|
Editors
|
THE TYRANNY OF THE OUGHT
The
hindrance of experiencing the freedom of God’s grace in Christ is the “tyranny of the ought,” which is sometimes
called the tyranny of the should or must.
Satan is the secret tyrant. He implants in the mind the thought that is
so common in the world in which we live, “Nothing
is free.” For the most part this is true in the world. If something is
offered to you depicted as being free, beware!
There is probably a catch hidden somewhere in the offering. Everything must be earned is the world’s
philosophy: “You don’t get anything for
nothing.”
Therefore,
when God offers us salvation by free grace, made possible by the blood of
Christ, it is difficult for anyone entrenched with the “nothing is free” mindset to understand the truth of God’s gracious
offer. This is where the “tyranny of the ought” tries to maintain its hold on the
individual. Even if the first hurdle of accepting salvation as a free gift is overcome,
the thought may still remain, “I ought”
“I should” “I must be doing something to maintain God’s grace. If I don’t, God
may take it from me. I must prove my worthiness by doing some good works. Simply
believing can’t possibly be enough, there has to be more involved.”
None of us deserve anything from God. We
are all totally unworthy of His love. Sin is inbred in all of us. There is none
who is righteous, not even one, we are told in Romans 3:10. That is exactly why
grace comes into the picture. Grace is
undeserved favor prompted by (agape-Godly) love alone. This grace is
expressed for us in John
It is
important to recognize though that salvation
is not the same as discipleship. To
be a disciple of Jesus one does have to accept salvation as the first step, but
then he goes on to also accept the requirements Jesus has given if we would
become His disciple as outlined in Luke
9:23. “Then Jesus said to them all, “If anyone desires
to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow
Me.” There is a cost attached to being a disciple of Jesus.
But it is not under the “tyranny of ought.” It is
not motivated by guilty feelings or the weight of earning acceptance. Discipleship
is motivated by love for what Christ has done and wanting to glorify God.
The
Apostle James teaches that our faith is not passive, but active. In James 2:20 and 26, he tells us that “faith
without works is dead” or in Jesus words, “Not my will but Your will be done.” Faith
desires to be obedient and thereby glorify God. It is also important to realize
the source of our work. It is not doing what we think is pleasing to God, but rather it is allowing God to accomplish His work that He has begun in us through
Christ Jesus as directed by the Holy Spirit indwelling us. Note how this is
clearly pointed out to us in Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing,
that He (God) who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” And
again in Philippians
2:12-13: “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in
my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do
for His good pleasure.” It
is God’s work that we are to do, “For we
are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has
ordained that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). The secret in allowing
God to accomplish His purpose in each of us is clearly obedience to God’s will. What is it that He has started in us and
will fully accomplish? That principle work is conforming us to the image of Jesus.
2 Cor. 3:18: “And we, who with unveiled faces
all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into His likeness with
ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” He is well able to finish His work if we will be simply trust and obey!
We
read a sad account of some who did what they
thought were great things for the Lord in Matt. 7:21-23, but we see our Master’s stern reply to
them, “Not
everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who
is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive
out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you…” The lesson here is clear,
we must be certain that we are doing God’s will in God’s way and not our own good works!
Let
us also fully realize that faith’s works
are not accomplished by human effort, but are done in the power of the Lord’s Spirit. The Apostle Paul realized this when he said
in Philippians
4:13, “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”
Let us do likewise.
E.
Weeks