does god grade on a curveemjc3.com/proof/does_god_grade_on_a_curve.pdf · grace of god . . . . . ....

CONTENTS

Grading On A Curve . . . 2Why God Doesn’tGrade On A Curve. . . . . 7Passing By The Grace Of God . . . . . . . 15Living Beyond The Curve. . . . . . . . . . . 24

DOES GODGRADE ON A CURVE?

DDaniel Webster once said, “The most

important thought I ever had was that of myindividual responsibility toGod.” Over 150 years later, 8out of 10 Americans say theybelieve they will someday giveaccount of themselves to God.

Another survey noted that 76 percent of those who believein an afterlife think they have agood chance of going to heaven.But on what basis do so many of us assume we will bewelcomed into God’s presence?Is it because we are confidentthat there are a lot of peopleworse than ourselves?

Whether or not God gradeson a curve is an importantquestion that RBC researcheditor Dennis Fisher takes a look at in the following pages.

Martin R. De Haan IIManaging Editor: David Sper Cover Photo:Terry BidgoodScripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by ThomasNelson, Inc. Used by permission.All rights reserved.© 2003,2005 RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in USA

© RBC Ministries. All rights reserved.

GRADING ON A CURVE

IIcan see it as if ithappened yesterday. The teacher gets up from

her desk with a handful ofmarked papers. She walks to the blackboard, picks up a piece of white chalk,and begins to show thebreakdown of test results.

The class knows shegrades on a curve. The top10 percent will earn A’s, thenext highest 20 percent B’s,and the 40 percent in themiddle will earn C’s. It willbe bad news for those whoscore D’s with the nextlowest 20 percent, followedby the 10 percent at thebottom who fail.

This has been a toughtest. Everyone is sweating.We’re all hoping that wescored comparatively wellwith the rest of the class.

The uneasy experience ofbeing evaluated by how wecompare and measure up

to those around us is a part of life that many of usnever forget.

THE UPS ANDDOWNS OF ACURVEAs students, we may havehad a love-hate relationshipwith the curve. The upsidewas that this method ofgrading allowed room forerror, especially if the test was so hard that no one scored high. Thedownside was that the curve automatically put us in competition with our peers.

We also soon learnedthat being compared withthose around us is anunavoidable fact of life.Whether we interview for ajob or audition for a part inthe community play, we arejudged by how we measureup to others.

The idea of being gradedon a curve is so much a partof our life that it even spills

2© RBC Ministries. All rights reserved.

into common notions aboutthe afterlife.

What happens afterdeath is a sobering thought.Many of us feel uneasyabout standing before our Creator and giving anaccount of how we havelived our lives. Even if wehave laughed among ourfriends at the idea of hell,we secretly hope that thereis no such place. And ifthere is a heaven, we hopeto make it through those“pearly gates”—even if bythe skin of our teeth. Our

confidence may be: “I’m not as bad as a lot ofpeople. Even though I’vemade my mistakes, I’mpretty sure that I’m wellwithin ‘the class average.’”

Implied in this kind of reasoning is a relativegoodness that is based onhow we compare with oneanother. We take heart inknowing that there arealways others far worse than ourselves.

Furthermore, many of us resist the notion thatthere is something aboutour own human nature that would keep us out ofheaven. I know a lot of“good” people. And youmight be one of them. Theyare kind to their familymembers. They work hardto pay their bills on time.They’re not perfect, butmuch of the time they try todo the right thing. They arethe sort of people I wouldwant to have as neighbors.And they have earned the

3

The idea of being graded

on a curve is so much

a part of our lifethat it even spills

into commonnotions about the afterlife.


approval of their friends,colleagues, and community.

THE HIDDEN DARK SIDEThere is, however, anotherside to human nature thatalso deserves our attention.

Sigmund Freud, the pioneer of modernpsychology and an avowedatheist, was surprised bywhat he discovered aboutthe people he observed.Many of his patientsexhibited virtues in theirpublic life. But as he probed deeper, he foundhidden drives of anger, lust, and envy. Freud said it was as though he hadlifted a flat stone off the top of a grassy knoll near apond and found underneaththe rock a dark world ofcentipedes, sow bugs,worms, and other creaturesfleeing from the light.

What Freud found in his counseling practice issomething most of us would

rather not think about. Yethe had stumbled on a greatbiblical truth about humannature. The gospel of Johnquotes Jesus as sayingsomething similar:

This is the condemnation,that the light has comeinto the world, and menloved darkness ratherthan light, because theirdeeds were evil. Foreveryone practicing evilhates the light and doesnot come to the light, lest his deeds should beexposed (John 3:19-20).Both the observation of

human behavior and theteachings of Christ point todark shadows within thehuman heart.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn,the Nobel Prize winningauthor, describes theuniversal reality of this evil when he writes:

Gradually it was disclosedto me that the lineseparating good and evilpasses not through states,


nor between classes, norbetween political partieseither—but right throughevery human heart . . . .And even in the best of allhearts, there remains . . .an un-uprooted smallcorner of evil (The GulagArchipelago, Vol. 2, p.597).

