Ashes to Righteousness

When Job and Isaiah saw God, they each gained profound moral insight about Him, and therefore about themselves.  

For Isaiah, it was the dirty mouth speaking from a dirty heart:

See Isaiah 6:1-8

For Job it was his presumption that he could understand the ways of God:

See Job 42:1-8

In each case, these self-accusations of weakness and depravity are regarded by God to be truth-speaking.  As a consequence, these men are immediately put into greater service to God:  Isaiah as a greater prophet, and Job as priest for his friends who have spoken so brazenly and self-confidently to Job about God's ways.

See:

42:1 Then Job answered the Lord and said:

² “I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
³ You asked, ‘Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
⁴ Listen, please, and let me speak;
You said, ‘I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’

⁵ I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You.
⁶ Therefore I abhor myself,
And repent in dust and ashes.”

⁷ And so it was, after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends, for you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.

So, repenting in dust and ashes at the vision of God is the act of persons whom God calls righteous.

Gospel Reductionism

This post has been retitled and the language of the text has been improved.

Paul the apostle describes the accusatory function of the Law of God in Chapter 3 of his Epistle to the Romans.  I have reproduced the whole section at the bottom of this blog post, marked with a *.

Here is an extract of that long passage:  Underlines and things in square brackets in the following quotation are marks of emphasis added by me:

Now we know that whatever the law [of God] says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

The apostle means that the righteousness described in the Law of God -- a righteousness we should seek to live by -- nevertheless shows us to be sinners before God, and so we must receive grace another way than through our own obedience.

But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, ... even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For ... all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,  ... . Where is boasting [in our actions] then? It is excluded. ... Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. ... Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.      (Romans 3:19-31)

What Paul is asserting here is that the Gospel brings us to Christ the Savior in order to have our sins forgiven because we trust in him instead of in the things that we do.  But in order to turn our hearts to faith in Christ, the Gospel must teach the Law of God as his righteous demand, in order that we may know we are sinners.  It is a standard of righteousness which none of us can meet.  The Gospel is therefore good news for real sinners, who receive forgiveness and salvation by faith alone in Christ.  And, since our hearts' desire as believers in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is to walk in his steps and imitate his righteousness, it follows that we must be taught his righteous ways, so that we can begin to practice the Law of Love by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

I say all this in view of the common propensity to use the word "gospel" to describe the positive demeanor of church ministry, while at the same time underplaying the teaching of the Law and the need for repentance.  Instead, everything becomes "gospel."  The "gospel" is expected to do all things without the assistance of the Law -- because we don't want to be legalists.  Therefore, there is a preaching of goodness, peace and acceptance in Christ, yet without sufficient recognition of the need for the corresponding preaching of Biblical standards and the need for a life of repentance and spiritual warfare against our sins. We need the combined ministry of Law and Gospel, where we find that as sinners who confess their sins, we are not only safe as we believe in our Lord Jesus Christ, but we are also empowered by his Holy Spirit and instructed how to act more like him.

To reduce the preaching of the church to a weakened "gospel," without sufficient ministry of the Law for repentance and instruction will therefore weaken the gospel testimony of the church, will be less likely to lead to conversion of heart, and will not sufficiently teach the believers what righteousness before God looks like, so that they can identify their real sins and idols and fight against them.  Instead, there will be a "gospel reductionism" in which the church is welcoming to all kinds of broken people, as she should be, but people do not get better.

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* Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also, since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.  (Rom 3:19-31).

The Leaven of the Pharisees

The Problem

Jesus warned his disciples about the "leaven of the Pharisees":

⁵ Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. ⁶ Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”

⁷ And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.”

⁸ But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? ⁹ Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up? ¹⁰ Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up? ¹¹ How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?—but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” ¹² Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees. (Matt 16:5-12).  

It's clear that the "leaven" or doctrinal teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees can also attack the church and must be guarded against.  Christ cannot mean simply that we should discern the presence of the persons of Pharisees and Sadducees in the church, and avoid them.  He must mean that we must beware of being infected with their kind of doctrine ourselves.  It's clear that most of the Pharisees and Sadducees were blind to their own sin, as they opposed the Person of Christ and his teaching.  They cannot discern their blindness at all, as they make false judgments in the name of "righteousness."  And, so we also conclude that when this "leaven" affects us, this same blindness begins to grow over us and turn our spiritual vision and Christian behavior into paths more characteristic of the Pharisees than of Christ.

So, we need to investigate what this self-deception is, and we need to learn how to deal with it.  As true believers, we ought to have power by the Spirit, to become aware of self-deception, and to begin to fight against it.

The Law of God

A first principle of Pharisaical leaven has to do with the Law of God.  In Romans, chapter 2 we observe Paul rebuking those who judge others:

Rom 2:1 "Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things."  

