Christ Alone- The Great Single Sacrifice

DAY 32- 4/1/17  CHRIST ALONE

- THE GREAT SINGLE SACRIFICE

It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins… We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all…  For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.  And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.  (Hebrews 10:4, 10. 14,18)

Thoughts: The Great Single sacrifice- the one sufficient for all human beings has been offered.  The ransom for our captivity to sin has been paid.  How can one man’s dying pay for all human being’s sin?   Well, Jesus is not just any man- He is the infinite-worth God- man.  Can you compare the value of God’s life to ours?  Could I compare the lives of a thousand amoebas to my pet dog?  I would choose my dog even if it were a billion amoebas!  The value of the perfect Jesus- God in the flesh- does not compare to our own value.  He is not a lamb paying for human sin- He is God paying an infinite price for a finite amount of sin.  For even though we sin a bunch- our sins are limited by death and number.  But God’s value on Jesus- the Son is infinite.  All the Old Testament sacrifices point to the idea that we need a sacrifice- we need to find a way to have forgiveness before the holy God.  But they also point to the One true Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world- Jesus.  Christ alone has this value.  To degrade this value by saying we need to add our own sacrifices or merit to it is ridiculous.  Christ alone is worthy of our praise- He is the lamb that was slain and He alone is worthy.  “You are worthy…because you were slain and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation…worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”  (Revelation 5:9,12).

Prayer: Lord, help me to grow in my appreciation of your worthiness.  

Christ Alone- NOT Christ And

DAY 30- 3/30/17 CHRIST ALONE- NOT CHRIST AND…
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)

Thoughts: Late medieval theology (Ockham) had disintegrated into thinking that doing good was so important that it should be rewarded with eternal salvation.  One can understand why we should motivate people to do good. 
      Similarly, late medieval Latin theology talked about forgiveness being earned by penance, by confession, by the Eucharist, by indulgence, and by the transferring of righteousness/grace from one person to another.  The problem is that while a priest could say that they absolve someone, that does not mean that the sinner felt forgiven.  Luther, when he was a good monk, felt he needed to do more and more to somehow obtain forgiveness for his sins.  It was only when Luther realized Christ alone could forgive that he actually realized he was forgiven and trusted his forgiveness.  Protestants could speak of assurance of salvation because of the assurance that they were forgiven by Christ’s act (and not their own plus Christ’s act).  The Roman Catholic church at the time taught that repentance and our actions were necessary for salvation and that we could lose our salvation.  While Luther was more vague, Calvin spoke of the doctrine of eternal security and perseverance.
       Our salvation does not depend on our actions plus Christ.  Our salvation does not depend upon some saint and the cross of Christ.  Our salvation does not depend on our taking the Lord’s Supper and Christ’s cross.  It is not doing any law or good that makes us acceptable.  Christ’s grace shown on the cross and accepted by faith makes us acceptable- and forgiven. 

Prayer: Lord, help me to appreciate your love alone and your work for me.  

Solus Christus- Only Christ

DAY 28- 3/28/17 SOLUS CHRISTUS

“I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father but by me.”  John 14:6
“Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction , and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Mt. 7:13,14
There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 16:25

Thoughts: For some Jesus is only one among many ways, one among many truths.  Jesus was not saying, “Follow me and I will lead you to the truth” rather- “I am the truth.”  Many do not have a problem adding Jesus to their spirituality- or having Jesus as one god among many.  But the “solus” or “only” claim of Jesus is what not only rubs them the wrong way but frustrates them.  For them, all roads lead to the mountaintop, however winding.  But, despite what post-moderns think, Jesus was saying that truth matters.  To say that truth matters means that lying and deceiving is not okay. 
     At the time of the Reformation (and still today), people were trying to get around the idea that salvation comes through faith in Christ and trust in the cross as a sacrifice for our forgiveness.  So the idea of purgatory- that we may somehow pray for others to have their sins burned off in time with punishment; or as some Catholic sects believed- transfer the righteousness of one saint over onto us was followed.  Luther and the Reformation leaders called people back to the idea of Christ as our Savior. 
    Once a baby had jaundice and her parents were told that if they put the baby underneath a special light for so many hours, the baby would get better.  But suppose the parents quarreled- “That’s too easy!  How about if we scrub her, warm her, put a little skin coloring on her, and drops in her eyes? If we work hard enough at it, I’m sure we could get her normal coloring back.”  The doctor would have insisted, No, there’s only one way to handle this.”  If the parents had said, “No, we will just ignore this and maybe it will go away.” The doctor would remind them that things can get better if they do not follow his simple but important steps.  Believing in Christ is simple but it is also important.  Jesus opens the door to belief to whosoever will.  It is not exclusive in its invitation it is exclusive in its solution.  
    Lee Strobel asks, if there were two country clubs- one of which had an exclusive membership for those who earn it and do a multitude of tasks; and the other invited everyone- no matter what they looked like or what they had to join. For the second, entry was not based on qualifications or earning it but on accepting the invitation.  Christianity is like the latter.  All are invited and we do not earn our way.  Rather we depend on one who has paid the way for us. 

Prayer: Lord, help me to see you are my only and most important savior.  Help me to trust in you alone.  

Song: "In Christ Alone"