The Human Paradox

Good morning! I am sitting in the lobby of a Ramada Inn at my fiance's sorority banquet. I have decided to take the down time I have and do a little reading and writing. I have enjoyed my time here so far and am looking forward to a relaxing and enjoyable weekend.

I leave in 16 days for India. I cannot even believe it. In my last post, I asked that you begin to pray for the preparation process. I am going to add a few things to that list. We still have some people who have not raised all their money. Please pray that the Lord provides. Also, I found out that a few days of the trip we will be traveling to some of the paramount Hindu places of worship. These are such dark places, and we will need serious prayer as we try to bring light to these Hindu strongholds. I cannot give too many specifics about the trip, but if you want more, then email me. I will try and send you an update with more specific prayer requests.

In my last post, I talked about reading John Stott's book The Contemporary Christian. It has been a great book, and the topic of the last chapter I read brings me to writing today. In the first chapter, Stott talks about the Human Paradox. This paradox, as Stott testifies, is one between man's "dignity and depravity." I completely am on board with the depravity of man. At our core is a desire for evil and sin. We were sinful at birth, and only by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, has the penalty of our sin been lifted from us. However, even after we become followers of Christ, we still possess a nature that leans toward sin. That is why Paul battles that he doesn't do the good that he wants to but the bad he doesn't want to. We see throughout Scripture the desire for one to do good, but continually, drawn by a nature that is evil to do wrong. Thus, I am all on board with Total Depravity. However, my question of this paradox comes with the identification of the dignity of man.

Basically, the question I ponder is can man do good apart from God. To which I say, no way! However, we must look at this from two perspectives. The first with believers and the second with non-believers. John 15:5 addresses this issue with believers: "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." As believers, who abide in Him and He in us, we know that the only way "good" comes from our life is from guidance of the Father "who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose" (Php. 2:13). We as sin-natured creatures must rely fully on God to do good through us; thus, it is easy for me to understand this with believers and their "good" acts, but what about non-believers. How do you deal with those lost people who have achieved what society has deemed "great" things for the cause of justice, social reform, etc? What do we do about the lost people in the world who we know are not abiding in Christ nor Christ in them, yet perform "good" acts? Does a non-believer have the ability to perform good acts independent of the Father? If so, then what is the standard for good, and who sets it?

It has been established that man is sinful from birth; therefore, I believe that at the core of man is the desire to do evil. As believers, we understand acts of dignity or good acts as those that glorify the Father. Those acts that point to nothing of ourselves, others, or society but only Himself. This is not the case for a non-believer. Please don't read me wrong. I do believe that all acts of man (good or bad) ultimately glorify the Lord, whether in punishment of eternal hell or exaltation of Himself. That is clear from Psalm 46:10, "Be still, and know that I AM GOD; I WILL BE exalted among the nations, I WILL BE exalted in the earth." But, I do not believe that actions that non-believers perform that are labeled as good are considered good in God's eyes. When a lost person performs actions that are good what is the focus? Is it others, maybe selfishness, pride, betterment of society? I believe that these actions are good actions, that they do benefit society, and that I am eternally grateful for some of the work that was done; however, if the person performing the act is not pointing to the Father and their motive is not exaltation of Him, then it is not a good act because apart from Christ they do nothing.

Thus, my conclusion is that either God does not consider these acts good, or that in His Sovereignty, He controls the hearts, minds, actions of all people and utilizes the lost to achieve His plans: glorification of Himself and resultantly good and dignified acts. Therefore, all the good things of this world, whether done by lost or saved people are a byproduct of the Father. (This does not mean that a lost person can perform good deeds and be saved. I am not a universalist or pluralist. If you only knew me, then you would know this could not be further from the truth). Therefore, the paradox presented by Stott must be understood in light of all this: man possesses a sinful nature but at the same time desires for what is just, loving, and peaceful. He is depraved but desires dignity.

I am not sure if all of this makes sense. It sure is hard to understand it in my mind. I am in no way claiming to have this all figured out; therefore, any and all help and suggestions on this topic would be greatly appreciated and welcomed. Have a great day!

Waging war against the soul,
Tim <><