THE EXCUSES WECOME UP WITHThe extent of this faultlinewithin us is something thatmost of us find difficult tothink about. Because wefeel uneasy facing our ownwrongs, we become adept at coming up with excusesand rationalizations for ourmistakes and failures.

C. S. Lewis describeshow easily we look past ourown faults so we can focuson the failings of others:

This year, or this month, or more likely, this veryday, we have failed to[practice] ourselves thekind of behavior we expect from other people.

There may be all sorts ofexcuses for us. That timeyou were so unfair to thechildren was when youwere tired. That slightlyshady business about the

money—the one you have almost forgotten—came when you were hardup. . . . The truth is, webelieve in decency somuch—we feel the Rule of Law pressing on usso—that we cannot bear to face the fact that

5

Because we feel uneasy

facing our ownwrongs, we

become adept at coming up with excuses

and rationalizationsfor our mistakes

and failures.


we are breaking it, andconsequently, we try toshift the responsibility(Mere Christianity,pp.7-8).It’s easy for us to find

extenuating circumstancesfor things we have donewrong. And we are not

alone. All around the worldtoday, people will appeal toa moral standard of conductthat they themselves don’tlive up to. The reality is that

all of us fall far short of our own standards, letalone the standards of a loving and holy God(Romans 3:23; 6:23).

THE GRANDFATHERGODNone of us is perfect—notin our own eyes nor in theeyes of a loving God. Thismight lead us to think thatall that matters is “thecurve.” A lot of peoplewould say, “If there’s onething I know, it’s that Goddoesn’t expect me to beperfect. I may not be asaint, but I’m certainly not a devil. I care aboutpeople and try to do theright thing most of the time.If God looks for redeemingqualities in me, I’m sure He will see more good than I can.”

Such thinking setspeople up to think of Godas a great grandfather in the sky. Grandfathers are

6

All around the world today,people will appeal to a

moral standard of conduct that they

themselves don’t live

up to.


loving, tenderhearted, andpatient. Sometimes theyeven smile at the mischief of their grandchildren. With a knowing smile, theyremind their own sons and daughters that they toowere once little handfuls.

When you combine thisgrandfather view of Godwith what we know abouthuman behavior, it becomeseven easier to assume thatif God grades on a curve wewill be safe in a crowd ofvery imperfect people.

The mix of vices andvirtues in those around usreassures us that if Godwants sinners in heaven,He’s going to have to cutmost of us a lot of slack. He is going to have to be atleast as tolerant and open-minded as we are. What’smore, in the competitiveworld of the curve, themajority of the class alwayspasses the course. Could aloving “Grandfather God”do any less?

WHY GODDOESN’T GRADEON A CURVE

DDespite thewidespread beliefthat we are safe as

long as we “stay with thecrowd,” the Bible gives us a very different way oflooking at our imperfectionand how it affects ourrelationship with a loving and holy God. And to understand thisperspective, it’s importantto look at the early historyof our first parents’relationship with God.

THE MISTAKE WAS FATAL Our first parents, at thedawn of human history, are pictured in the Bible as walking in a gardenparadise with their Creator.In the cool of the day, Godwould visit the planet toshare time and conversationwith His first human beings.


According to the book of Genesis, God gave onlyone rule to the new couple.While encouraging them to enjoy themselves in thenew home He had giventhem, the Creator said:

Of every tree of the gardenyou may freely eat; but ofthe tree of the knowledgeof good and evil you shallnot eat, for in the day thatyou eat of it you shallsurely die (2:16-17). Genesis goes on,

however, to say that eventhough Adam and Eve hadonly one rule to keep, theysoon found themselvestempted to break it.

So when the woman sawthat the tree was good forfood, that it was pleasantto the eyes, and a treedesirable to make onewise, she took of its fruitand ate. She also gave toher husband with her, andhe ate. Then the eyes ofboth of them were opened,and they knew that they

were naked; and theysewed fig leaves togetherand made themselvescoverings (3:6-8). In their act of

disobedience, our firstparents did something thatwould forever change notonly their own lives butalso the lives of all theirchildren.

“This happened justfrom eating a piece offruit?” you ask. “How in the world could such amoral disaster spring fromsuch a small infraction?”

8

Even though Adam and Eve

had only one rule to keep, they soon found themselves tempted to break it.


The answer lies in whatthe act represented—notthe act itself. Human beingswere created to have arelationship with God and to remain in lovingdependence on Him. By one act of distrust and independence theydiscovered the meaning of evil. By expressing self-reliance, pride, and distrust,they had placed themselvesat the center of their ownuniverse.

Over the years it wouldbecome apparent thatsomething profound hadchanged—not only in thecharacter of the human race but also in theirshared relationship to the Creator Himself.

