God knew there would be no spiritual worship after the original sin if He did not provide a way for mankind to be restored to Him. This devotional reading looks at how worship verifies our redemption.
Nuggets
- Jesus suffered in order to provide mankind redemption.
- Jesus could provide redemption for us because He never sinned.
- Jesus suffered physical death, but the spirit is more important than the physical body.
Mankind was created to worship Him, weren’t we?
In order to get us to where we could worship Him, God designed the Plan of Salvation. His Plan provided for our redemption.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Habitual Holiness of Heart and Life theme, click the button below.
Here is a running list of nuggets for the theme.
Devotions in the Finding Jesus through Spiritual Worship study
Here is a running list of nuggets for the study.
The foundation of this series is Menander and Charnock’s Spiritual Worship.
Resource
The wording in blue is Charnock’s words.
God’s End in Redemption
“Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.” (I Pet. 3: 18 NLT)
To have this worship is God’s end in redemption and sanctification.
Jesus suffered in order to provide mankind redemption.
Mankind was created to worship God. Unfortunately, we disobeyed God’s one instruction.
We lost the most important thing we had — a relationship with God.
There was only one way that relationship could be restored. The penalty for sins had to be paid.
There was only One Person Who was able to pay the price. That is God’s Son, Jesus. Only He could make atonement for them.
Only the shedding of Jesus’ blood would pay the penalty. “For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross” (Col. 1: 19-20 NLT).
So, the cause of Jesus’ suffering was our sins.
We can’t think that, because Jesus was 100% God, He didn’t suffer. He was also 100% man.
He did suffer.
Jesus knew exactly what He was getting into when He was arrested. Crucifixion was a common punishment for the day.
That didn’t stop Jesus. He voluntarily died on the cross.
Why did God go through all of this? Wilson told us why. He wrote that our being brought to God “Implies [our] being brought into a state of reconciliation and [favor] with God.
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God chose to offer us the Plan of Salvation. It is up to us to accept it.
Salvation is the gift of life through the deliverance from condemnation and sin to acceptance and holiness and changes us from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive.
- Sin is not believing that Jesus is our Savior to save us from our actions by humans that disobey God and break one of His reasonable, holy, and righteous laws and commandments, goes against a purpose He has for us, or follows Satan’s promptings.
- Holiness is the transcendent excellence of His nature that includes elements of purity, dedication, and commitment that lead to being set apart.
- Purity means possessing God’s moral character, having eliminated the stain of sin.
- Spiritual death is the spiritual separation from God that occurred as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s original sin.
- The spiritually alive are those who have ABCDed, so they are no longer separated from God.
- Holiness is the transcendent excellence of His nature that includes elements of purity, dedication, and commitment that lead to being set apart.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Glossary
Now think about it. Many in Jesus’ day thought suffering was the result of sin. Jesus’ suffering clearly shows us that is not the case.
It is only through Jesus’ suffering and atonement that we gain access to God. We are forgiven of our sins, making us holy and righteous. We can only have communion with God when we are pure as He is.
Holy means to be set apart — because of our devotion to God — to become perfect, and morally pure while possessing all virtues and to serve and worship God.
- Perfection means we reach a state of maturity because the combination of the spiritual graces form, when all are present, spiritual wholeness or completeness — holy, sanctified, and righteous.
- Spiritual graces are worldly morals that have been submitted to God to further His kingdom instead of enhancing this world.
- Sanctified means to be set free from sin.
- Righteous means we are free from sin because we are following God’s moral laws.
- Pure means not being sinful or having the stain of sin.
- Virtues are standards of moral excellence.
Glossary
The great thing is Jesus had to suffer only once. True, it has been said that Jesus suffered from the cradle to the grave.
But Jesus died only once to provide us salvation. We may continue to sin after conversion, but that doesn’t mean Jesus had to die again.
Jesus died once so that everyone had the opportunity to be redeemed.
McKay reminded us that God’s original creation of mankind did not have suffering as a purpose. Suffering was a result of the original sin.
Resource
It was always in the Plan that the Messiah would suffer.
What did Jesus teach us by His suffering? It shows that we do not have be afraid of suffering.
The pain will hurt. It may be deadly.
We need to focus on the purpose. Jesus’ purpose of withstanding the suffering was to provide us salvation. Our purpose of withstanding the suffering is to become like Him.
We think that suffering is bad. There is good that comes out of the pain.
