By Robin Sam
SEVERAL years ago when I was working in a US company that has presence in India I went through a turbulent phase in my life – that was the time when some events threatened to blow my reputation and standing in my profession. It was during that dark hour of my life that I came across this verse in Romans 8:33. The verse swept me off my feet, lifted up my spirit and changed the way I perceived God and related to Him. Before this, I knew God as my Creator, Saviour, Healer, Father and Counsellor, but that God could be my Defender and the One who lifts up my head was not fully known to me. To put it in other words, the experience of God moving things and people to defend my honour was something new to me before I came across Romans 8:33. I’ll share more about this relating to my testimony sometime later, if God allows.
Romans 8:33 says: ‘Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.’ There are three persons mentioned in this verse: God, God’s elect and the accuser (the one who brings up charges). We’re going to examine each one of the persons listed in the verse for a better understanding of God’s character and His purposes for those He has called.
GOD
He does not condemn us: It is not in God’s nature to charge or condemn anybody. John 3:16 is a verse that is universally the favourite with Christians and non-Christians alike. It is one of the most-quoted verses in the Bible – one that has generated several hundreds of thousands of sermons. I am sad the very next verse (John 3:17) is not as well-known. John 3:17 reveals the character of God the Father and the mission of God the Son. It says: ‘For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.’ In John 12:47, Jesus reiterated the same point when He said: ‘And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.’ While Jesus does not judge the one who does not believe His words even though he has heard them, those that have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ have an even better standing with Him. Romans 8 begins with a wonderful assurance for those that believe in Him. It says: ‘There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit (Romans 8:1). Our response to the wonderful promise in Christ should be, ‘Lord, make us worthy of your promise. Thank you, for we will not be condemned because we are in Christ. Help us to walk in the Spirit always.’
Yes, the Holy Spirit convicts us. That is His job. Jesus said this in John 16:8 about the Holy Spirit, ‘And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment…’ However, this conviction is different from the conviction of the legal system of the world. To understand the word ‘conviction’ better we need to look up John 16:8 in couple of other versions. The NIV has translated the verse thus: ‘When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment…’ The Message translation says, ‘When he comes, he’ll expose the error of the godless world’s view of sin, righteousness, and judgment…’
GOD’S ELECT
- Jesus Christ, God’s chosen: God accepts us as His children when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour. Through Jesus Christ, we come to the knowledge of God our Father. If we are children, then we are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, says Romans 8:17. Before God accepted us as His children, He elected Jesus Christ. Isaiah 42:1 says, ‘Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth.’ This was a prophecy given to the Israelites about the coming Messiah – Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ knew of His election. Jesus’s disciple Matthew, who wrote one of the Gospels, quoted this verse from Isaiah in Matthew 12:18 when he saw the impact of Christ’s ministry on earth. Apostle Peter likened Jesus Christ to a living stone in 2 Peter 2:4 and said even though He was rejected by men, Christ was chosen of God and therefore is precious.
- Israel, God’s chosen: The nation of Israel was chosen by God not because they were the greatest, the mightiest and the noblest of the human race at that point in world’s history. Moses grasped this truth and decided to let the people of Israel know about it in Deuteronomy 7:7, 8: ‘The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors…’ Israel’s election was because of God’s inexplicable love and His steadfastness to His own Word. Isaiah 41:8 says, ‘But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend…’ God chose Israel to make it a great nation, bless it and make it a blessing (Genesis 12:1-3). He chose Israel to bring the Messiah into the world. God’s desire for Israel is that it will be a nation of priests, prophets and ambassadors of Christ spreading the Good News to the world.
- The Church, God’s chosen: God chose the church – the congregation of the redeemed – for a purpose. Ephesians 1:4 says, ‘For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.’ That’s a tall order, yet by God’s grace we can be holy and blameless if we are washed by the blood of the lamb (1 John 1:7). We were chosen before the creation of the world, says the Bible. Think about it for a moment and you will be blown away by the awesomeness of the thought. Before He laid the foundations of the earth, He thought about you…………(Yes, you may write your name there!) Yes, it is true that when the Lord decided to confront Job out of the whirlwind in Job 38:4, He hit him like a ton of bricks when He asked him: ‘Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?’ Job was not born then. We were centuries away from life on the earth, yet the right answer to God’s question would be, ‘we were in God’s mind.’ While the weight of that wonderful thought sinks in us, we need to lift up our spirits and thank God for having us on His mind – even before He opened His mouth to command the world into being. (To read more, download the E-Mag here.)
