Do we deserve a second chance with God?

 

We often hear people saying they have turned their life around – they deserve a second chance. I am a firm believer in what I call “natural redemption” - meaning if someone who has done wrong is contrite and turns their life around, they deserve a new lease on life. In other words, we as human beings need to forgive one another. It is important for the reader to understand that just because you forgive someone does not mean you begin to automatically trust that person again. Trust is very fragile. It takes years to develop, but it only takes one mistake for your trust in someone or someone’s trust in you to disappear. So, forgiveness and trust are not the same. Forgiveness means you no longer hold the offender responsible for the sins they have committed against you. You let the offender go free. They have been absolved of all guilt – a wonderful thing. Trust is in investment you have placed in someone. It is like money in the bank. If your bank helps you grow your investment with them, you will continue the business relationship. If the bank violates your trust, then you will withdraw your money, end the relationship, and place your money (I.e., Trust) somewhere else. Trust in human beings always involves risk. Why? Because you often do not know the character of the people you are dealing with. That takes time – and hopefully your trust in them will grow. 

 

Do we as sinful, rebellious human beings deserve second chances with God Almighty? No. As harsh and unfair as this may be to hear, the moment we commit our first morally known sin, we deserve hell. This awareness comes early in life. The reason man feels he deserves chances with God is because most men will declare his own goodness (Proverbs 20:6). Also, most people believe God is a God of love only. They choose to ignore the fact God is also a God of justice and wrath. The problem(s) with man is he terribly underestimates the depth of his own wickedness along with being abysmally ignorant of the sublime heights of God’s holiness. The two realities are mutually exclusive.  

Because God is a lover of sinful man, and abundant in compassion and mercy, He has provided the only way to that second chance with Him. It is through the Lord Jesus Christ that we can begin an everlasting relationship with the Almighty. We do not deserve this benefit. It is extended to man through grace. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God (italics added for emphasis) not of works lest any man should boast.”  

Grace is unmerited favor from God to man. The faith that we exercise to believe is also a gift from God. It is essential that we acknowledge our powerlessness as humankind, and the love and power of God. We contribute nothing to our salvation positively. Our sins are what necessitated God the Father to send Jesus in the first place. He did all the work. We are eternal beneficiaries when we believe. 

I need to make clear how this works. We come to God filthy – meaning there is nothing appealing about us that God would desire. The prophet Isaiah said this regarding Israel during their apostasy, “Come now, and let us reason together says the Lord. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18). 

 

Translation, God said to Israel, “come, let us sit down and talk. I want to clean you up. You’re defiled because of your sins-let me wash you clean.” This is exactly what God desires to do for everyone. That is real love. The Lord is offering forgiveness of sins. Something we could never earn, and something we definitely do not deserve.  

Sin is a debt, a debt owed to God. God has to be paid in full for that debt. God the Father is our cosmic creditor. Mankind is the universal debtor. When Jesus suffered and was dying in agony He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). The Greek word for finished is teleo which means to bring to end, to accomplish, to fulfil. The verb is in the perfect tense. What this means is what Jesus accomplished in His atoning work on the cross then has continuing results in the present. A similar word is Tetelestai. Its an accounting term which means paid in full.

Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for mankind’s sins paid in full the sin debt we owed to God. This act satisfied God’s wrath and justice legally against our sins. But, in order for us to benefit from what Christ did, we must repent of our sins, trust in Christ’s atoning work in order to be forgiven. To reject the love of God through Christ’s death is a slap in the face of God the Father and the Son. What one is saying is that they despise the fact that Jesus’ atonement is sufficient for them. To reject Christ is eternal suicide! One has cut themselves off from everlasting life. Jesus likened someone as a thief and a robber who attempts to get to God through any other means except through Him (John 10:1). If you die in your sins, you will never be forgiven. You will have to pay the price for your own sins forever in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15). 

Jesus dying for the sins of the world is not an instant get-out-of-hell-free-card. A person does not automatically go to heaven because they die. God commands that all men everywhere repent of sins today. Only then will you be granted this blessed second chance. 

 

The Bible - Why few believe and most do not

There are many who are very educated in theology but do not believe the Bible is literally the word of God. They have doctorate degrees in theology and can quote the scriptures word for word. They know all the tenses, moods, participles, verbs – all the elaborate parts of speech the Bible contains. Yet they refuse to submit to its commands. Why? Because the words of God are spiritual life, and the natural man is spiritually dead. 1 Corinthians 2:14 says, “The natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit. They are foolishness to him. Neither can he understand them for they are spiritually discerned.” 

