HOW IS THAT JUSTICE?

HOW IS THAT JUSTICE?

            “Do you mean to tell me that you believe a person can sin his whole life, and on his death bed decide to believe in God and he’ll be saved from hell?”

The American Christian girl nodded.

The English boy shook his head and said, “Nah, I can’t believe in a God that would be that unjust.”

“Why not?” the girl asked.

“Well, because, someone who tries to live a good life, doesn’t do much sin, and tries to help people will go to hell just because he doesn’t believe in Jesus. But the hooligan that takes advantage of people and robs them, suddenly fears the punishment he deserves when he’s about to die and wants to be forgiven. If God forgives him just for believing, how is that justice?”

The girl shrugged. “I don’t know; but I know it’s true.”

The preceding conversation (or something very near it) was on a TV show that exposed young people from one culture and placed them in another, entirely different culture to see how the disparate groups of young people would react.

The young man’s question is a legitimate challenge to the Gospel. How could a just God not base salvation from hell on anything other than whether a person’s good deeds outweighed his bad deeds? Wouldn’t God be unfair to judge a person who, like Ghandi, lived a good, life yet send him to hell because he wasn’t convinced that faith in Jesus’ sacrifice for him was the only thing that would satisfy God’s wrath. Especially when someone like “The Son of Sam” killer, David Berkowitz, who terrorized the streets of New York by murdering pretty, young girls “finds Christ” in prison and claims to be going to heaven. How could a just God let David Berkowitz into heaven yet keep Ghandi out?

Although the argument seems logical, its premise is flawed. It’s looking at the issue from fallen man’s perspective. A child, caught stealing cookies from the cookie jar, if asked, “Do you deserve punishment?” will inevitably excuse himself by comparing his misdeed with one of his sibling’s infractions. “Billy broke a window, but I only took (note the absence of the word “stole”) a couple of cookies.” People under a load of guilt rationalize away their stricken consciences by comparing themselves against worse sinners.

The English teen in the above conversation, whether aware of it or not, had adopted this quid pro quo philosophy in his approach to God. Most religions (if not all others besides Bible-based Christianity) have becoming better people as their goal. The better a person is, the surer his or her chance of heaven. The worse a person is… the surer their chance of hell—if there really is one!

But Jesus presented a different picture. When someone asked Him if the eighteen men killed by a collapsing tower were especially bad sinners, He replied, “…I tell you no, but except you repent, you shall all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:3)

The religious teachers that wished to justify themselves because they considered themselves good enough for heaven were incensed at Jesus’ answer. He flatly refuted their belief that God weighed the deeds of mankind, rewarding the good and punishing the bad! Instead, Jesus revealed that all of mankind—both the good and the bad—was already under the threat of eternal punishment. No one was good enough for heaven! All deserve to go to hell! The only escape for anyone is to be found in repentance.

The English boy was unaware that he is already under the sentence of hell. He, like the child stealing cookies, is trying to assuage his guilty conscience by comparing his deeds against those of worse sinners. “If there is a God, they deserve hell, but I’m not that bad, I never killed anyone…”

But in fact, he is guilty of murder, as is every child of Adam who ever lived.

Our species is complicit in the murder of God’s creation. Furthermore, by doing even just one tiny, insignificant sin, we are guilty of murdering the Son of God.

God’s Creation was good; no evil was to be found in it. Man and woman were created in innocence, without knowledge of anything but that which was good. But when Satan tempted them to disobey God, by sinning they obtained the knowledge of evil and mutated from what God had created. Sin became part of man’s nature, killing the innocent persons they had been created as (Rom. 7:11). In addition, God’s good Creation was inundated by sin and death when earth’s steward, Adam, handed it over to God’s arch enemy, Satan. You belong to whomever you obey (Rom. 6:16). Adam, by obeying Satan, became enslaved to him—with his descendants, the entire human race, as well as all Creation.

God had warned Adam that disobedience would result in death. Even one cancer cell must be “killed” in order that the body might be saved. Just one drop of nerve gas will kill an entire community. God couldn’t let any sin go unpunished in His perfect universe, He had to deal ruthlessly with it. God had to be true to His word and punish Adam and Eve for their sin, but he stretched out their sentence by giving mankind a life span. This was done according to his mercy, so that in that life span they might realize that things on earth weren’t right due to sin, and repent and seek to re-enter His good graces. But there was nothing they could do to undo the harm they brought upon themselves and the damage done to Creation.

Feeling vulnerable and exposed, Adam and Eve grabbed leaves off the tree they probably ate from, the fig tree, and feebly tried to cover their nakedness. Here is the greatest mystery of the Gospel: God, knowing the uselessness of their attempts at covering up their sins, provided a surrogate victim for punishment in order that He might temporarily spare mankind and offer an opportunity to be redeemed—if anyone truly wanted forgiveness. God slaughtered an animal, probably a ram, and in doing so, revealed to Adam and Eve how horrible death was. Then He covered their nakedness with the skin of that animal, a much more durable covering than the fig leaves of their own efforts.

God did this to show mankind that they cannot save themselves. Man must find a substitute to take his punishment for sinning or else bear the wrath of God for all eternity. Then God Himself became that substitute by becoming a sinless man, Jesus Christ, come to atone for the sins of the whole world (I Jn. 2:2). The world, however, hated Jesus and His message of forgiveness, and crucified Him, not knowing that that too, was part of God’s plan to redeem mankind. Jesus provided the substitute sacrifice—the only one that would please God in that His blood was sinless. His Spirit indwelling a believer is the durable covering of a righteous life that pleases God.

When Jesus rose from the dead three days later, He left the sins of the world behind in the grave. He promised to give eternal life to all who believe and obey Him. But to those who either don’t want to obey Him or refuse to sincerely investigate his claims in the Gospels desiring to know the truth of these things, must bear the burden and punishment of their sins forever.

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23) For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 6:23).

What the English boy and many other people in the world don’t know, is that Judgment is coming upon all mankind. No one is worthy to enter God’s heaven; all are condemned. But God, in His love and mercy has interposed Himself and paid our price—if we will receive it. All a person need do is ask Jesus for forgiveness. One could never be good enough to undo the damage of all the sins in his or her life, but Jesus has already paid the redemption. If you find this marvelous offer too hard to believe, but want to know if it is true… you only have to honestly ask God to show it to you, and He will.

On the other hand, if you don’t care if it’s true, or don’t want to believe it… you will someday, too late.

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