Grace is Underrated!

I did a bit of reading on our road trip—just a few morsels from an old book titled Disciplined By Grace: Studies in Christian Conduct (by J.F.Strombeck,1947). I was intrigued by the authors’ thesis.  He contends that “all teaching of righteous living, to be effective, must not be grounded in law, but in grace.  Any appeal for godliness, not related to grace is based on a false premise.”(11)

While it may seem that too much emphasis on grace would lead to careless living, and that the Law is what is needed to produce godliness, he contends that this is not the teaching of Scripture.  Rather, it is God’s grace that not only saves us but that also sustains and perfects our growth in godliness. 

Of course, Strombeck spends the rest of his book carefully defining and describing exactly what grace is and how it works in us to produce godliness. I haven’t finished the book yet and even if I had I could not reiterate it all in this post (you may now breathe a sigh of relief!).  However I would like to talk a little about  two passages he bases his thoughts on—the first a statement in Titus, the other an illustration from a rather odd story regarding Abraham.  If you have the time, do grab a cup of tea and allow me to explain…

Scripture supports this idea that it is grace, not law which transforms us.  The law tells men what they must do but does not provide the power to accomplish it (Rom.8:3). Even once we have believed and been set free from sin’s condemnation, it is only by God’s grace that we can live a life pleasing to Him ‘for if righteousness were through the law then Christ died for no purpose’ (Gal.2:21) At the point we begin to depend on our ability to keep the law, we have fallen away from grace (Gal.5:4) The law has served its purpose as schoolmaster once it has brought us to Christ in humble admission of our inability to keep it. Now we are under grace, being trained by it to live godly lives. 

This is most clearly stated in Titus 2:11-14:

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,  looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. Titus 2:11-14 NKJV

In short, Paul tells Titus that the saving grace of God has appeared and that it teaches us in order that we might deny ungodliness and live godly lives characterized by good works, while we wait for our Savior’s reappearing. Grace, not law, produces godliness.

Interestingly, the word translated ‘teaching’ here is the same word often rendered as ‘chasten’(KJV) or ‘discipline’.  It is used to describe the training of children, whether by words of correction or by the rod!  For instance:

• “For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines.” (Heb.12:6,7,10)
• “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. (Rev.3:19)

God’s grace trains (or disciplines) men to live godly lives (thus the title of the book: Disciplined by Grace). The by-products of God’s gracious action will be evident:

1) denial of ungodliness and worldly lusts

2) sober, righteous and godly living

3) anticipation of Jesus’ return!

These are the evidences of grace at work.  Where they are not in evidence we have reason to question whether the grace of God has been rightly understood or received.  For while it is true that the grace of God has appeared to all men in the person of Jesus Christ, not all have believed on Him as their Saviour and submitted their lives to Him as their God.  Apart from the death of Christ on one’s behalf there can be no grace of God toward men, only a fearful expectation of judgment.  Faith in Jesus is the condition for God’s grace to be extended to man. “I believe that Jesus died for me, because of my sins, and I receive Him as my Savior and the rightful Lord of my life.”

No amount of good works or law-abiding will produce a life acceptable to God.  The law was not designed for this.  It is rather a tool to make us aware of the gulf that lies between ourselves and God.  By the law everyone in the world is shown to be guilty before God (Romans 3:19).  No one measures up as ‘good’ when stood up against the Law’s standard.   For this reason God sent Jesus as a sacrifice for sin that He might extend saving grace to all who believe.

OK, so we know salvation is by grace through faith, but what about growth in godliness?  Is this where the law kicks in—with a set of does and don’ts that define and motivate Christian conduct?

This was the error that slipped into the church in Galatia.  They began to think that the justified believer is made perfect by keeping the law.  Paul said NO! ‘the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” (Gal.3:24,25)  And elsewhere he said, “you are not under the law (where sin takes dominion) but under grace.” (Rom.6:14)

How then does grace train us (discipline us) toward godliness? 

A very sweet chapter was devoted to illustrating how this works.  It was drawn from the life of Abraham in Genesis 14:17-25.  Let me see if I can summarize the story for you.

You will remember the story of Abraham and Lot in which they parted company to settle in the land of Canaan.  Abraham generously gave Lot first pick; he chose the fertile Jordan valley and settled near the very wicked city of Sodom.  Well, by and by this city was overrun by rival kings and Lot and his family were among those carried off with all their possessions. 

Enter: Abraham to the rescue.  He gathered his home-trained forces and pursued the victors.  He defeated them and brought back his nephew Lot along with the rest of the captives and their possessions.  Now he was in line to be richly rewarded by the wicked king of Sodom for his service.  Enter: Melchizedek, that mysterious figure referred to as the King of Salem and the ‘priest of God Most High’.  He arrived on the scene with bread and wine and a blessing for Abraham direct from ‘God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth’.  In the blessing Abraham was reminded that it was God who had delivered the enemy into his hands and Abraham responded with a gift of gratitude, a tenth of everything he’d recovered.   

Only then, after Abraham was fortified with food and drink and freshly reminded that the God he served was the possessor of everything, did the wicked King of Sodom step forward offering Abraham all the goods he had brought back: “Give me the persons, but take the goods for yourself.”

But Abraham declined his offer, refusing to take even ‘a thread or a sandal strap or anything that is yours’. His reason? ‘lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich’.  He took nothing for himself; God was His portion and provider.  He did not succumb to ‘worldly lusts’ but chose to live “soberly, righteously and godly” with his hope fixed on what God would choose to provide as His inheritance. 

Shortly after this incident the LORD come to Abraham in  a vision saying: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great”. In this vision God promises him a son, to be his heir, and through him countless offspring—one of whom we know would be the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ.  And Abraham ‘believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness’.

Do you see the elements of grace at work  in this story training a man of faith in godliness? I confess I hadn’t seen some of these threads myself but was quite fascinated with the imagery J.F.Strombeck points out.  So I’ve lifted out a portion of the chapter titled:  The Bread and the Wine  to share with you here.  Note the threads of grace throughout.  (Any bolded words are my own doing, not in the original.)  Oh, and now would be a good time to pour yourself a second cup of tea!

The following excerpts are from Disciplined by Grace* by J.F. Strombeck, 1947

--The moment Abraham, the man of faith, was to be tested, God sent a priest to him.  It was not a lawgiver that God sent, nor was it a prophet to remind him of judgment that might come upon him if he departed from the way of righteousness.  No, Melchizedek…was a priest…one who approaches God on the basis of a sacrifice that has been made to atone for sin, and pleads with God on behalf of man.  Because of the sacrifice, the demands of God’s holiness and righteousness have been met, and therefore God is free to act in grace in response to the pleading of the priest…The whole incident was on the ground of grace—pure grace.  It was grace disciplining Abraham. (37)

--Melchizedek brought bread and wine.  That bread and wine were a type, pointing forward to the death of Christ, just as now the bread and wine are symbols reminding the believer thereof.  Inasmuch as the death of Christ satisfied divine justice and made grace possible the incident clearly speaks of grace. (37)

--The blessing of the ‘possessor of heaven and earth’ were added to the benefits derived from partaking of the bread and the wine.  As the bread and wine point to the Son whom God spared not, but delivered up for us all, so the blessings of the possessor of heaven and earth point to the “all things” which are freely given with the Son (Rom.8:32).  Here then, is “grace upon grace”.  It was the grace of God which brings salvation, teaching Abraham that God, because He is the possessor of Heaven and earth, is fully able to give him everything he needed.  It was a reminder that the riches which God, who owns Heaven and earth, give are far greater than any possible favors from and ungodly king.  God’s gifts, being both spiritual and temporal, satisfy both the spirit and the body.

--Abraham’s tithes were given freely.  In this giving of the tithe, Abraham voluntarily acknowledged his full dependence upon God for all that he had.  This is the true state of grace.

--Communion with God’s high priest had revealed to Abraham the riches of God’s grace…the utter worthlessness of the riches of the ungodly king as compared with the blessings of the Most High God.  This shows that the mere reminder of what Christ has accomplished by His death and what God does in love because of Him is a tremendous force for separation from worldly lusts…He would not accept [riches] at the hand of the ungodly king.  He looked to God’s abounding provision in love to supply all that he needed.

