Grace Party: Escape to Reality Greatest Hits, Volume 3 by Paul Ellis Read Free Book Online Page B

done something
unforgivable.
    Since an
expanded version of this article appeared in The Gospel in Twenty Questions ,
I was reluctant to include it here. But I put it in for the sake of those who
live with Kierkegaardian levels of anxiety and guilt. If this describes you, be
free!
    Recently
I heard from someone who was battling condemnation because they had had
disrespectful thoughts about the Holy Spirit. They were worried that they had
blasphemed the Holy Spirit and committed the unforgivable sin. If this has
happened to you, let me say two things.
    First,
don’t take ownership for every thought that passes through your mind. As the
saying goes, you can’t stop the birds flying overhead, but you can stop them
building a nest in your hair. If a bad thought comes to your mind reject it. It’s
not your thought. You have the mind of Christ.
    Second,
to blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to call him a liar and reject what he says
about Jesus. It is impossible for a Christian to do this. If you’ve had
disrespectful thoughts that may mean you don’t know him very well, but you
haven’t blasphemed him. Not even close. So be at peace — you are forgiven! —
and fortify your mind against the lies of the enemy. Ask the Holy Spirit to
reveal himself to you and you will find that he is the best friend you’ve got.
    Incidentally,
you may be wondering about all these references to Søren Kierkegaard, the
gloomy Dane. I married a Dane — a happy Dane! — so I’m interested in all things
Danish. Kierkegaard is one of my favorite Danish writers. He was a deep thinker
and a quotable guy.
    When I
began writing for Escape to Reality, I posted a list of my favorite Kierkegaard
quotes. I’ll leave you with this Kierkegaardian gem:
     
    God
creates out of nothing. Wonderful you say. Yes, to be sure, but he does what is
still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.
     
    Now that’s good news to make you
celebrate!
     
     

9. What was Last Adam’s
Greater Work?
     
    The history of the world, as told
by some, runs like this: Adam disobeyed God and brought death to all humanity,
but Jesus came and put everything back the way it was. This sort of thinking
puts Adam and his everyday sin on the same level as Christ and his incomparable
gift.
    What was
Jesus’ greater work? Elsewhere I have argued that the common answer to this
question — Jesus made everyone alive — is dead wrong. Jesus did not come from
heaven simply to resurrect the corpse of humanity and repair Adam’s sin.
Certainly, Jesus did right Adam’s wrong, but if that was all he did,
then his wouldn’t be a greater work and Jesus wouldn’t be the Great Redeemer.
He would just be a cosmic Mr. Fix-It.
    So in
what sense did Jesus do a greater work than Adam? For the sake of convenience,
I shall reduce the splendor and majesty of his finished work to three words
beginning with R. I appreciate that much will be lost in doing so but I trust
you will see past my clumsiness, be inspired, and then ask the Holy Spirit to
fill in the gaps.
     
    What did Jesus accomplish?
     
    1. Redemption: The guilty verdict has been over-turned. In Adam we were
branded sinners but in Christ we are declared righteous. We are no longer
counted with the condemned but are numbered with the justified. Satan has
nothing to accuse us of and God remembers our sins no more. If you would know
how much better the gift is than the trespass, then go ask someone on death row
whether they would prefer freedom to captivity.
    How did
he do it? When you responded to the call of the Spirit and said yes to Christ,
he gave you a glorious new past — his past. You were included in his death on
the cross severing all ties with your old man (Romans 6:6). The person you used
to be is dead and gone along with your sin and any relationship you had with
the law (Romans 7:6). The old order is no more (Galatians 6:14). Your former sources
of identity and security have been replaced with something infinitely better
and