This episode links the discussion of the Biblical fool to the grand narrative of mankind's purpose, restored in salvation. The ultimate purpose of salvation is the restoration of mankind to his original purpose, where he gives God glory in response to beholding God (faith) and regarding the works of the Lord. (2 Corinthians 3:18) Mankind's fundamental problem since the Fall is idolatry, where man and his works replace God and His works as the consuming focus of life. God initiates restoration: the accumulated sin debt of man is paid for and satisfied in Christ on the cross, and the wages of man's works, all tainted by sin, are paid in full. (Romans 6:23) Repudiation of the old man and his works, coupled with faith in God, is essential for salvation. Consequently, "repentance from dead works" and "faith toward God," ("repent and believe the gospel") are the first two foundational principles of Christianity. (Hebrews 6:1) Christ and His works progressively become the focus of life in Christian sanctification, replacing the idolatrous focus on man and his works. The Biblical fool, fixated on himself and his dead works, suppresses and exchanges the truth of God for a lie. (Romans 1:18-23) He rejects his God-given purpose of reflecting the glory of God while delighting in God and His works. The fool instead finds purpose in pursuing his own glory and ends, shaped entirely by his idolatrous fixation on himself. Perpetual rejection of the knowledge of God and His gracious offer of redemption in Christ leads to "eternal destruction." Christ, on his return, will deal out "retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus." (2 Thessalonians 1:8-9) The Biblical fool then is ultimately held accountable for his WILLFUL ignorance and rejection of the gospel.
The Personhood of the Triune God Really Matters
This episode spells out the superior age of the Spirit inaugurated by Christ, and it is all predicated on the personality of the Holy Spirit which Jews deny. Christ contrasted the best of the prior age in the person of John the Baptist with "the least in the kingdom of God." The least among partakers of the New Covenant in Christ are greater than the best of the Old covenant. (Matthew 11:11) Christ inaugurated the New Covenant in His blood, and the Holy Spirit applies the Covenant to the world, convicting people of sin, righteousness and judgment leading to repentance and faith in Christ. (John 16:8-11)(1 Corinthians 12:3) When one is subsequently born again, he partakes of the divine nature, becoming a temple of the very personal Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:4) Conviction, repentance, faith and regeneration all involve the PERSONAL role of the Holy Spirit. It naturally follows that rejection of the PERSON and role of the Holy Spirit, who applies the New Covenant of Christ to the unregenerate, results in condemnation. No one comes to the Father except through Christ (John 14:6), and no one calls Jesus Lord except through the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:3 Salvation then presumes the personal involvement of each member of the Trinity aimed at reconciling the world back to that Triune God. Isaiah 48:16 says "the Lord God has sent Me [the Messiah}, and His Spirit." The singular essence and salvific purpose of the godhead consequently requires that rejection of either the Son or the Spirit MEANS rejection of the Father who sent them. For this reason, Christians and Jews (who reject Christ and the Holy Spirit) do not believe in the same God.
Born Again to Worship..and Work
This episode brings together many of the integral themes discussed so far, highlighting the impossibility of unbelievers doing good works. This conclusion is inescapable in light of Jewish failure to produce good works. Uncircumcised in heart and ears, the best that Old Testament believers produced was worship contaminated by self-idolatry and works that were essentially "filthy rags." (Isaiah 64:6) For this reason Christ emphasized the absolute necessity of being born again (John 3:5-8 ) in order to "worship God in Spirit and truth" (John 4:24)
Let Him Who Boasts, Boast in the Lord
This episode centers on "religious" work, noting that activity not motivated by love of God and neighbor doesn't qualify as "good" work. Christ derided Jewish efforts to make proselytes in which converts became "twice the sons of hell" as those proselytizing (Mt 23:15) The context of Christ's woes against hypocrisy highlights the exaltation of man-made religion to the expense of the Great Commandments. Paul later took issue with Judaizers in the early Christian church, who prioritized circumcision over sanctifying faith. Outward observance of circumcision by converts became a badge of boasting in which Judaizers made "a good showing in the flesh." (Gal. 6:12) Religious work not born out of the Great Commandments ("gold, silver, precious stone") is burned up at the judgment seat of Christ, for it does not qualify as a "good" work. (1 Cor 3:12-15) The episode also cites modern-day "boasting in the flesh." Altar calls designed to elicit quick professions of faith, often by ignoring or understating the necessity of repentance, have become the predominant badge of boasting in evangelical circles. This "wood, hay and straw" motivated by flesh will be burned up. Unfortunately many who are manipulated into reciting the sinner's prayer will also be burned up, because they hypocritically professed Christ as lord, as evident by their pursuit of lawlessness. (Mt 7:22-23) In summary then, if hypocrisy and carnality can undermine religious work, even rendering as rubbish the deeds of regenerate believers, can the works of unbelievers possibly be described as "good?"
Mercy Triumphs over Judgment..But Only for the Blind
This episode highlights the natural human tendency to substitute God's standard for good works with human ones, mostly centered on outward observance. One of the primary aims of the sermon on the mount (Matthew5-7) is to explode reliance on outward morality divorced from internal embrace of the commandments. The Pharisees were often guilty of emphasizing external observance of the Law without grappling with the heart's penchant for lawlessness. Christ concluded that Pharisees who continued to insist on their own righteousness, maintaining that they were good people, were headed for judgment. (John 9:39) By contrast, those who acknowledge their sick condition and are utterly despondent over any ability to do good--these are candidates for salvation who rest completely on the finished work of Christ.
The Foundation of ‘Goodness’ and ‘Good Works’
On the way to properly answering the question, this initial episode addresses an even more fundamental question: can believers do good works? The answer provided by Scripture is a resounding yes, but the basis from which Christians can do good works is entirely the finished work of Christ. Ephesians 2:10 declares that "we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works." Good works stem from being "created in Christ Jesus," which itself is a work that God did in response to faith in Christ, "by grace you have saved through faith." While these verses definitively claim that Christians' good works are founded on God's workmanship in Christ, it says nothing about the possibility of good works for unbelievers, even though this conclusion is strongly implied. The remainder of the episode highlights Scriptures that indicate that "goodness" depends on intrinsic goodness, and only God meets this standard