What is Christ’s concern? In one word we can say that He came to be the
Savior of the world. Salvation is His
concern. But as we have noted, this
salvation is a now and forever salvation, a point of beginning and a continuing
process. He died that we might no longer
live for ourselves but for Him, the One who died for us. His once-for-all death is intended to bring
about real change in the lives of believers.
We noted Titus 2:14 where Jesus gave Himself for us to redeem us from
every lawless deed. That redemption is
an accomplished fact. But then Paul goes
on to say, “and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good
works.” That is describing something
that takes time.
This is not complicated nor is it surprising
to anyone who has read the Bible. In OT times
God dealt with men in what we sometimes call “crisis” experiences, points in
time when men expressed their faith (e.g. Abraham, Gen. 15:6). But then God continued to deal with them to
bring about life change, the application of that faith in times of
affliction. To Abraham, after years of
silence, God came to Abraham and said, I am God Almighty (El Shaddai); walk
before Me and be blameless (Gen. 17:1).
It was always true, and it is true for us, that faith without works is
dead; faith must be perfected (James 2:22).
And the key is this: Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith
(Heb. 12:2).
Let us say it this way. Jesus is concerned with our salvation, both redemption
(the once for all purchase, applied by faith) and sanctification (the
application to our daily lives, growing in the grace and knowledge of
Christ).
What, therefore, must be our concern, in light
of Christ’s concern? First, we must be
concerning with our salvation. Like
Peter (Mt. 16:16), like Paul (Acts 9), have we believed on the Lord Jesus
Christ, confessing Christ to be Lord? Are
we growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ (2 Peter 3:17)? Having been saved, are we maturing as disciples
of Christ?
Further, what must be the concern of the Church
that Jesus is building? Again, it is
salvation in its fullness. We see this
in the commission Jesus gave His disciples just before departing earth to
return to heaven (Matt. 28:19-20). In
one command He told them (us) to make disciples of all nations. But then He specified: baptizing them and
teaching them to obey. In other words,
He emphasized the redemption, the coming to Christ in faith, expressed in the
waters of baptism. And He emphasized the
sanctification, the life of obedience that stems from the redemption.
What we can say now is that there are twin
objectives; that’s the best way I can say it.
There are two, and yet they fit together. The objectives of the Church are “evangelism”
and “edification.” This fits the
concerns of Christ. This is how we share
His concern for the salvation of the world.
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