#DailyDevotion The Joy Of Being Helpless
Romans 5:6-11 6At the right time, while we were still helpless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7A man will hardly die for a righteous person; oh, for a kind person someone may dare to die. 8But God shows how He loves us by this, that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. 9Now that His blood has declared us righteous, we are all the more certain He will save us from God’s anger. 10If while we were His enemies we were made God’s friends by the death of His Son, now that we are His friends we are all the more certain He will save us by His life. 11More than that, we rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has now given us this friendship.
At the right time, the Kairos (in Greek), calls to mind Jesus’ words from last Sunday’s Gospel lesson from Mark 1:15 “The time has come, and God’s kingdom is here.” The timing wasn’t circumstance. It was planned by God. God’s salvation for mankind, for you, occurred at the right time. At this right time what is and was your state before God? You were helpless, weak, impudent. You could do nothing to save yourself. You could contribute nothing to your salvation. You were impious, ungodly which is juxtaposed with helpless telling being ungodly and being helpless go together. Had you been godly you wouldn’t be helpless. But as it is, you were helpless and ungodly.
I take great comfort in this. You may be scratching your head wondering why. Well if I was helpless and could do nothing to save myself, then I can rest most assuredly in the work of Jesus Christ. If I had to power to do something and I didn’t, then I most assuredly be damned. I would have messed it up, fallen short and I’m pretty certain I have already messed it up and fallen short. But Jesus has not messed up nor fallen short. His work of salvation for me is perfect and complete.
Not only was I helpless and ungodly, Paul says I was a sinner and an enemy of God. I thank God that these things are past tense. But when I came into the world I was indeed all these things. I had nothing to offer God nor could I do so. My salvation, your salvation, the salvation of all people depends solely and only on the work of God in Christ Jesus.
So what did Christ do? He died for the helpless, ungodly and sinners. The great love of God moved him to send Jesus to die for us, in our place, the death we deserve (the wages of sin is death). We then get this now and not yet from St. Paul. Now we are declared righteous, justified by the blood of Christ. Now are God’s friends by the death of his son. This is all God’s doing. It does not depend upon me. Then, at the eschaton (Last Day) we will be saved from God’s wrath. Then, we will be saved by his life. Our translation says we have been made God’s friends, but this is really an interpretation of being reconciled to God. The Father has reconciled us to himself by the death of Jesus. We rejoice in this reconciliation in that God no longer holds our trespasses against us. We can rejoice now knowing God is no longer angry with us because of our sins and will not hold them against us on the Last Day. Our salvation is most definitely only and solely the work of God in Christ Jesus.
Heavenly Father, when we were helpless, ungodly, sinners and your enemies, your great love for us sent your only begotten son into the world to bear our flesh and in this flesh obtain justification and reconciliation for us. Grant us you Holy Spirit that we may believe this and rejoice in it always. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.