Answering objections to the atonement | The Whole Counsel

Condemnation of Trusting in Works Instead of Christ

His second application under there is, this doctrine condemns those who put more value on their good works than on the death of Christ. And he gives a number again, a number of sub-points. Things like, you don't have any warrant for this.

God did not command you to look to your works.

Not only does he say that we do not have a divine warrant for that, there's no command for that, and it's a bold presumption to do that, we actually have a command not to do that. And so how wicked is it to trust in your works when God has said, don't do that by the deeds of the flesh.

No, by deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified.

Yeah, and his point there, you know, his point there illustrates real simply, to refuse to believe or to trust in Christ, according to God's word, is a sin. But to believe in something God forbids you to trust in, to trust in that, is an equally terrible sin.

He goes on to say, you know, your works are polluted. There's unbelief mixed in, you know, there's selfishness, there's pride, they're all imperfect. And so none of them actually help pay for sin. And if we search through the scripture, what we find is that every imperfect work, which has some sin in it, actually adding, it just simply adds to our guilt.

So it's like bringing an anvil, you know, and like just laying it on the pile of debt and hoping that it'll float it up a little, you know, and you think you just made it worse.

He next says that your works do not pay for the debt according to the law itself. And this goes back to that idea of legal tender, which you're trying to bring to God to pay is not what he's asked for.

And so how could it possibly pay for it? And then he goes on and argues, your good works are fewer than your sin. And so even if they really are good and not against his word, can you really argue that if you put them on the scales with your sin, they weigh more?

Do you really have more good going for you than you do sin? And especially, again, taking into account not just what you've done, but your thoughts and your motives.

His final argument under this is that suppose your good works prove hypocritical, then obviously they're flawed and they could never justify you. God hates hypocrisy. And you might think, well, what does he mean?

Like when I do good things, am I being a hypocrite? Think of it this way. The good works that God calls us to do are expressions of love to him, to other people, not love to self, not self gain. So when we go out and we do nice things for people with the express purpose of benefiting ourselves, we realize there's some hypocrisy there.

When we say to God, I'm going to do all these good things so that you will, and then we have a long list, then our good works become polluted and hypocritical by being a bribe. I'm not serving the living God because he deserves my love and trust and my allegiance.

I'm offering to give God a few hours a week or a few days a month because I intend to bribe the king to get me off the hook. So they're all of them ruined by that hypocrisy.

His next main application to the professing believer is to examine yourself, to make sure you have a true interest in the blood of Christ. If this is the means of salvation, if there's virtue in the blood of Christ to remove sin, then certainly it is of the utmost importance to make sure that you actually have benefited from that sacrifice.

And he goes on to give us a number of evidences that that is true, as well as some false evidences or evidences that it's not true.

Yeah, so he says, if you're truly convinced of the cleansing virtue of Christ's blood, then you have reason to hope that you have been washed with it. But you might say, well, what do you mean by truly convinced?

And he gives a whole series, like the Puritans, he gives a series of what it might look like, how far you might go and still not have gone really all the way. And so he says things like, you might be convinced that the word of God is true, but that's not really the same as being convinced that Christ died for you.

You might even believe that Christ died for sins, but that's not the same thing as really trusting Christ's death for you. You might have all of your objections silenced, and you just can't answer the scriptural statements, or you can't come up with an answer to someone who's witnessing to you.

But that's not the same as positively choosing to cast all my hope on the death of the Son of God. So, again, they're true and false faith delineated.

He next gives another evidence, and that is that you actually live upon the sufferings of Christ, that you live daily depending upon Him and looking to Him, finding strength to live for today. And he gives some objections and answers them also.

One of the objections is that a person might argue that they are uncertain whether they're actually one of the elect, and therefore they can't trust Christ. How am I supposed to trust Christ? I don't know if I'm elect or not.

And you hear this sometimes. And he gives a great answer to that. He says, you use means for the preservation of your lives, although it is uncertain whether God has decreed that you shall live any longer.

So you're worried about the decree of God? Has God decreed that you're going to live today? But you get up and you dress yourself and you eat. And you assume that it is, and he encourages us to trust Christ.

So we owe God obedience to His invitations, to His commands to come and to trust. He doesn't have to explain to us His choices in eternity past. Another thing he mentions is that someone might argue, well, I don't feel the inward call.

And doesn't the Holy Spirit have to give an inward spiritual call for the gospel to be effective? And again, he kind of unravels that false. And again, he unravels that false objection by saying, your job is to answer the outward call.

So the gospel is preached, the scripture is read, the command to trust Christ alone for every sinner who is now listening, every sinner who's reading, and the command goes forth. You're not to wait on some extra special feeling.

Christ's Command, the Lame Man, and the Power of the Gospel Call

When we look at Jesus accomplishing miracles, we see an example of this, how the interplay. He says to a lame man, get up, take up your bed and walk. That's the one thing the lame man cannot do. But in the going forth of the command, there is also infinite power.

And as the lame man trusts the word of this Savior and goes to stand, he is enabled to do what Christ has just told him to do. And there's the miracle. Same thing with the gospel. The gospel goes forth, believe, repent.

And you think, but that's the very thing that mankind won't do. But as the call goes forth, there is infinite power with that. And as we labor, we turn away from and we turn toward, there is the work of the spirit united to those words in the scripture, enabling us to do exactly what God has commanded us to do.

There is mystery there. But there is no excuse for inactivity saying, I'll wait until I feel a special call.