This past Sunday I taught my class from Romans 13:11-14 which says:
11Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. 12The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires. (ESV) more »
The first value is that doing so can help us to not follow after our own heart and eyes, which we are prone to do. Doing so, God declares, is equivalent the way of an adulterer. So we must remember the law of God so that we will not sin against God.
The second value in knowing and remembering the law of God is that doing so helps us to obey God and leads to our holiness. As we learn what God commands us to do and then continually remind ourselves of these commands we are guided by God into righteous living.
So, while we depend upon Christ for our righteousness, let us take advantage of the good that can be done by knowing and remembering the law of God.
I don’t normally comment on politics, but a quote in the Wall Street Journal today caught my attention because it appeared to be emblematic of so much modern thinking. I am even concerned that it is a root thought in the reasoning of many in the church.
Rep. Charles Rangel was charged yesterday by the House ethics committee with 13 counts of breaking House rules. He is trying to negotiate a settlement to avoid an ugly public trial. His reasoning is that he did not willfully break House rules, and if he did break house rules, the violations were an honest mistake. Now, I’m not commenting on whether he is guilty or not. I am commenting on his reasoning for declaring himself innocent. He told reporters,
“Even though there are serious charges, I am prepared to prove that the only thing I’ve ever had in my 50 years of public service is service. That’s what I’ve done. And if I’ve been overzealous in providing that service, I can’t make an excuse for the serious violation but I can have an explanation of my intent.” (quoted by the Wall Street Journal 7-30-10)
There it is, intent. The judgment of guilt or innocence, justified or condemned is, in so many minds, an issue of intent. Rep. Rangel intended to serve, and if in doing so he inadvertently broke laws, then the intent covers the violation and nullifies it.
I just have to say that intent has never been good enough for God. Yes, the condition of our heart is what God is after. He wants us to desire him and love him. He wants our hearts to be filled with a longing for him, but he clearly tells us that what we do matters for what ever is filling up our hearts will be seen in what we do. In the end, without grace, what we actually do, not our intent, is what God judges.
Take it a step further. Even under grace intent does not nullify wrong action. We see this in James 2:16 where saying to one in need “be warmed and filled” without given them food and clothes is sinful and condemning on the one who says it. Our desire or intent to have people warm and full is not enough, we must warm them and fill them.
My purpose here is really to expose a prevailing thought that many hold without really even knowing they hold it. They don’t articulate it in so many words as Rangel did, but the thought is behind how they live and how they judge the holiness of their heart. Such a rubric to judge the holiness of our hearts is faulty. Only by our actions, done is obedience to and love for God can we judge the condition of our heart. Wanting to do God’s will and doing God’s will are indeed two very different things.
