Verse 1:
You drowned your Son in our pool of sin.
Time after time we dive back in.
Send your Spirit and throw us a line.
Most gracious Father hear our cry.
Chorus:
Holy, Holy, is your name.
Only Your kingdom will still remain.
Let your will be done in our lives./ 3x through - Let your glory be our lives.
This is our heart; Lord hear its cries.
Verse 2:
Show us how deep the water goes.
How many times will we dip our toes.
It feels so nice and it's hot outside.
I think I'm going in just one last time.
(Chorus)
Verse 3:
I'm in the water now and I'm sinking fast.
I dove right in; I'm taking a bath.
But it's okay; the water has changed.
I'm swimming now in a pool of grace.
(Chorus)
April 22, 2010
April 18, 2010
"Godly Gravitational Force"
The cross of Jesus Christ is a magnet for souls. Everyone knows that positive and negative attract, so the positive in this case is the cross and the negative are God's elect. By God's sovereign will he draws us to the center of human history, which is the cross. Through this process we rebel against God and try to fight his pull on our hearts, but God's pursuit of his bride is in his sovereign hands and he will not and cannot fall short.
We fail to see the glory of the cross at times, and turn from it and act like it never happen so then we can go on sinning. But if the cross is at the forefront of our minds then why would we ever want to sin. At that moment, we see our Savior bearing our pain and suffering, we see our hope for eternal joy. Let's not forget about the resurrection though. Through that we now have a living Savior who is interceding for us, sin and death have no power over us anymore, Jesus has made a way to get to his Father. As Christians this is what we should be looking towards, running towards, and building our lives around. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul talks about the Resurrection of the dead. If Christ wasn't raised from the dead then our faith is in vain, but since he has been raised from the dead it proves that he is God and our work , if done for God, is not done in vain.
Back to the magnet analogy... Once we get to the cross and surrender ourselves through faith, the "positive" charge of Christ (his righteousness) is imputed to us and we have a new charge (identity). Now in one sense we have the same charge as Christ, so we take the good news of salvation we have received, and pursue the other negative charged elect that have yet to hear of the gospel. In another sense we still have a negative charge of our own, and need to continually be brought back to the cross ourselves. Basically justification and sanctification. We are fully given a positive charge (100% righteous), but we still have a negative charge as well (because of our depravity we won't be fully glorified until we reach heaven).
I know it's not a perfect analogy but the main thing I'm trying to say is that God calls people and grants us the grace to put saving faith in his perfect Son, and from the love, grace, and mercy that was shown to us we should be compelled to share it will others. That's the basis of the analogy. It's just a way to show God as the Good Shepherd of his sheep and the Bridegroom of his church.
We fail to see the glory of the cross at times, and turn from it and act like it never happen so then we can go on sinning. But if the cross is at the forefront of our minds then why would we ever want to sin. At that moment, we see our Savior bearing our pain and suffering, we see our hope for eternal joy. Let's not forget about the resurrection though. Through that we now have a living Savior who is interceding for us, sin and death have no power over us anymore, Jesus has made a way to get to his Father. As Christians this is what we should be looking towards, running towards, and building our lives around. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul talks about the Resurrection of the dead. If Christ wasn't raised from the dead then our faith is in vain, but since he has been raised from the dead it proves that he is God and our work , if done for God, is not done in vain.
Back to the magnet analogy... Once we get to the cross and surrender ourselves through faith, the "positive" charge of Christ (his righteousness) is imputed to us and we have a new charge (identity). Now in one sense we have the same charge as Christ, so we take the good news of salvation we have received, and pursue the other negative charged elect that have yet to hear of the gospel. In another sense we still have a negative charge of our own, and need to continually be brought back to the cross ourselves. Basically justification and sanctification. We are fully given a positive charge (100% righteous), but we still have a negative charge as well (because of our depravity we won't be fully glorified until we reach heaven).
