Jesus calls us to enter His Kingdom as helpless dependents, like infants in arms. This challenges our notions of self-sufficiency. Wealth often hinders our ability to come to Christ in this manner, as illustrated by the rich young ruler. True faith isn't about what we bring to the table or our level of commitment, but about recognising our complete dependence on God's grace. This understanding radically alters how we approach salvation and our relationship with Christ.
The transition from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant brought a shift in emphasis from trust in the system of temple worship and sacrifices to a faith in the efficacy of the death of Christ on the cross. In the going past the emphasis on the temple sacrifices, God was teaching that sin still required a payment. While obedience remains important, the heart of Christianity is simple faith in God’s provision to overcome our sins. Faith is required everywhere throughout the Bible. This faith-centred approach doesn't negate the need for righteous living but recognises that our acceptance is based on belief rather than perfect conduct. The shift to the New Covenant is a time when God’s ultimate provision in the death of His Son bearing our sins has been made visible in the Gospel message. Jesus, having paid the ultimate price, is the rightful owner and most devoted lover of His Church. As believers, we must be cautious not to let worldly pursuits or self-reliance draw us away from our faith, even while our salvation remains secure in Christ.
"Not only in terms of physically, economically, in terms of your development of job and whatever. Do we have that same desire to be established? But I think it's true of us all as Christians, the part of what the Scriptures tell us in the book of Romans, the whole of the idea of the book of Romans is about not only coming to Christ, but also getting established."
"The judgement of God falling upon a particular place, two towns, Sodom and Gomorrah and their sin had come up before the Lord and so in the way the Bible expresses God to us God says let us go down and have a look or let us go and make a visit and there is a way of using language in the scriptures that talks about God coming and doing a visitation."