--“I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet” …A thread is the smallest part of a garment.  Garments in the Bible are symbolic of the believer’s righteous standing before God.  The shoelatchet is that which holds the shoe fast and aids in walking.  The earthly life of the believer is called his walk.  The meaning of this then is that the world cannot contribute the smallest particle either to the believer’s standing before God or to his holy living. (40)

--As Melchizedek brought bread and wine to Abraham, so another, “called of God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb.5:10) also took bread and wine.  “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you” (I Cor.11:24)  “This is my blood….which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matt26:28)  Ever since, throughout this age of grace, the bread and the wine have been a memorial to all believers; a constant reminder of what God in grace, through Christ, has done for them.

--As Abraham was strengthened by the bread and the wine and the communion with Melchizedek, so likewise is the believer strengthened in meditation upon what Christ is to him, as symbolized by the bread and the wine….A vision of Christ, of His broken body and shed blood, prompts the believer to refuse to be enriched by the ungodly world.  The realization that God is the possessor of Heaven and earth, and that He is able to supply all need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Phil.4:19), makes it possible to reject the favors of the world….

And thus conclude my road-trip morsels.  And I’ve been chewing ever since.  Could it be that the more we comprehend the greatness of God’s continuous grace toward us, the more we will live the lives He has intended for us from before time began?  I do think so!

Thanks for joining me for tea ( :
Feel free to leave some crumbs…

--LS

“The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.  The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” Ps.16:5,6

“Deliver my soul from the wicked…from men of the world whose portion is in this life.” Ps.17:13,14

“As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.” Ps.17:15
____________________________

*If you should be interested in reading more of this book, it is available in PDF format, to read online, HERE.

And I must share one more link to an incredible message based on
Titus 2:11-14 given by Charles Spurgeon back in 1886 and still so relevant! “The Two Appearings and the Discipline of Grace” is available for the reading HERE.

Cause for Celebration—Grace at Work!

Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast!
I Cor.5:7-8

The good thing about a study in grace is that as it unfolds (and you realize with a sinking feeling how not-gracious you are) there is grace to repent and to be forgiven and to value grace all the more.

That has been my week in a nutshell.

First I was looking at the indicators of a life where grace is in place.  People who have been smitten by grace…

• forgive readily, no strings attached.  They remember what they’ve been forgiven.
• give cheerfully, and generously—of their time, their talents, their possessions, their very lives!
• rejoice unenvyingly when others are blessed (whether they ‘deserve’ it or not)
• love liberally with no expectation of return
• repent continually.  They are more aware of their own sins than their neighbor’s.
• live humbly. Their confidence and boasting are all in Christ.  They’re just glad to be included in His family!

Then, I was feeling mighty pitiful…for just a bit.  Repentance was needed.

A person may try to be ‘holy’, by doing or not doing.  A person can think herself righteous as compared with her neighbor… But when grace is missing it is hard to deny.  And grace received is the stuff of heaven’s rejoicing! “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which [think they?] need no repentance.” Lk.15:7

Round about this point the Spirit nudged me with this song… averting my gaze from the truth about me, apart from Jesus, to the truth about me because of Jesus!

Every debt that you've ever had
Has been paid up in full by the grace of the Lord.
Be ye glad, be ye glad, be ye glad

 

I’m Glad!

And I found myself in Ephesians 1 relishing: “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ…”  (and beginning a Bible memory project!)

But lastly came the reminder that among the spiritual disciplines helpful to our growth in Christ is that of CELEBRATION.  Hmphf.  Not something I’m a natural at. Give me solitude, study, and silence any day over this! Give me something I can DO to be holy.  But in celebration we relinquish our conscientious pre-occupation with a thousand worries and self-appointed ‘disciplines’ and prove our reliance to be on God for our salvation.  It is the Sabbath principle at work (or should I say, play?) 

And I realized I’d come full-circle, back to the celebration of the true Passover Lamb whose blood makes clean.  He invites me to sit and eat—‘this is my Body broken for you’’  to feast on Him, to partake of His grace:“My grace is sufficient for you.” 

It was as though He were saying… I did not call you because you were good. Here is my grace—rest in it.  Celebrate Me.  Your sin is no deterrent to grace, your weakness no shame at My Table.  You will not overcome by trying harder or working smarter.   Grace doesn’t come that way.  You cannot even crucify yourself.  Flesh cannot conquer flesh.  Freedom is not something you ‘figure out’, attain by discipline, or earn by hard work.  It is not by might or power that freedom will come but by yielding to My Spirit.   Come, sit, eat.

All this rests in the symbolism of the Passover Lamb. On the Cross His work was finished.  We derive the benefit by resting in it.  We live by being forgiven…

And that has been the kaleidoscope of thoughts dazzling my mind’s eye this week—what a lead-up to Easter week it has been!

--LS

So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.” Jn.6:53

“May grace and peace be multiplied to YOU in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.” II Pet.1:2

P.S. I must share one more song.  Just can’t get enough of these lyrics. “We have a great High Priest—the perfect risen Lamb!  My life is hid with Christ on high—with Christ my Saviour and my God.”

Before the Throne of God

Before the Throne of God

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I’ve been feasting this week on the the good words of:

      Roy Hession: Be Filled Now (available online here: http://www.christianissues.biz/pdf-bin/sanctification/befillednow.pdf )

      J.I. Packer: God’s Words: Studies of Key Bible Themes (Baker,1992)

      John Piper: Future Grace (Multnomah,1995)

I can’t resist tucking in some precious quotes below…

re:The Spirit as Comforter: (Hession: Be Filled Now)

We seem to appreciate most intensely the Spirit's ministry as Comforter, when, having become cold and out of touch with God, we try to get back to Him by 'works.' How natural it is for us to imagine that if we have got away from Him by committing sin, we shall come back to Him by doing good. And so we promise ourselves we will try harder, we set ourselves higher goals, we seek to do more for God or even to spend longer on our devotions. All these things are right, of course, but in as much as we so often do not attain those goals, we only end by burdening ourselves with additional self-reproach and an added sense of failure. We become tense in our efforts to improve, and condemned because we cannot succeed. We have come to experience what Paul did, when he said, 'The commandment, which was ordained to life (if I could attain to it), I found to be unto death (because I failed to do so),' and if we go farther along this road, we shall be in the same place of despair that he came to when he said, 'O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?' (Rom 7:10 and 24).

What a relief it is when the Holy Spirit points us, as He did Paul, away from our work to Another's work, the finished work of Christ for us on the Cross, whereby we see that the work has been done for us, the distance between us and God bridged and peace made! The Spirit bids us cease from trying to get peace by our efforts, and to come to Jesus as a sinner and rest in what He had done. As we do so, the burden of striving and self-reproach slips away from our hearts, and the Comforter whispers peace to our hearts.

-------------------
-------------------

(Roy Hession: Be Filled Now)
It may be asked how do we get this new sight of Jesus as and when we need it? Not by trying to get it, nor even, I suggest, by praying for it, but rather by telling God we have not got it. Let us not dissipate our energies for the time being anywhere else but in this one direction. Tell Him you are not seeing Jesus, tell Him you are in bad shape, that you are not free, that you have not peace. Tell Him you are struggling to get by your efforts what deep down you know is a gift, but that you are struggling none the less. Tell Him that today you have not this sight of Jesus, His Blood and His victory that you had yesterday. Make no effort to get it, just tell Him you have not got it. Then allow Him to show you why you do not have it. He may show you dark and unsuspected things, but say yes to Him. All this is what is meant by going to the feet of Jesus, to the foot of His Cross. Such phrases may sound like cliches to some, but they express an awesome and hallowed experience to others. It is there that the Blood of Jesus avails for you. And you will not have been long at His feet before the Holy Spirit arises with healing in His wings, and gives you to see all you need to see of Jesus, and to possess all you need to possess of His fullness.