I know it's not a perfect analogy but the main thing I'm trying to say is that God calls people and grants us the grace to put saving faith in his perfect Son, and from the love, grace, and mercy that was shown to us we should be compelled to share it will others. That's the basis of the analogy. It's just a way to show God as the Good Shepherd of his sheep and the Bridegroom of his church.
April 2, 2010
"Good Friday Meditations"
- We welcome him (Jesus) in with the loudest praises of Hosanna, and we send him out with the loudest cries of crucify.
- He accepted both pleas with humility and made a plea of his own, which he prayed that his Father would be glorified.
- The most evil scheme of the devil was used for the greatest good by God.
- The sin that put our Savior on the cross was also paid for that same day.
- The darkest hours in all of history are the most glorious as well.
- The hands and feet that received the nails should have been mine.
- Jesus should mock us in our sin but he loves us instead. We mocked Jesus in his sin on the cross and shouted false
accusations, but he loved us through that as well.
- Christ can glorify God through the worst event in history and I forget to glorify God through the best times in my life.
God turned his back and poured out all his wrath on his own Son, and I will never have to experience that because of what Jesus has done, and the faith that he grants to me. Let's not forget that he did this evil to someone he loved. What about an enemy with God? What is he going to do to them? I was an enemy of God's at one time, and what did he do to me? He welcomed me into his family and allowed me to dine at his table. He called me a son and heir with Christ. I am a part of God's holy family. I am pure and righteous in the sight of God.
Let's see how I got to this point in my life. Well I go to church every week, God likes that. I went on a mission trip last summer, God must be all smiles after that. I read my Bible and pray sometimes, bonus points. I haven't done anything majorly wrong to anyone. I listen to the best Christian artists, and read only the holiest of books. I'd say I'm doing pretty well, wouldn't you... Hell No! What good is any of that to God? Why would I try to add onto the perfect atoning sacrifice of Christ? Jesus was mocked, ridiculed, shouted at, spit upon, scourged and flogged with whips that had pieces of glass, bone, and metal on the ends of them. He was beaten with rods, and had his beard plucked. He was stripped down to his flesh, which there wasn't much left of, and had a "crown" of thorns forced onto his head. He hiked up a hill in the blistering sun with a large cross-beam on his bone-piercing flesh. He basically had railroad spikes driven into his healing hands and faithful feet. He was hoisted into the air so everyone could see and scoff some more, they placed bets on his clothes. The soldiers probably placed a wooden block under his feet, so he could use it to push off with and catch a breath, but nonetheless it prolonged his life, so his crucifixion would be as long and excruciating as possible. With every struggling breath he took, his tender back was naggingly scrapping against the thorns from the wood.
This is no slap on the butt you get from your parents when you are in trouble, and it stings for a bit then the next moment it's gone, but our creator hung there bearing the weight of our sin for hours. Saying the Father crushed his Son is true but I feel like the word crushed just doesn't do justice, and I hope you now feel the same way.
Did Jesus go through all this so that one day ________ (insert your name) could try and gain, earn, or attain salvation through my own pathetic works. My greatest and awesome deeds are mere ashes under God's feet.
Did Jesus go through all this just so I could have a chance to go to Heaven one day, and live my life wondering, "Am I good enough? Will I get there?"
Jesus went through all this to glorify his Father and satisfy all the Father's wrath. He paid for our sins (actions, thoughts, and words). God cancelled the ransom that was placed on our lives by the fall of Adam, and it was paid in full by Jesus' death on the cross. Now I don't have to question and wonder if I will be good enough to make it to Heaven one day. The debt has been paid, and his sacrifice was sufficient. Stop trying to do something in order to stand righteous before God. If your foundation of getting to Heaven is the good deeds you have done, then what good is it if it falls to pieces with every sin you comment. If you're trying to outweigh the bad with the good then that is impossible. Even if you only sinned one time in your whole life, no amount of good deeds could ever make up for that one fall. This is why Jesus' atoning sacrifice is so important because without it we are still dead in our sin, but with it we are made alive with Christ and we can stand righteous before a Holy, Holy, Holy God.