Paul can never mean that people, even believers, give up all judgment.  What Paul is talking about is the propensity to willfully find fault in others, with the intention of destroying them.  This fleshly propensity is fed by knowledge of the Law of God: 

Rom 2:17 ^"Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God, ¹⁸ and know His will, and approve the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, ¹⁹ and are confident that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, ²⁰ an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of babes, having the form of knowledge and truth in the law. ²¹ You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself?"  

The flesh, in a self-deceptive manner, feeds on the doctrine of the Law of God, in order to apply it to others, but not to itself.  Blame-shifting has been characteristic of mankind since the Fall.  It is subtle, because the Law that is taught or preached according to this doctrinal leaven may indeed be truth, but it is preached from a hidden, unacknowledged false motive.  It is preached to tear down or subordinate others.  The leaven of the Pharisees thus masquerades in the conscience as Truth.  But, depravity secretly lies behind the real reasons that this "truth" is being applied to others, in order to bring them to judgment.

James speaks of this:

 4 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? ² You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. ⁴ Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 

It is certain that the desires for pleasure -- the lusts that James criticizes -- are not manifested outwardly in so carnal a manner, but are mostly put forth as righteous judgments!  After all, prayer is part of their lustful activity!  Yet, it all stems from depravity!  It is clear then, that simply speaking the truth, outwardly and literally, is not necessarily a spiritual activity!  The hidden reasons for the speaking must be evaluated.  Why is the Law used to judge another?  It cannot be simply that the other person is wrong.  There is a Pharisaical reason why that other person is being brought to judgment, and it cannot be simply because they are sinning!

James goes on to say:

⁷ Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. ⁸ Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. ¹¹ Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. ¹² There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?

The conclusion is that the hidden depravity in fleshly hearts -- even in believers' hearts -- can parade as "righteousness," masquerading as having the right to judge, but, in spite of all, with the secret intent to blame and judge the other rather than to minister the gospel to him.  All the outward warfare of mutual judgment wears the garment of righteousness, even while its engine is secret inward depravity.

Self-Diagnosis

How do I get the log out of my own eye, especially since the hidden motives of my own heart are mostly hidden from me?

A hint appears in the text of Romans 2:

²¹ You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal? ²² You who say, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? ²³ You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law? ²⁴ For “the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you,” as it is written.

Please notice how Paul indicates that the "judges" are equally guilty of the sin that they judge in others.  He clearly implies that the false "judges" are guilty of the very type of sins that they judge in others!  Those who preach the law of sexual morality, but do so in a legal and non-gospel spirit, and who have the hidden intent to blame and destroy such sinners instead of save them, are guilty of the very sins that they disparage in the "sinners." 

There is a clue for self-diagnosis here.  It is this principle:

The very sins I am most exercised about when I complain, inwardly or outwardly, about my spouse, my church, my pastors, my boss at work, my government, etc., are, in some parallel manner, the very sins that I'm committing against God, and against my spouse, etc., while hiding them from myself!

We can at least begin to read off our own secret sins from the judgments we apply to others, and begin to discern the secret motives of false and godless judgment we bring against one another.  Repentance can begin here.  And, God help us in this process, because we cannot deliver ourselves!  Only the grace of the Holy Spirit can deliver us, and give us a righteous vision.

The Capable Counselor

The Capable Counselor is, of course, Our Lord Jesus.  But, one might ask, how can he be the sympathetic High Priest that he is, when he never knew sin?  Not being susceptible to temptation means not feeling the pull of sin like I do.  How can he sympathize with me, a sinner?

There are many problems and questions with this approach.  I think that the answers to these questions lie here:

The Word of God, the One who was in the beginning and who was with God and who was God, took on flesh and became a man.  When he did so he gave up nothing of his deity, but he did take upon himself our nature, yet without sin.  When this happened, the Person who took on flesh did not become a different person.  The Divine Logos, the Lord, the Second Person of the Trinity, the eternal Son of God, took on a full human nature, while remaining the same Person that he was and is forever and ever.  He was, is, and ever shall be full deity -- for the Son exercises all the powers of deity and is worshiped.  He took on, is, and ever shall be a man, in all the fullness of all humanity.  And in this manhood he was tempted by the direct, personal ministry of Satan -- a true temptation, but he did not fall.  As he was tempted in all parts of his manhood, and yet resisted that temptation successfully, he then became the sympathetic high priest who can come to the aid and comfort of the tempted in all their temptations.

We see, then, that it is not the case that those who fell are those who felt the temptation more strongly, and therefore that they are those who can sympathize more with the fallen.  Rather, it is the case that their weakness could not preserve them.  Therefore, those who fall, until recovered spiritually from their fall, are poor counselors for those faced by temptation. 