THE DEATH WAS SPIRITUALAlthough shaken by feelingsof shame and fear, the firstcouple seemed to survivetheir disobedience. The sun rose on a new day and

Adam and Eve remainedvery much alive. But what about the warning ofGenesis 2:16-17? God hadsaid, “Of every tree of thegarden you may freely eat; but of the tree of theknowledge of good and evilyou shall not eat, for in theday that you eat of it youshall surely die.”

The explanation lies in the biblical meaning ofdeath. The root meaning of this word in the Bible is “separation.” When aperson dies physically, his soul separates from hisbody. But when a persondies spiritually, the spirit isseparated from God, thesource of spiritual life.When distrust camebetween our first parentsand God, they immediatelyexperienced a separationfrom Him they had never known before. As a symptom that somethinghad died within them, theyalso began to die physically.


THE RESULT WAS EVILOur first parents broke theone rule their Creator gavethem and found themselvesexpelled from a perfectgarden home.

The spiritual death andseparation that came intotheir lives did not stop withthem. In time, the couplehad two sons. The oldercultivated crops, while theother raised flocks. Whenthe older brother felt thatthe Creator was showingmore favor to his brotherthan to himself, he became angry. Driven by feelings of envy andrevenge, the older son killed the younger. The first child of Adam and Evecommitted the first murder.

The downward spiralhappened quickly. Onlytwo chapters later, Genesissays that “the Lord sawthat the wickedness of man was great in the earth,and that every intent of the

thoughts of his heart wasonly evil continually” (6:5).

This growing malignancy shows up in wave after wave ofwar and violence. Thosewho have only heard aboutthe Bible are sometimessurprised and even shockedby how unsanitized theScriptures are. Incest,deception, theft, rape, and murder are just thebeginning of the list of sinsthat punctuate and colorthe pages of both Old andNew Testaments.

THE NEED WAS FOR MERCYIn the middle of thisrealistic record of humannature, we find a strikinglyvivid picture of a lovingGod. Despite the terribleconsequences of rebellionagainst Him, we find God mercifully taking the initiative to stay inrelationship with those Hecreated in His image. Time


after time, a holy God “rollsup His sleeves and gets Hishands dirty” to stay incontact with a fallen race.

God mercifully spoke, for example, to a mannamed Abraham—eventhough he was worshipingidols. God told him to leavehis home in the city of Urand promised him that He would multiply hisoffspring. God assuredAbraham that he wouldbecome the father of a great nation and that

through him all the nationsof the world would beblessed (Genesis 12:1-9).

In the generations that followed, Abraham’soffspring grew to be thegreat nation God hadpromised. Delivering Hispeople out of slavery fromthe greatest political powerof that day, the lovingCreator led them to a landof promise they could calltheir own.

But the road to that destination was littered with spiritualrebellion. Grumbling andungratefulness characterizedthe descendants of Abrahamduring their wildernesswanderings. In spite of this, God mercifully andsupernaturally provided fortheir daily needs. He fedthem daily with a foodcalled manna. And whenthey thought they weregoing to die of thirst, Hegave them water from arock. At each step of the

11

Despite the terrible

consequences ofrebellion againstHim, we find God

mercifully taking theinitiative to stay inrelationship withthose He created

in His image.


way, God gave His peoplenot what they deserved butpatient love. This experiencewould later cause the wholenation to sing a song thatrepeated over and over, “Hismercy endures forever”(Psalm 136).

THE PICTURE WAS OURSThe ancient people of theBible passed from the scenea long time ago. Yet thepicture and story of theirhumanity remains as freshas the daily news.

From Adam to the nationof Israel, the people of thisstory stand together like ourown family portrait. Againand again these peoplebroke the law and rule of God. Yet what theydiscovered along the way was that in breaking thelaw, they were themselvesbroken. The Old Testamentprophet repeated theprinciple of what God hadtold Adam, “The soul who

sins shall die” (Ezekiel18:20). This simplestatement shows theenormity of the problemthat threatened our fallenrace—a problem that couldonly be solved by the Godwho loves those He createdin His image.

Earlier in this booklet we talked about thecommon belief that Godwill grade all of us on acurve of personal merit andcomparison with others. But grading on a curvemisses the point of ourpredicament. Just as itwould be wrong for amedical school to pass thetop percentage of a classeven though none of thestudents qualified to be adoctor, so God cannot beunfaithful to His ownstandards of justice.

Our problem is that by nature we are so morallyflawed and broken that ouronly hope is for God to dealwith us in mercy. To pit us


against one another in agreat moral “competition ofthe curve” would not satisfyHis scales of justice.

The Bible teaches thatall who are born into thisworld inherit the legacy andspiritual condition of ourfirst parents. We are allborn spiritually dead and alienated from awonderfully loving and holy God.

