Subject: Help for discouraged parents? |
Bible Note: Dear justme, You are superior to me in chronological years, in ministerial years, in magisterial years, and in ecclesiastical years. You have been in study far longer than I've even been a believer. While you were serving our Lord, I was a deeply practiced sinner, despising Him. Certainly it is not my place to find fault (1 Timothy 5:19) but rather to submit (1 Peter 5:5a). Please forgive me for those times in which my zeal pushes the limits of good and rightful deference. In Him, Doc For those reading, please let us clarify: The gospel is not just our ticket into heaven. Yes, it is about salvation, but it is more than just a matter of getting saved. Think about and understand sin. There are three broad categories by which sin is identified in Scripture: (1) Transgressions: Sin is violation of God's law, resulting in a legal failure, for which the only justice is death; i.e., it is a legislative problem. (2) Disobediences: Sin is willful, self-assertive, defiance of the person and authority of God; i.e., it is a relational problem. (3) Iniquities: Sin is personal, ethical uncleanness or filthiness; i.e., it is a moral problem. We are sinners by choice and by nature. The sinful condition is contracted at conception (see Psalm 53). Sin extends to every aspect of human life. It destroys our standing with God and man, it taints our thinking, it sullies our character, it twists our affections, and it brings decay and death to our bodies. It is the root cause of all spiritual, moral, ethical, emotional, cognitive, social, and physical problems. We can and must accept personal responsibility for sin and its consequences. It can not be blamed on heritage, chemistry, pathology, environment, or society. To do so is a denial of the clear message of Scripture. The gospel is the good news of God's redemption of sinful men. Salvation, therefore, fully addresses the legal, personal, and relational issues of sin. Christ pays the price for our sin, but we are also released from its power. In a mysterious act of the Holy Spirit, we become new creatures, desiring to please our Lord and Savior. We act differently, we think differently, we feel differently, we desire differently, and we live differently. As we draw closer to glory, we grow more and more like Jesus and love Him more dearly. Consequently, the solution to all our problems, is the gospel. Any other solution fails to address the root cause of our problems. Hence, we can say with the Psalmist, "Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of His praise be heard, who has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip. For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance." (Psalms 66:8-12 ESV) |