Re:The life of grace is a life of freedom…(Packer, God’s Words)

1. "...the Christian under grace is freed from the hopeless necessity of trying to commend himself to God by perfect law-keeping. Now he lives by being forgiven, and so is free at every point in his life to fail (as inevitably he does in fact, again and again) --and, having failed, to pick himself up where he fell, to seek and find God's pardon, and to start again. Pride, our natural disposition, which is self-protective, self righteous and vainglorious, will either refuse to admit failure at all or refuse to try again, lest the trauma of failing be repeated; but the humility of the man who lives by being forgiven knows no such inhibitions....daily...his shortcomings are forgiven and his joy restored." (Packer, 106)

2.“Moreover, the Christian under grace is free from sin’s dominion…not only is righteousness (law-keeping) both possible and prescribed fro Christians, but it is also a fact that no Christian can go on sinning as before, for union with Christ has changed his nature so that now his heart (his inner man) desires righteousness as before it desired sin, and only obedience to God can satisfy his deepest inner craving.  He hates the sin that he finds in himself, and gets no pleasure from lapsing into it.  Such is the state of mind of the man who is reed from sin’s dominion…He knows that his freedom has ennobled him and brought hi both the desire and the strength for right living, and for this he is endlessly thankful.”(Packer,107)

3.“Finally, the Christian under grace is free from bondage to fear—fear, that is, of the unknown future, or of meeting God (as one day we all must do), or of being destroyed by hostile forces or horrific experiences of one sort or another.  He knows himself to be God’s child, adopted, beloved, secure, with his inheritance awaiting him and eternal joy guaranteed. He knows that nothing can separate him from the love of God in Christ, nor dash him from His Saviour’s hand, and that nothing can happen to him which is not for his long-term good, making him more like Jesus and bringing him ultimately closer to his God.” (Packer,107)

“Relax and exult in your appointed feast.  I will take responsibility for tomorrow’s obedience.” (Piper,49)

I love the story of Joseph

I sat next to my 4 1/2 year old grandson in church while the story was being read… “Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more…”  (Gen.37). Even a child is drawn to this story.

It is the story of God overlooking immaturity, using immaturity, making even  sinners serve His purpose…. Keeping,  maturing,  and humbling a favored and cocky son, and then positioning him to preserve not only his family but ultimately an entire nation!

It all started with a dream.  Not Joseph’s, but the dream in the heart of God—the making and redeeming of a nation.  At first it was just a family of flawed people.  Rival mothers. Parents choosing favorites.  Siblings jostling for position.  A dysfunctional mess!  But God saw in this family the seed of a nation that would showcase His brilliance to the world!

I love that!  It’s not about our perfections but about His. Our weaknesses and even our sins make  God’s greatness shine all the more. Who else could take such a mess and fashion such a story of redemption?!

So, one morning while we waited for their Mama to make a gourmet breakfast I put on a dramatized reading of Joseph’s story (Gen.37-47) and we listened together, the kids and I, to the whole epic unfold in the words of Scripture.  Incredible.  We listened as Joseph’s dreams came true in the end—Who would have believed it?!  All his big brothers did indeed bow down to him--these brothers who had been livid at his cocky boasting. Who did this 17 year old think he was anyway?! 

They had seethed in jealousy over his designer coat, the symbol of their father’s favoritism.  And now he was positioned to save their lives.  God had brought it about.  What his brothers meant for harm God turned to good.  It was not about Joseph at all.

God’s intentions extended far beyond Joseph’s wildest dreams.  But in the interim there were the humbling and refining years—the rejection and abandonment, the enslavement in Egypt, the unjust imprisonment.  God used it all to refine and prepare Joseph for his crucial role of leadership in a time of crisis.

He was in the end exalted to greatness in Egypt and his brothers would indeed bow to him. But by this time he was more than an immature dreamer imagining great things for himself.  He was willing to bow to God’s purposes and forgive his brothers the evil they had done him because he saw it all as part of God’s plan for him for the saving of many souls (Gen.50:20). 

God’s dreams are bigger than ours.  They go beyond us.  His plans for us and for our kin are not bound by our faults and failures, our sin and dysfunction.  Think of Joseph’s father through all those years of mourning the perceived loss of his son. What a shame--Joseph was not dead at all!  And all the while God was steadily at work preparing a great future and hope for Jacob and his descendants (and ultimately for us!).  A great redemption was in the making.  He just could not see it.

Our perspectives can be so earth-bound, so based in what we see and hear.  No wonder God invites us to set our minds on things above not on things that are on earth (Col.3:2), to walk by faith, to endure for the joy set before us,  to keep an eye to the hope of our calling…

And as we roam about visiting our kids and grandkids--enjoying our progeny, the story of Joseph reminds me to keep the long view of things and to celebrate what God is doing behind the scenes in all our lives for His own glory.

--LS

Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love! Ps.44:26

“…for not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their own arm save them, but your right hand and your arm, and the light of your face, for you delighted in them.” Ps.44:3

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him , because he cares for you…” I Pet.5:5-7

“For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities.  For when I am weak, then I am strong.” II Cor.12:10

“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” Romans 8:37

 

P.S. Looking for an audio Bible?

Check out BibleGateway.com for online audio readings of any passage of Scripture you wish (in various versions, including a dramatized reading from the NIV).  It’s free and super easy to use--an effortless way to accomplish your Bible Reading plan!

Good Gracious!

Now there’s an expression I haven’t heard in a long while!  Apparently it dates back to the 1700’s.  And though it alludes to the goodness and grace of God it is used commonly as an expression of surprise, dismay or alarm. 

I would like to reclaim it as an expression of actual appreciation for God’s grace—GOOD GRACIOUS!—He has been so gracious to one so lacking in grace.  I see this from fresh vantage points every passing year.  I stumbled upon an old post just now, written just over a year ago.  I was wrestling with the damning sense of ‘falling short’, and grasping for freedom to live out God’s design for me without this stifling condemnation.  This seems to be a recurring theme for me. But God keeps on pursuing, keeps on wooing me to rest in grace and to relax in the freedom He has purchased for me.

• This week it came through a missions conference—a thoroughly winsome and passionate appeal by a young lady mesmerized and transformed by God’s grace. 
• God spoke too through other well-timed testimonies—simple evidences of God at work through ordinary people for His Kingdom’s sake.
• Through fragmentary texting and conversations over tea I saw His grace at work in others.
• And always through His Word He sets grace before me as not only the means of my salvation but of my walk before Him in this world.  I need grace and His is enough for all my lack.  No, God hasn’t given up on teaching my stony heart what grace is about.

He sees the mode I live from.  Though an heir to Christ’s righteousness I act as though my life depended on my own goodness?   I live as though avoiding mistakes and messes and sins and ‘scenes’ were the main thing. I  readily confine myself to the ‘tried and true’, things I think I can competently manage.  Or in lieu of that, to at least keeping up appearances, which demands limiting opportunities to fail. 

It’s a grace-less and confining way to live.  And I’m sick of living in a cage!  God is too good and too GRACIOUS and life is too short for this. I want to fly!

The way out of this cage is more elusive.  It’s one thing to evaluate the cage you’re in and to see how you got there, but quite another to get the latch undone and fly free!  Pride has wired it tightly shut.  My life may not depend on limiting myself to known areas of competence, but my pride certainly does!!  I think it must be part of the human condition to want to be good enough to merit something!   But in this place how shall we ever know life-transforming grace? 

There is no parable that displays this problem more clearly than the story of the King settling accounts with his indebted servants. (Mt.18:23ff) Before him stood a servant that owed him more money than could be earned in a thousand lifetimes as a common laborer!  

The fellow is about to be thrown in prison for life, so what does he do? You’d think he’d throw himself at the King’s feet and plead for mercy, right?  But no, he has his pride.  Instead he asks for time--for the king’s patience while he pays back his debt. Patience?  Is that really all he needed?  Does he really think he owes so little that he can make it up in a few short years? Never mind, the king took pity on this conceited servant, released him from prison and forgave his debt. It was sheer grace.

But was the debtor grateful? No, he was too proud to accept handouts.  This was no time for gratitude.  All he could think of was the fellow who owed him money. It was just a day’s wages but oh, how he throttled him, demanding that what was owed be paid back.  There was no place for grace. This servant of the king needed cash badly. He was intent on paying back the king.  This might be admirable in some other context but in light of the horrific debt he owed, and the King’s life-sparing offer, it was an insult to His gracious King. And because he had failed to comprehend the magnitude of what he had been forgiven, this servant was unable to extend grace to others.

He ended up back in prison, a permanent debtor to the king, only because he could not admit his own bankruptcy and welcome the King’s gracious offer:

“You have nothing. I have everything.
Here, I gift you your freedom from the debt you owe.”

I need this parable. It reminds me of the immense grace of God in which I stand. Grace which cost Jesus His life. Surely I have been forgiven much. But only to the extent that it sinks into those self-righteous sinkholes in my soul will it be truly transformative in my day-to-day encounters with real people.  And I am brought again to repentance—the starting place for grace to work its wonders and to free us from our self-serving confines.

We have been set free. 

Freed from--sin’s domination,  the Law’s condemnation and our pre-occupation with falling short.

Freed to--live a life of love, led by the Spirit and governed by faith, not rules.

