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"I now send you, to open their eyes . . . that
they may receive forgiveness of sins . . ." Acts 26:17-18
This verse is the greatest example of the true essence of the message of a
disciple of Jesus Christ in all of the New Testament.
God's first sovereign work of grace is summed up in the words, ". . . that they
may receive forgiveness of sins . . . ." When a person fails in his personal
Christian life, it is usually because he has never received anything. The only
sign that a person is saved is that he has received something from Jesus Christ.
Our job as workers for God is to open people's eyes so that they may turn
themselves from darkness to light. But that is not salvation; it is
conversion-only the effort of an awakened human being. I do not think it is too
broad a statement to say that the majority of so-called Christians are like
this. Their eyes are open, but they have received nothing. Conversion is not
regeneration. This is a neglected fact in our preaching today. When a person is
born again, he knows that it is because he has received something as a gift from
Almighty God and not because of his own decision. People may make vows and
promises, and may be determined to follow through, but none of this is
salvation. Salvation means that we are brought to the place where we are able to
receive something from God on the authority of Jesus Christ, namely, forgiveness
of sins.
This is followed by God's second mighty work of grace: ". . . an inheritance
among those who are sanctified . . . ." In sanctification, the one who has been
born again deliberately gives up his right to himself to Jesus Christ, and
identifies himself entirely with God's ministry to others.
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