So, you see, no matter how much education one has regarding Biblical truth, unless God places his Holy Spirit inside the corpse (I.e., the spiritually dead), they will never believe. I’m not saying non-believers cannot understand the natural revelation in the Bible such as how to treat your fellow man or how to care for one’s family.  But the natural man cannot understand supernatural revelation because that comes from heaven above. And due to their spiritual ignorance, no one will ever believe the truth unless God reveals it to them, and they receive it. Jesus told Nicodemus, “Unless one is born again (I.e., born from above), he cannot see or enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3,5). Man must have a rebirth, a spiritual birth in order to enter heaven. So, in order to believe the gospel God must open the eyes of the blind, the spiritually blind. 

Paul declared in 2 Corinthians 4:4 that, “The god of this world (Satan) has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”   

Verse three of the same chapter says if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In other words, those who are currently on their way to hell cannot see the truth because they have been blinded by their father the devil (John 8:44). 

Here is the sum of the matter: those who are currently lost in their sins are blind to the truth. How can they be healed of their blindness? The power of the word of God has to invade their soul. The sinner also must be willing to hear the truth or else they will remain in darkness. When one is unwilling to hear God’s truth, they are left to their own evil ways, and they will perish as a fool for lack of wisdom (Proverbs 10:21). 

By contrast, those who do believe the gospel have a willing heart to do so. How does their heart become willing? Once again, the Spirit of God has to compel them to see their need for repentance – that is acknowledging their sinfulness and trusting Jesus Christ as their sin bearer. When a person fully understands that God loves them and that He is willing and able to take away their sin and grant them Christ’s righteousness, they will humbly believe. They will understand that they were dead, but now they are alive. They were lost, but now they have been found.  

 

It ultimately is the way see ourselves. If one believes in their own goodness then the word of God will be to them old, antiquated stories, fantasy or maybe just academia. One will not look at it as the power of God unto their salvation (Romans 1:16). 

If one views themselves the way God views them spiritually bankrupt and unable to come to God on their own, they will be blessed because the kingdom of God will be theirs when they believe (Matthew 5;3). 

 

 

The Disciples of Christ

Jesus chose twelve men to be His followers. There were His disciples. A disciple is one that is a learner, a student. They were also called Apostles which means sent ones, special messengers. Jesus chose these men so that He could teach them what He knew and to continue His work when He was raised from the dead and ascended back to the Father. Below is a chart of the 12 men and the order they appear in each book:

Matthew 10:2–4	Mark 3:16–19	Luke 6:14–16	Acts 1:13
Peter Andrew James John	Peter James John Andrew	Peter Andrew James John	Peter James John Andrew
Philip Bartholomew Thomas Matthew	Philip Bartholomew Matthew Thomas	Philip Bartholomew Matthew Thomas	Philip Thomas Bartholomew Matthew
James (son of Alphaeus) Lebbaeus (surn. Thaddeus) Simon Judas Iscariot	James (son of Alphaeus) Thaddeus Simon   Judas Iscariot	James (son of Alphaeus) Simon Judas (son of James) Judas Iscariot	James (son of Alphaeus) Simon Judas (son of James)[1]

Most of what we know about these men are in the four gospels and the book of acts. Now, let me introduce you to each one.

Peter – His birth name was Simon. He was also called Cephas (John 1:42). Andrew was his brother. They were fishermen by trade. Jesus gave him the name Peter. Peter means rock or small stone. He is the most bold and vocal of the disciples. He denied the Lord three times when he said that he wouldn’t (Matthew 26:12;69-75; Mark 14:68-75; Luke 22:56-62). Peter is the author of 1 and 2 Peter. He is also regarded as the author of the gospel of Mark. Mark is regarded as the scribe who recorded the words of Peter. Peter preached the first Church sermon in Acts 2 which resulted in about 3,000 people receiving salvation. Peter is also the one that declared that Jesus was the Christ (means the Messiah or the Anointed One), Matthew 16:17.

Tradition says Peter was crucified upside down because he said he was not worthy to die like his Lord. Two early church fathers attest to this: Origen and Eusebius. Jesus predicted Peter’s death in John 21:18-19,”Truly, truly, I say to you when were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” (This He said to show by what death he was to glorify God.)

