Imagine being transported to a great courtroom. Almighty God sits as Judge behind a towering desk; the prosecution table is to his left and the defense table is on his right. You identify Satan standing at the prosecution table, while a frightened-looking man sits alone at the defense table. The court clerk proclaims loudly, “Case #8032666.” The Great Judge responds, “Proceed.”
“Your…Honor,” Satan sneers at the judge as he motions toward the cowering defendant. “I know I don’t have to tell you all the sins the accused has committed. His sins of adultery alone are enough to convict him, not to mention his heritage from Adam. Exhibit A details the times and dates the accused lusted after women—65,243 times. To make matters worse, the lines marked in red on the chart show the occasions when the man’s lust led him to actual adultery. For example, in July 19—”
“All right, all right,” the man interrupts. “That’s enough.”
“How do you plead?” the Judge asks.
“Not guilty, Your Honor, because I do have a defense.”
“Proceed,” the Judge says with a nod.
“It really wasn’t my fault,” the man begins. “My secretary was a lonely woman, and what I did was out of a heart of compassion. You see, she was abused by her husband, and someone had to comfort her. I was there, and—”
“Immaterial!” Satan shouts. “It doesn’t matter why, Your Honor. The simple fact that he committed the deed is all that counts. His so-called reasons are mere excuses. This man’s a sinner.” He lifts a ream of paper into the air and shakes it. “And your law says, ‘The soul who sins will die’” (Ezekiel 18:4 NASB).
“I…I may be a sinner, but…I have another defense, Your Honor,” the accused stammers.
“Proceed,” the Judge states.
“I know you are fair and just,” he replies. “So I offer here all the good I have done throughout my life as a defense.” Three men entered, carrying large notebooks filled with paper. “I have compiled my noble deeds of kindness. I have recorded how I helped my fellow humans, gave some of my time and considerable sums of money to ease the suffering of others. Furthermore, I faithfully loved my second wife.” The man smiles proudly. “So, you see, my good deeds are many while my adulteries are few—by comparison, at least. Clearly the good far outweighs what little bad I’ve done.”
“Immaterial!” Satan shouts. He faces the man. “It doesn’t matter how much good you’ve done, you’re still a sinner. That’s all this court needs to know. And all sinners are mine!”
“No, I’m not!” the man objects.
“Oh yes, you are,” Satan retorts. “Let’s look at the heritage issue. Are you a son of Adam?”
“Of course,” the man answers. “All humans are. What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Everything!” Satan snaps. He speaks to the Judge without taking his eyes off the man. “Your Honor, I appeal to the eternal words of the court: ‘Sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned’” (Romans 5:12 NIV). He points to the man. “Good deeds can’t erase your sin, Mister, and nothing you can do will commute your death sentence!”
Satan turns to the Judge, an expression of smug satisfaction on his face. “I rest my case, Your Honor. You have no alternative but to administer justice and hand down a sentence of death.”
“So it is written,” the Great Judge states, certainty and sadness mingling in his voice. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). He bangs the gavel on his desk, and two demon guards enter and drag the man from the courtroom, slumped and sobbing bitterly. Satan follows, hissing at him all the way.
Suddenly you are ushered to the defense table, and you lower your head in shame at what you fear will be revealed.
The Judge reads from a sheet in front of him. “Case number 2308777.” He looks at you and says, “How do you plead?”
“Not guilty, Your Honor,” you answer.
“So entered,” says the Great Judge. “The prosecution may make its case.”
Satan strides forward, cocky, arrogant, his pitiless countenance exuding contempt and disdain. “So you think you’re innocent,” he sneers. “I happen to know otherwise. I have a long record of all your sins, and they are legion.” Satan proceeds to list your sins, one after the other—pride, envy, lust, greed, bursts of uncontrolled anger, hatred, selfishness—giving example after example of your worst sins. You hang your head in shame as the list goes on and on. Finally he stops, looks at the Great Judge, and says, “And Your Honor, these are things the defendant did in only one year.” Turning to you he says, “Shall I continue, or do you want to change your plea?”
“I stand by my plea,” you say.
Satan cackles in fiendish derision. “What kind of fool are you? You have no defense! According to the law, your birth as a sinner warrants your death. And to top that off, your list of sins would sink a battleship. You may as well quit wasting the court’s time. You have no possible defense, and it’s an outrage that you even pretend to be innocent.”
