meaning and purpose to life we tried to get from the world is ours in Christ. If you don't believe you are receiving all of this from God your only alternative is to pursue it in the world. As you discover all you have received through faith in Christ the appeal of the world will decrease. In the midst of that you may end up losing all that once was dear to you; family, friends, career, opinions, values, etc. Remember, that as you experience all this it only confirms what Jesus said. "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple (Lk 14:26)."
Q: What does "anointed" mean? And why does Jesus "anoint" Christians?
A: Anointed means to "choose by or as if by divine intervention." Jesus "anoints" us by indwelling us in the form of the Holy Spirit, the life of God. Christians have been chosen by God to be set apart, sanctified, from the world. "As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you (1 Jn 2:27)." God intervened on behalf of mankind to do for us what we could not do for ourselves, bring us to Him. We were once spiritually dead to God in sin, but now we have come alive to Him in Christ. God has "set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come (2 Cor 1:22)." Our anointing, the Holy Spirit, is God 's gift of Himself guaranteeing our eternal life and and citizenship in Heaven. We have been set apart for the work He wants to do in and through us in order that some might be saved. His indwelling life allows us to be salt and light to a dead and dark world so desperate for salvation.
Q: What does Jesus want to "See" in you?
A: He wants to see us come alive to God through faith in Him. The Gospel is sin, death, forgiveness, life. "For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive (1 Cor. 15:22)." Adam died spiritually. We are all born in the image of Adam, dead to God in sin. Jesus died to take away the sin that caused spiritual death. Now, raised from the dead, He can offer the life of God as a gift to all who accept Him by faith. There is now no sin that will cause that life to leave again because of the eternal consequences of the cross. That is why the Gospel is Good News. Jesus wants to see us rest in that truth and allow Him to live the life only He can live in and through us. It is only when we believe that we have unconditional love and acceptance from God in Christ that we will have meaning and purpose to life. Jesus wants to see us trusting in and depending on Him, through the indwelling Holy Spirit, and not in ourselves and our self-righteous works. He wants to see us believe this truth.
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