Was Peter the first Pope?

The Catholic Church claims that apostle Peter was the first bishop or Pope of Rome. They also teach that Peter passed down his apostolic authority to the bishops after him. This teaching is known as apostolic succession. This teaching is not Biblical. Because of a misinterpretation of Matthew 16:18 where Catholics believe Jesus built his Church on Peter (his name means rock or small stone), they have concluded that me must be the first bishop of Rome and they are the one true church. They claim an unbroken line of apostolic succession from Peter all the way to the present pope. For the record, Jesus did not build His church on Peter. This is what Matthew 16:18 means. Jesus asked his disciples the question, “Who do men say that I am? They replied, ‘Some say you are John the Baptist, some Elijah; and others Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. He (Jesus) said unto them, but who do you say that I am? Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said to him, blessed are you Simon Bar-Jonah; for flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I say unto you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church…(Matthew 16:14-18). What rock was Jesus talking about. The rock was not Peter, but the revelation the Lord gave to Peter that He (Christ) was the Son of the living God. That is what Jesus built His Church on, not on Peter. Peter is a foundation member of the Church, (Ephesians 2:20), but the Church does not exist because of Peter. Jesus used a play on words. The Greek word for the name Peter is petros, a small stone. The word rock is petra, which means a huge rock. What Jesus was saying was, “Peter who are a small stone. Your confession that I am the Christ (i.e. Messiah, The Anointed One) is the bedrock confession of faith on which my church will be built upon.” 

I’ll say this in wrapping up about Peter. Any Church that does not acknowledge Jesus as the Christ is a false Church.  

John – John was the brother of James who was also a disciple. They also were fisherman. John is the author the gospel of John. He also authored 1, 2, 3 John and the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible. He describes himself in the third person as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23;21:20). He is also known as the apostle of love. Jesus nicknamed John and his brother James Boanerges which means, “Sons of Thunder” (Mark 3:17). The infamous number 666 which is the mark of the beast appears in Revelation. John also describes The Great White Throne Judgment and the eternal Lake of Fire in the 20^th chapter of Revelation.

Andrew – Andrew is the brother of Peter. Not much is known about him. He did introduce Peter to Jesus (John 1:42). So, we see that he had an evangelistic spirit.

James – James is the brother of John. Some believe he was the older brother of the two because his name is always mentioned first. He was part of Jesus’ inner circle of 3 – him, his brother John and Peter. James along with John and Peter witnessed Jesus’ transfiguration and was there when Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 17:1;Mark 9:2;Luke 9:28), (Matthew 26:37;Mark 14:33). James was the first disciple to be martyred for his faith (Acts 12:2).

Philip – Philip is always the fifth disciple mentioned in the roll call. Philip is the one that asked Jesus the question, “Lord show us the Father and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I not been so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me (John 14:8-10)?

Bartholomew – His other name was Nathanael. He is only called Nathanael in John’s gospel (John 1:46). He is always mentioned after Philip in the roll call of the disciples. Philip is the one that brought Nathanael to meet Jesus. Jesus said of Nathanael that he was a man with no deceit (John 1:47). Bartholomew Nathanael is amazed Jesus knew something about him. He declared to Jesus, “You are Son of God. You are the King of Israel” (John 1:49). No other information is given regarding him in the Bible. According to tradition, he preached the gospel in India. He died a martyr by being drowned.

Thomas – He had another name. It was Didymus which means twin. Apparently, he had a twin sibling who is not mentioned in the scriptures. He is mistakenly called called doubting Thomas because he supposedly doubted the resurrection of Jesus Christ when the other disciples declared He rose from the dead. He was actually unbelieving Thomas. Thomas who was not with them, said, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into his side, I will never believe” (John 20:25b). Eight days later Jesus tells Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands, and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve but believe” (John 20:27). Thomas declared his courage when Jesus was heading to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead. The disciples were convinced that Jesus would be killed. Thomas said, “Let us also go that we may die with Him (John 11:16). How many of us are ready to die for Jesus? Probably not many. He died for us. Are we willing to die for Him if necessary?  Thomas was.