This condition explainsnot only the problems of

human history in general,but also the relational andpersonal problems of ourown lives. The Scripturestell us that in our presentstate all of us have anatural inclination to avoidthe truth. Even though wedon’t always realize it, weare inclined to resist whatwe could know about Godby suppressing the truthabout Him. Rather thanturning toward the spirituallight He has provided, weturn away and create God-substitutes in an effort toreplace Him with somethingwe can control. Over time,our hearts become hard aswe repeatedly ignore Hiskindness (Romans 1:18-32).We continue along our ownway as lost sheep without ashepherd (Isaiah 53:6).

If the severity of thisrebellion is not addressed in this life, there can onlybe the certainty of judgmentin the next (Hebrews 9:27).The problem is far too great

13

To pit us against one another in a great moral

“competition of the curve” would

not satisfy God’s scales of justice.


for God to simply grade us on a curve. Because we are spiritually dead,none of us, on our own, can pass the test of ouraccountability to God.

THE SOLUTIONWAS GOD’SIf the Bible can be trusted, there are seriousconsequences to ignoringour spiritual condition andtaking comfort in the factthat there are a lot of peopleworse than we are. Yet it isalso in the Bible that wefind God’s solution for us.

For centuries, Godprovided the wisdom of theOld Testament to show Hispeople how to live and howto offer sacrifices to atonefor their wrongs. Thesewritings were revered as theWord of God and passedon within a religiouscommunity from onegeneration to the next. Atthe heart of this spiritualfaith was the teaching that

God would one day send a Messiah who woulddeliver His people. Thesepredictions containedmysterious descriptions ofhow the Servant of the Lordwould die like a sacrificiallamb to bear the sins of Hispeople (Isaiah 53).

Eventually, according tothe New Testament Gospels,the Messiah did appear.In fulfillment of manypredictions, He came as “the light of the world” (John 8:12).

But the light Christbrought made Him acontroversial figure. One ofthe most offensive parts ofHis teaching was that eventhe most religious peopleweren’t good enough toenter into the kingdom ofheaven (Matthew 5:20).The candor of Jesus wastaken as an insult by thereligious leaders of Israel.They considered themselvesteachers of righteousnessand believed that their


knowledge of the law putthem above the crowd.

Yet despite their uniquespiritual heritage, Jesusdeclared that those whorejected Him—though theybe “sons of the kingdom”—would be rejected fromGod’s presence in the worldto come:

The sons of the kingdomwill be cast out into outerdarkness. There will beweeping and gnashing ofteeth (Matthew 8:12).According to Jesus, those

who refused to admit theircondition before God wererisking eternal spiritualbanishment from thepresence of the God theythought they knew. Herepeatedly warned thatunless they had a change ofheart they would be turnedaway into a darkness ofeverlasting regret and loss.

So how can we pass life’s final exam and escapeeternal separation fromGod?

PASSING BY THEGRACE OF GOD

WWhat makes thewords of Christ

so important isthat Jesus did more thantell us that our best effortsaren’t enough to bring us toGod. He also said He hadcome to do for us what wecould not do for ourselves.

What Christ did for usturned bad news into goodnews. As we have seen upto this point, without Hisintervention we would allbe lost. According to theBible, if Christ had not leftheaven to come to ourrescue, the thought ofstanding before Him on the curve of personal merit and comparisonwould be a burden at best. The assurance of our personal comparisonwith others would requireconstant rationalization tohope that we have been“good enough.”


According to the Bible,our Creator has providedHis own way of deliveringus from our hopelessspiritual comparisons andcompetition. God intervenedon our behalf, and offered asolution to restore to us therelationship with Him thatour first parents had lost.The solution is more than “a passing grade.” It alsoincludes a new life, achanged heart, and a futurethat will eventually returnus to a paradise that waslost.

THE COST OFGOD’S GRACEIn the New Testament letter to people in Rome, the apostle Paul eloquentlyexpressed how costly it was for God to solve ourdilemma. He wrote:

When we were utterlyhelpless with no way ofescape, Christ came atjust the right time anddied for us sinners who

had no use for Him. Evenif we were good, we reallywouldn’t expect anyoneto die for us, though, ofcourse, that might bebarely possible. But God showed His greatlove for us by sendingChrist to die for us whilewe were still sinners(Romans 5:6-8 LB). The Price That Only

God Could Pay. We areall moved by stories of self-sacrifice. Yet there is oneact of sacrificial love inhuman history that standsalone—Jesus Christ’s deathon the cross.

Have you ever thoughtabout what He endured onour behalf? Imagine theagony as soldiers held Himdown and hammered hugespikes through His handsand then His feet.

But the physical agonywas not the worst part ofHis suffering. As He hungsuspended between heavenand earth, a great darkness


came over the whole earth. In that darkness, Heexperienced on our behalf ajudgment and separationthat caused Him to cry out,“My God, My God, whyhave You forsaken Me?”(Matthew 27:46). Hisanguished words give us abrief hint of the eternal andinfinite price He paid tosettle our legal debt.

Never before in alleternity had the Son of God been separated fromHis Father. Never beforehad He borne the weight of guilt. Yet in that moment of human history, Christdied for our sin.