The One who never fell, but who did feel the whole strength of all temptations, is the best counselor.  He knows all, sees all, feels all, and having made the first creation, he is competent to make the second and greater re-creation.  He is able to make sinners whole, by Himself.  He said, No one who trusts in me shall be put to shame.

Head and Heart Meet Sin

It's out of fashion to speak of the difference between head and heart, but I'll follow Calvin's example and do it anyway.

Head and Heart on Faith

It's easy to give lip service to faith in Christ, and to speak with head knowledge, but still be tempted to fall away under temptation.  The head alone just talks, but it is the heart that believes unto righteousness.  Yet a person who is weak of heart in regard to faith doesn't always know it, and may speak from the head confidently and with enthusiasm about loving Christ.  (Remember the parable of the sower, and the seed thrown on rocky ground.)  A person must develop depth of faith in the heart, in order to have the spiritual fortitude to follow Christ through thick and thin.

Head and Heart on Sin

Likewise, looking toward sin, the head and heart may not agree with one another.  Repentance of the head is easy, because we all really do know the difference between right and wrong.  It doesn't take the gospel, or faith in Christ, to know this.  However, to truly repent of one's own sins takes the heart as well as the head, and is the gift of God.  There has to be a depth of heart in repentance before one's own sin is seen in its true horror.  Even then we never really know it all, because repentance is a life-long process.  Our sanctification could be defined as backing up over the lines we've crossed that we know about, and then discovering, behind those lines we knew about, ever more lines and degrees of sinfulness we had crossed negligently and ignorantly before getting to the ones that got us in outward trouble.   Discovering lines behind lines and striving to back up behind them continues throughout a life of sanctification.  Repentance toward sin, then, is the process of backing back up over not just the main line we crossed to get ourselves in outward trouble, but also all those other lines we crossed first, while we were on our way to the main one.

This is why the initial stages of repentance from any particular sin may leave a person in danger of relapse.  The sense of horror about that sin may be very low.  One is aware of a line that's been crossed, and one may think that moving back on the right side of that one line (outwardly) is good enough.  The sin is known, but the knowledge is not a deep heart knowledge.  Actually, to get back securely far from that one line that was crossed to get in outward trouble, a person will need to back up over a lot of other lines in the heart.  Staying near that main line, though outwardly on the correct side of it, tempts the Lord, and will leave a person susceptible to relapse.

The cure, which is the gift of God, is to not stop with repentance about the outward things which get us in trouble, but to begin to slaughter the inward sins that lead to the outward ones.

God said, through James, "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."  We should count on it.  Jesus said, "Come unto me, all you that are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Also, hardness of heart, or lack of repentance, isn't something that's just relative to certain sins.  We can't be hard of heart here and soft of heart there.  If we're hard of heart about one particular sin, then we're really hard of heart about them all.

True repentance affects the whole man.

Sin and Apostasy

One usually thinks of apostasy as due to an intellectual rejection of the doctrine of the faith.  This can be true.  John (1 John) says that the antichrists who have gone out from us indicate that it is the last hour.  However, in Scripture there are many passages that speak of apostasy, and most of those passages do not speak of intellectual denials, but of moral apostasy.  They speak of sin.

John said that people do not believe, to begin with, because their deeds are evil (John 3:19-20).  Therefore, it stands to reason also that apostasy can come about due to a fundamental heart-preference for sin rather than fellowship with Christ.  This happens in those who have professed allegiance to Christ, but who have not believed the gospel with their whole heart.

In 1 Cor 10, Paul shows that tinkering with sin is the path to apostasy.

¹ Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, ² all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, ³ all ate the same spiritual food, ⁴ and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. ⁵ But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.

⁶ Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. ⁷ And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” ⁸ Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; ⁹ nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; ¹⁰ nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. ¹¹ Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

¹² Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.

The context shows that the warning is about apostasy on the part of those who have received the sacraments and professed the faith, but who have preferred sin to Christ when the going got tough.  This occurs in this place in 1 Corinthians because the Corinthian laissez-faire attitude toward holiness (as portrayed in their emphasis on enjoyment of rights) is tantamount in Paul's eyes to a threat of apostasy.  He doesn't want to see this, and so he gives the warning.

Now there is also assurance here.  Paul goes on to say that, for those who truly know God,

¹³ No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

Therefore, for those who truly know the Lord Jesus, we have a secure guarantee that he will not permit us to be tempted in such a way as to cause us to fall away from him.  But, along with this guarantee, and concurrently with it in our own hearts must be respect for the exhortation:

¹⁴ Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

Sin is characterized as what it really is -- idolatry.  When we flee it and trust in Jesus Christ clothed in the gospel, we know that our Christ will carry us through and not permit us to be lost.

Hardness of Heart

The descent into sin is often a consequence of slow hardening of the heart.  Likewise, repentance and the rise out of sin requires what is often a slow softening of the heart.

