Justice, Mercy, and the Role of Intercession (Part 1)

I would like to share a little about what I have been learning, but it is too much to write in one blog. Instead, I am going to divide it into several different parts to make it more manageable and easier to read. Stick with me! Eventually, the principles I am setting up will come together. Keep an eye out for updates.

Unconditional Love, Conditional Forgiveness
Jesus' death atones for our sins, and offers us forgiveness and restoration with God. His perfect life laid down is a suitable sacrifice to satisfied the conditions of justice (equal penalty to the value of the loss due to the crime). This forgiveness is given freely, but that does not mean that there are not condition for which this forgiveness can be received. In fact, it would be unloving and foolish for God to remove consequences for those who insisted on continuing on in rebellion and sin.
Imagine you are in a court room and a trial is going on. The prosecution lays out the evidence, and it becomes apparent that the defendant is a mass murderer and there is no denying it. Even the defendant confesses to the crimes without remorse, claiming that if he is released, he will continue to commit murder over and over again. Wouldn't it be foolish for the judge to release the man and to claim that it was the most loving thing to erase the penalty of his crime? Other valuable lives would be at risk with this evil man on the streets. Individuals would face death for the forgiveness of one man who wasn't even sorry or willing to change.
In this same manner, God is not foolish. Jesus has freely given us His life and taken our penalty upon Himself, but that does not give the world a free ticket to continue on in rebellion and sin without consequence. God is still a righteous King and Judge. He always desires to give mercy over judgment, but he is not foolish. He will only do so when we have given Him the freedom to transform our lives through our submission to His Lordship and the work of the Holy Spirit. His forgiveness is given freely. Jesus willingly laid down His life, but God's justice will not allow us to continue on in rebellion (as individuals or as a nation). He values us and the lives of those whom our sin affects too much to let it go on. Hallelujah that we have a God who is willing to defend and fight for those He loves.
Paul explains in Romans 6 that the grace shown through Christ glorifies God, but that this grace is not a license for us to sin. "What should we say then? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may multiply? Absolutely not! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Or are you unaware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore, we are buried with Him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in a new way of life" (Romans 6:1-4). Jesus and the apostles taught that we must repent and turn to the Lord as conditions for salvation. Peter says in Acts 3:19, "Therefore, repent and turn back to the Lord, so that your sins may be wiped out so that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." God's forgiveness comes to a willing heart that has made Him the Lord and the Boss of their life. And even though we all come to Christ selfishly at first (how could we otherwise?), we must submit ourselves to His Lordship, recognizing His right to our life. This isn't to say that if we struggle with sin, God won't forgive us. It has to do with the condition of the heart, the recognition of the Lordship of Christ, and a willingness to submit to His authority. So let us all bow down and yeild our lives to the transformation of the Holy Spirit. With a willing, submitted heart, He will bring revival to my soul. If we do this together, He will bring revival to the nation, for it will truly be loving for Him to give mercy rather than judgment.