The innocent Lamb ofGod paid the penalty forthe guilty. He wanted somuch to have us with Him in eternity that He was willing to take thepunishment we deserved.

Jesus, . . . for the joy that was set before Him[eternal fellowship withus] endured the cross,

despising the shame(Hebrews 12:2). But why was Christ’s

death the only way wecould be reconciled to aholy God?

The cross allowed God to be both just and loving in dealing with our sin. Noone else had given us thelife and freedom we hadmisused. No one else,therefore, could stepforward and bear the pricefor our wrongs. Only by theinfinite sacrifice of our ownCreator could the demandsof eternal justice be satisfied(Isaiah 53:4,10). Because ofHis own sacrifice, He was

17

Why was Christ’s death the only way we could be reconciled to a holy God?


then free to forgive andacquit all who trust Him forsalvation (1 Peter 2:24).

The apostle Paul said it all when he wrote:

[God] made Him whoknew no sin [Jesus] to be sin for us, that wemight become therighteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians5:21).The Price That Only

Love Could Pay. We willnever understand the extentof what Christ endured onour behalf. But the principleof His sacrifice is illustratedin a story from Americanhistory. In a tribe of NativeAmericans, someone wasstealing chickens. The chiefdeclared that, if caught, theoffender would receive 10lashes. When the stealingcontinued, the chief raisedit to 20 lashes. Still thechickens disappeared. Inanger the chief raised thesentence to 100 lashes—asure sentence of death.

Finally the personstealing the chickens was caught. But the chiefwas faced with a terribledilemma. The thief was his own mother!

When the day of penalty came, the wholetribe gathered. Would thechief’s love override hisjustice? The crowd gaspedwhen he ordered his motherto be tied to the whippingpost. The chief removed hisshirt, revealing his powerfulstature, and took the whipin hand. But instead ofraising it to strike the firstblow, he handed it to astrong, young brave at his side.

Slowly the chief walkedover to his mother andwrapped his massive armsaround her in an engulfingembrace. Then he orderedthe brave to give him the100 lashes.

That’s just a smallglimpse of what Jesus didfor us. In love, He became


our substitute and died inour place. He overcame ourinability to save ourselvesby paying the price for oursins. In the illustration, a mother’s life was extended by the substituteof her loving son. For us,everlasting life was boughtthrough the priceless deathof the Son of God.

There is no othersolution. All our best efforts to do good are ruined by the greaterproblem of our spiritualdeath and separation fromGod. We are like someone

floundering in deep water miles from shore and without hope ofsurviving on our own. Our best efforts, thoughsincere, still fall short ofGod’s perfect standard.

God satisfied the deathpenalty for sin through thesacrifice of His Son on thecross. In this way, He wascompletely just in judgingsin, but at the same time He showed amazing andimmeasurable love for us.God used grace to do for uswhat we could never do forourselves.

THE GIFT OF GOD’S GRACE According to the good news of the gospel, Goddoes not want anyone toperish (2 Peter 3:9). Out of the wellspring of His lovefor us, God has provided the free gift of everlasting life and of relationship withHim (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:4-5).

19

All our best effortsto do good areruined by the

greater problem of our spiritual

death and separation from God.


The Reputation Of“Free Gifts.” I don’t know about you, but I’mskeptical about any offers ofa “free gift.” Why? BecauseI’m bombarded by them. I hear them on the radio as I drive home from work.When I flip through mymail, I’m led to believe that I’ve won all sorts offree sweepstakes. When I turn on the TV, I oftenhear offers of somethingfree if I call within the next30 minutes. Telemarketersinterrupt my dinner to tellme I’ve won free tickets to some popular vacationspot. And when I use mycomputer to surf the Web,annoying pop-up adsappear telling me that I’m alucky winner and that all Ihave to do is “click here” to get my free gift. Yet I’vediscovered along the waythat there is almost alwaysa catch to these free gifts.They are bait for theunsuspecting. The motive

behind them is usually notone of generosity but of“tease, tempt, and trap.”

It’s no wonder thatpeople may be skeptical ofthe New Testament when itdescribes forgiveness of sin,everlasting life, and heavenas free gifts.

The One Gift ThatIs Authentic. God’s gift ofsalvation is different. It is agenuine offer because it hasalready been paid for,because we could never pay for it ourselves, andbecause it comes from theheart and love of God.

When gifts are given inlove, all that is called for is a willingness to receivethem with a grateful heart.If we offer to pay back thegivers to keep from beingobligated to them, we insultnot only the spirit of thegifts but the people who bought them for us.

According to the Bible,God offers us the gift ofeternal life out of His great


love for us. If we attempt to pay for it by working ourway to heaven and by beingbetter than the next guy, we insult God’s grace. Infact, we may actually berejecting the gift of Godwithout even realizing it.

The curve of personalmerit doesn’t work.Outwardly we may maintainthe appearance of being anupstanding individual, butinside there is no way toovercome the fact that whatwe need is not justice, butrather the gift of God’s love,

grace, and mercy (Romans7:21-25).

