Sin and Grace, Hot and Cold, Fear and Faith by Pastor Walter Snyder Q: I really have an odd type question but I am just trying to help my teenaged daughter with some information. If you are in sin, are you in God's grace? Would He still allow us to see Him or hear His voice? When the Bible says if we are neither hot or cold (Rev. 3:16), is that referring to us as if we are in sin? A: It may seem a cop-out, but the answer to your first question is, "Yes, but...." ~All~ Christians sin daily and "fall short of the glory of God. (Rom 3:23)" However, not all sin removes us from God's grace. Willfully sinning or stubbornly resisting correction do this, since by them we make it clear that we do not want God's grace. Faith in Christ saves us; only unbelief or open rebellion against the Lord damns. Believers commit many sins without abandoning the Christian Faith. Yet God's grace is still active since He so often brings us to swift contrition and repentance. This doesn't mean, as Paul rhetorically asked, that we should "continue in sin that grace may abound." The Christian who has this attitude soon moves into willful sin and stubborn impenitence. Rather, our sinning is a sad fact of our sorry existence. We cannot avoid it. However, God's grace for us in Christ is the most joyful fact of our lives. His grace abounds in spite of our sins, not because of them. The "lukewarm" who are in danger of being spit out (Rev 3:16) are those who claim Christ as Savior but who show none of the fruits of repentance. They resist loving their neighbors as themselves. They think and speak of being faithful but do little to show it. These are not hot (fully and passionately living a life of faith and love in thought, word, and deed). Nor are they cold (completely apart from Christianity). Like many of the Pharisees and like Paul's targets in 2 Timothy, they have "the appearance of godliness," but deny its power (2 Tim 3:2-5). They think they are without sin when actually it so fills them that they are almost incapable of any godly action. Thinking they are spiritually healthy, they avoid the Doctor who can cure their sickness. The "hot" know God and willingly seek His forgiveness. They know their spiritual needs and know that God meets them. The "cold," while not believers, are not hypocrites who fool themselves into thinking that they are fine without God's intervention. When God's Word meets them, they don't have the barriers of pride and false faith. It seems that God more often is able to "heat up the cold" into full, active faith than raise the temperature of the lukewarm even a few degrees. An extra bit from Pastor Snyder: By the time the ~Concordian~ is delivered on 17 December, I will, God willing, be in my first day post-op after extensive nasal surgery. Congenital problems have caused more than forty years of intermittent earaches and sinus headaches. An infection this fall pushed me into visiting an ENT specialist and discovering my prime candidacy for surgery. This marks the second time during adulthood that I've faced an elective operation. I become my own laboratory, investigating fear and faith, anxiety and anticipation. The Lord leads me through wrestling with all the "what ifs," including all those things that go wrong "one time in a million." Along with safe and successful surgery, I also fervently desire that God would use my pre-op struggles to help me comfort others who face similar or worse fears. Again God willing, I hope to have another column ready in a week, to be able to attend church on Sunday, enjoy the school Christmas program on Wednesday, and preach and celebrate the Sacrament on Christmas Day. If I get these, I'll get everything I'm asking for this year. Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from ~The Holy Bible, English Standard Version~, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles. Ask the Pastor, © 2003 by Walter P. Snyder. It may be reproduced in totality, including this disclaimer, by anyone, provided that no profit is generated by said republication and redistribution. Translations into other languages should similarly note the United States and any appropriate international copyrights, as well as God's Scriptural injunctions concerning the property of others. Walter Snyder is the pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Emma, Missouri and coauthor of the book "What Do Lutherans Believe."