The Fool is Dead in Spirit and in Truth
By Jeremy Bell
God gives an amazing amount of freedom to people. The expressions of honoring Him are endlessly creative. Because of the broken relationship with Him in this existence, there is often disagreement about those expressions. It is important to remember that there are many agreements about God among all believers. While expressions of teaching, reproof, correction, training, and application may vary, the fundamental truths are agreed on. When believers remember Jesus as their source of truth and the fundamentals of what this means, they are more easily united in celebrating their diverse expressions. Teaching, reproof, correction, and training can be administered in love. The church unifies to worship in spirit and truth.
In Psalm 53 there is support that people have the ability to do good things during their lives, but they are unable to repair or establish relationship with God. God alone reaches out. All people from all of time need Gods help. The human condition is desperate. Salvation is only by grace through faith alone. Of these things all Christians agree. The great and wonderful news is that God does respond to the desperate and God freely gives grace! Fools reject God and in them, death is the father in spirit and in truth without cause for hope. But for the Christian, though they must be patient, there is every reason to joyfully worship in spirit and truth.
From my book, Psalms in Motif Visualization, I have highlighted some passages of Psalm 53 that support grace through faith alone and the universal desperate condition of humans to connect with God.
[ Psalm 53 ]
For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Mahalath.” A contemplation by David.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity.
There is no one who does good.
God looks down from heaven on the children of men,
to see if there are any who understood,
who seek after God.
Every one of them has gone back.
They have become filthy together.
There is no one who does good, no, not one.
Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge,
who eat up my people as they eat bread,
and don’t call on God?
There they were in great fear, where no fear was,
for God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you.
You have put them to shame,
because God has rejected them.
Oh that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion!
When God brings back his people from captivity,
then Jacob shall rejoice,
and Israel shall be glad.
Read what Paul and Peter had to say when referencing this Psalm.
[ Romans 3: 9 – 12, 19 – 20 ]
Jews and Greeks are all under sin. As it is written,
“There is no one righteous;
no, not one.
There is no one who understands.
There is no one who seeks after God.
They have all turned away.
They have together become unprofitable.
There is no one who does good,
no, not so much as one.”
Now we know that whatever things the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may be brought under the judgment of God. Because by the works of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight; for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.
[ Romans 5: 1 – 3 ]
Justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; through whom we also have our access by faith into this grace in which we stand. We rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
[ Romans 5: 9 – 10 ]
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we will be saved from God’s wrath through him. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we will be saved by his life.
[ 2 Peter 2: 5, 2 Peter 2: 9 ]
(God) didn’t spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah with seven others, a preacher of righteousness, when he brought a flood on the world of the ungodly; (…) The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment.
[ 2 Peter 3: 2 – 13 ]
You should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior: knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” For this they willfully forget that there were heavens from of old, and an earth formed out of water and amid water by the word of God, by which means the world that existed then, being overflowed with water, perished. But the heavens that exist now and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
But don’t forget this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but he is patient with us, not wishing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
Therefore since all these things will be destroyed like this, what kind of people ought you to be in holy living and godliness, looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, which will cause the burning heavens to be dissolved, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
Fear, the Actions of Jesus, and God’s Love
There are some encamped against the Lord, against Jesus. Violence against good is born out of fear. Jesus came to heal and forgive, and the leaders feared when there was no fear. But the leaders and protestors were not unrighteous alone, no one understood, or understands. At some point in every person’s life, they declare that there is no God. It is foolish. Jesus puts us to shame. He loves the enemy we hate. He heals the sick we are repelled from. Jesus lays His life down for those who hate Him. He prays for forgiveness while unjustly suffering. He is able to perfectly accomplish what people cannot. Prideful fear will keep one from God, healthy fear will drive one to worship in spirit and truth.
God Loves His Enemies
While we were still sinners, God showed his love for us by the death of Jesus. It is a free gift of payment for sin, a free gift of a righteous life, a free gift of eternal life with essence of love, joy, and peace. Repent, turn to God as savior, as author, as king of your life and fear will dissipate. Salvation is past, present, and future. Don’t think repentance ends in one prayer. People are brought to the Father in Jesus the son by the power of the Holy Spirit. Determine to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit daily, join with other believers to express your worship in spirit and truth. Joining with Jesus, yielding life to Jesus, is joining to the essence of love, peace, and the Nature of Joy forever.
Resources and Notes
All scripture in this article is from the WORLD ENGLISH BIBLE (WEB). The World English Bible (WEB) is a Public Domain (no copyright) Modern English translation of the Holy Bible. The World English Bible is based on the American Standard Version of the Holy Bible first published in 1901, the Biblia Hebraica Stutgartensa Old Testament, and the Greek Majority Text New Testament.
For more related to this blog, check out my post on Practical Life Strategy Steps Created in Root Cause Abundance.
This is a reliable translation, but it is always good to read other translations as well. Biblegateway.com has a multitude of translations to read from. It is a great resource.
Another great resource is Biblehub.com. There are multiple translations, commentaries, and so much more. Great research can be done on this platform.
One more I use regularly is Gotquestions.org. This is a great site to answer questions and find threads of related questions.
There are many resources. The key is that God wants relationship directly with you, the individual. His primary source for revealing who He is and growing in intimacy is His word, the scriptures. Don’t just read for instruction. Analyze and read for understanding. Explore, ask questions, and be transformed in Jesus every moment you possibly can. There is no dispute this is a key desire of God. People are brough to the Father, in the Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. This… This is the Nature of Joy.
Jeremy is an author, musician, and business intelligence manager. His mission is to equip and encourage those in Christ, to equip and encourage others in Christ. Jesus, Christ, is the Nature of Joy and melody of the heart. Jeremy unites business analytics (business intelligence), songs, and Scripture for Christian living in the power of the Holy Spirit.