When I say there is nothing left for us to do in order to obtain salvation, I mean there is nothing left for us to do. If your hope for salvation is found only in Jesus' perfect life, atoning death, and bodily resurrection, then rejoice with me today on this Good Friday.
- He accepted both pleas with humility and made a plea of his own, which he prayed that his Father would be glorified.
- The most evil scheme of the devil was used for the greatest good by God.
- The sin that put our Savior on the cross was also paid for that same day.
- The darkest hours in all of history are the most glorious as well.
- The hands and feet that received the nails should have been mine.
- Jesus should mock us in our sin but he loves us instead. We mocked Jesus in his sin on the cross and shouted false
accusations, but he loved us through that as well.
- Christ can glorify God through the worst event in history and I forget to glorify God through the best times in my life.
God turned his back and poured out all his wrath on his own Son, and I will never have to experience that because of what Jesus has done, and the faith that he grants to me. Let's not forget that he did this evil to someone he loved. What about an enemy with God? What is he going to do to them? I was an enemy of God's at one time, and what did he do to me? He welcomed me into his family and allowed me to dine at his table. He called me a son and heir with Christ. I am a part of God's holy family. I am pure and righteous in the sight of God.
Let's see how I got to this point in my life. Well I go to church every week, God likes that. I went on a mission trip last summer, God must be all smiles after that. I read my Bible and pray sometimes, bonus points. I haven't done anything majorly wrong to anyone. I listen to the best Christian artists, and read only the holiest of books. I'd say I'm doing pretty well, wouldn't you... Hell No! What good is any of that to God? Why would I try to add onto the perfect atoning sacrifice of Christ? Jesus was mocked, ridiculed, shouted at, spit upon, scourged and flogged with whips that had pieces of glass, bone, and metal on the ends of them. He was beaten with rods, and had his beard plucked. He was stripped down to his flesh, which there wasn't much left of, and had a "crown" of thorns forced onto his head. He hiked up a hill in the blistering sun with a large cross-beam on his bone-piercing flesh. He basically had railroad spikes driven into his healing hands and faithful feet. He was hoisted into the air so everyone could see and scoff some more, they placed bets on his clothes. The soldiers probably placed a wooden block under his feet, so he could use it to push off with and catch a breath, but nonetheless it prolonged his life, so his crucifixion would be as long and excruciating as possible. With every struggling breath he took, his tender back was naggingly scrapping against the thorns from the wood.
This is no slap on the butt you get from your parents when you are in trouble, and it stings for a bit then the next moment it's gone, but our creator hung there bearing the weight of our sin for hours. Saying the Father crushed his Son is true but I feel like the word crushed just doesn't do justice, and I hope you now feel the same way.
Did Jesus go through all this so that one day ________ (insert your name) could try and gain, earn, or attain salvation through my own pathetic works. My greatest and awesome deeds are mere ashes under God's feet.
Did Jesus go through all this just so I could have a chance to go to Heaven one day, and live my life wondering, "Am I good enough? Will I get there?"
Jesus went through all this to glorify his Father and satisfy all the Father's wrath. He paid for our sins (actions, thoughts, and words). God cancelled the ransom that was placed on our lives by the fall of Adam, and it was paid in full by Jesus' death on the cross. Now I don't have to question and wonder if I will be good enough to make it to Heaven one day. The debt has been paid, and his sacrifice was sufficient. Stop trying to do something in order to stand righteous before God. If your foundation of getting to Heaven is the good deeds you have done, then what good is it if it falls to pieces with every sin you comment. If you're trying to outweigh the bad with the good then that is impossible. Even if you only sinned one time in your whole life, no amount of good deeds could ever make up for that one fall. This is why Jesus' atoning sacrifice is so important because without it we are still dead in our sin, but with it we are made alive with Christ and we can stand righteous before a Holy, Holy, Holy God.
When I say there is nothing left for us to do in order to obtain salvation, I mean there is nothing left for us to do. If your hope for salvation is found only in Jesus' perfect life, atoning death, and bodily resurrection, then rejoice with me today on this Good Friday.