And there really is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus—though we bungle, though we stumble, though we fail to reach our own ideals…If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed!

Good gracious!  That’s a  liberating reality to fly with!

--LS

“…for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace…” Heb13:9

“For you were called to freedom, brothers.  Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Gal.5:13

“For through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus….only faith working through love [counts].” Gal.5:6

Who shall bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.  Who is he that condemns? Rom. 8:33,34

My Haunted Home

Hauntingly lonely.  Those were the words that came to my mind as we walked in late after dropping our ‘baby’ off to fly away to school.

Having dropped her off very early that morning Jim and I  had spent a lovely day together, albeit punctuated by glances at the clock and calculations as to where Rachel would be by now…

‘Ah. She’s getting on the plane now…She’s realizing how tired she is…Oh. She’s arriving in Houston… Oh, she’s on the last leg of her trip—must be relieved and excited…Ah. She’s heading for the baggage claim and shuttle to meet the others.  So exciting. So tired..’

As her long awaited dream was taking shape before her eyes we were doing rather ordinary things… riding tandem in the balmy morning…sitting in traffic and more traffic…. shopping at at Costco… waiting for ferries, driving home…

But then we’d arrived home and oh how empty the house felt-- hauntingly lonely. Mechanically, automatically as is our custom no matter how late we get in, we unloaded the van and began putting away our few things-- toiletries, laundry, groceries in their old places, warding off words that might lead to disabling tears. It all seemed rather strange, this rattling around as a two-some in a house meant for a family.  But as part of the familiar process we checked the mail, and there was just the reminder I needed. Yes, our house is haunted. It’s haunted by grace.  God knew just what I’d need…

In the mailbox just outside the front door, tucked in with a letter for Rachel from a pen-pal, was a handmade card from old missionary friends we trained with.  Our babies were babies together and then our paths parted to far-flung places.  They are just returning to their post after sending their youngest off to university. The opening words were: “We have come to another chapter in our lives…”  How apropos! What am I whining about; their children are whole continents away!

It was a short note, a grateful one acknowledging the Lord’s goodness, grace, protection and leading in each of their children’s lives…and it closed with a prayer from Colossians: “that you continue to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (1:10)  Somehow it was just the reset that I needed, like a silent assurance that God sees, God is pleased, God has purposes yet for our lives. Continue to walk…  This is all we need to do. Just keep walking with Him.  Our roles may be changing but the underlying  purposes for our lives have not changed. We are still here to know Him and live for His pleasure, whatever that may entail.

We are not alone, never have been, never will be.  When Jesus went away He promised not to leave His disciples as orphans.  And so He hasn’t.  The Holy Spirit is alive and well here residing in us to strengthen, encourage and enable us to do all that He will yet call us to do, including living with contentment in every circumstance!  The Voice of God still echoes off the pages of His Word filling our empty moments with grace.  We shall survive and thrive in this our haunted home for His pleasure.

 

And may you too be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light!
(Col.1:11,12)

--LS   

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Eph.3:20,21

Sharing life over tea

A hot cup of tea with a bit of sugar and some real cream is such a wonderful relaxing, friendly thing to share.  I’m sitting here this evening with the tea things still out and the house suddenly empty and quiet as the mom and her young tribe that came to share some sips and look at all my give-away books has evacuated, a box of homeschool books in tow.  It is Thursday, my quiet evening to ponder and write alone.

Why the door?  It reminded me of the passage I was pondering this morning, that one where Jesus stands at the door knocking, inviting anyone who hears his voice to open the door.  He’s just waiting for the invite to tea—well, to a meal together really.  Who wouldn’t open the door?  Why was it shut with Jesus on the wrong side in the first place?

Although this verse (Rev.3:20) is often used to describe opening one’s heart to Jesus at salvation, the context is not quite that.  It was this context that brought me here this morning.  Jesus is addressing a church that has lost sight of its need for Him.  “You say, I am rich , I have prospered and I need nothing”.  When in reality they are ‘wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked”! Jesus counsels them to come to him for true treasure—for gold refined by fire, (symbolic perhaps of a faith that perseveres through trial; see I Pet.1:7),  and for His righteousness (white garments) to hide their shame.  And for salve to heal their blinded eyes.

He reminds them His reproof is driven by love and urges this lukewarm church to get zealous, not about doing good works, but about repentance! It is out of this context that the words pop out: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock…”

Jesus was on the wrong side of the door perhaps because the Laodiceans felt they were no longer in need of Him.  They are ‘doing very well, thank-you’.  But Jesus’ own teaching makes it pretty clear that it’s not the one who never visibly wandered but the one who returns home, this one that is blessed.  It’s not the ‘righteous persons needing no repentance’ but the sinner who repents that causes all Heaven to party!  It’s not the ‘very well, thank-you’ but the sick, that Jesus came to heal.

As you can see, I haven’t quite shaken that ‘elder brother’ lesson from my mind—the goody-goody brother that never left home but somehow still missed enjoying a healthy relationship with his dad, you know the story.  Well, being ‘good’ dies hard.  I’ve been preaching to myself this week I guess and thinking about those words of Jesus—about all heaven rejoicing far more over the one sinner repenting than over the 99 who feel they are above repentance…

The thing to be celebrated it would seem is repentance, not one’s conscientious ‘goodness’. 

I hear it in the story of the rich young ruler too, approaching Jesus confident that he’s on the right track to eternal life, just needing a bit of assurance, or one more official ‘to do’ and he’ll have it.  What assignment does Jesus give?  Sell all you’ve set your heart on and follow me.  Make me your god, not your own self-sufficiency.  It’s as if he were saying, it’s not your righteousness that matters, but mine.  There’s no premium on ‘goodness’ when it comes to gaining eternal life.  We’re not saved because of it, not favored because of it, not loved more because of it.  It’s His goodness that counts, His name that is to be hallowed, His glory that is to shine through any good that comes from our lives.

I guess that’s why Jesus was always inviting people to Himself: follow me, abide in me, take my yoke and walk with me, come to me, open the door and let me eat with you…Where did I get the idea that my calling was to ‘be good’?  How many times have I admonished my kids to do likewise? 

I came across a blog this week by Emily Freeman that set me thinking more about this business of ‘being good’: 

one thing your daughter doesn’t need you to say

It made the case for NOT pressuring our kids to be a good example!  Because this could just be a primer to believing that  “being a Christian means having it all together, saying all the “right” things, staying a few steps above everyone else.”

She pointed out that requiring our son/daughter to be a good example may set her up to become  “a person people look up to, but …[not] someone they can relate to.” It continued:

“She may be successful at managing her behavior, but she will always struggle to manage people’s opinions.”

“She may have a great reputation, but her character will be clouded with bitterness and anger.”

“She may be a good church-goer, but she will not know how to be a good friend.”

“This may keep her out of trouble, but it will suffocate her soul.”

The author seemed to read my objections (and perhaps yours) “But what about holiness?”  What about being a light in a dark place?  She then points us back to the reality of whose goodness we’re representing.

What’s the alternative to ‘being good’ on the outside and keeping a lid on the rest ‘for example’s sake’?  What truth is missed in this scenario?  Precisely this, that: “Her light comes from Jesus, not from her awesome behavior.”

I found this to be good food for thought, not just for my daughters (and sons) but for myself. Because so easily being ‘good’ can be about my reputation, my appearance, my credentials, my standing before people. Being known as ‘nice’ or ‘sweet’ or ‘quiet’ or any of those bland descriptors used of people we hardly know…What’s the value of all that?  Does it point anyone to Jesus as the One who’s so incredibly good that I owe all I am to Him?

And I sit sipping my tea with all these thoughts as a backdrop.  I pore over my frustrations at not knowing what to do to ‘fix’ situations, at not feeling sufficient for those who ‘need’ me to ‘do something’.  I find myself wishing this knocking were more audible and this conversation over tea with Jesus more literal.  But maybe that’s what faith is for?

It’s soon time to get up and get breakfast going whether I’ve got the advice I’d hoped for or not.  I didn’t, at least I didn’t think so at the time.  But one thing I take away from this encounter with the Living Word is that I think I’m always meant to need Him. Never meant to think myself ‘good enough’ or responsible enough  to do life without Him, never intended to bear the weight of that, to close the door and sort things out in solitude-- doing my best to figuring out what to say, what to ‘do’ because surely somebody’s got to do something(!). I’m not meant to rely on my cleverness or find answers by scratching my own head! 

