A COMMON BELIEF TODAY: I am “saved” and unchanged.
- Matthew 7:15-20; Matthew 7:24-27; Luke 13:6-9; John 15:8.
- This passage makes us uncomfortable. It sounds harsh and unrealistic. We will delve into how we are to understand it as we move forward.
- A good place to start is a major reason why this passage sounds so off to us. That reason is that in big parts of the American church we have defined Christianity as an empty belief that usually leaves your life unchanged.
- That prevalent belief is the big reason why this passage sounds foreign to us. This passage is straightforward in stating that someone claiming to follow Christ should live a transformed, fruitful life.
- We have, instead, frequently put forward the idea that you can be saved and unchanged. What’s that look like? Someone comes forward at the end of a service and says they want to get saved. The preacher leads them in the Lord’s Prayer. Three weeks later they’re baptized. After that, they are moderately faithful in church attendance for a while but eventually quit going. They are not doing anything with regard to trying to become more like Jesus. They only pray when an emergency happens. And yet (and this is key) if you ask them if they’re a Christian, they will emphatically say, “Yes.” And they genuinely believe that.
- It must be acknowledged that for all the good that evangelical churches have within them, this is a major blind spot. Lots of (to pick on my own denomination) Baptists preach this approach to salvation, which is absolutely not Biblical.
- It’s a huge problem. It is one of the reasons why we have so many people in America claiming to be Christians while behaving in ways that are decidedly non-Christian. This is sullying the name of Christ in our culture.
- A further problem is that these people are extremely difficult to reach with the true gospel. Why? Because they already think they are spiritually safe. The way the preacher of their youth explained things to them leads them to feel that they’ve done all that is necessary. They are in good shape. Of course, they’re not. The empty belief they have that has left their life completely unchanged in Christlikeness is unequivocal evidence that they are not saved.
- Some of you are listening to this and thinking, “That’s a bridge too far. Sure, this passage kind of sounds like that, but you can’t base everything on one passage.”
- If the rest of the New Testament preached that empty belief and this was the only passage that pointed in this direction, we would need to do some figuring on why it was so different from the rest. But it’s not.
- I want to dig deep into this passage and the specific things it has to say on this subject as we go through this sermon but as we get started I want to just take a moment to show that this isn’t the only passage preaching this.
a. Matthew 7:15-20 - good fruit from good trees, bad fruit from bad trees.
b. Matthew 7:24-27 - the difference in the two houses is not belief but obedience to the teaching of Christ.
c. Luke 13:6-9 - Jesus comes to look for fruit.
d. John 15:8 - fruit is evidence of genuine faith.
A GOOD STARTING POINT: We are both “dearly loved” and “holy.”
- Ephesians 5:1, 3.
- Matthew 23:4.
- This whole issue is one where it’s easy to fall off on one side or the other of the issue.
- The one side of the issue is just what we’ve been talking about: empty belief. We claim belief but our life remains unchanged.
- The other side of the issue is what we might call a heavy legalism. What’s that look like? It’s that we have to obey God in everything or He won’t love us. Most churches like this have an extensive list of rules that you need to follow. If you don’t measure up to them, you’re a failure and God might just reject you. I’m reminded of Jesus’ comment toward the Pharisees that they “tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders" (Matthew 23:4). This destroys joy and love.
- The first three verses of our passage give us a couple phrases that help us to stay balanced on this.
- First, in v. 1 we are told that we are “dearly loved children.”
- What a lovely phrase. It drips with love and affection.
- We aren’t just loved - we are dearly loved.
- We aren’t disposable employees - we are children.
- This gives us the confidence and assurance that we are solidly connected to God. We are not going to be abandoned or thrown away.
- This battles the heavy legalism. We aren’t doing what we do each moment to prove our value and to be worthy of staying in the family. Our bond with God is secure and we are treasured.
- Second, in v. 3 we are called by a different name: “God’s holy people.”
- The word to emphasize here is “holy.” This word is easily misunderstood. It raises the specter of self-righteous pomposity. That's not what’s in mind. Holy means getting rid of the sin. Holy means becoming like Christ. It means pure. We are actively working to get the junk out of our hearts so that we can live out what Jesus wants to do in our lives.
- Many American Christians see holiness as irrelevant to their lives. It’s not. It’s part of what God wants for us.
- This, of course, counteracts the “empty belief” side that many fall off on. God does desire to work in our lives to bring about change.
- We will talk more about this later.
WHAT SALVATION LOOKS LIKE: The shift is less from fallen to forgiven and more from darkness to light.
- Ephesians 5:8-11, 13-14.
- Now let’s dig into the specifics of this passage. As we’ve noted, it is very pointed in bringing out the practical impact of salvation on a believer’s life. What exactly does it teach us?
- To use the language in your outline, many think of it as moving from fallen (i.e. lost, sinful) to forgiven (i.e. cleansed, declared right). Let me be clear: I am not saying that we’re not forgiven by Jesus! We are . . . and I’m thankful for that. But it is so much more than that. And that's the point we’re emphasizing: that it’s more than merely being forgiven and left in your old condition.
- Let’s look at vv. 8-11 and 13-14.
- Verse 8a - We were in darkness but we have shifted to light. This is a practical image. He doesn’t say, “You were dark but now you’ve been forgiven as you remain in darkness.”
- Verses 8b-9 - This is how we are to live, as children of light. It doesn’t just say that we are to believe but that this is the way we should live our lives.
- Verse 10 - As we do this, we are living our lives to try to please the Lord. This makes sense because we should be filled with gratitude for all that He has done for us.
- Verse 11 - Now the flip side - avoid the darkness.
- Verse 13a - One reason we do this is because we know that everything is going to come to light. So work on getting that shameful sin out of the way now!
- Verse 13b - As we receive the light, we become a light for those around us. Jesus spoke of this in the Sermon on the Mount - that we are salt and light.
- Verse 14 - The most interesting word here is “dead.” We don’t need a Band-Aid. We need CPR. We are dead and need resurrection.
IS IT NECESSARY? This isn’t optional or a bonus - this is the plan.
- Ephesians 5:2, 3, 4, 5, 15, 16.
- For those with the forgiveness-only version of salvation, it’s not that they would argue that life change never happens. It’s just that it’s optional or a bonus.
- That's not true. This is the plan. This is normative.
- Let’s look at several verses in this passage that point us toward that.
- Verse 2 - “walk in the way of love.”
- Our salvation is walking with the Lord.
- Verses 3-4 - “improper.”
- We are told that there shouldn’t be obvious and blatant sin in the Christian’s life. That's a high standard and one that also, like the earlier verses, speaks to the expectations of Christ in our lives. It might sound to us too lofty but that's because of our lowered expectations. This is the plan Jesus wants to bring to fruition in our lives.
- Verse 5 - “has any inheritance.”
- Is this verse saying that if we sin after we’re saved we’ve lost heaven and all our rewards? No. Is this verse saying that life change is part of genuine Christian faith? Yes.
- This verse (among numerous others we’ve discussed tonight) is a death knell to the “forgiveness-only” salvation too often preached.
- Verse 15 - “Be very careful . . . how you live.”
- This is a big deal. Live for God, not sin.
- Verse 16 - “making the most”
- I don’t think this is “maximize each day,” as it’s often thought to mean. Rather, I think it’s “maximize Christ’s offer to you.” That is, seize all of the power of God that you can.
- “. . . the days are evil.”
- This is difficult but I think it means that we are living in times of temptation and sin. It’s a battleground, not a playground. So come prepared to fight.