March 8, 2010
"Who Am I?"
Being an art major and a Christian, I have came up with an analogy that talks about God's love, mercy, grace, and sovereignty. Being an artist and especially a character animator means I get to play God in the sense that I am in control of how my art turns out, or how a character will move. I take the role of sovereign ruler, and I can show however much love, mercy, and grace I want to my characters.
1.) When my characters don't move exactly how I want them to, or if things aren't going how I feel they should be going, then I can get frustrated and might stop working on my project for the day. 2.) If a certain character isn't easy to use then I can give up on them and try a different character that is more user friendly. 3.) There are hundreds of characters to choose from when figuring out which one I want to use to animate a scene; the choice is up to me. 4.) I choose the scenery, I choose which characters will be placed in the same scene with each other, and what their situation is in life or in the story.
Let's look at how this relates to Christians. 1.) God instructs us how he wants us to live our lives, but we decide to glorify ourselves instead of God. Instead of God getting frustrated like I do with my characters, God is patient and shows his love and grace. 2.) He doesn't give up on his creation like I tend to do. He is always in control and is always watching over us. Even the people with the hardest of hearts, God can soften. God is persistent with his sheep. 3.) There are billions of people that God could choose to use to carry out his will, and it's a privilege that he would choose to use any of us. It shows God's sovereignty in his choosing, his love by choosing to use sinful people to carry out his plan, and the grace he gives us to speak truth. 4.) God chooses our parents, the people we come in contact with, and the friends that God provides us with. He puts us in what country, state, providence, island, or town he has planned for us. He gives us the talents we have, and the health or lack of health that we have.
Basically, we should be grateful for anything that God gives us, but we get mad at God when things don't go the way we want them to, or if we don't get what we want. Like good things are entitled to us. Who are we to complain to a God that has given us his own Son, who lived a perfect life, died in our place, rose from the dead to conquer sin and death, and made us righteous before a holy, holy, holy God. We have access to God through Jesus Christ now. WOW! That's incredible. But we continue to complain about so many little things in our lives, and forget the greater truth of the Gospel, which never changes.
The point of the analogy is to show how humans respond poorly to meaningless situations in life, and how amazingly God responds to our sinful actions everyday. What a great God we serve. His patience through all my sin continues to amaze me. He continues to call me a son of God and an heir with Christ. Why? What have I done to deserve such grace?... simply nothing.
1.) When my characters don't move exactly how I want them to, or if things aren't going how I feel they should be going, then I can get frustrated and might stop working on my project for the day. 2.) If a certain character isn't easy to use then I can give up on them and try a different character that is more user friendly. 3.) There are hundreds of characters to choose from when figuring out which one I want to use to animate a scene; the choice is up to me. 4.) I choose the scenery, I choose which characters will be placed in the same scene with each other, and what their situation is in life or in the story.
Let's look at how this relates to Christians. 1.) God instructs us how he wants us to live our lives, but we decide to glorify ourselves instead of God. Instead of God getting frustrated like I do with my characters, God is patient and shows his love and grace. 2.) He doesn't give up on his creation like I tend to do. He is always in control and is always watching over us. Even the people with the hardest of hearts, God can soften. God is persistent with his sheep. 3.) There are billions of people that God could choose to use to carry out his will, and it's a privilege that he would choose to use any of us. It shows God's sovereignty in his choosing, his love by choosing to use sinful people to carry out his plan, and the grace he gives us to speak truth. 4.) God chooses our parents, the people we come in contact with, and the friends that God provides us with. He puts us in what country, state, providence, island, or town he has planned for us. He gives us the talents we have, and the health or lack of health that we have.
Basically, we should be grateful for anything that God gives us, but we get mad at God when things don't go the way we want them to, or if we don't get what we want. Like good things are entitled to us. Who are we to complain to a God that has given us his own Son, who lived a perfect life, died in our place, rose from the dead to conquer sin and death, and made us righteous before a holy, holy, holy God. We have access to God through Jesus Christ now. WOW! That's incredible. But we continue to complain about so many little things in our lives, and forget the greater truth of the Gospel, which never changes.
