Skip to main content

Righteousness & Peace, Part 1: Salt & Light or Sodom & Gomorrah




You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. (Matthew 5:13) 

God’s kind of righteousness has a positive effect on society. Salt that is not salty is good for nothing. Similarly, light that is hidden is not light. Men do not praise God for our bad deeds.

Two events in biblical history will serve to illustrate this truth. The first was the destruction of Sodom (Genesis 18-19), and the second was Israel’s minor defeat at Ai (Joshua 6-7). God had promised the safety of the very wicked city of Sodom if ten righteous people were found in it. At Ai, God allowed the defeat of a righteous nation because there was one unrighteous man in the camp. Thirty-six men were killed because of that man’s sin.

These are opposite effects of the same principle. God will spare a wicked city if there is an adequate righteous witness in it. However, God will not give victory to His people unless everyone in the camp is righteous.

We have settled for the first option: we are content to be a small light, just enough to keep the Sodoms from being destroyed. We are running defense when we should be launching a strong offense. The church which should have a conquering view like Joshua instead endeavors to spread the gospel with unrighteous men in the army. We are not willing to purge the unrighteousness from ourselves and from the church in order to take the Ais of this world with the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord is not with us for victory.

*Excerpted from Being Christian. To purchase, visit ccmbooks.org/bookstore.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ripe for Harvest: Prepared to Give an Answer

As you read through the book of Acts, look at every conversion, and see what happened right before it: what was said, who said it. The situations are the same today.     A long time ago, my duty in the Officer’s Christian Fellowship was the east coast of the United States. I went to an officer’s office at Fort Lee, VA, and stayed overnight, then I went on to Norfolk and Fort Bragg.    Forty years later, I was no longer on the staff of OCF, but I had to go to Denver. While I was in Denver, I checked in at the OCF offices. There was the same Air Force officer I had met in Fort Lee, retired now, a colonel. I had stayed in his house when he was a first lieutenant. He asked me, “Do you know what happened when you stayed overnight?” I said, “No, I just remember staying in your home.” He said, “You led the next-door neighbor to Christ.” I had no memory of it.    Ten years after that, I was speaking at a banquet at the Hotel Salisbury, and who was th...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why Is Obedience So Hard?

There are several reasons why obedience seems hard. I will comment on some of them and then speak positively on how obedience is easy. We think: 1) Obedience is an infringement on freedom. Since we are free in Christ, and obedience is somehow contrary to that freedom, we conclude that obedience is not good. Yet we know it is good. Thus, we become confused about obedience and are not single-minded. 2) Obedience is works. We who have been justified by grace through faith are opposed to works; therefore, we are opposed to obedience. 3) We have tried to obey and have failed—frequently. Therefore, the only solution is to disobey and later confess to receive forgiveness. It is easier to be forgiven by grace than to obey by effort. 4) We confuse obedience to men with obedience to God. Although these are sometimes one and the same (see Romans 13, 1 Peter 2-3, Ephesians 5-6, Colossians 3, and Titus 2), sometimes they are not the same (see Colossians 2:20-23, Mark 7, 1 Timothy 4:1-5, a...
7 comments
Read more

Biblical Love (Part 1)

God tells husbands to love their wives. How are we to do that, and what does that love look like? Love Her as Your Neighbor “Jesus replied: ‘“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbor as yourself”’” (Matt. 22:37-39). “Yourself” is someone you already greatly love, and therefore is a good standard for how to love someone else. For a start, calculate how much time you spend thinking about yourself on an average day. Second, list all the things you do for yourself, including bathing, eating, sleeping, and studying. Third, admit that these things are expressions of love for yourself. Fourth, admit that you do not love your neighbor (even your best friend) this much. Fifth, admit that that is a violation of God’s command and needs His forgiveness. Turn to Him for forgiveness. This will not make you loving, but it will make you clean . From that posi...
Post a Comment
Read more