It's Not About You; It's About Jesus For You

For anyone who has listened to the weekday radio program, Issues, Etc., those are familiar words. I enjoy listening to this Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod affiliated program, because Todd Wilken is a good host and interviewer, and the program has relevant topics from a unique (for me) perspective.

This past January 14th had a segment on the topic of "decision theology."[1] Todd was interviewing Bryan Wolfmueller, pastor of Hope Lutheran, Aurora, CO who related the follow comments.

The question that [Lutherans] ask is not, "Have you made a decision for Jesus?" but rather "Has Jesus made a decision for you?" The question is not, "Have you accepted Jesus into your heart?" but rather "Has Jesus accepted you into his heart?" The question is not "Have you given your whole life for God?" but rather "Has God given his whole life for you?". . . It's Jesus who's done it all. It's Jesus who won [our] salvation. It's Jesus who's made the way to heaven open for [us]. And to know that, to know the answer that, yes, even though my faith wavers, even though I have doubts and I have questions, yes, Jesus has given himself to me. Yes, he has prayed for me. Yes, he has poured out his life and his blood so that I would be his and my sins would be forgiven. And there's no question, there's no doubt, there's no room for wondering there. It's just this absolutely wonderful, forgiving, confidence-building assurance that I am the child of God.

That gave me pause. A potential problem of decision theology is the notion that, since I had to actively decide for Christ, then I must constantly be working as if the work of atonement secured on the cross was not complete. We question ourselves out of uncertainty and find either Bible verses lifted out of context or "helpful" brethren instructing us on all that must be done externally to continue in righteousness. The Law of Moses gets replaced by the Law of "First Pious Church of the Only True Brethren." Eventually, we wrap ourselves in a cocoon of laws and obligations to keep the world out or implode under the burden and walk away from it all. What we need to remember is that the work is done. There is no more atoning work left. The Lord has done it all.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1-4)

[1] Arising out of a reaction to the Reformed teaching on predestination (see "Election"), advocates teach that man is saved and born-again when he makes a decision to accept Jesus Christ (see "Arminianism"). Taken from http://www.mtio.com/articles/aissar101.htm.