I’ve actually heard people say — regarding God’s standard of holiness and perfection — “God needs to lighten up on that”! There’s no shortage of “fake news” and misinformation on the subject of how we can get to heaven. Forget them; what does God say?

Before addressing whether or not “God needs to lighten up”, I’d like to present a brief review of facts that are true and can be proven to all but the most hardened unbelievers.

Because none of us were eyewitnesses, we have to rely on the available evidence. And all the evidence — both biblical evidence and true, UNBIASED scientific evidence — supports the following statements:

So back to the topic: “God Needs To Lighten Up”

The answer lies in understanding God’s standard of righteousness. This is the only way the cross makes any sense: by understanding God’s holiness. That’s His fundamental attribute, His holy standard of perfection. He is unique; set apart; one of a kind, unlike any other being.

Here’s what God has said about Himself:

⁸ For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. ⁹ For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8~9)

²¹ But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it (Romans 3:21)

We have a problem that the Bible calls SIN

During the Old Testament era, the only way people knew right from wrong was through the writings of the Scriptures — the Law. But all the law could do was to reveal your problems. The law has no power to fix your problems.

For example: when you get up in the morning and look at your face in the mirror, the mirror reveals that your hair is a mess. But that’s all the mirror can: show you the problem. You can’t use the mirror to fix the problem.

Translating that to a biblical example:

Note the underlined text:

The Law and Sin

⁷ What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” (Romans 7:7)

Our sin problem is incredibly severe!

The apostle Paul also wrote:

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)

…None is righteous, no, not one; (Romans 3:10b)

Just as a jeweler will display a diamond by placing it on a black cloth, and under a brilliant white light, in the same way, God regards our sins in light of the standard of His holiness.

Until you see yourself as a sinner — as God sees you — you will never realize why you need to be saved.

“But why is He so rigid? Why so inflexible? Why can’t He cut us a little slack? Why do we think that God needs to lighten up? After all, He knew before He created us that we could never live up to His standard.”

But that’s what I’m trying to say:

• What blue is to the sky…
• What wet is to water…
• What hot is to the sun…
• Holiness and perfection are to God!

Holiness is just who God is. He can’t be anything other than perfect.

Note the underlined text:

²² Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. (Hebrews 9:22)

If our pastor were to say to the congregation on Sunday, “Let’s all try to jump up and touch the ceiling”, not one of us could do it. Some would be able to jump higher than others. But if the standard was the ceiling, not one person could qualify. That’s what trying to “work your way to heaven” is like.

AND YET — can you believe it? — He loves US!

But the sin problem remains.

All this would have left us with an impossible problem — UNLESS…

God Himself provided the solution!

…Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3b)

The book of Hebrews gives us insight into God’s salvation plan:

Note the underlined text:

Hebrews 9:11-22

Redemption Through the Blood of Christ

¹¹ But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) ¹² he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. ¹³ For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, ¹⁴ how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

¹⁵ Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. ¹⁶ For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. ¹⁷ For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive. ¹⁸ Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. ¹⁹ For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, ²⁰ saying, “This is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.” ²¹ And in the same way he sprinkled with the blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. ²² Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

• VERSE 12: “by means of his own blood, Jesus secured an eternal redemption” — a permanent cleansing from the stain of sin.
• VERSE 22:“without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins” — that’s the system God set up from the very beginning. His plan was for Jesus to shed His blood for our sins.

The GOOD NEWS comes in Chapter 10:

Hebrews 10:1-4

Christ’s Sacrifice Once for All

¹ For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. ² Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, since the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have any consciousness of sins? ³ But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. ⁴ For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

⁵ Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, “Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body have you prepared for me; ⁶ in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. ⁷ Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come to do your will, O God, as it is written of me in the scroll of the book.’”

⁸ When he said above, “You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings” (these are offered according to the law), ⁹ then he added, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He does away with the first in order to establish the second. ¹⁰ And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

²² For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:22)

Let’s summarize all of this:

• There is something called “sin” — an “imperfection” that separates us from our creator, God.
• In what we call the “Old testament era”, God instructed Moses to set up a way of temporarily cleansing people from sin by symbolically transferring their sins to an animal (a goat or a bull, etc.); then slaughtering the animal — shedding the blood of the animal — and offering the blood of the slain animal to God as an atonement for their sins. Problem solved — temporarily.
• The Jews assumed that this system would continue indefinitely. To this day, there are those who still hold to that, and are eagerly waiting for the temple to be rebuilt so they can resume slaughtering animals to atone for their sins.
• But God had a better plan. His plan was to exchange all of the sins of all human beings for a share in His holiness — His righteousness.
• However, God’s plan required the sacrifice of a perfect human male — one who had kept all God’s commandments and lived a perfect, sinless life.
• In addition, the human mother of this man had to be of a specified lineage. He had to have come from the household of David. Plus, she had to have lived a life of sexual purity. The woman He chose was a young woman named Mary.
• Naturally, God knew that no ordinary human male could qualify, so His plan was — through His Holy Spirit — to miraculously cause Mary to become pregnant without any involvement of a man.
• In this way, Jesus came into the world as one of us and lived among us. He set aside most of His divine attributes so that he could experience life as one of us.
• At the proper time, after He had fulfilled all the prophesies and kept all the commandments and the hundreds of ordinances perfectly, Jesus allowed Himself to be sacrificed for our sins.
• The main reason you and I are still alive here in this world is to help make all of these things known to others.

Note the underlined text:

²³ Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. ²⁴ He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word that you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me. (John 14:23~24)

But not everyone understands and embraces God’s plan

God has left it to us to explain it to others.

Look at what Jesus is saying:

• “God so loved…” — His orientation is one of love
• “…the world…” — Not the planet; not the world system; the people of the world. After all He created us.
• “…that He gave…” — a free gift; no payment required! (Because no payment would be adequate.)
• “…His only Son…” — God Himself became one of us so that He could qualify to pay all the debt for all of the sins of all of humanity for all time.
• “…so that WHOEVER believes in the Son…” — whose belief is a deeply-held conviction.
• “…should not perish…” — your sins and my sins exchanged for His righteousness.
• “…but have eternal life.” — in heaven — a place of perfection and joy beyond our imagination!

⁹ The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

¹¹ And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. ¹² Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5:11~12)

So, here are our marching orders:

Find a way to comfort others!

Nearly a decade ago, I began writing internet posts about things I had learned. I had no idea that God would actually use the things I wrote. Now, this blog has become my way of pouring into others the wisdom God has so patiently poured into me.

- Jan