In the life of every believer, from the beginning of church history up until our present day, a pitched battle has been fought between two kingdoms: the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of the self. Since mankind’s fall in the Garden, every man and woman has been born marked, tainted, or if you will, flawed. Like a bird that is meant to soar the skies yet chooses to live underground, or like a fish that is meant to explore the ocean depths but prefers to perish on dry land, so is fallen humanity. We were created to glorify God and enjoy Him eternally, but we have chosen to glorify ourselves, and in trying to gain our life, we have lost it. This malady does not suddenly vanish when a fallen man is regenerated. Christians struggle with the vestiges of this desire to set the rules ourselves based on our own wisdom, why? Because we like to play god. And thereby we distort God’s revelation in Christ, His salvation, His grace, and above all, His glory.
In these times especially, when mankind has declared himself to be the center of the universe, and the measure of all things, the church has often opted to redefine Christianity in terms that flatter man and dishonour God. Today, human understanding and reasoning tower above the Scriptures. The Bible is no longer seen as the sole rule of faith and life, but rather just another book, waiting to be reinterpreted. It has ceased to be the objective revelation of the perfect salvation plan devised in eternity by a perfect and infinite God. It has become a story of trial and error, of a whimsical God that changes personalities with each new plan; or in the worst cases, it is seen as a mere collection of moral tales, shelved alongside the Quran, the Book of Mormon, and One Thousand and One Nights. It has become a mere human creation, with much to offer and much to disregard. The church that fails to recognize the Bible’s superiority and does not give it its rightful place succumbs to the currents of this world of subjective morality, where man determines what is good and what is evil, killing in essence the guilt and sin that proceeds from the knowledge of the Creator’s will and where we stand in relation to it.
Who Gets the Glory?
Yet, no matter how far we run from the concept of sin, or how much we try to conform to this world, the truth remains the same: We are fallen creatures in need of redemption. The very Scripture that points out our sin also reveals God’s plan to deal with it. Firstly, to ensure His glory — for any other course would be unworthy — God ensured that salvation would be solely His to grant to whomever He wishes without the contribution or cooperation of any man, so that no one may boast outside of Him. Thus, He decided in eternity, to send Christ, His only begotten, to live a perfect life under the law and suffer the punishment He did not deserve, all for His people, His own possession, His church. His redemptive work was, and is, so perfect that it eternally saves God’s chosen ones, so that a believer can do nothing to make God love them more or less. However, the self always looks for a crack in the armour to spring and rear its ugly head. In many churches, its voice says, “I accepted Christ”, “I chose God”, “I came to Him”, but God in His Word powerfully responds, “I transformed your heart”; “I chose you before the foundation of the world”; “I dragged you to Christ”; “You love me because I loved you first.” “Even your faith is a gift I gave you.”
“Surely not faith! Faith is mine,” says the self, “It was in me, I placed it in Christ.” But every Word of God cuts deep: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8). “For to you it has been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe in Him but also to suffer for Him” (Phil. 1:29). And suffer we must! Even amidst external trials and tribulations, our greatest suffering is the mortification of the self. We must acknowledge that the faith we value so highly is but a result of God’s work in our hearts, a work of the Spirit for Christ’s glory. Indeed, nothing good could come from hearts dead in trespasses and sins, just as a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. Moreover, unlike the “faith” of this world, the power of biblical faith does not lie in itself but in its object, in Christ. Thus, we trust wholly in Another, and in doing so, we stop trusting ourselves. Biblical faith looks outward, not inward.
Biblical faith looks to Christ. Faced with the unsettling reality of our sin before a holy God, we realize we cannot rely on ourselves. “Perhaps another man,” says the dying self, “some mediator to intercede for me, some superman, apostle, prophet, teacher, pastor, priest, anointed one?” Yet again, the Bible attacks our confidence, this time in humanity, stating there is only “one mediator between God and men” (1 Tim. 2:5), Jesus Christ. And it adds that “there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). No other! However, we often fixate on men; men chasing after men, honoring men, and even glorifying men. The more we turn to these merchants and idolize them, the more we lose sight of the One before whom we should bend our knees in utter dependence and worship. He did the complete work. He was handed over, died, and rose for our sakes. He has defeated the power of sin. He is the conqueror who shares His victory with His people. He, and only He, intercedes for us before the Father, day and night, and His wounds cry out in our favour.
In the end, it is all about glory. Who should receive the glory for saving sinners by grace when they only deserved death? Who deserves the glory for granting the gift of faith to those whom He has chosen? Who should be glorified for achieving our salvation from start to finish? Whose glory is at stake when we claim even a tiny part of His salvation work for ourselves? The answer is God. It is about God’s glory.
The Torch We Carry
It is time for God’s people to rise amidst an apostate generation, with a brave and determined spirit, ready to boldly affirm the truths of our forefathers rescued by the Reformation cry. Truths that echo throughout Scripture and stand against the spirit of this world: Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia, Sola Fide, Solus Christus, Soli Deo Gloria. This is the torch passed on to us, the new generation of Christians. We know we will fight amidst even darker times. Let God’s glory shine even brighter then. Take heed and uphold Scripture as not only your but the highest authority, and embody this truth in your lives, exemplifying piety and righteousness, and proclaiming the gospel just as God has handed it to us. Live in constant worship of the God who chose you by grace, and whose reason for saving you is found only in Himself. Trust in Him, in His Christ, and depend on Him more and more, and on yourselves less and less. May your lives be marked by unwavering love and loyalty to the One who lived, died, and rose for you. And in everything you do, all that you are, and all that you think, render all glory to the Only One who deserves it. For this you were created. For this, you are alive today, at this point in time, at this point in history. Remember: “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen” (Rom. 11:36).