The point of the analogy is to show how humans respond poorly to meaningless situations in life, and how amazingly God responds to our sinful actions everyday. What a great God we serve. His patience through all my sin continues to amaze me. He continues to call me a son of God and an heir with Christ. Why? What have I done to deserve such grace?... simply nothing.
January 25, 2010
"God's Love Through the Gospel"
The love of God is something that I can’t grasp, but strive to grow in my understanding of by the power of the Holy Spirit. He created us to be a perfect reflection of himself, and to bring our creator glory. Our sinful nature inherited from Adam keeps us from fellowship with the Father.
I am a disgusting person in need of a Savior, and I don’t always see my sin for what it truly is. Actually I never see my sin for what it truly is. It is wretched, dirty, corrupt, gross, shameful, filthy, disgusting, perverted, nasty and so much more when compared to a holy, just, merciful, upright, perfect, righteous, and a sovereign God.
This is the reason I need a Savior, but a Savior was not something I asked for. I didn’t seek a Savior from my worldliness. Jesus found me and willingly saved my soul. He wasn’t forced or tricked into dying on the cross.
This is the love that I can’t grasp; how God would give up his only Son, so I could have him. It was God’s idea and plan that his Son would be crushed and broken beyond human recognition, and his blood would flow from his ripped flesh. He came up with this sick idea! There was no plan B! How could a loving God do something this wrathful to his own Son?!
The answer is love. Love for a sinful race and self-serving world. There is one more part to the story. We have to put our faith in what Jesus accomplished through his perfect life, death on the cross, and his bodily resurrection, which is the full atonement for our sins.
There is nothing else we can add on to the blood of Christ on the cross. We are justified by our faith; not baptism, going to church, reading our Bibles, praying to God, good works, or anything else we can come up with. Why would God kill his Son if we still had to do something on top of Jesus dying to obtain salvation? That would not be grace, because grace is a free or unmerited gift from God. How is us doing something for God a free gift to ourselves? It’s not.
Along with faith will come justification, but on top of that comes sanctification and on going repentance. The Holy Spirit will start changing our hearts and make it more like Christ’s. We will see our desires change, our minds be set on things of the Spirit, our actions will start to reflect Christ, we are given a new heart, and we will serve one master, which is Christ. This is only possible because he first loved us.
I am a disgusting person in need of a Savior, and I don’t always see my sin for what it truly is. Actually I never see my sin for what it truly is. It is wretched, dirty, corrupt, gross, shameful, filthy, disgusting, perverted, nasty and so much more when compared to a holy, just, merciful, upright, perfect, righteous, and a sovereign God.
This is the reason I need a Savior, but a Savior was not something I asked for. I didn’t seek a Savior from my worldliness. Jesus found me and willingly saved my soul. He wasn’t forced or tricked into dying on the cross.
This is the love that I can’t grasp; how God would give up his only Son, so I could have him. It was God’s idea and plan that his Son would be crushed and broken beyond human recognition, and his blood would flow from his ripped flesh. He came up with this sick idea! There was no plan B! How could a loving God do something this wrathful to his own Son?!
The answer is love. Love for a sinful race and self-serving world. There is one more part to the story. We have to put our faith in what Jesus accomplished through his perfect life, death on the cross, and his bodily resurrection, which is the full atonement for our sins.
There is nothing else we can add on to the blood of Christ on the cross. We are justified by our faith; not baptism, going to church, reading our Bibles, praying to God, good works, or anything else we can come up with. Why would God kill his Son if we still had to do something on top of Jesus dying to obtain salvation? That would not be grace, because grace is a free or unmerited gift from God. How is us doing something for God a free gift to ourselves? It’s not.
