Got Life?

"For if the dead are not raised, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins." 1 Corinthians 15:16-17

In an article titled, "Got Forgiveness?" the question is asked, "What is forgiveness and why do I need it?" The article correctly points out that, "The word "forgive" means to wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt ... Forgiveness is an act of love, mercy, and grace. Forgiveness is a decision to not hold something against another person, despite what they have done to you." I would add that forgiveness is choosing not to collect a debt owed to you that the offending party cannot repay. However, the article goes on to say, "If our sins are not forgiven, we will spend eternity suffering the consequences of our sins (Matthew 25:46)." Is it true that someone will go to hell because they are not forgiven of their sins? No. Matthew 25:46 reads, "And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” It simply says "these" people will go to hell, but it doesn't say why "these" people are going to hell. The passage from Matthew 25 is about the Final Judgment. The individuals in question are the "goats" that have been separated from the "sheep." The goats are those who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior, while the sheep are born again Christians who have accepted Jesus Christ as their savior. It is an assumption by the writer that the goats, who are the ones who will go away into eternal punishment, are going there because they are unforgiven. However, the passage doesn't say anything about forgiveness, or lack thereof, being the determining factor when deciding who goes to hell or heaven. The Bible does mention that believers are forgiven. In passages like Ephesians 1:7, it says, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace ..." Yes, it is clear that forgiveness of sins is an inheritance of our faith as Christians. However, the mistake that is being made by the writer is that the opposite of this must be true. The Bible doesn't say, for example, "Without him, you don't have forgiveness of your sins." The issue, in my opinion, is believing that the main problem between mankind and God is that we are sinners in need of forgiveness. While there is truth in this, the sin issue between man and God has been over since Jesus died on the cross. Scripture says, "that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:19)" and "He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2)." The point is that entire world is forgiven, but nobody is saved by Jesus Christ dying on the cross.

Do not get me wrong, without Jesus Christ dying on the cross salvation is impossible. However, the problem between mankind and God is that prior to faith in Jesus Christ, we are spiritually dead to Him and in need of His life. The life of God is only made available through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The entire world is forgiven, but the entire world is not alive to God. While an unbeliever is forgiven, they are not experiencing the benefit of that forgiveness because they are spiritually dead to God. Jesus told Nicodemus, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3).” Jesus further clarified what He meant by this when He said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John 3:5-6)." First, a person must be born physically. Second, and most importantly, they must be born again spiritually, or born from above, through the receiving of the Holy Spirit of God. The benefit of forgiveness is that there is no sin a Christian can commit that God will hold against them. Therefore, the Holy Spirit of God will never leave a person from the moment of salvation all the way through eternity. If a person stands before God as a "goat," it isn't because they are unforgiven, it is because they are spiritually dead to Him. He doesn't know them because they are not spiritually alive to Him through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. That is why the Bible says that without Jesus Christ being raised from the dead, we are still in our sins. We are nothing more than forgiven dead people; empty vessels without God living inside of us. That is why our faith would be futile. So, the answer to the question, "Got Forgiveness?" is yes. Everybody has forgiveness regardless of whether or not they acknowlege needing to be forgiven of their sins. The question that needs to be asked is, "Got Life?" Christians are sometimes directed to "examine" ourselves to see if we are in the faith. This comes from 2 Corinthians 13:5, which says, "Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves." Often times what people teach it means to "examine" or "test" yourself is to see if your behaviors are consistent with being a Christian or if you truly have an affection for God. Both of these are open to interpretation and misses the simple answer which is in the second half of the verse. That answer is, "Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!" If Christ lives in you, you are alive to God and have passed the examination or test. Simple. Salvation is the restoration of the life of God. Forgiveness guarantees the believer that God's life will never leave them when they sin. Therefore, if you are in Christ, you've "got forgiveness" and you've "got life." The unbeliever only has forgiveness, but they do not have the life of God.