You stand and reply, “It’s true, I have no right to plead innocent. I would stand before this holy court condemned by my very nature and guilty in thought and deed of all you accuse me of. Except for one thing.”
“And just what could that one thing possibly be?” replies Satan, his voice dripping with snide contempt.
You swallow hard, drop to your knees, gaze up at the Judge, and cry out, “Mercy, Your Honor.” At that moment a figure you had somehow failed to notice stands up beside the Great Judge and makes his way toward you. He gives you a nod and a smile, indicating that you should continue. You clear your throat, stand to your feet, and continue. “I have sinned. I have been a slave to sin and death.”
“Now you’re talking my language,” Satan chimes in.
“And there is no question I deserve death,” you continue. “But I claim the blood of my dear Savior Jesus Christ, which has cleansed me from my sins and wiped all guilt away.” By this time the figure from behind the Judge’s bench has made his way to your side. He speaks.
“It is true—this human is guilty of death.” At that point Satan breaks out in applause. The Great Judge raises his hand. “Silence!” he demands.
“Death is the payment for sin,” the figure at your side continues. “And I have made that payment myself.”
“Objection!” Satan screams out.
“Overruled!” The word booms out in the mighty voice of the Great Judge. You feel a hand gently squeeze your shoulder. You look up and see that it is Jesus who stands beside you.
“It is true,” Jesus states, his voice strong and confident. “I, God the Son, have paid the debt of sin on this human’s behalf.” Then Jesus looks at you as he continues. “And you, my child, have placed your complete trust in me as your defense.”
“Preposterous!” Satan screams at the Great Judge. “You can’t allow this kind of double-talk. Who’s in charge here anyway? The law must rule—‘The soul who sins will die.’” Satan turns toward Jesus and glares. “The defendant sinned, thus it is the human who is deserving of death, not you.” Satan jabs his pointing finger at Jesus. “So it’s the defendant who must die.”
Jesus addresses the Great Judge, saying, “The prosecution is making my case for me, Your Honor. He is absolutely right—I was not deserving of death, and thus I was a perfect substitute for my client.”
“This is crazy…outrageous! Unfair! It’s…it’s not legal,” Satan bellows.
“Apparently the prosecution has forgotten your infallible words, Your Honor,” Jesus responds. “If the court please, I will refresh his memory by asking my client to read from your holy writings.” Jesus hands you God’s holy words and points to a passage. He smiles assurance at you and whispers, “Read it loud and with confidence.” You clear your throat again and read. “‘God put into effect a different plan to save me. He sent his own Son in a human body like mine, except that mine is sinful. God destroyed sin’s control over me by giving his Son as a sacrifice for my sins’” (Romans 8:3 paraphrased).
“No. No. No!” Satan yells out beating the table with his fist. “That’s not fair. That’s mercy, and I can’t stand mercy. Besides, that’s not what this court is about. Your Honor, you are a just Judge, and I know you will insist on justice. In fact, I demand justice!”
Jesus looks up at the Great Judge and says, “Justice has been done, Your Honor. Sin was committed, and my death as God the Son paid the penalty for it. Now that justice has been served, this court has every right to extend mercy and exonerate this human. My dear friend here is legally innocent because I have taken all sins committed upon myself and suffered the penalty. Is that not true, Father?”
“It is written in my eternal Word,” the Judge began. He looks straight at you as he continues. “‘You are made right in my sight when you trust in my Son, Jesus Christ, to take away your sins’” (see Romans 3:22). “And your testimony here is that you have done that, correct?”
“Right!” you say without hesitation.
“No! No! No! No!” Satan screams. “This wretch is a sinner through and through. I’ve shown you the evidence. The human has fallen short of your standards of rightness. Far short! I insist payment of the wage—eternal death for this child of Adam.”
The Judge lifts his hand and says, “Silence in my court! The payment of death has been made. The sins of this human are abolished; they are cast as far as the east is from the west. And this child of Adam is now a child of God. It is written, ‘Yet, now, I in my gracious kindness declare you,’ he looks directly into your eyes, ‘not guilty. I have done this through Christ Jesus, who has freed you by taking away your sins’” (see Romans 3:24).