Paul makes it plain in Romans, Chapter 2, that full knowledge of the Law -- the difference between right and wrong -- is perfectly compatible with blindness toward one's own depravity.  Jesus said (Matt 23) that the Pharisees sat in Moses' Seat, but blindly and continually broke the law.  This happened because of the hardness of their hearts.  Jesus' story about logs in ones own eyes, compared to splinters in others could fit here, too.  

Therefore, if we even recognize our sin as sin, what passes for "repentance" may often not be very serious.  From bare knowledge of the Law, one can admit to sin.  But, it requires divine illumination to see sin in its true light -- to be horrified by it -- to be repulsed by it -- to hate it and pray against it.  While the heart is still hard, insensitive to sin, it is profoundly easy to fall again, because the only real fear is the fear of being discovered by man.  Softening of heart takes time.  In fact, it is a lifelong process.  It's a common thing for old men who are godly to repent of sins they committed at much younger ages.  Back then, those sins which were so easily ignored are now repugnant in memory.

It's interesting to notice the relationship between Law and Gospel in this matter.  The Pharisees could thoroughly understand how to apply the Law to others, but not to themselves.  It is beyond human capacity.  Bare knowledge of the law may harden you in your own sin.  Only the Gospel delivers from sin.  "Come unto me," said Jesus, and "I will give you rest."  Only the grace of Christ softens the heart.  This is the real work of sanctification, and it is not a work of man.

We ought to continually repent and believe the gospel of our Lord, worship the Triune God, pray, especially for others, fight sin always, and never stop serving Him -- and wait for His deliverance.

It will come.

Sin shall not have dominion over us, because we are not under Law but under Grace.

Repentance and Faith -- Two sides of a Coin

When the level of faith grossly exceeds the level of repentance in a person, then it turns out that what appears to be "faith" may be mostly "easy believism."  The consequence of this state of mind can be a slow slide into sin.  In the midst of ease the hardness of heart grows stronger.  When a person slides long enough, sins can begin to break out into the open and be seen by others.  There can be discipline from the Lord and from his church.  A slide that continues long enough can end in departure from the faith and excommunication by the church.

The reason for all this is that "easy believism" is not real faith.  It is not real faith because the warfare between flesh and spirit has been forgotten.  This "easy believism" is not real trust in Christ to forgive us our real and recognized sins, and to give us victory in a real war.  The warfare has been forgotten in the midst of battle, the heart is hardened, and the enemy achieves quiet victories.  "Easy believism" is not the gospel, because The Gospel is only the gospel in the midst of a real war.

On the other hand, when the level of repentance grossly exceeds the level of faith in a person, then it turns out that what appears to be "repentance" can become legalism, or a monk-like religiosity that cannot enjoy the gifts of God.  This can be connected with self-righteousness and pride -- great sins in the midst of all that "righteousness."  For the elect and the true believers it can lead to sadness, spiritual depression, and even despair.  There is no relief in the midst of the spiritual warfare, which is filled with failure.

The upshot is that dividing repentance and faith, and allowing one or the other to atrophy, is in either case a route to sin.  Success lies only where both repentance and faith are coupled in a Scriptural manner.  The gold coin of spirituality has two sides.  One side of the coin, by itself, is not the coin at all!  Faith without repentance is not real faith.  Repentance without faith is not true repentance.  Faith is only faith when coupled with true repentance.  Repentance is only possible when founded in faith.

As believers we ought to love righteousness and hate sin.  We must have faith in the definition of sin found in the Moral Law and the teaching of Christ.  We must recognize the evil within ourselves, and begin the fight against it, and we must trust in the total forgiveness of sin and the spiritual power against it, both given as a gift by our Savior through his sacrifice for our sins.

As soon as we come to know the Lord, a fight should break out between sin and righteousness in our souls.  It is a war -- even a death struggle.  In this war, the Spirit begins to give us victory through faith in Christ as he is clothed in the gospel.  It is not as if we ourselves achieve victory in the fight, but the Lord gives victory while we fight.  Recognition of the enemy, and the fight against him are integral to the process of repentance.  This recognition of sin, and the resulting war against it, is made possible by the omnipotence of Christ, who is engaged in the battle with us and in us, and who is totally on our side!  In the midst of the struggle with sin, there is the exultant knowledge of our victory in Christ, and our total acceptance, even today!  There is mourning for sin, but there is even greater joy in the gift of Christ!  This is the kind of life where hardness of heart begins to be put away, where sin is seen as ever uglier, and where Christ and his grace are seen as infinitely more precious.  Joy rules in the midst of mourning, and victories begin, in the Name of the Lord.

I've likened the spiritual life to a coin with two sides -- repentance and faith.  Another useful analogy might be to an airplane with two engines.  Trying to fly that spiritual airplane on only one engine is going to lead to a crash!  Things weren't meant to work that way.