Along with faith will come justification, but on top of that comes sanctification and on going repentance. The Holy Spirit will start changing our hearts and make it more like Christ’s. We will see our desires change, our minds be set on things of the Spirit, our actions will start to reflect Christ, we are given a new heart, and we will serve one master, which is Christ. This is only possible because he first loved us.
January 19, 2010
"Meaningless Material"
Why do the "common" people want autographs from the "famous" people? What good does an autograph do? If you get a T-shirt signed it will eventually wear off. If you get a program, ticket, or random piece of paper signed, it will collect dust in a drawer, on a dresser, or in a closet. You might be thinking, "That's not what happens to my autographs." "I have a collection of autographed memorabilia in my house." "I sell my autographs on eBay, and make money off of them." So what happens after we get an autograph? I mentioned it does nothing and collects dust, we create a collection/shrine of them, or we sell them and get something that is actually useful to humans, which is money. What I'm trying to get at is that autographs are worthless. If they sit around and collect dust, then I think I've made my point on that one. If you create a collection/shrine then what are you getting out of that? Something to show off or boast about to your friends and family. Something that you truly treasure, and becomes an idol in your life. Two different types of sin, take your pick, it doesn't matter they are both sin, so there is no escaping that one. If you get an autograph and immediately sell it on eBay, then i guess it's not important enough to you in the first place to actually keep, so you exchange it for money. Money can be good, because we all need money to live and get by, but how much money do we need and how much do we just want for our own personal spending. With all that extra money, what are we gonna do with it? Are we gonna give it to charities, churches, hospitals, schools, Haiti, or other worth-while causes? Or are we just gonna go buy more stuff that is gonna sit around and collect dust?
We love stuff and material possessions even though we don't really get anything out of them. Think about the things you have bought lately, or things that you are thinking about buying, or things that you wish you could buy but will never have the money to. Ask yourself, what percentage of those things do you use on a regular basis and what percentage gets put up on a shelf, slid under the bed, put in a closet, stuck in a box, or put somewhere on display only to look at for as long as you live. For the Christians, some good questions to ask before making a purchase could be; How is this going to help me or others grow closer to God? How will this benefit the kingdom of God? How will this edify God or is it even possible to bring glory to God through this purchase? Can I even use this object or is this something that can only be put on display so others to admire my neat toys?
We need to conscientiously ask ourselves these types of questions before we buy things on the fly. We need to be more discerning with our purchases. I don't say these things because this is what I do already, but I write this because I NEED to start doing these things in my own life. I'm too careless with my money, and as a Christian I feel like I am called to manage my money to the glory of God, and keep myself from falling into sin. For instance, I mentioned idolatry and pride earlier. We need to identify specific sins in our lives, classify those sins specifically, and find ways to eliminate them from our lives. If we don't throw them out the door now, then God will deal with them on his own terms.
What things are we treasuring in our lives? What do we get excited about buying next and why do we get excited about buying that specific item? Is God what we are treasuring? Are we excited to buy a brand new pair of shoes when you just bought a new pair last week? Are we seeking to try and bring joy to ourselves through our spending, or are we going to bring glory to God through our spending?
If you are having some tough times dealing with some of these questions because you are trying to justify your material possessions, and your spending, then maybe this is an idol in your life. We don't like to hear the truth sometimes, because we are scared what's going to happen if we give up our idols. I'll tell you what is going to happen; God is going to strip you of your idols and leave a huge hole in your life... but he won't leave the wound without a bandage. He will fill it with himself, and provide true happiness in a life that was formerly corked up with false joy.
We love stuff and material possessions even though we don't really get anything out of them. Think about the things you have bought lately, or things that you are thinking about buying, or things that you wish you could buy but will never have the money to. Ask yourself, what percentage of those things do you use on a regular basis and what percentage gets put up on a shelf, slid under the bed, put in a closet, stuck in a box, or put somewhere on display only to look at for as long as you live. For the Christians, some good questions to ask before making a purchase could be; How is this going to help me or others grow closer to God? How will this benefit the kingdom of God? How will this edify God or is it even possible to bring glory to God through this purchase? Can I even use this object or is this something that can only be put on display so others to admire my neat toys?