You feel the arm of your defender wrap around your shoulder as he pulls you to him. You look into his face. He smiles and gives you a wink of assurance.
The Great Judge continues to read. “‘I sent Jesus to take the punishment for your sins and to satisfy my anger against you. You are made right with me when you believe that Jesus shed his blood, sacrificing his life for you’” (see Romans 3:25).
“Not fair or just! Not fair or just!” Satan screeches.
The Judge raises his hand to bring silence again and says. “‘I am entirely fair and just in this present time when I declare this sinner to be right in my sight because [this child of mine] believes in Jesus’” (see Romans 3:26).
With that the Great Judge pounds his gavel thunderously on the great judgment desk and declares, “This person is justified by my grace through faith in Jesus. Case dismissed!”
The essence of this fictional illustration is absolutely true. The telling passages from Romans 3, while personalized within the context of our story, are not fiction at all, but direct scriptural quotes. The majority of people may believe their good deeds will persuade God to give them a place in heaven. The reality is, your death sentence, your wages of sin, is commuted and you are redeemed and justified before God through your faith alone in Christ. And just as important, because of Christ’s sacrifice and your faith in him, your status as a son or daughter of Adam has changed. You are now a child of God.
“Long ago, even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. And this gave him great pleasure” (Ephesians 1:4-5). You were born dead. You were alone, abandoned, and without love because of sin. You were afraid, disconnected, and without a true family connection. But now, if you have trusted in Jesus, you have a real family and you are somebody special. The apostle Paul said that “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts prompting us to call out, ‘Abba, Father [or Daddy]’” (Galatians 4:6 NLT).
We have been freed from sin, received peace of mind and heart, released from guilt, given a reason for living, and provided hope of eternal life with him.
As a result of being justified before God, his Holy Spirit enters our lives and we are adopted into his family. We not only receive his eternal life and can call God our Daddy, but “since we are his children, we will share his treasures—for everything God gives to his Son, Christ, is ours too” (Romans 8:17). Chosen, redeemed, justified, sanctified, adopted into a family, given eternal life, and willed an eternal inheritance! What more could we ask?
King David spoke of this, describing the happiness of an undeserving sinner who is declared to be righteous:
Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose sin is no longer counted against them by the Lord (Romans 4:6-8).
In effect Jesus is saying to you, “I have come to earth, demonstrated my love by giving my life for you, and I ask you to trust in me as your only solution to life, ‘so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete’” (John 15:11 NIV). “He [Christ] himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need there is” (Acts 17:25). Your completion, your total joy and happiness, is found in a relationship with God as your Daddy. He didn’t have to save you. But by his grace he grants you an adoptive relationship—and all of us who have placed our faith in Jesus. We have been freed from sin, received peace of mind and heart, released from guilt, given a reason for living, and provided hope of eternal life with him. “We’ve been given a brand-new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven—and the future starts now!” (1 Peter 1:3-4 MSG).
From the age of 11, when I (Josh) left that corn bin feeling abandoned, alone, and angry, I was determined to find happiness. I have explained how my quest to find it took me through religion, education, and prestige, only to be disappointed at each turn. But God was faithful to me. I didn’t love him, but he loved me. I could sense Jesus at the door of my heart pleading, “Look, I have been standing at your door and constantly knocking. If you hear me calling and will open the door I will come in” (paraphrased from Revelation 3:20). I was in my second year at the university and I was keeping that door shut and bolted. I didn’t care if Jesus did walk on water or turn water into wine. I didn’t want any party pooper spoiling my fun. I couldn’t think of any faster way to ruin my good times. I called them good times, but I was really miserable. I was a walking battlefield. My mind was telling me that Christianity was true, but my will was resisting it with all the energy it could muster.
Then there was the pride problem. At that time the thought of becoming a Christian shattered my ego. I had just proved that all my previous thinking had been wrong and my friends had been right. Every time I got around those enthusiastic Christians, the inner conflict would boil over. If you’ve ever been in the company of happy people when you are miserable, you know how their joy can get under your skin. Sometimes I would literally get up, leave the group, and run right out of the student union. It came to the point where I would go to bed at ten o’clock at night but wouldn’t get to sleep until four in the morning. I couldn’t let go of the problem. I had to do something before it drove me out of my mind.
