This comment was left in the comment section in regard to the Tim Keller quote about being poor in spirit. I thought I would move it to the front page because it is a good question.
Did he really say, 'if you are middle class in spirit, you cannot be saved?' Did he mean 'saved for eternity' or saved as in 'hopelessly lost in this world, but still saved for eternity'? I'm curious what you believe.
Yes, he really said, "if you are middle class in spirit, you cannot be saved." I cannot speak for him, but based on listening to his other sermons and listening to the sermon the quote came from, I think he means saved for eternity. Another quote of his that gives a little more clarity into what he is saying is, "The difference between a Christian and a Pharisee is a Christian has repented for his goodness."
I agree with Dr. Keller that a person cannot be saved unless they become poor in spirit. The gospel always crushes before it heals. The initial part of the gospel is not good news. To believe in the Savior, one must admit a need for the Savior.
Later in the sermon, Jesus says, "Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect." Poverty of spirit is required for salvation. Perfection is required for salvation. The sermon on the mount explains the perfect obedience required to see and know the Holy One.
Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones says, "The Sermon on the Mount, in other words, comes to us and says, "There is a mountain that you have to scale, the heights you have to climb; and the first thing you must realize, as you look at the mountain which you are told you must ascend, is that you cannot do it, that you are utterly incapable in and of yourself, and that any attempt to do it in your own strength is proof positive that you have not understood it."
The good news (the gospel) is Jesus has accomplished redemption for his people. Those who come to Christ admitting their best is nowhere near good enough are filled with his righteousness. Jesus was perfect. Jesus obeyed every 'dotted i' and 'crossed t' of the law and offers that righteousness to those who admit that cannot achieve it on their own. On the cross, he took our sin and gave us his righteousness. He became sin so we could become righteous.
Being poor in spirit is recognizing you cannot contribute to salvation. The message of the bible is, "Salvation belongs to the Lord. (Jonah 2:9)" It means unless God saves us we are hopeless.
I hopes this helps with answer the questions. I hope we can continue the conversation.
1 comments:
Danny, I wish you had also put your comment to Katie in this post as well. When I read the quote and the comments, I knew that a person would almost have to hear the quote in context of Keller's sermons to fully grasp what he is saying. I have told so many people that I never grasped the gospel of Christ until I began listening regularly to Tim Keller. And he has been an instrument God has used to write it on my heart. I always struggled with, what seemed to me, a contradiction between salvation being entirely of God and His grace, and all the places in scripture where there seem to be very stiff requirements to eternal life. Of course, I was taught from birth that God required MY literal perfection and that I had to be Jesus' equal in perfection in this life to "make it" to heaven. I remember singing that song, "The next step we take could lead us into perfection." It was such a corruption of the gospel. But it was all I knew. And therefore, I had no hope. When making choices on obedience, the thought was always in my mind that I could never measure up anyway, so "what difference did it make?" With that attitude, I could rationalize or justify not obeying (especially in what I considered little areas or things that would not hurt anyone but me). When choosing to obey now that I know the gospel, the only motivation is gratitude and wanting to glorify God. That is the freedom to obey you are describing. Before, it was all about me and my performance. Now, it is all about God and His glory. I'm so grateful I did not die believing the lies I was taught all my life.
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