Could it be He hasn’t called me to be ‘good’ (or clever or responsible)  but to be open to Him, to be ever dependent--inviting Him into my messes, to be ever repentant and forgiven, to be ever listening for His voice.

Mercifully, He keeps knocking when I forget these things.  He’s seems intent on sharing His life with me.

--LS

"I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves.” …"This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Lk.22:15-20 

“Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live;” Is.55:2,3

“Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
I Pet.1:8,9

“But you are…a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” I Pet.2:9

--------------------------

You may want to visit Emily at www.chattingatthesky.com  She has some timely words of grace for the ‘good girl’ in need of relief. Her article, “One thing your daughter doesn’t need you to say” is here.

Good News for the ‘Elder Brother’

Do you see him there, off to the side?

It's the big brother, the one with the piously crossed hands, the unfeeling eyes, the 'upright' posture, looking on unmoved as his father welcomes his filthy 'prodigal' brother home.

The prodigal's unsatisfying profligate lifestyle drove him back to the Father but what about his big brother?

What's to be done for him?

The story of the prodigal's return is much celebrated. Songs have been composed, great artwork created, movies made, and books written, all in celebration of the returned prodigal. But what about the older brother? The story is after all, the story of two sons-- "There was a man who had two sons." What's to become of the second son? He didn't leave home on a wild impulse to spend his inheritance. He kept the home fires burning. He was an obedient son. He didn't ask for much apparently. But oh the sense of entitlement he's nurtured!

It seems to me, most of us are born with the propensity toward being either a prodigal or the big brother (sister) to one. We give a lot of thought and pity to prodigals. Their return is a cause of rejoicing in heaven and on earth! But what about the pious older brother? He's really not very likeable. He isn't even happy to see his brother come home. He does not share His Father's heart of compassion. He is thinking only of himself, and with these thoughts come envy and resentment. He has stayed home, denied himself worldly pleasures, done the work, postponed the reward, guarded his shekels and perhaps even anticipated being the sole heir to his father's remaining possessions. But here is this scoundrel brother. He's squandered all that was rightfully his and now he's back to beg for more. And Father's throwing him a grand party—with whose money?! He doesn't deserve it. Why doesn't anyone ever get excited over me? throw me a party? celebrate me? I'm the one who deserves it. The older brother seethes with self-righteous protest, and refuses to be dissuaded or to join the celebration. Here is the really lost son. What's to be done for him?

He too is in desperate need of the Father's mercy. Only he doesn't see it. He only has eyes for his own goodness. Not unlike the Pharisee who stood 'praying' (applauding himself) in the temple "I thank thee that I am not like other men. I fast…I tithe…" (Lk.18:11)

The younger brother had returned to the Father with a new appreciation of Home because his wealth was spent and 'he began to be in need'. The older brother hasn't yet come to such personal destitution. He's still clinging to his good track record… still assuming he's the favored son with a right to everything because he's been 'good'. But he is far from comprehending the Father's heart or finding fellowship there. He turns a sullen ear to His entreaty to come join the celebration. His pride will not let him.

What does it take to bring an elder brother back to the Father?

It is no easy road for a Pharisee. Pride is an enormous stumbling stone. Compassion and a warm welcome may draw those who recognize their personal bankruptcy but not so, a Pharisee. One who has spent his life cultivating 'righteousness' of a sort feels little need of a Saviour. To admit failure feels like personal suicide. To remain oblivious to it requires increasing blindness and hardness of heart. What does it take to convince a Pharisee of the error of his ways?

For Saul (later named Paul) it took a blinding confrontation that knocked him to his knees and commanded his attention. Humbling. Later despite his being 'as to the law, a Pharisee' and 'as to righteousness under the law, blameless' (Phil. 3:5,6) he would profess to being the 'chief' of sinners (I Tim.1:15), and would claim all his merits as rubbish compared to knowing Jesus and sharing in His righteousness by faith.

For Nicodemus, it took watching Jesus' life and having a pointed late-night conversation with Him: "You must be born again." Later he would share the task and expense of wrapping Jesus' body with linen and costly spices. It appears he too had come to believe and to love Jesus.

Other Pharisees would eventually find their way from arrogant self-righteousness to acknowledging their need of forgiveness. But it was no easy road.

It often called for shock treatment to penetrate their resistant veneer. Consider Jesus' own words addressed to the Pharisees:

"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" Mt.3:7

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness." Mt.23:27

"Woe to you, blind guides." Mt.23:16

“You fools and blind men!"  Mt. 23:17

“You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?" Mt.23:33

“Woe to you! For you are like concealed tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”Lk.11:44

You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. " Jn.8:44

Then there were Jesus' custom-made parables. This story of a father and his two sons is the third in a trio of parables about lost and found things, about the repentance of sinners and the unparalleled joy their return brings the Father. Jesus told these specifically for the Pharisees and scribes, in response to their grumbling at how He mingled with tax collectors and 'sinners'.

He explained first in terms of sheep, likening the finding of a lost one to the repentance of a sinner. "I tell you," He said, "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance". What were they to make of these statements? They considered themselves righteous and worthy of great honor, clearly above needing repentance, not like these 'sinners' with whom Jesus preferred to keep company. They were offended. Jesus seemed to be putting a premium on repentance… not 'righteousness'. What was He implying?

The next tale was of a long-lost coin being found. He drove it home again with this idea of all the angels in heaven rejoicing, not over one 'righteous' Pharisee but over 'one sinner who repents'. (Lk.15:10)

And the grand finale was this story of a man and his two sons. (Luke 15:11ff) This time the Pharisees are symbolically painted into the picture as the 'elder brother' who sullenly stood by as his long-lost brother was welcomed home after squandering his inheritance on wild living. This time they too are winsomely addressed as the Father comes to personally entreat his bitter son to join the celebration also. He listens to the son's grievances: I've served you these many years. I've never disobeyed your commands. And I've never been given even a goat for a barbecue with my friends. But when this 'no-good' son of yours decides to come home you kill the fatted calf for him!

Then the Father offers his offended son a fresh perspective, reminding him of how much more he has had all along, but somehow missed seeing: "Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours." (Lk.15:31) How is a party and a fattened calf more enviable than living with the Father all along and sharing all He owns? How is riotous living and its bitter consequences something to be envied? How is this sullen, jealous response fitting on such a day?! It makes sense only to the self-righteous son and the story ends without indicating whether he had a change of heart. And the Pharisees to whom it was told are faced with themselves and their very lost condition.

Will they see themselves in the story and come to their senses? The story leaves me wondering which is the harder redemption? that of a sinner who has come to his senses and knows who he is, or that of a sinner deceived by his own valiant efforts into thinking himself above the need for forgiveness?

One has 'blown it' and is well aware he does not deserve to be called a son. He is aware of his unworthiness and has little expectation of acceptance. But still he trusts the Father and returns humbly. This one the Father welcomes home and forgives.

The other, exalted by avoidance of his particular list of 'sins', thinks himself worthy of sonship, sees no need of forgiveness and so remains himself estranged from the Father while he strives to be 'good' on his own.

He's not much fun to be around. He's got a nasty arrogant attitude. What a kill-joy besides! Who wants him at the party? What kind of guy is this that he can't even get excited when his little brother comes home? Truth is, he's miserable. He cannot live up to his own standards and he knows it. His own failure drives him to compare himself with others, to judge and to condemn. He bolsters his ego based on his own biased evaluations, turning a blind eye to his own heart. He's not happy, and certainly not joyful. Counting on his own goodness to commend him to the Father is not working out. He needs just what that 'no-good' brother of his needed—forgiveness and a change of heart.

I have a great empathy for this older brother… we have more in common than I like to admit. I suspect he was born a 'pleaser'. He learned early that avoiding disapproval was the next best thing to actually being 'good'. Winning accolades for being such a 'good boy', he learned to play the game, and worse yet, to believe that he really was better than that younger brother who got all the spankings! This was the beginning of the slippery slope of pride. He chose to do the 'right' things, but for the wrong reasons. He chalked up his good conduct as 'brownie points' making him superior to most everybody else. He formulated a list of 'do's and 'don'ts and a suspicion of all things pleasurable. These were usually deferred earning him more points for 'righteousness'. And soon he was sure he was entitled to his inheritance; he'd earned it after all.

Hmmm… just my hypothesis, based on someone I know quite well.