It was at that point that I took a step of intelligent faith. I turned my back on my old life and placed my trust in Jesus as my sacrifice for sin—my Savior. And I can say with Paul, “How differently I think about him [Jesus] now! What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:16-17).
For me, one aspect of this new life was peace—the relief from my restlessness. Before I trusted Christ, I always had to be occupied. I had to be over at my girlfriend’s place, at a party, at the student union, or running around with friends. I’d walk across the campus with my mind in a whirlwind of conflicts. I was always bouncing off the walls. I’d sit down and try to study or cogitate but couldn’t do it. But after I turned my life over to Jesus, a kind of mental peace settled over me. Don’t misunderstand; I don’t mean all conflicts ceased. What I found in this relationship with Jesus wasn’t so much the absence of conflict as the ability to cope with it. I wouldn’t trade that for anything in the world.
Another area that began to change for the better was related to my bad temper. I used to blow my stack if anyone just looked at me cross-eyed. I still have the scars from a fight in which I almost killed a man in my first year at the university. My temper was such a part of me that I didn’t consciously seek to change it. But one day I encountered a crisis that should have set me off, only to find that I stayed calm and collected. My temper was gone! It wasn’t my doing; Jesus had given me a new life. That doesn’t mean I was perfect. I went 14 years without losing my temper, but when I did blow it, I’m afraid I made up for all those times I didn’t.
Jesus changed me in another way. My old life consisted of hatred. I had a heavy load of hatred weighing me down. It sapped the joy out of my life. It didn’t show outwardly, but it kept grinding away inwardly and made life miserable. I was ticked off with people, with things, with issues. I was insecure. Every time I met anyone different from me, that person became a threat, and I reacted with some level of hatred.
But I hated one man more than anyone else in the world…and that was my father. I was mortified that he was the town alcoholic. If you’re from a small town and one of your parents is an alcoholic, you know what I mean. Everybody knows. My high school friends would make jokes about my father’s drinking. They didn’t think it bothered me because I fell in with the joking and laughed with them. I was laughing on the outside, but let me tell you, I was crying on the inside. I would go to the barn and find my mother beaten so badly by my father that she couldn’t get up, lying in the manure behind the cows. That tore me up as a kid. When we had friends over, I would take my drunken father out to the barn, tie him up, and park his car behind the silo. I was ashamed of anyone seeing him that way. We would tell our guests he’d had to go somewhere. I don’t think anyone could hate a person more than I hated my father.
About five months after I placed my faith in Christ, a love from God entered my life so powerfully that it took that hatred, turned it upside down, and emptied it out. In its place God gave me love and joy. I was able to look my father squarely in the eyes and say, “Dad, I love you.” And I really meant it. After some of the things I’d done to him, that really shook him up.
After I transferred to a private university, a serious car accident put me in the hospital. When I was moved home to recover, my father came to visit me. Remarkably, he was sober that day. But he seemed uneasy, pacing about the room. Then he blurted out, “Son, how can you love a father like me?” I answered, “Dad, six months ago I despised you.” Then I shared with him the story of my research and conclusions about Jesus Christ. I told him, “I have placed my trust in Christ, received God’s forgiveness, invited him into my life, and he has changed me. I can’t explain it all, Dad, but God has taken away my hatred and replaced it with the capacity to love. I love you and accept you just the way you are.”
We talked for almost an hour, and then I received one of the greatest joys of my life. This man who was my father, this man who knew me too well for me to pull the wool over his eyes, looked at me and said, “Son, if God can do in my life what I’ve seen him do in yours, then I want to give him the opportunity. I want to trust him as my Savior and Lord.”
Usually after a person places their trust in Christ, the changes in his or her life occur over a period of days, weeks, months, or even years. In my own life the change took about six to eighteen months, and there are still changes taking place. But the life of my father changed right before my eyes. It was as if God reached down and flipped on the light switch. Never before or since have I seen such a dramatic change. My father touched an alcoholic beverage only once after that day. He got it as far as his lips before thrusting it away. Forever. I can come to only one conclusion: A relationship with Jesus Christ changes lives, and that makes our joy complete.1