Rev. Don Campbell
THOUGHT FOR TODAY, MAY 3, 2017: THE AGE OF “INSTANTS”
In our fast-paced world, we don’t have time to brew the coffee, cook the oatmeal, or peel, cook, and mash the potatoes; but fear not, we won’t go hungry. The grocery shelves are lined with “instants” for all of these. All one has to do is add water. This gave Yakov Smirnoff, a Russian stand-up comedian, who immigrated to this country in 1977 at the age of 26, the opportunity for a lucrative career based on his supposed limited understanding of English and the wide variety of instant products available. Smirnoff says, “On my first shopping trip, I saw powdered milk—just add water, and you get milk. I then saw powdered orange juice—just add water, and you get orange juice. I then saw baby powder, and I thought to myself, “What a country!”
The “age of instants” has invaded the church: forgiveness without repentance, maturity without work, and security without sacrifice. All of these are promised by peddlers of cheap grace; because, they say, Christ has done all the work and there is nothing for us to do. It is true that the work of Christ on the cross—often referred to as his finished work—and that work alone justifies sinners; for we read: “However, this chief priest made one sacrifice for sins, and this sacrifice lasts forever. Then he received the highest position in heaven. Since that time, he has been waiting for his enemies to be made his footstool. With one sacrifice he accomplished the work of setting them apart for God forever” (Heb 10:12-14, God’s Word Version).
This work saves us and sets us apart for God, but for what purpose? Hear Paul words to his Jewish brethren: “Likewise, my brothers, you also have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead, in order that we may bear fruit for God” (Rom 7:4, ESV). We Gentiles did not need to die to the law, because we were never wed to it, but in Christ there is neither Jew nor Gentile, and we are all wed to Christ that we might bring forth fruit.