Matthew – He is the author of the gospel that bears his name. By profession he was a tax collector. He would have been an unlikely member of the disciples. Why? Because as a tax collector he was loyal to the Roman government which the Jews hated. You see the Romans made Jews collect taxes. That made Matthew a traitor to his fellow countrymen. In addition, tax collectors charged more than necessary which meant that they became rich through extortion. Matthew was also called Levi which was his Hebrew name (Matthew 9:9). Jesus saw Matthew and commanded him to follow Him. Matthew knew that he was a scoundrel in the eyes of society had to be thrilled that Jesus even acknowledged him. In gratitude, he held a banquet in Jesus’ honor. He invited his friends to his home, tax collectors so that they could meet Jesus. Matthew perhaps unbeknownst to him was evangelizing those whom he knew were lost in sin like him. These were the sick that needed to be made well (Luke 5:29-32).

The gospel of Matthew is comprehensive. It contains fulfilled OT prophecy, a precise genealogy of Christ’s ancestry. Along with Jesus’ kingdom parables and many miracles.

James (Son of Alphaeus) – In Mark 15:40 he is called James the less or James the younger. Perhaps given that distinction because the other James who was the older brother of John. The word less in the Greek is mikros which means little. Perhaps this James was a small man physically or he was less in terms of influence or both. We know his mother was named Mary according to Mark 15:40. Other than that we have no other information about him.

Lebbaeus – He had two other names, Thaddaeus and Judas (not Iscariot). He asked Jesus, “Lord how is it that you will manifest yourself to us and not the world” (John 14:22)? According to Eusebius, a fourth century historian, Judas (Thaddeus  Lebbaeus) traveled to a place called Edessa in Mesopotamia. It was reported he healed the king, a man by the name of Abgar[2]. The apostolic symbol for Judas is a club because he was supposedly beaten to death with a club for his faith.

Simon – Simon belong to a radical political party called the Zealots. He and his companions were terrorists who were determined to overthrow the Roman government, by any means necessary. They believed that they should serve no one but God alone. They were defeated by the Romans and went underground when they revolted over Roman taxation.  They formed another group called sicarri – means “dagger men”. They were known to conceal curved daggers in their robes, sneak up behind Roman soldiers and politicians and stab them in the back between the ribs piercing the heart. They were trained assassins. Interesting that Jesus would choose a trained killer to be one of his followers. Perhaps Simon (the Zealot) was interested in following Jesus because he thought Jesus would lead a rebellion against their Roman oppressors. Simon no doubt at one time may have hated Matthew the tax collector because he was considered a traitor to the Jews and was collecting tribute for Rome. Only the love of God could convert his heart to love a man like Matthew, a fellow disciple.

Judas Iscariot – Judas was Benedict Arnold before Benedict Arnold. There is absolutely nothing good to say about the man who betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, the price of a slave at that time. Judas loved money, not the Lord. Jesus knew what Judas was before Judas knew himself, a thief and a devil (John 6:70-71). Jesus also calls him the Son of Perdition (John 17:12). The only other person given that infamous description is the antichrist (2 Thessalonians 2:3). Perdition means destruction. To destruct things means to destroy, to tear things down. In this context, the kingdom of God. That is what Judas was attempting to do. When he realized His betrayal of Christ was way more costly than the money paid him, he was overcome with shame, remorse and sorrow, he killed himself (Matthew 27:5).

Divine sovereignty and the human will working together

Why did Jesus choose Judas when He already knew in advance that Judas would betray Him? The Bible tell us, so that the scripture would be fulfilled. Judas’ betrayal was prophesied in the Old Testament. Psalm 41:9 says, “He that eats my bread has lifted his heel against me.” Jesus fulfills this in Matthew 26:21-25). As a matter of fact, in John’s gospel it says after Jesus gave the sop to Judas Satan entered into him (John 13:26b-27). Although Judas’ betrayal of our Lord was predicted to happen that in no way absolves Judas of the choice he made to betray Jesus. He made a conscious decision to betray Jesus. He was fully responsible for his actions.

Why did Jesus choose these men? Because he was commanded to by the Father. There was nothing special about them that compelled the Lord to choose these specific men. They were ordinary uneducated Jewish men who God sovereignly selected to do extraordinary things. They have a testimony from their enemies: They turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6).

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^[1] MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2002). Twelve ordinary men: how the Master shaped his disciples for greatness, and what He wants to do with you (p. 30). Nashville, TN: W Pub. Group.

[2] Eusebius Pamphili, Ecclesiastical History, Books 1-5