We need to conscientiously ask ourselves these types of questions before we buy things on the fly. We need to be more discerning with our purchases. I don't say these things because this is what I do already, but I write this because I NEED to start doing these things in my own life. I'm too careless with my money, and as a Christian I feel like I am called to manage my money to the glory of God, and keep myself from falling into sin. For instance, I mentioned idolatry and pride earlier. We need to identify specific sins in our lives, classify those sins specifically, and find ways to eliminate them from our lives. If we don't throw them out the door now, then God will deal with them on his own terms.
What things are we treasuring in our lives? What do we get excited about buying next and why do we get excited about buying that specific item? Is God what we are treasuring? Are we excited to buy a brand new pair of shoes when you just bought a new pair last week? Are we seeking to try and bring joy to ourselves through our spending, or are we going to bring glory to God through our spending?
If you are having some tough times dealing with some of these questions because you are trying to justify your material possessions, and your spending, then maybe this is an idol in your life. We don't like to hear the truth sometimes, because we are scared what's going to happen if we give up our idols. I'll tell you what is going to happen; God is going to strip you of your idols and leave a huge hole in your life... but he won't leave the wound without a bandage. He will fill it with himself, and provide true happiness in a life that was formerly corked up with false joy.
January 9, 2010
Judging Others
Matthew 7:3-5 says,"3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."
Do these verses describe you? I know it describes me. I think of all the "Christian" and "holy" things I do to try and draw closer to God, but shortly after I will completely disregard what I learned. Since I have put my faith in Christ I put myself higher up than non-believers and sometimes other Christians who are not as far along in their relationship with the Lord. I quickly forget that I still have major sins to take care of in my own life, and forget what God has saved me from. I don't acknowledge that where I am in my faith is only because of his grace in my life in the first place. What do I have that is not from God? Nothing. Everything I have obtained has come from him, so why don't I live in light of that. I give in to easily to earthly desires, and do not look at God through a gospel-centered lens. I need to see what Christ has done for me, and accomplished for me by his death and resurrection. I need to see MY sin nailed to the cross, and know that it will remain there forever because God's atoning work is finished. Romans 8:1 declares that "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." So if God doesn't condemn me then why do I? And if he does not condemn other followers of Christ because of Romans 8:1 then who am I to do so. We as followers of Christ need to be more Christ-like, which is forgiving and giving grace to fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We need to leave the harsh judgement up to the Lord, and point each other to Christ in a loving and patient manor instead of one that is judgemental and condemning.
Let us love our great God and Savior, which should lead us to love our neighbors just the same.
By God's Grace,
Nov
Do these verses describe you? I know it describes me. I think of all the "Christian" and "holy" things I do to try and draw closer to God, but shortly after I will completely disregard what I learned. Since I have put my faith in Christ I put myself higher up than non-believers and sometimes other Christians who are not as far along in their relationship with the Lord. I quickly forget that I still have major sins to take care of in my own life, and forget what God has saved me from. I don't acknowledge that where I am in my faith is only because of his grace in my life in the first place. What do I have that is not from God? Nothing. Everything I have obtained has come from him, so why don't I live in light of that. I give in to easily to earthly desires, and do not look at God through a gospel-centered lens. I need to see what Christ has done for me, and accomplished for me by his death and resurrection. I need to see MY sin nailed to the cross, and know that it will remain there forever because God's atoning work is finished. Romans 8:1 declares that "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." So if God doesn't condemn me then why do I? And if he does not condemn other followers of Christ because of Romans 8:1 then who am I to do so. We as followers of Christ need to be more Christ-like, which is forgiving and giving grace to fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. We need to leave the harsh judgement up to the Lord, and point each other to Christ in a loving and patient manor instead of one that is judgemental and condemning.
Let us love our great God and Savior, which should lead us to love our neighbors just the same.
By God's Grace,
Nov
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