Appointed to Eternal Life

Acts 13:48 “And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed.”

This is a very sensitive topic in Christianity where many believe that only those who are predestined to eternal life would believe and others do not have the opportunity of salvation. There are some groups which say that God has pre-planned all our lives and nothing is in our control. There are some who believe in complete free will where it is completely our responsibility and so, prayer is not necessary. But, it is important for us to have a clear understanding of this. Our God is full of love and not just laws. If it is just the law, there is no dispensation of grace. If it is just grace, there is no glory. That’s why our situation is a great combination of predestination and obedience which is otherwise mentioned clearly in the Bible as Grace and Faith. If we cannot understand this clearly, there is no way we attain eternal life. Our verse also explains that those who were appointed gave their faith as the first step towards eternal life.

This understanding explains this predestination has greater responsibilities. We can read in Acts 13:46 that the Jews had they had thrust it aside and so have brought Judgement on themselves as unworthy to eternal life. This means that there was grace to this group, but since they did not believe, God sees the action as thrusting aside the biggest action of God. In Matthew 15:28, we read the Canaanite woman who was pestering Jesus for healing and the Lord was hesitant in the beginning but in the end, He admired the faith. We have to understand that this woman did not have grace, but her faith alone was so strong that she received grace from the Lord. This woman had humbled herself so down to dogs but the Jews in Pisidia wanted honor which Paul was getting. So, they lost worthiness because of their greed.

The predestination to eternal life is otherwise mentioned in Ephesians 1:5 towards adoption to become sons of God. The verse says that it is not God’s mercy that pre-destined us but it is His pleasure and love. This son-ship is explained in the previous verses where God wants to present us before Himself holy and blameless and this presentation will be to the praise of His glorious grace. This means that God’s plan is that His grace would be praised when we stand in front of Him being holy and blameless. This plan is achieved through Jesus and this is why God has blessed us with all heavenly blessings in Christ. So, Jesus is every spiritual blessing from heaven for us to become holy. This gives us a life that is so perfect that it is called Life which is Jesus.

In Romans 8:28, if we are called by God with a purpose with grace, we should love God with Faith. And this purpose of God drives everything else in the world.  This purpose of God is executed in the coming verses by fore-knowing them to be predestining them to the image of Christ. When Paul explains eternal life as Son-ship in Ephesians 1:5, it is further improved here to have the image of Jesus Himself. This image was lost by Adam and Jesus had won this glory back to us again in the Cross. Calling is followed by predestination and then if we apply faith we are justified by God and then glorified if we persevere.  

If we understand the word predestination or appointment, it does not mean that we are already there. It means that we are given tickets to a bus travelling there. We do not go to the bus stand and look for good looking vehicles, but only those which go to our destiny. Anything which is against God’s will is a bus that takes us somewhere else and coming back to our destiny from that location is further hard than our travel from our current situation. Romans 8:18 explains how unworthy it is to look at the troubles of travelling when we know the importance of the glory ahead. In the following verses, Paul explains how the creation waits for the glory and the purpose of the Holy Spirit in us is to intercede for us in our weakness (8:26) so that there is complete salvation for the creation and us.

Proverbs 16:9 is a good verse how we plan everything for our own pleasures, but it is the Lord who directs us to the right path by the Lord Jesus who called us with His sacrifice and the Holy Spirit who teaches us the truth from inside us. Let us allow God to direct us forward.

Amen.

Freedom from everything

Acts 13:39 “And by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the Law of Moses.”

Paul, in the sermon in Pisidia introduces Jesus as the savior and the promised Messiah. The purpose of the Messiah is proclaimed in this message that by believing in Jesus, we are free. The freedom that we had received from Christ has to be understood properly by every Christian. The verse says that there were many things the Law could not free a person at all. The Law produced fear and this fear of the Lord was not sufficient for a person to be saved. The person is still in bondage. But in this period of grace, the authority of sin inside the church is very much higher than the presence of sin during the Law. A church has to question itself if there is a real freedom from sin and it is more effective than the Law. We read in 2 Cor 3:17 that the important sign of the presence of the Holy Spirit in a person is Liberty.

Understanding liberty is essential for every Christian. As per our first verse, we are not bound to anything of the world. Not even jobs, debts, sickness or anything can hold us back from looking at Jesus. Because we have taken refuge in the Son, the King who has victoriously won the earth, He will provide if we seek His kingdom. We think that we are free and not bound to anything, but the Bible clearly instructs in Romans 6:18, 1 Peter 2:16 that unless we submit ourselves as bond-slaves there is no freedom. Galatians 5:1 explains that Jesus set us free for us to have true freedom. Unless we stand firm, a yoke of slavery is waiting to be placed in our necks. Romans 8:1,2 explains the New Covenant is that the law of the Spirit defines that there is life only in Christ Jesus. If we are outside this border, we are bond-slaves.

We should see that God honors this Liberty. He ensures that His children are not yoked with anything unnecessary. In Acts 15:10, we read Peter confronting the church that the Law was unbearable to them. Peter explains them that if the Law was enforced to those who are in the refuge of the Son, they are putting God to test. Colossians 1:12-14 says that we are transferred to a different kingdom of the Son. In this kingdom, we get portions in everything that the saints in the light have inherited. The freedom in the kingdom does not give us the inheritance by mercy but it makes us worthy to be seated with the saints.

