by Pastor John Kim

To the LBC family and friends,

Jonathan Edwards Resolution #51
Resolved, that I will act so, in every respect, as I think I shall wish I had done, if I should at last be damned. (July 8, 1723)

There is a very unsettling notion that comes with thinking about what it would be like if I knew that I would have to face God’s judgment in hell for eternity. While this is something that we might intellectually assent to, it is a whole different thing to live in such a way that would respond to the reality of it. The reality of our sin should help us see that the ultimate penalty for it is eternal condemnation. It is the just and fair judgment of God. You might want to say that it’s not a matter of just or unjust or fair or unfair, that it is simply God’s prerogative but it is not something you can just put aside so casually. It really is a matter of God being just and fair because to sin against an eternal God calls for a serious penalty. We don’t use the word “damned” today in the same way that Edwards intends – it is really more of a cuss word that people use too casually when in fact it really has a very serious meaning that the whole world needs to consider. It is to face the wrath of a just and holy God that would righteously judge us in our sinfulness and banish us to eternal hell as a penalty. This should not be something that we take lightly.

As Christians we know that we have been saved from condemnation yet we still find ourselves often playing with sin in such a way that we forget what it would lead to apart from Christ having saved us from the condemnation of sin. Yet at the same time it shouldn’t cause us to live in such a way that takes grace for granted and minimizes the seriousness of sin. I think we all do this to some extent and it can be very scary to see how far we can go in sinning.

I think this is why Edwards makes it something that we need to keep in mind because we forget what we have been saved from and we sometimes think that it’s no big deal to sin, even in little ways.

Be challenged to consider this the next time you take sin lightly.

In His grace,
Pastor John