God understands thisweakness far better than we do. That’s why the Biblesays to those who haveaccepted Christ as theirpersonal Savior:

For by grace you have been saved throughfaith, and that not ofyourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lestanyone should boast(Ephesians 2:8-9). With this brief statement

the apostle Paul defined theterms and basis of God’soffer. We can’t earn the gift of God. We can onlyreceive it by accepting whatHe has already done for us.Someone has developed a memory device for themeaning of the word grace:God’s Riches At Christ’sExpense.

We must also rememberthat according to Ephesians2:8 we are “saved throughfaith.” A decision and act of

21

When gifts aregiven in love,

all that is called for is a willingness

to receive them with a grateful

heart.


faith is the one requirementof grace that we must keepin mind.

THE REQUIREMENTOF GOD’S GRACEResponding to God’s gift ofsalvation requires a genuinewillingness to receive whatGod is authentically willingto give.

The Heart Of TheReceiver. Receiving Christas Savior and Lord requiresan honest decision of trust.It is not a theoretical and

mental assent to factsabout Christ. Nor is it some impulsive emotionalreaction that does notinclude the will. If ourdecision to receive the gift of God is genuine, it islikely to parallel what oftenhappens in courtship andmarriage. A man and awoman are initiallyattracted to each other.They find time to get toknow each other throughrelaxed conversations. Over time, they discusstheir interests and lifegoals. Then emotion and intellect unite in aconviction that they aremeant for each other. Infront of a minister, the manand the woman take vowsof lasting commitment.

A similar process oftenhappens as people movetoward the gift of God’soffer in Christ. Many aredrawn to Him initiallyeither out of their ownsense of need or because

22

Responding to God’s gift of salvation requires a genuine

willingness to receive what God

is authentically willing to give.


of their curiosity about His wisdom and miracles.Thoughtful people maythink through some of theirquestions and doubts, andtake a closer look at theBible’s claim that Jesus notonly died for our sins butrose from the dead to proveit. Eventually a decisionmust be made aboutwhether to accept or reject the offer of God.

The Decision ThatMust Be Made. Thosewho receive the free gift offorgiveness and eternal lifethrough Christ must firstabandon all excuses fortheir wrongs. They must be willing to admit thattheir own goodness will not earn them a place inheaven. They must admit to themselves and to Godthat they are sinners andcannot save themselves. If they are convinced thatJesus is the Son of God, allthat remains is for them tobelieve the good news that

God has provided in Him a sacrifice for their sin.

This is the wonderfulnews of the Bible. JesusChrist was as sinless as weare sinful. Yet in our placeHe died on a Roman crossof execution to pay thepenalty for our sins. He wasburied and then rose fromthe dead 3 days later toshow that His claims weretrue (1 Corinthians 15:1-5).

Coming to this savingrelationship with Christrequires a change of heartthat is often misunderstood.When the Bible calls for“repentance,” it isn’t askingus to make a personalresolution to clean up our lives. To repent doesn’tmean we have to firstchange our ways. It meanshaving a change of heartthat allows God to bring us into a new dependenceon Him.

The actual process of trusting Christ occurssimply by believing. It is


an act of personal faith. Yet many have found ithelpful to gather theirthoughts and praysomething like this:

Lord Jesus, I want to receive You as mySavior. Thank You fordying on the cross to pay the penalty for mysin. I believe You rosefrom the dead to offer me Your everlasting life.Please come into my lifeand begin to make methe kind of person Youwant me to be. ThankYou for giving me the gift of Your forgivenessand new life.If these words express

what is in your heart, you have made the mostimportant discovery of your life. With your trust in Christ comes Hisassurance of forgivenessand eternal life.

LIVING BEYOND THE CURVE

OOnce we realize that it is hopeless to

work our way toheaven, we can leavebehind the curve ofcomparisons. Now we stand not in our own merits but in the grace and love of God. We havebegun an adventure of lifeand discovery that willnever end.

ADOPTION INTOGOD’S FAMILYHealthy families generate a warm and positiveatmosphere. A number ofyears ago, I became friendswith a loving family. It wasfun to hang out at theirhome. I was friends with the oldest daughter of thehousehold. Her youngerbrother was an adolescentwith an easygoingtemperament. He enjoyed a special place in his


family’s heart. Both in physical appearance andmannerisms he was clearlya chip off the old block.

One day I commented tothe dad how much the boylooked like his sisters. Thefather responded, “A lot ofpeople make that comment.It’s interesting, however,that our two girls are ourbiological children, but our son is adopted.”

I tried to hide mystartled reaction, because he looked and acted so much like the other family members. The dadcontinued, “Our son hasreally blended into ourfamily. We got him as aninfant and he has grown uphis entire life with his twosisters. It’s fun to watch hismannerisms. They are socharacteristic of our family.”The proud father grinnedwidely as he spoke.