We learn much as we go through suffering. New ways are seen, and thought processes are changed.
Conquering these sufferings are beneficial. We find out what we can withstand and celebrate our victories.
But we have to watch how we approach these sufferings. Yes, we withstand — but only when we depend on God.
Our sufferings aren’t about us and how strong we are. They are about how dependent we are on God.
God’s End in Power
“… He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God …” (I Pet. 3: 18 NLT)
Jesus could provide redemption for us because He never sinned.
Why was Jesus the only One Who could pay the penalty for our sins? He was the only One Who hasn’t sinned. He was the only just Person.
Everyone else has chosen to disobey God. Jesus was the only One totally obedient.
If it were anyone else, we would say that it isn’t fair He was being punished for something He didn’t do. That isn’t justice in our minds.
Well, let me take that back. Too many people think they are entitled to sin. They quibble with what is and isn’t a sin.
Only God can say what is or isn’t a sin. Everyone has sinned (Rom. 3: 23).
Thomas made a very good point. Yes, Jesus suffered. Yes, Jesus was innocent and still suffered greatly.
Jesus was still victorious.
Resource
We can’t lose sight of the fact Jesus was suffering for us.
And not just for us, but for us who are sinners. “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (Rom. 5: 8 NLT).
Jesus was just; we aren’t. He died for us anyway.
This shows us how much Jesus loves us.
Think about us being unjust. It doesn’t make any qualifications.
Murderers. Liars. Adulterers. The proud. All are equally unjust.
It is our job as disciples to reach those who haven’t heard of Jesus’ love and sacrifice.
God’s End in Spiritual Worship
“… He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.” (I Pet. 3: 18 NLT)
Jesus suffered physical death, but the spirit is more important than the physical body.
Yes, Jesus suffered a painful, humiliating death. But He was resurrected.
Look at what Leighton said. He wrote, “Under this second phrase, His human nature and His Divine nature and power are distinguished. But the ‘Spirit’ here opposed to the ‘flesh,’ or body, is certainly of a higher nature and power than the human soul, which cannot of itself return to re-inhabit and quicken the body.
Resource
Jesus could not raise Himself from the grave. Only God could do that.
God could have designed the Plan of Salvation to be fulfilled in some other way than death. He could have saved Jesus from death.
But that was the Plan.
Leighton proposed that Jesus’ death had to be violent to show it as a form of punishment. He had to be condemned to death for crimes – especially crimes He did not make.
Our sufferings are not more extraordinary than Jesus’. He still suffered even though He was God.
But what does all of this have to do with spiritual worship? We will not want to worship God until we are redeemed.
We show we are redeemed because of our spiritual worship.
Making the Connections #1
Redemption is all about God’s forgiveness. Forgiveness is, when we ask, the act of God pardoning us because we have shown repentance for breaking His laws and commandments, which allows us to become holy as He is.
- Repentance is acknowledging our separation from God and expressing sorrow for breaking God’s laws and commandments by making the commitment to changing ourselves through obedience so that we no longer do the wrong things.
Glossary
We have to watch how we define forgiveness, though. It can’t by the world’s definition.
Look how Wilson described it. He wrote,
“Some people think it is enough to ask pardon. Others think the way of pardon is to be sorry for their sins. Others think the way of pardon is trying to be as good as they can — saying their prayers, and striving to do what is right. Now the gospel way of pardon, though it might be said to include all these, is yet different from them all. It is very simple.”
Resource
This is a peak into the next devotion. Forgiveness leads to redemption, but sanctification must be associated.
Making the Connections #2
We said that the purpose of redemption is so that our relationship with God can be restored. Thomas said that we are restored in thought will, resemblance, and fellowship.
Resource
That is a comprehensive list.
That tells me we have to be totally committed to God.
How Do We Apply This?
- Show our love for Christ at the heart level.
- Hate sin.
- Seek God.
- Do everything in Jesus’ name.
- Repent of our sins and ask forgiveness.
Searching for and Seeking God
Hearing His Word (Rom. 10: 17)
Reading His Word (Rev. 1: 3)
Praying to Him (Heb. 4: 16)
Studying His Word (Ac. 17: 11)
Meditating on His Word (Ps. 1: 1-2)
Memorizing His Word (Ps. 119: 11)
Resources
Father God. Thank You for redeeming us. We want our relationships with You to be restored. When they are, we will worship You without ceasing. Amen.
What do you think?
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