Rich Provision in Jesus Christ

"Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." -1 Corinthians 6:9-11

In our day, such biblical passages such as the one above are condemned as being judgmental; indeed they are, but rightfully so (John 7:24). During a St. Patrick's Day local festival last month, I took God's Word to the street in an area where a saint of God is being celebrated with leprechauns, pots of gold, and drunken debauchery. While my wife and others with us were handing out gospel tracts, a man who walked past me became angry about what I was preaching and thought I was being judgmental for calling people to repent of their sins. He told me that 1: he was a Roman Catholic 2: he along with everyone else didn't want to hear the message I was preaching 3: everyone seeks for God on their own and didn't need someone to tell them how to be saved 4: he then showed me his religious tattoos to somehow authenticate himself and convince me of his beliefs. I told him that no one seeks for God on their own but he did not want to hear it and proceeded to tell me to read my Bible. Then he walked away and I urged him one last time to turn to Christ and live. Indeed, unless that man repents of his reviling God's Word, he will perish in his sins (Luke 13:3).

The Apostle Paul reminds us, however, that although such unrepentant people will not inherit the kingdom of God, he tells us that we (Christians) were once in that dark spiritual state and Jesus Christ has cleansed us from our sins and justified us in His sight (v. 11). As Christians, we are not better than non-Christians, but because of God's unmerited mercy and sovereign electing grace upon us, we are better off (Eph. 2:4-6). It is His hands that holds us in His love and secures for us a place in heaven (John 10:28-29; Col. 1:5). Indeed, if we could lose salvation, we all would. Glory be to God who is rich in mercy and love, to whom we can boldly come to His throne of grace to confess our sins (1 John 1:9) and enjoy everything that He has richly provided for us in Christ (1 Tim. 6:17; Titus 3:6).