The apostle Paul saidthat receiving the gift ofspiritual life involves being

adopted into a family: “You received the Spirit of adoption by whom wecry out, ‘Abba, Father’”(Romans 8:15).

When we becomechildren of God, spirituallife springs up within.Where there was once abarrier between us andGod, there is now a new channel and opportunity for conversation with Him.

Before developing apersonal relationship withChrist, we may have even

25

Where there was once a barrier

between us and God, there is now a new channel and

opportunity for conversation with Him.


wondered if anyone waslistening when we prayed.But when Christ enters our lives, He brings a new spiritual presence intoour hearts. A spiritualconnection can now occurthat is like a young childsaying “Daddy” to his loving father.

And along with this newvertical relationship withour heavenly Father comesnew horizontal relationships with other believers. Newbelievers are full-fledgedmembers of an eternalfamily, and as they grow in understanding andgratitude it isn’t long before they begin to act like it.

ASSURANCEOF A NEWRELATIONSHIPOnce we’re in the family of God, we begin an up-and-down journey oflearning to trust ourheavenly Father in every

season and circumstance oflife. It isn’t always easy torely on Him. Yet slowly,and sometimes haltingly, we discover that He can be trusted with everythingthat is important to us.Gradually, we also grow inour appreciation for whatthe apostle John meantwhen he wrote:

These things I havewritten to you whobelieve in the name of the Son of God, that youmay know that you haveeternal life (1 John 5:13). Notice that the verse

doesn’t say that we might“hope” or “guess” that wehave eternal life. Instead,John made it clear that wecan “know” that we havean everlasting relationshipwith Christ.

In John 5:24, Jesus gaveHis own words of assuranceto those who trust Him.

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes


in Him who sent Me haseverlasting life, and shallnot come into judgment,but has passed fromdeath into life.In this verse, the Lord

gave us His assurance thatbeing adopted into God’sfamily gives us theconfidence that we havebegun an adventure thatwill never end.

This new spiritual lifeneeds nurture and care. Justas a newborn baby needs

food, love, and affection to grow and mature, so weneed to let the Spirit of Goddevelop our appetite forspiritual insight andunderstanding.

Before we have spirituallife, the Bible is a closedbook. Its meaning isobscure at best. But with new life in Christ, theindwelling Spirit makes itpossible for the Bible tocome alive. Then, as theapostle Peter wrote, we will “as newborn babes,desire the pure milk of theWord, that [we] may growthereby” (1 Peter 2:2).

FOUR KEYAREAS OFCOMMUNICATIONGrowing in Christ meanspursuing a relationship with Him. Jesus is calledthe “Good Shepherd”because He leads andwatches over those whofollow Him. He said:

My sheep hear My voice, 27

The Lordgave us His

assurance thatbeing adopted

into God’s familygives us the

confidence that we have begun

an adventure thatwill never end.


and I know them, andthey follow Me. And Igive them eternal life, andthey shall never perish;neither shall anyonesnatch them out of Myhand (John 10:27-28).Genuine members

of the flock will follow theirshepherd. But how do weactually hear His voice?Our sensitivity to His voice depends on newcommunication in fourimportant areas.

God Talks To Us. Aswe read the Word of God,He speaks to us throughHis own words and self-revelation (2 Timothy 3:16).

We Talk To God. Aswe receive understandingfrom Him, we respond toHim with the affections and needs of our hearts(John 15:7).

We Talk With OurNew Family. As weconnect with others whoshare our faith in Christ, we experience mutual

encouragement andmotivation to love as weourselves have been loved(Hebrews 10:24-25).

We Talk With ThoseWho Have Not YetTrusted Christ. As wefollow Christ, we need toremember His desire for usto be His representatives tothose who have not yetbelieved (Matthew 4:19).One of the best ways to dothis is to show our honestinterest and concern forothers. If they first see ourchanged life and then knowthat we are genuinelyinterested in them, they aremore likely to be curiousabout the difference theysee in us.

Growing in these areasof communication will showour love for Christ. He inturn will enable us, by HisSpirit, to do anything andsay anything that He wantsus to do or say (Ephesians5:18-19). Jesus said:

He who has My 28


commandments andkeeps them, it is he wholoves Me. And he wholoves Me will be loved byMy Father, and I will lovehim and manifest Myselfto him (John 14:21). The word manifest

means “to make anappearance, to disclose or declare.” Our Lord haschosen to reveal Himself to each of us individually.No two believers have an

identical relationship withthe Savior, so a cookie-cutter formula won’t work.But a genuine believer willhave a desire to listen toGod, to respond to Him, to fellowship with other

believers, and to witness to those who do not yetknow Christ.

A UNIQUESPIRITUALJOURNEY In the adventure of followingChrist, each person takes adifferent path. My dad’sspiritual journey hasinspired me in my own walkwith Christ. He didn’t haveany formal training in Biblestudy, prayer, fellowship, or witnessing, but he wasnurtured in these areas by God from unexpectedsources.

