“Believing in Jesus” can be just another work.

Posted by on May 30, 2011 | 2 comments

A conversation I had with someone who struggled with parts of yesterday’s sermon has been rattling around in my head since then.  This person has a really seeking heart, is an incredibly devoted mom, and is probably more generous than most people I meet.  She was impressive.

And she “believed in Jesus”.

But as we talked about why it was offensive to her that The Law condemns her as “not good enough” in some particular areas, it became clear that “believing in Jesus”, to her, was another thing she’s done that makes her feel righteous – just like being a devoted mom, giving to charities, and trying to be a good wife.  This act of “believing in Jesus” is something she adds to the pile of her moral actions that gives her a sense of “I’ve behaved well enough for God to accept me.”

Be careful and discerning. If “believing in Jesus” is another thing you’ve done in order to “be a good person”/”do the right thing”, instead of an outflow of your desperate need for his goodness because yours doesn’t cut it, then “believing in Jesus” is just another work.

2 Comments

  1. Greg | May 30, 2011 at 10:11 pm

    “The Law condemns her”? How can that even be a question? The Law condemns everyone. That’s kind of the point of the New Testament. What in the world are people preaching out there?

    • Josh Howerton | May 31, 2011 at 12:34 pm

      Greg – I hear you. Understanding the condemning function of the law is a foundational issue. At the same time, we can’t adopt an attitude of self-righteousness that looks down on someone like this and says, “HOW could anyone not know that!?” or we’re undermining with our attitude the same gospel we’re trying to verbally uphold!

      The gospel message (that starts with the condemnation of the law) will either be ignored, dismissed, or opposed by EVERY human heart because “the natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit.” I just ignored it before I understood and submitted to the gospel. This woman was more intellectually honest than me by going ahead and expressing offense!

      I totally get what you’re saying though. This should be a core tenant of every gospel sermon everywhere.