Acts 13:32,33 explain that the resurrection of Jesus which was a promise (Psalm 2:7) made to the fathers and has been fulfilled in us. We know the original promise was given to David but fulfilled through Jesus. Similarly, Paul calls that this promise is fulfilled in us when Jesus had risen up. So, we were begotten as new creations when Jesus had risen up. We read that in 1 Peter 1:3. This means that all our bondages are removed and we are born as free children. This situation is totally different than any other religion or even the Old Testament. We read in Romans 5:17 that death was ruling the world.  Every Christian should understand this plan of God in resurrecting Jesus. Earlier Nations raged and people had vainly plotted against God and He had placed Jesus as the victorious one with laughing. The Son has complete authority now and unless we take refuge in Jesus by believing and obeying Him, we are not just bonded servants of the world but would take part in the quick kindled anger of the Son. The worst tribulation the world can give us is death. But Jesus, our king had overcome that and so, by believing in Him, death has no authority over us.

James 1:25 explains that there is a Law of Liberty and this is the perfect Law. We are not set free to unconditionally roam around the world but to be submissive to this Law. There cannot be a kingdom if we are unbound completely. And since this is a law, it gives an abiding person rights and authority. If we do not submit here, the freedom is lost and we are penalized or even put in jail. We can see Paul, put this freedom in practice in Acts 14 where he was both worshipped and then stoned in Lystra. But both these did not have any effect in Paul’s life or ministry. Romans 8:20 says that this liberty is the glory of the children of God. If we abide in Him and make His resurrection worthy, we are seen as glorious and perfect children of God.

Amen.

Knowing Jesus

Acts 13:27 For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.

A person who has not recognized or known Christ very much personally has all chances to condemn the Lord Himself despite reading or hearing the word repeatedly every week. We may know to pray really well and may even have gifts or super powers from the Lord. But if we do not know who our Savior is, all our efforts in Christendom not only gets wasted, but we could actually hurt Him. Paul uses these words to the Jews in Pisidia so that they would understand who Christ is. We also read that even if there is no reason to hurt Jesus, we can still do that because our ignorance is so powerful and authoritative. (Psalms 73:22)It is very important for us to ask God for more and more understanding of Him.

1 John 2:3 says that we have come to know Jesus only if we keep His commandments. A true knowledge of Christ will make any person honor Him unconditionally and be obedient to everything the Lord gives. From the previous verses we can conclude that Jesus was a propitiation for all our sins and so, an advocate to the father. Every Christian in the world and even others know that Jesus died for our sins and this understanding alone does not make us people who know Jesus. We only understand that without obedience and submission we are not even in the path of knowing Jesus. So, we start with obeying first in order to know Him and not vice versa. This is what we read in Mathew 13:12 where God gives more and more knowledge and understanding of secrets to those who already know Jesus. This is not partiality at all. A son who stays at his father’s presence and tries to learn skills from the father himself has high chances of inheriting all the father’s responsibilities. Continuing the parable, Jesus refers Isaiah that the hearts of people who do not understand have their hearts dull with fat. This prevents Jesus from healing them. We use scriptures for disobediences and excuses and this attitude towards the Lord has come from our hearts being fattened. Let us ask the Lord to heal us by making us understand Him through obedience.

In John 10:14, Jesus is the good shepherd and He know us and we know Him. In this context Jesus explains that all those who came before Him were thieves and robbers. The world is one of these thieves. They have completely selfish intentions and the sheep had the right wisdom to not listen. There is another category of leaders who are hired hands which means they look at revenues alone. Jesus refers to the priests and Pharisees here. They do shepherd the sheep when people look forward for advices and when it is safe. Jesus wants us to understand His stronger love and responsibility that He owns us and knows us. If we cannot differentiate the love of Christ from these, we cannot obey Him. This is why Jesus mentions that He would go after other sheep who had not entered through this door, but they will listen to Him and so will know Him eventually. This will lead us towards becoming a single flock with a single shepherd.

In John 17:2 and 3 we read how the Father had sent Jesus with authority to give eternal life and Jesus had come down presenting Himself to us so that we would know Him and be saved. The verse explains that knowing the Father and our Lord Jesus is not a way to eternal life, but it is life itself. This is explained very well in 2 Peter 1:3 and 4. This knowledge of Jesus gives us everything that is required for life and godliness. If we know Him really well, we get to understand the promises and hope about escaping the corrupt world. The final result is also mentioned here, partake the divine nature. The divine nature does not come when we present ourselves good which will lead us towards hypocrisy. But if we search the scriptures and pray to know Jesus more and more, we earn it which cannot be given without deserving. Salvation is free but glory is not. The verse says that Jesus has called us to this glory and excellence.

Peter gives a clear path of earning this knowledge in the following verses (5-8) which is faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection and love. Lack of these qualities will make us ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord. The verse does not use the phrase “with” the knowledge but we read “in” the knowledge which means if a person does not grow in these, it is not worthy to have the knowledge of Jesus which is eternal life. Verse 9 explains that this person is nearsighted and had forgotten that we are cleansed from former sins.

2 Peter 1:2 is a blessing that when we have the knowledge of the Father and our Lord Jesus, grace and peace multiplies inside us.

Amen.