And what's to be done for such an elder brother? Why, the same thing that was done for the younger brother. He needs to come humbly to the Father bringing words of repentance. "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son…" And the rest will be the Father's doing—the robe of righteousness, the ring of promised inheritance, the shoes of the gospel of peace…and the fattened calf and the celebration. And I'm invited to join in because the Father has invited me too. This is the Gospel, and it keeps on being good news for me!

"The Christian gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued…that Jesus was glad to die for me. This leads to deep humility and deep confidence at the same time. It undermines both swaggering and sniveling. I cannot feel superior to anyone, and yet I have nothing to prove to anyone. I do not think more of myself nor less of myself. Instead, I think of myself less. I don't need to notice myself—how I'm doing, how I'm being regarded—so often." –Tim Keller in The Reason for God, p.187.

--LS

"For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, Hear; O Lord, forgive…for your own sake, because your people are called by your name." Daniel 9:18

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Mt.11:28-30

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Phil.3:12

The manifold grace of God

I needed grace this week.  I need it always I suppose, the need is just more evident at some times than others. And God’s grace picked me up and carried me through another week of homeschooling.  Perhaps someone prayed, I know I did.  I had been reading of Moses, and was envying him, not because of his oh-so-difficult-job but because it seemed so simple for him to just ‘cry out to the Lord’ for help and then hear some specific instruction from Him.

Like the time the Israelites are all cornered at the Red Sea and God says: ‘Lift up your staff; stretch out your hand.’  (Ex.14) and voila, the sea parts. 

Or, the time when the water’s undrinkably bitter and everyone’s thirsty--‘look there’s a tree’ and Moses throws it into the bitter water and it is made sweet. (Ex.15)

Then there’s the time when the people are about to stone Moses, again, because they’re thirsty. And the Lord says: “strike the rock, and water shall come out of it.”(Ex.17)

The contingencies keep coming.  Moses keeps calling out for help. God keeps instructing him in what to do.  I felt a little envious of Moses, (though I think I’m changing my mind, having taken a second look at the miserable job he had!) because it seems God answered him so clearly, with such specific instructions.  And I was wishing I would get such detailed lesson plans.  Then I had to wonder, is it that God’s not instructing?  Or that I’m not listening well?   I read somewhere once that the prerequisite for hearing from God, is a heart ready to do whatever He says. Moses was known as the meekest man that ever lived for a reason.  He was ready and listening for every drop of counsel God would give, glad to comply!

But in retrospect, though I did not get an audible response to my pleas for guidance—little germs of wisdom did begin to gel in my mind. Insights, ideas, new ways of doing things presented themselves.  And fresh determination and renewed hope seemed to spring up overnight. I didn’t have to raise a staff, or toss a tree, or strike a rock but grace did flow and it was enough for one more week in our journey.  God’s manifold grace was evident.

God always makes a  way, still.  In temptation he promises a ‘way of escape’. In weakness he promises ‘sufficient grace’. In times of plenty he instructs us to maintain thankful hearts.  His grace is always there though at times we may miss seeing it or experiencing it…  

‘See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no "root of bitterness" springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled’ (Heb.12:15)

“I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die.” (Gal.2:21 NLT)

The stories of the children of Israel illustrate this so well.  There they were on the verge of entering the Land of Canaan at last—the spies go in and find it ‘’an exceedingly good land” (Numb.14:7ff) Joshua and Caleb try to persuade the people that “if the Lord delights in us, He will bring us into this land and give it to us…” But all the other spies can talk about are the giants and the insurmountable difficulties they will have to face. They fail to obtain the grace of God.  This grace is contingent on faith in God’s ability, not our own.  It requires confidence that what we are too weak to tackle, He is well able to take care of.

Fear led the people to rebel against God’s direction. They missed out on what His grace would have provided.  And the Lord took them to task: “How long will this people despise me?  And how long will they not believe in me? in spite of all the signs I have done among them?” (Num.14:11)  GULP.  God’s grace is always there for every task He sets before us.  We can access it by faith, or brush it aside in fear and obstinacy to ‘do it my way’. Wow.    The verdict was not good for these folks.  They would traipse about in the wilderness for another 40 years till the whole adult population had died.  The children would suffer for their parents’ faithlessness. (Num.14:33)

Wow (again).  A pertinent object lesson for me.  I am so grateful for grace, the grace I’ve been shown this week, the multi-faceted graces of God scattered through all my days.

As we receive God’s grace, we become stewards of it to others “…as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”  (I Pet.4:10) This concept was brought home to me this week in the reading of Joni’s memoir: The God I Love, her story of a lifetime of walking with Jesus  through a degree of  disappointment, suffering and loss few of us will ever know.  It is a joyful testimony to God’s incredible grace as she embraced her lot (quadriplegia) and found God to be more real than she had ever imagined. It is God’s story of using Joni in her weakness to encourage innumerable others and to offer a perspective of eternity not easily come by in times of health and plenty.  Her story, her faithfulness to walk with Jesus in joy, is a gift of God’s grace that extends to me.

I have to take these things by faith. I have not known much suffering.  I sometimes fear because I’ve been given so much. Not just material goods, but faith, family, health, friendships, marriage, freedom, wisdom, the very Word of God!…so many good things.  So much to lose. (And so much to use. ‘To whom much is given much will be required’ is a haunting concept! But that’s another issue.)

Being one who fears suffering, I admire Job, who wouldn’t? Even Satan knew he was an amazing tribute to the grace of God—in the loss of everything but life itself he submitted to God his rights: The Lord gives and He  takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord. (Job 1:21) What does any of us possess that is not a gift anyway?  When did it become an inalienable right?

It occurs to me that noone likes suffering, anymore than our kids enjoyed being disciplined. But we do fall down and scrape our knees. Bad dogs do bite. Pets do die, and people too. And we do get spankings. As children of God, we will suffer for one reason or another.  But by faith, I can hear such testimonies and know that there will be grace, because we will never lose Jesus.

I bumped into these words today, written more than a century ago: “The only inalienable gift I have, is a Divine Savior. He never will be taken away from me. He is mine--mine forever.” –Stephen Tyng

And right along these lines is a new ‘hymn’ I also met this week, another testimony to God’s sufficient grace in every circumstance.  With it I close:

I Run to Christ
[Click here to listen in]

I run to Christ when chased by fear
And find a refuge sure.
“Believe in me,” His voice I hear;
His words and wounds secure.

I run to Christ when torn by grief
And find abundant peace.
“I too had tears,” He gently speaks;
Thus joy and sorrow meet.

_____

I run to Christ when worn by life
And find my soul refreshed.
“Come unto Me,” He calls through strife;
Fatigue gives way to rest.

I run to Christ when vexed by hell
And find a mighty arm.
“The Devil flees,” the Scriptures tell;
He roars, but cannot harm.

_____

I run to Christ when stalked by sin
And find a sure escape.
“Deliver me,” I cry to Him;
Temptation yields to grace.

I run to Christ when plagued by shame
And find my one defense.
“I bore God’s wrath,” He pleads my case—
My Advocate and Friend.

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by Chris Anderson and Greg Habegger
with Gregg Howlett at the piano

The testimonies of ones who have walked with God and found Him good, these too are God’s gifts of grace to us--whether a beautifully penned memoir, or Christ-exalting lyrics, or  the tinkling of fingers on a keyboard… Whether a smile or a FB note or a warm hug,  all are gifts of God’s grace-- the wonderful manifold grace of God dished out by His stewards, tokens of His delight in His children. 

May we all have eyes to see and hearts to embrace
His all-sufficient manifold grace.

--LS

“The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land.  If the LORD delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey.” Numbers 14:7,8

“You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus”
II Tim.2:1

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If you enjoyed Gregg Howlett at the piano, consider No More Night, a spine tingling reminder of the good land yet to come!

For my review of Joni’s THE GOD I LOVE, go here.

The “W” Word

Louie was a dog with a serious side, being of German extraction. Playing 'fetch' was no game. It was growling serious that he 'win', that he possess that stick and keep it from lying lost on the lawn or being snatched away from him…This was his work and there was nothing playful in it. He was focused and serious. I suppose that's why German Shepherds are chosen for police dogs and working occupations…

We made a good pair that way. I too see the serious side of any given incident, even if it's meant to be a joke. I suppose I take even myself too seriously. Always have. It was once about earning A's, pleasing the teacher, and so establishing my identity as a 'good' student. Did I transfer this mentality to God? I wonder sometimes. Do I work still for A's so He'll be pleased?

