There is a danger in every life to see virtue and pass over vice. And in most lives there is much more virtue than vice. We are likely as moral, truthful, and dependable as the next fellow—possibly more so. We are good husbands, wives, parents, citizens, workers, and teammates. Others are pleased, impressed, and complimentary of us. We may be administrators, enablers, and counselors. We may be helpers of the downtrodden, lovers of mankind, and comforters of those who hurt. But all this is all beside the point.

Have we ever sinned? is the question. Do we still sin? is the fol-low-up. No amount of virtue erases the smallest sin. Only the blood of Christ can accomplish that (Romans 5:9; 1 Peter 1:19; 1 John 1:7; Revelation 1:5). Morality is no substitute for obedi-ence. No one has kept the New Testament law perfectly (cf. James 2:10). No person is good enough to deserve salvation (Titus 3:5–7). Even if we pay our taxes, love our families, work hard at our jobs, and help neighbors in need, we still must obey God.

The Bible pictures a sinful person as

• dead (Ephesians 2:1);
• in darkness (Colossians 1:13–14);
• estranged (Isaiah 59:1–2; cf. 2 Corinthians 5:19–21);
• sold into sin (1 Peter 1:18–19);
• lost (Luke 15:l21);
• guilty (Romans 3:26);
• and in bondage (John 8:32).

The only One wise enough, powerful enough, and patient enough to figure out and correct this chaos is Christ (1 Corinthians 1:24; Matthew 28:18; 2 Peter 3:9). Only “in Christ” can we be made anew (2 Corinthians 5:17). Those in Hurricane Katrina’s path were without power for weeks. Have you considered that with Jesus, we are never “without power?” With Him, we have power to:

• be saved (Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 15:1–4).
• save others (1 Timothy 4:16; James 5:19–20; Jude 23).
• be comforted (2 Corinthians 1:3–4; 4:17–18).
• comfort others (2 Corinthians 1:3–4; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).
• defeat the devil (Ephesians 6:11; James 4:7; Revelation 12:11; cf. Revelation 7:14).
• pray and be heard (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1).
• endure all things (Philippians 4:13; 2 Corinthians 4:8-11, 17–18).¹

The Kingdom of God is filled with “poverty-stricken million-aires.” Jesus launched the greatest sermon ever preached with this opening volley: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Salvation is only for those who are poor in spirit. The Greeks had two words for poor, penes and ptochos. If a man was a common, ordinary person who had to work hard to make ends meet, he was penes. By working hard, he got by. But Jesus did not say, “Blessed are the penes in spirit,” but “Blessed are the ptochos in spirit.”

This second word pictures extreme poverty. It comes from a verb meaning “to crouch like a beggar.”² It is the word translated “beggar” in the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:20). It is the word used of the poor widow whose total possessions amounted to two mites (Mark 12:42–43). It is the word used of the poor man who was rudely treated in the assembly (James 2:2–3). Ptochos does not refer to someone who can work hard to make ends meet; it describes one who is totally dependent on others’ help for life’s necessities. Spiritually, it pictures man’s soul as desperate, destitute, and helpless. Jesus is simply saying, “Blessed are those who freely admit their spiritual poverty, spiritual inadequacy, and spiritual destitution. Blessed are those who see themselves as they really are—spiritually bankrupt.”

Step 2: SUBMIT to the precepts of the Savior (James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:5–6). Obedience is a response of love. Take, for in-stance, a woman who was married to a man she really didn’t love. He was very demanding, so much so that he prepared a list of rules and tasks for her each day. His “do’s and don’ts” had details, such as what time she was to get up in the morning, when his breakfast should be served, and how the housework should be done. After many long years, he died. She fell in love with an-other man who dearly loved her and they were married. He did everything he could to make her happy, continually showering her with love. One day as she was cleaning house, she found tucked away in a drawer a list of commands her first husband had drawn up for her. As she read it, it dawned on her that even though her present husband hadn’t given her any kind of list, she was doing everything for him her first husband had required. Her devotion to him made it her desire to please him.³ It is the same when we fall in love with Jesus. He said, “If you love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15).

Jesus wants to save everyone, but not all will be saved. Why? Because many will not submit to Jesus’ requirements (Hebrews 5:8-9). In 1830, a man named George Wilson was convicted of killing a government employee while robbing the U.S. Mail. He was tried and sentenced to be hanged. Andrew Jackson, then the President, issued a pardon for Wilson, but Wilson did a strange thing: he refused to accept the pardon. No one seemed to know what to do. The matter went to Chief Justice Marshall, one of greatest Chief Justices in American history, and he concluded that Wilson must be executed. “A pardon is a slip of paper,” wrote Marshall, “the value of which is determined by the acceptance of the person to be pardoned. If it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must be hanged.” And he was.⁴

Footnotes:

¹Todd Clippard, GospelPreachers Email, 2 September 05.
²Strong defines this word, “beggar, pauper” (62).
³Author unknown
⁴George Maronge, Jr., Birmingham, Alabama. Leadership, Vol. 12, no. 3.