OCCUPY…. God-street

A few months ago, I preached through a sermon series entitled “Why Israel Matters… to You!” in which we looked at the scriptural basis for “Christian zionism” and the everlasting covenants made by God with His chosen people, topics which are very important in our understanding of not only current events, but also for gaining insight into and understanding of our own blood-covenant relationship with God through Jesus. From time to time, most Christians (including me) wrestle with some deep theological question about their salvation and their covenant standing with God. Some of these questions are doubts raised by the “accuser of the brethren” like: “Am I really saved?” while other questions arise from faith-filled study of scripture as we desire to plumb the depth of grace and gain the peace an assurance that comes from His Spirit witnessing with our spirit that we are truly His child! Perhaps most troubling are the questions that arise from our experiences and observations of other people we know and love that we once identified as being members of God’s family but who no longer serve Him. When we see people who seemed to be very sincere in their faith and very secure in their salvation fall away from God into continuing sinful lifestyles or false teachings, we are forced to ask hard questions like “Were they really saved?” or “Can a truly saved person lose their salvation?” Throughout the ages, people have formulated doctrines to answer these serious questions, and many are very satisfied with their “positions” regarding them. I will not try and debate any of them here today. What I do want to do is perhaps add some insight gained from the “Israel” study that helped me with my individual theological wrestling match.



While studying a book on Israel, I came across this line ..."The ownership of the land is unconditional, but the occupancy of the land is conditional." In other words, ever since the day God gave His word to Abraham (Gen 12:7) the land has been, and will always be, "owned" by the Jews, Abraham’s descendants through Isaac and Jacob (Israel). They didn’t do anything to get it! Their “ownership” is totally a result of God's unconditional promise to them as heirs of the covenant. However, their occupancy was conditional: they had to obey God and stay in faith, not worshipping false gods, etc. When they failed to “keep the faith” they were "put out" for a while, sometimes centuries! But God always brings them back since the land is really theirs. (Of course, the individual people who were “put out” often died in exile, and it was only their descendants who actually returned to claim the promise.)



I began to think about how that principle applies to our salvation, inheritance as saints, our identity - our “son-ship” as heirs of the new covenant. We didn’t (and can’t) do anything to get it or earn it or keep it. Our son-ship is unconditional based God’s grace expressed in the new covenant and received by faith. But the occupancy of our son-ship is up to us. Think about the prodigal son - he never stopped being a son, but he did choose to be out of his fathers' blessing, protection, and benefits; in effect he was not occupying his "son-ship." Instead of using his position in positive pursuits he squandered his inheritance on activities that brought disgrace to his father’s house and eventually almost destroyed him. Finally, he comes to his senses and returns home with a plan to be a servant, only to be royally welcomed and completely restored as a son! This may be why Paul writes that an unrepentant Christian in the church should "handed over to Satan for a time," (i.e. lose occupancy) so that perhaps he might gain the same revelation that the prodigal son got while in the pig-pen and return to his rightful position in God’s household.



Now the "hypothetical" question that everyone wants to ask is: What would happen to that fellow if during the time he was unrepentant, living in sin and "handed over to Satan" - if during that time of “non-occupancy”- he died? What would be his eternal outcome? I can not answer that question with surety. (Although people from both sides of this doctrinal debate will say without hesitation that they absolutely know the right answer!) What I do know is this: the Judge of the whole earth will judge righteously! Can I say this? It might not be important for me to know the answer to that question. Instead, what is important for me (us?) to know is this. God is faithful. He is faithful to His covenants. In Christ I am an heir. Through Him, I own all the benefits of son-ship. As a human being created in God’s image, I have been given freewill. I exercised that will when I chose to agree with God about my sinfulness and my need for salvation. Long before I made that choice, in His sovereignty, God chose me and paid for my sins on the cross and then drew me to Himself by grace and enabled me to hear and receive the gospel. I then chose to believe in Jesus’ sacrificial death and victorious resurrection and rely solely on His grace to save me. In that moment I became a son. Since becoming a son, I have not lost my freewill. I, like the prodigal son and the Israelites of old, can choose to reject God’s ways and spurn the occupancy of the covenant promise and thus live outside of it even though it is mine. I do not know the full eternal ramifications of what that choice would bring, but I do know I do not want to live outside my son-ship… permanently or temporarily. I want to both own and occupy my position as a son continually! So I choose to live by faith and walk by faith, which is expressed and revealed by trust in, and obedience to, God.



Perhaps thinking through this with me will help someone. On the other hand, maybe I just muddied up the waters for you. I hope not. I hope you, like me, have decided that what is important is not a doctrinal “side” but a positional reality; not a hypothetical discussion but a real relationship. So whatever background you came from, or wherever you find yourself today, anchor into the unchanging faithfulness of God. If you are son at home… stay home and enjoy your son-ship! If you are a son starving in a far-country pig pen… come home! If you have never been a son, all you need to do to become one is believe and receive!



Occupy ….what you own!