There's one snag in the whole thing. I'm not really an 'A student' when it comes to the heart of the matter. 'Full of dead men's bones' is how Jesus described anyone trusting in their own performance but not concerned about the hidden matters of the heart. Only Jesus can change that. I've just finished listening to an excellent series of messages by Charles Price, addressing what's to be done to live the Christian life without it becoming a 'try-harder-to-be-good' sort of thing (which is futile, frustrating and a booby trap for prideful self-delusion!)

The concept of welcoming death to self in exchange for union with Christ keeps popping up for me. I'm a slow learner? No sooner did I finish this very encouraging series, then the following morning in church the message was taken from Romans 6—a matter-of-fact presentation on our 'union with Christ'—the key to having any capacity to please God. United with Him in His death—so we have died to our old sin nature. United with Him in His resurrection—so we have a new life, His life, motivating us from within.

So there it was again, this Christ who IS my life. I so readily fall out of grace and into effort. Surely I must need to DO something myself to be really pleasing. I so readily forget it's faith that pleases God and the obedience it engenders. To attempt obedience without faith is to follow Abraham's misguided effort to fulfill God's promise in his own strength. Disaster!

Another tell-tale sign of misunderstanding my standing as one dead, but alive despite myself, is that when I do fail or disappoint (myself or you!) it's a hard blow, as if it threatened my whole identity! God is not disappointed. He knows me through and through, knows my points of weakness, knows what I'm made of and has all that covered with Jesus! From me He expects repentance and a confident coming to the 'throne of grace' for all I lack. It is enough. I am able to resume life, humbled maybe at the recognition of my own propensity for sin, but forgiven and unashamed, accepted in the Beloved. As I write this I am preaching it to myself. It does not come naturally or easily for this would-be-perfect-in-her-own-strength girl. Reminders come.

I guess that's why I've so appreciated Price's messages this week with their emphasis that the Christian life is not about self-improvement but about dependence on Christ to live HIS life through me. The devil's not to blame, (or anybody else!). I am. But that's OK. Repentance is a breath away. And it's a relief to cast myself on One who really is good and wants to live His life out in me. He knows how to do it right!

What's the trick? There is none. The most confusing thing about the Christian life, Price suggests, is its simplicity. You cannot live it without Christ but when you're abiding in Him, by faith, things happen. It's like flying. You can't, until you're in the plane. Then there's nothing more to do but trust the plane to get you there. Even the anxious traveler arrives, though he may miss the pleasure of the trip! It boils down to faith. Just as I came to Jesus in the first place by faith acknowledging my helpless sin-bound state, so this is how He expects me to live the Christian life, by faith, dead to my old self and alive to Him.

I can get in a pretty serious state looking at the 'old mare' and her propensity for selfishness. I can be like Louie, taking life way too seriously. 'This stick is mine and I'm going to see that it stays in my control'…But Louie had another side. A single word could transform him into an ecstatic, tail-wagging, happy bundle of energy. The "W" word, my friend used to call it. And if you have a dog, you know it well.

(shhhh… I'll say it quietly) The word is walk. Why keep it quiet? Well once it's out, there's no rest for the speaker until the leash is fetched and the door opened!

I smile to myself to realize how the "W" word applies also to me. What will rescue me from my moribund hold on good intentions?

The Spirit invites me to WALK with Him. And as I do, all the rest of the Christian life falls into place. He's got the trail planned. He knows the destination and all the highpoints and muddy crossings along the way. He directs my steps. I need only obediently trust His lead. This is the way to live the Christ life, not fixated on the flesh and what it's up to but ambling down the road eager to comply with my Master's directions. By faith heeding his: Heel, Fetch, Sit, Down, Wait… He's got my days planned and my trails are by His appointment. I'm his concern after all. How carefree is that?

And look at the side-effects of walking by the Spirit..Not only will I not gratify the desires of my sin-bent nature (Gal.5:1) which do damage to myself and those around me, but there'll be an overflow of love and joy and peace, patience and kindness and even goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal. 5:22,23) Sounds like something to get excited about!

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him… (Col.2:6)

Did Someone say, "WALK" ?!!!

--LS

For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. Gal.5:5,6

Having begun by the Spirit are you now being perfected by works of the flesh? Gal.3:3

If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Gal. 5:25,26

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Phil.1:6

Before I scamper off down the trail may I leave you with a poem that grabbed my heart this week. It portrays so well the relief of repentance and the joy that is its reward. Would we not cease to trudge downcast through life if we kept this gracious prospect in our mind's eye?

"Prodigal"

"Come to myself, I trudge down distant roads.
Tired of the husks of life, I hurry home.
Knowing the cross awaits, I still must come,
Prepared to be a servant, not a son.

Your longing love outreaches me, outruns
My tardy progress borne on dragging feet.
Blessed, kissed, forgiven, lifted to my place,
I find the dreaded welcome sudden sweet.

Is this your punishment for sin, dear Lord?
The father's kiss? The ring? The robe? The calf?
Heart-heavy, I had feared repentance, Lord.
I came to cry, and now you tell me, "Laugh!"

--Elizabeth B. Rooney
[from Storing September, 2001, p.75]

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Note:
Charles Price’s series of 5 messages on letting Christ live His life in us were delivered at Prairie Bible College during "Christian Life Week", Sept.25-27, 2012. They can be heard and/or downloaded at Prairie's website under "Special Events" at:  http://www.prairie.edu/page.aspx?pid=450

They are also available on YouTube.

Indebted to Grace

The older I get the more of a 'Calvinist' I become—the more grateful for the sovereign grace of God. As my energy and idealism mellow with age, I look back at the first fifty years and see a trail of grace I may have once mistaken for the product of my energies. All the really good things, the key decisions, the best choices, the surprising and rewarding trails I've traveled have been God's doings. I only followed His lead. Where is there room for boasting, about anything?! This role I play in life, it's all a gift, His calling, my privilege.

How did I get to be a Grandmom? A mother? A wife? A child of God? How did I get to be born?! I can look back and see the choices I've made but the stringing together of opportunities to make them, this I could not do. And where did the propensity come from to make them one way or another? I could not know that in saying 'yes' to one thing, I would be saying 'no' to a host of other things and getting myself into a whole 'nother set of things… And God only knows how much I have to be grateful for. I've only scratched the surface of seeing things as I ought. And that too is grace…

O to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be…

What of the hidden hazards that could have tripped me up given my naivety and yes, my self-will? These are only visible in retrospect, some of them anyway. A hidden Hand graciously spared me the trauma they would have caused. I see these things when I look back. I am a Grandmom now, entrusted with carefree little people who blithely trundle down the road of life as though it were a safe place. They hold my hand and expect that all will be well. They have few fears, little knowledge of what could happen. They just trust and take first steps… and sometimes their sin-bent wills say 'no' and try to do things their own way. Here too they need a hand to guide them into the way of right-eousness… and as I'm learning they are too: It's always best to say "Yes" to the one who knows what's best and sees beyond my small horizons… and to trust Him to lead me in  paths of righteousness, for HIS name's sake.

I am reminded of an old Sunday School song: "I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever". The fitting response to grace is gratitude. The more of grace I recognize, the more grace-filled I will be—not just at meal-time when we 'say grace'! All of life is by His grace. In all of life God is worthy of my effusive gratitude, whether I recognize His mercies at any given moment or not.

The alternative is to focus my will to strive for God's favor, to beg for 'blessings' (like a child for lollipops at dinnertime), to pout when He says 'no', and to scheme of ways to 'ambush' Him into giving me my 'due' as though He owed me something for all my efforts. Children in grocery stores do it all the time. The 'children of Israel' in the desert did it too. They whined and fussed and demanded to be fed what they wanted when they wanted it. They were not grateful. They failed to trust in their Father's care… they did not know His ways and so they missed His very best for them. Failing to learn the fear of God coupled with the love of God they were destined to die in the desert.

And as I shepherd my grandbabies along city streets, training them to walk on sidewalks and look both ways before they cross…reminding them not to demand but to say 'please' and 'thank-you' and wait patiently…and most of all grinning and smiling and applauding their antics, loving and playing, pushing the swing and making play dough together…I give them a hint of the fear of God and the love of God. His discipline and His favor, hand in hand, which I pray will shepherd them all their lives long. And I rest in His Sovereign grace that has been lavish in my life and will be just as sufficient for theirs. Oh to grace how great a debtor daily we all are constrained to be!

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.

