Magyar Egyház, 2002 (81. évfolyam, 1-3. szám)
2002 / 3. szám
6. oldal MAGYAR EGYHÁZ Trenton, NJ congregation, Dr. Otto Kanocz from the Cliffside, NJ congregation, Mr. John Koncz from the McKeesport congregation and Mr. Karoly Okos from the Hollywood, CA congregation as lay representatives. With the conclusion of the nominations, the Bishop’s Council instructed the General Secretary of the Synod to prepare the letters and ballots and mail them out to each congregation in registered mail before the end of the month of July. The Bishop’s Council also spent a great deal of time to establish the voting rights of the congregations. Finally it was agreed upon, that ballots will be mailed to all congregations and upon the opening of the ballots the committee established by the Bishop will make final determination if their ballots will be acceptable. The criteria established in the past for votes centered around the fulfillment of payment of church obligations from the last election. The Bishop’s Council left these same principles as a guide for this election. The Bishop’s Council also established the date by which all ballots needs to be mailed to the General Secretary by October 15th. The date of the General Assembly of the Synod was set for Saturday. November 23rd the place and time to be established later. The Bishop’s Council finishing all business on the agenda, concluded its annual meeting very late into the day. Members said farewell to each other in the hope that Jesus Christ the Head, Master, Lord and King of the Church will bring His will into the life of our Church. BY FAITH ALONE “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17) was the battle cry of the reformation in the 16th century. What did the reformers mean by this? They meant to say that God, without any merit of our own, out of pure grace, forgives our sins, takes away our guilt, receives us into his favor and declares us righteous. Our living God came to us in the person of Jesus Christ and suffered for us on a bloody cross. God allowed his only Son to take our sins upon himself and to die on the old rugged cross. And because Jesus took away our sins, God can say to us today, “Your sins are forgiven! You are justified!” This is the good news of the Gospel! How wonderful! How marvelous! It calls for joy and celebration! Why? Because, in spite of our sins, shortcomings and faults we are righteous before God through the righteousness and holiness of Jesus Christ. But, in order to live in this hope and blessedness, we must know certain things: First, we must know that we are justified by God’s grace. Today many people admit that man is sick and ask, “How can we cure the sickness of man?” But the basic problem of man is not sickness. Natural man is not only sick, but dead, “dead in trespasses and sins” (Eph.2:l). And the fact is: no medicine or science or operation can save man from his sins. Only the grace of God can save him. Some people believe that if they are going to be good and live a good life and do some good deeds, they can be saved. It is the greatest insult against Christ. God says to us through the prophet Isaiah, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6). Buckets of tears, the best savings account and the most glorious deeds cannot blot out the guilt of a single sin. Only the blood of Jesus Christ atones for sin. But when the sinner turns to God through Christ, God forgives him, accepts him, and justifies him no matter what he has done. Only God can offer this grace. Second, we must know that we are justified by Christ’s death. Our redemption cost a lot. Christ paid for our lives with his own blood. He gave his own life as a ransom to deliver us from the bondage of sin. This was clearly expressed by the apostle Paul when he wrote to Timothy, “For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men” (I Tim.2:5,6). At last, we must know that we are justified by faith. Whatever God has done for us he has done it freely. There is nothing we can do for our justification, except receive it by faith. In Romans, Paul says, “The righteousness of God has been manifested through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe” (Rom.3:22). What does it mean? It simply means that by faith we receive and accept the offer of God. Faith is our response to the salvation Christ purchased for us. Now we face God unafraid because we know that he loves us and if our personal faith is in his Son, he grants us his mercy, love and forgiveness. “The just shall live by faith” (Rom.1:17). This is God’s way of saving us. To receive God’s offer is to have eternal life, to refuse his offer is to choose the death which is separation of God. Barnabas Roczey
