Having the Law is not Enough (Rm 2.13-15)
The impartiality of God’s judgement is under further consideration. The religious man (the Jew) might ask, “Aren’t we students (hearers) of the Law? Doesn’t that count for something?” The answer: No, hearing the Law (being a diligent student) isn’t enough. In fact, the sinners of the Gentiles have the Law in a sense by their understanding and performance of natural law. They have the work of the Law written in their hearts as evidenced by their consciences. So merely having, or hearing, any aspect of the Law is not enough. We still stand under the impartial judgement of God whereby all men, pagan, moralist, or religious man will face the judgement of sins. Our religion (whatever it might be) is not sufficient to make us just before God. We need Some One else for that.
Interpreter’s House
We come now to the point of salvation for Bunyan’s Christian, the entrance at the Wicket Gate. From the gate, Christian proceed’s to Interpreter’s House, a place where the Holy Spirit (or some say a preacher) guides the new believer through various rooms illustrating the things that make for a stable Christian life. Some are guides, like the illustration of the preacher (the ‘man in a thousand’) and others are warnings like the man in the iron cage and the man not prepared for judgement. All are meant to make a Christian stable.
The Head of Our Church (2) (Mt 16.18)
Not being satisfied with our message of the same name last week, our pastor offers another. The Lord Jesus is the authority of every church since the church is his idea and his creation. He it is who stands as examiner, corrector, exhorter, and encourager of His church. If our church will truly have Him as our head, we must submit ourselves to Him, allowing him to examine, rebuke, correct, and challenge every aspect of our lives.
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We had a good day with a few visitors (one of whom found us from our church web-site … yay!!!) and one young couple who just moved to the neighbourhood. Some of our folks were out of town and some sick, so we were glad to see a few extras and hope for their return.
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