When I began a serious walk with God, I was wide-eyed and over-enthused. But after these four-plus decades I've learned something. I am still wide-eyed and over-enthused. Yet, the rules have changed, the markers have been moved, and there is a story-line that opposes my early entrance into the church. I speak of the disturbing, yet quite advantageous, realization that I am one of the sinners of which the Bible speaks.
There is enormous, even untapped, power is the awareness of how sinful each of us is. Overall I'm going to assess from experience with churches world-wide that Christians see ourselves as more having cleaned up our act than being so wretched God had to do it for us. When the Apostle who wrote more books than any other New Testament writer chose to admit that he was the chiefest of all sinners, a powerful secret was just unleashed upon all of churchianity.
What has happened, however, is that church houses have become packed with a self-righteous sort who don't/won't/can't admit our own sins. The produce of such a glaring glitch in the spiritual system in both immediate and abundant judgmentalism. A very good society is sick of much of us for this reason. We have forgotten why it was that we could not manage our own sins.
The Bible is packed with the message that we can't save ourselves; but Jesus can. The Cross is a victorious one because our debts were/are so unpayably huge. If God thought the church would shape up, He wouldn't have had to spend His biggest treasure in Operation Rescue. Instead, He could have just demanded we get our acts together. But God knew the bigger picture; we can't. It isn't that we won't try for we do...very much try.
God understands something major. Man can't handle the depth of sin. Yet, we have acquired a false image of if we just try hard enough we will master the ills of sin. And we try. And as soon as one seems conquered two more break out of a different kind. So our call is to experience the lavish gift of mercy and grace for we had assumed by now we would have a grip on sin. That grip is quite deceitful for it makes us feel like we have won the battle...and that's the false image.
Jesus has won the battle for us. Sin? Consequences? Yes. The bodies we have are contaminated and are not destined for Heaven. That's why there will be a new body. It isn't that sinners aren't going to Heaven. It's that our old sinful bodies are not....they will return to dust.
There is gigantic hope for the world. The momentum increases, not when we overcome and control our sin-nature, but when we will face up the the fact that we are sinners...just like those in our neighborhoods we wish to reach. It is here that the neighborhood begins to connect.
Self-righteousness repels them. Humility opens their hearts.
No comments:
Post a Comment