When I was inpreschool, my mother felt compelled to raise mybrother and me in a Bible-believing church. My dad initially opposed herdecision because he wasnot a Christian at the time.After some initial maritalconflict over this, my fatherdecided to keep the peaceby telling my mom that she

29

No two believers have an identical

relationship with the Savior.


could take us to church but that he wasn’t gettinginvolved in any of it.

After we had attendedthe church for a while, mybrother and I got involvedin a Sunday school contest.We could win a colorfulpen if we brought a visitorto church. Little boys canhave a real influence ontheir dad, and our familywas no exception. So wepersuaded Dad to comewith us just to please usand Mom—and we weredelighted to receive ourprized pens.

Once the ice was broken,Dad started attendingchurch regularly. He heardthe gospel many times buthe didn’t feel the need torespond to the message.About a year later, Momwent into labor with herthird child. I rememberbeing afraid because Momwas in severe pain as sheleft for the hospital. But Ialso remember being excited

about the prospect of gettinga new baby brother or sister.

The following day Ibounced out of bed andasked my dad, “Was it a boy or a girl?” Heresponded very seriously,“It was a little girl, but shewas born dead.”

I burst into tears, andthen my older brotherbegan to sob. My dad leftthe room and for the firsttime in his life (I laterlearned) he called on thename of the Lord Jesus. Hecould have become bitterand angry at God. Butinstead, my dad turned to Christ for help. He latertold us that the power ofGod embraced him. He feltthe love, joy, and comfortthat only the Lord Jesuscould give at such a time of heartbreak (John 14:27).

One could say that my father had a “crisisconversion.” But itsenduring reality was to be seen in the weeks and


months that followed. Like a small mustard seed thatgrows into a substantialtree, his faith in Christbegan to grow. And hisadventure of faith washelped along by Godthrough life’s differentexperiences.

I remember the time we got a phone call fromsomeone at the churchasking if Dad would beinterested in teaching theBible to a class of third-gradeboys. Initially, Dad mockedthe possibility of serving inthis capacity. “Me? A Sundayschool teacher?” he laughedas he told my mom.Eventually, however, heagreed. And Dad saw theHoly Spirit use him as hetaught those young boys the Word of God.

In time he became aneffective home Bible-studyleader. My dad found asupernatural joy in using hisgift of teaching. It was a greatway of letting God speak to

him and others within thefellowship of faith.

Years later, my Dad wasstill going strong spiritually.Yet his walk with Christ hadsome hard times in store for him. He had agreed to enter into a business with relatives who wereantagonistic to biblicalChristianity. It was a smallbut professionally-runprinting operation, and Dadwas good at what he did.Eventually, he becameburdened to witness to hisfamily about the differenceChrist had made in his life.So he crafted a letter thatsummarized his conversionand mailed a copy to eachof his relatives. They didn’trespond very well and atime of not-so-subtlepersecution followed.

As pressure at workincreased and put-downs for his faith escalated, Daddeveloped an early-morningroutine to get him through.My older brother came into


the printing shop early oneday and found that thesmall room in the back waslocked. After a while, Dademerged with a peacefulradiance on his face. “Whatwere you doing in there,Dad?” my brother asked.Dad smiled, “I’ve beenpraying, Son. And God is at work in my life.”

My brother said itreminded him of the storyof Moses coming downfrom the mountain wherehe had communed withGod and his face shone(Exodus 34:29-35).

Although my father hadtaken an unpopular standfor Christ, he received thespiritual support he neededby spending personal timealone with the Lord.

Dad is now in his earlyeighties and those times of opposition are behind him. But he is still movingforward in his Christian life.I know because it’s evidentin his life. Just listening to

him pray ushers me into the very presence of theheavenly Father and HisSon Jesus Christ.

YOUR OWNSPIRITUALJOURNEYAs you begin your Christianjourney, let God creativelyguide your path. Get areadable translation of the Bible and set aside aregular time when you canreflect on God’s Word andpray. Begin attending aBible-believing churchwhere Christ is honored andwhere His people honestlylove one another.

As time goes on, don’t forget to ask God for opportunities to sharewith others what Christ has done for you. Let themknow that God does notgrade on a curve, but thatHe has made it possible for them to be in His lovingpresence forever.

That is the good news!32


www.discoveryseries.org/catalog

USA: PO Box 2222, Grand Rapids, MI 49501-2222Canada: Box 1622, Windsor, ON N9A 6Z7

Get your free BibleResources catalog!

Discovery Series booklets can be valuable guides to help you learn what the Bible says about abroad range of topics.Each 32-page bookletcan be used in yourpersonal Bible study or in a small-group setting.

Your free BibleResources catalogincludes a brief

description of each Discovery Series booklet.To get your copy, write to us at the address belowand ask for a catalog. Or follow the link below torequest your copy today.

www.discoveryseries.org/catalog

does god grade on a curveemjc3.com/proof/does_god_grade_on_a_curve.pdf · grace of god . . . . . ....

Documents