{Listen here as Chris Rice sings it.}

--LS

Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Rom.5:1,2

The Gospel Distilled

 

It’s here again, the advent season.  Our Christmas boxes came out of hiding this morning, whether I was ready or not to decorate.  It’s time.  Truth is I wasn’t ready.  The pre-season-clutter-removal hadn’t happened over the weekend and now geometry and physics were demanding a tutor’s attention…and my face hurt with an untimely sinus infection…No, I didn’t feel like decorating even if the magic day had arrived, and even less like dissecting polygons or wrapping my mind around how simple machines work.  I felt like ‘losing it’ over a shuffle of misplaced school papers,  a discouraged student, and a gray day.   And so I did.  I vented all my ‘righteous’ wrath, with all the reasonable justifications for doing so.  Only made my teeth ache worse and my student sag further.

Then I snatched some leftovers for a subdued lunch and breather…

Of course, it was quite evident that I was in no position either to compose a blog or to help a struggling pupil write an essay discussing principles governing Christian conduct!  Oh brother.  Why did this come due today?  But there it was, this very topic I’ve been pondering, the simplicity of the Gospel.  Here stood an opportunity to give evidence to the power of the Gospel—’Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief’.
(I Tim.1:15) And always, always He stands ready to forgive us our sins and put them as far away as the east is from the west.  Not only that, He stands waiting to dispense ‘grace in time of need’.  Now that sounds really trite I know, but what did I need?  I needed grace--to admit my wrong-headedness, to breathe a prayer for help to carry on and to equip my student to do her work.  All this is a by-product of the Gospel.  The heart of it is that God is now with us for life.  He is there in the stormy moments and the hurricanes.  God with us, because of the cross, because the hostility engendered by our sins is taken away in the death of Jesus.  He has brought us peace with God and now He resides with us forever…

Mind you, this didn’t all pass through my mind at that moment.  Actually I fumbled through an apologetic moment and a prayer, got some essential schoolwork wrapped up, and headed for a catnap with my hot wheat pillow and favorite blankie…still wondering what today’s blog would be about.

And while I slept it percolated… You see, last night a young mom in our Ladies Bible study group, gave an impromptu but poignant testimony of what her salvation means to her. 

The topic was facing the storms of life without fear.  Different ones recited their personal experiences of tough times they’d gone through and the difference God had made.  When this young mom, who is also young in the Lord, spoke up she gave us all a fresh perspective.  She said all of life before knowing Jesus was a storm, and always one to be faced alone! Now with God in her life, she would never have to face such aloneness again.  No matter what she would yet face she would not have to face it alone and that for her is a world of difference.  Her unfeigned earnestness said more than I can convey in words   God is with us, and will never leave us ever.  This is enough.  What a refreshing reminder of the heart of the Gospel.

And as I roused from my catnap, this afternoon, my face still aching, now my throat hurting too, it hit me.  All that matters is that God is with us.  This is the heart of the Gospel.  Our sinfulness is no longer a barricade between us.  His love has conquered and nothing can separate us from it, neither wind or weather, sickness or death, pain or persecution.  God is with us, forever.  And that is enough.  Stop your whining and get decorating.  There is indeed something to celebrate and no time to lose!

--LS

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us."
--Matt.1:23

Remembering the old, old story…

 

Lest we forget…The record is history. They died, laying down their lives to preserve our freedom. And this day, on the 11th day of the 11^th month of the 11^th year of our century at the 11^th minute of the 11^th hour, (11:11 on 11/11/11) we pause to remember…

There was an infinitely greater sacrifice made, another Life laid down to actually purchase our freedom and all history was changed—the Good News of it has been disseminated throughout the world ever since—but somehow, the news doesn’t seem so fresh anymore. The transformative dynamic of it seems to have ebbed, at least in North American culture. We’re starting to look around in alarm and wonder what’s happened as the younger generation bids ‘adieu, I don’t need you’  to church, and a rising radical tide proclaims religion in general, and Christianity in particular, to be a danger to the human race. The average person on the street is unaware of any radical hope offered in the Gospel. Why is that?

There are a number of directions one could head in answering this question. And maybe it is different for every group of believers. Some possible answers are: It’s because there are no signs and wonders happening. Others say, it’s because there’s sin in the church. A case could be made for insufficient love between believers (which is to be the hallmark of who we are!) Maybe we just live in the ‘end times’ and this cold state of affairs is inevitable…Or maybe we’re just not being obedient to share the Gospel with the ‘lost’?!

But rather than ‘passing the buck’ I thought I’d start with my own appreciation of the Gospel. Does it resound powerfully in my own soul? Is it transforming the way I live? If not, why not?

I sat riveted to a sermon at my son’s church recently. The passage roughly in view was I Tim.4:1-7. The title: Facing Down Falsehood. The pastor proceeded to present a compelling case for living by grace rather than rules, and seeing the glory of the Gospel as far exceeding the self-styled ‘salvation’ of either legalism or lawlessness. He suggested that when we comprehend the extent of God’s love for us personally, which is at the heart of the Gospel, we will be drawn to live out the obedience that pleases Him. This obedience will not be circumscribed by rules and standards but freely given out of love, and directed by God’s very Spirit residing in us, transforming us into the image of Christ. It is for such freedom that we were set free. This is the Gospel.

He clarified: “Morality grows out of trust in God’s radical grace as expressed in Jesus Christ. Acceptance does not grow out of morality. To get these two confused is to miss the Gospel!”

Paul was always warning believers not to shift away from the hope held out in the Gospel, not to fall for another Gospel, not to be taken captive by wrong thinking or intimidated by impressive testimonies…but to hold fast to Christ. He urged the Colossian believers to stand firm against anyone adding requirements to the Christian life. And he spent a good bit of energy extolling Christ in whom all the fullness of God dwells, and who is our source of fullness!

He also realized that it would take super-human strength to ‘get it’. So he prayed that the believers at Ephesus would be strengthened by the Spirit to comprehend this incomprehensible, unconditional, beyond anything they’d experienced, sort of love. (Eph.3)

God so loved us. That’s where the Gospel starts, and believing it is where the power of the Gospel begins to be unleashed.

God loves me. Christ died for my sins. In believing in Him, I count myself dead to sin, (crucified with Christ), forever forgiven, granted access to God, and indwelt by the living Christ. This is incredible. It is from this foundation that I can begin to practice true Godliness—and really to live out the fruit of the Gospel, Christ in me, the hope of glory!

The pastor went on to illustrate what this pursuit of Godliness looks like for the one who is living by faith in the Gospel. (Perhaps this is where we have failed to produce a Christianity that is compelling in our generation?) Here is his illustration:

Let’s liken the pursuit of Godliness to the goal of crossing the Atlantic Ocean. You’ve got three options:

--You can get a rowboat, stock up, and get rowing. You’ll never make it.

--Or you can get a lifeboat. Blow it up; plop yourself in and pray, hoping that the currents will take you over. You will never make it.

--Or you can get a sailboat and learn to sail. Catch the winds of the Spirit, of grace, and enjoy the freedom of knowing what godliness is all about.

This is what the Gospel is all about, not rules, not requirements, but living from a place of forgiveness and love, learning to listen to ‘the music of the Gospel’. It will take effort and time and patience, he said. It will seem hard only because it will seem like you’re doing nothing. (If you’ve ever sailed you get this!) “But the music of the Gospel will transform you. It will make you dance.” ( And I loved this part) “The law will tell you what the dance steps are and are not. It will guide you, but it will never make you dance. Only grace will.”

Then in closing he urged us to “Nourish yourself on the truths of the faith, the Good News. That’s how you fall in love. That’s how it happens. You hear the voice of love coming to you from God continually and finally when you say, ‘You mean me?’ your heart opens to love. You begin to trust the Gospel and your life begins to change. Draw life from the Gospel. Be strengthened by God’s acceptance of you in Christ; it is your food and drink. It’s what will give you strength to live in freedom.”

So that’s where I’m at today… reviewing the truths of the Gospel and praying for God to give it new life in my heart. I don’t want this to be a purely cerebral exercise, but I have to start somewhere. If the Gospel story has become old and crusty to me, how can I expect it to be of compelling interest to my neighbor? May God revitalize our understanding of the Gospel—and may its power be unleashed in our lives for His glory.

--LS

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in [your] mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: if ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and [be] not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard… (Col.1:21-23)

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2Tim.2:1)

[quotes from Doug Schroeder, Crossroads Community Church,  Calgary, AB. Oct.30,2011]