1 Corinthians 6:11

.pdf with chords (to play in D capo 2, chords are D G D Bm A Bm G D A D G A G A D)

And these things were some of you;
but you were washed,
but you were sanctified,
but you were justified
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ
and in the Spirit of our God.

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This verse really touched me a couple of years back, and so I wanted to write a song to help me to remember it. It turned out, that the song also helped me to enjoy it more!

We aren’t interested in the so-called “sugar-coated” gospel that attempts to present something from the Bible that is easy to take, by twisting, glossing over, or ignoring certain portions of the Word. We want the truth. As a result, there are certain portions that are initially hard to digest, but when we do, the supply we get is so much richer, so much higher. This is the gospel of the kingdom. The demand is impossibly high, but the supply to meet that demand is also impossibly high, and more than sufficient. What is impossible with man is possible with God (Matt. 19:26).

The gospel according to Matthew speaks much concerning the kingdom of God. A good example to show how the demand of the kingdom is impossibly high is in Matthew chapter 5. Verses 17-48 are concerning the law of the kingdom people. Previously, the commandment was “do not murder”. The new requirement is “do not be angry” (v22). Previously it was “do not commit adultery”. The new requirement is “do not even look at a woman to lust after her” (v28). From these (and more) examples, we see that the new requirement is not satisfied by outward action; the Lord is looking at our inner being. He cares for our heart, because He wants to dwell there (Eph. 3:17). It would seem that none of us have any hope. But when God presents us with a demand, He also presents us with Himself as the supply to meet that demand. We can see this in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be led astray; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor effeminate nor homosexuals
10 Nor thieves nor the covetous, not drunkards, not revilers, not the rapacious will inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And these things were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

If we apply the principle we have seen in Matthew chapter 5, the list of things in verses 9 and 10 can no longer be skipped over as if we’re all OK. I once heard someone say, “we were all bitten by the same snake”. If we see this, none of us will ever have that “holier-than-thou” attitude. We are sinners not because of what we have done, but because of what we are. No matter how good we are, we can never meet the requirement of the kingdom…unless, we go on to verse 11!

Here we see the supply to meet the demand is God Himself. We were washed. We were sanctified, which is to be made holy, set apart unto God. We were justified, which is to be approved according to God’s(!!!) standard of righteousness. But this is not in ourself, and we know from our experience that it cannot be in ourself. This is real in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that is, in His person, and in an organic union with Him through believing INTO Him (John 3:16). This is real in the Spirit of our God, who is indwelling our human spirit to be one spirit with us (1 Cor. 6:17). I don’t have the words to express how wonderful this is. He has opened the way for us to be one with Him! In this way, what was impossible is not only possible, but our real experience in our daily living! Hallelujah!

Now, to clarify some things. Suppose a saved believer didn’t enjoy this highest supply, and as a result lived a substandard life. Their eternal salvation is secure already. They won’t participate in the lake of fire (“hell”). However, there is also such a thing as a kingdom reward, which they also won’t participate in. Instead, there will be a limited time of punishment, before time ends and eternity future begins. It is important to differentiate between eternal punishment and the kingdom reward/punishment, or else we may fall into erroneous teachings. The two extremes are “I might lose my salvation” and “I can live however I want now, because I’ve got my ticket to heaven”. Let’s not be extreme. The truth is balanced, and so must we be. Yes, we are saved eternally, praise the Lord for His great mercy and grace! AND, let’s pursue Him and enjoy Him as our supply day by day so we can live in the reality of His kingdom today, and participate in the enjoyment of the kingdom reward at His second coming! Hallelujah!