God's Plan - Step III Bringing them home.

We remember the things we have established so far.
First - The problem of sin: Instead of walking with God as his image and friend. sin makes us enemies and rebels against God. We distort the truth which reveals the glory and nature of God so clearly that everyone will be unable to deny that they knew God even when they worshiped and served someone or something else. That sin affects absolutely everyone. Because we sin, we all die.

Second - God made a Plan: His plan was to provide a way of escape sufficient that every single human being could, if they are willing, avoid the punishment due because of sinful human nature and the actual sins they commit themselves. This plan also overcomes sinful nature, establishes a trusting relationship with God and brings some of the human race to enjoy the final blessings of that relationship.

Third - Step I; Paying for Sin: The first step was to ensure the payment due for sin was paid. That required someone who was free of the taint of Adam's sin, who never committed sin and who would lay down his life on behalf of man. No one was able to do that but God, Himself. So, Jesus came and did all required of him including the death of a criminal, though he did no wrong.

Fourth - Step II; Step II; Gathering the Sheep: The second step was to ensure that some of those who were headed for Hell are turned around. This is truly life from death and, as such, God's work. Saints from both Old and New Testaments are saved the same way. And, though unable to be proved, the language of the New Testament implies more will be saved than lost.

Step III; Bringing them Home: Here we have to deal with one of the realities of life. Some of those who begin as Christians do not continue to the end. Persecution puts some off and the cares, pleasures and worries of the world distract others. This is the reason Paul exhorts his readers to strive hard to make their calling and election sure. He reminds them that the prize doesn't go to the starters of the race - you have to finish it. Jesus told the story of the man who went out to hire laborers for his field, it was those who worked (no matter how long) who earned their pay at the end.

Once again we need to remember, when thinking through our salvation, God ordains what will come to pass and so it does. Yet, at the same time, man is responsible for the consequences of every choice he makes. God is not the author of our sins, we are. We may not understand this fully - we may even ask "So why does God still find fault? Who has ever resisted his will?" We should understand that God is like the potter and we are clay - he may do with us exactly what he wills and complaints are not an option. In the same way as each step in executing God's plan has a Godward and a manward aspect and both are true so it is here.

As, for example, conversion is a co-operative thing; the person has to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (even though, seeing the stakes by the work of the Holy Spirit, it seems impossible to do anything else) so it is with becoming Christlike. From our perspective we are required to fight against our sinful tendencies. It's not enough to imagine all we have to do is know Bible teaching, we have to use that teaching to guide our behavior. We need to desire to express our gratitude to God for his wonderful work in saving us. And we need to do it all understanding that some who begin with us do actually make shipwreck of their faith.

It is God's plan, however, that every one of his children will persevere to the end. In the prayer of John 17, Jesus makes a distinction between the eleven faithful disciples and "the son of perdition" Judas. He makes it clear that God had given the eleven to him and he had lost none of them. This does not mean he didn't hold them responsible for the things they did, and thought about, wrongly. He certainly rebuked them and called them "ye of little faith." But he did acknowledge they did have faith, they just needed to use it properly.

So the Holy Spirit works with our spirit guiding our desires so that we love God and wish, above all other things, never to cause a rift between us. He makes the pleasures of this life seem far less important than they once were and even enables us to endure suffering and pain by considering the purpose of it all. The wonderful thing is that, though it is really the work of the Holy Spirit that keeps us following Christ, God counts the works we do as worthy of praise.

Significantly, the distinction between the Christian and the non-Christian pretender becomes clear at this point. The pretender looks at his works and imagines they are worthy of God's praise. The Christian only sees the failure of everything he does to measure up to the standard set by his Lord and Savior. This makes him strive the harder where the pretender, if he even notices that failure, becomes disheartened.