In this day and age of radical Ecumenism and "Greasy Grace" (Bonehoffer) many ministers and teachers are inclined to emphasize character building and fruit bearing in Christ. The aim is to remind everyone that the other fruits of spirit, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness," are upheld by "self control." (Galatians 5:22-23). The chief goal is to keep people from falling into Romanism, a belief system that the Apostle Paul confronted where Christians in Rome were inclined to practice sin and bear no fruit at all, "What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?." (Romans 6:1-2). While I applaud trying to reprove Romanism, I am concerned that the pedulum shift of legalism will present our LORD Jesus Christ in a light that is harsh and rather Medieval. Out of fear of creating Greasy Grace, many churches can then eliminate grace in the sense of being gracious towards sinners and saints who struggling in these times, and ultimately bare people from God's Grace, which convers our sins (Hebrews 9:24-28, Romans 5:6-11).
I want to say, we live in a very problematic planet. Since our ancestors fell and we lost Eden, paradise, we have been marooned on a island(s) on a sea of sorrow. It is easy to pronounce judgement on the masses who are making drinking, entertainment, and other pleasures stress relievers when you sit on your horse of self righteousness, it is much harder when you are knocked off that horse by your errors and mistakes, and find yourself in a proper state, washed only by Blood of Jesus Christ, and finding that Jesus is not only Lord of your Life, but a Life Line, the only way to reconcile with yourself and God, that your torn flesh and broken heart having wrecked your record ship of great works on the ruins of this world places you as many mariners in times past, clinging to the cross, and mast of our Master and Messiah Jesus. We often present Jesus our God, Savior, Lord, and Friend as taskmaster or Captain who has heavy rules and regualtations and demands. When in truth He is head of Life Boat and Ship, and He wants us to come to Him as we would to a good parent, who only wants us to be safe, and healthy in every way. Jesus is not some harsh captain, but a kind and merciful Savior, He is to be clinged to when we dispise ourselves, when our sins come rushing on us like waves, and we discover we are as weak as all other humans on earth. Our badge of honor, is not to tell world, "we are better than you, we are more righteous," this is pride and hubris, but we should instead be saying, "we are no better than you, we struggle, we fall, we fail, but we have life line, we have Lord who while we were still sinners died for us and while we were enemies of God, reconciled us to Him, He is perfect, we are imperfect, and He doesn't expect us to be perfect, He is perfect for us and loves us even in mess we are in." Our answer to world shouldn't be, "I'm more holy," but we are full of holes and so is our Christ Jesus, who caries holes in His side, hands, and feet to meet those holes in our flesh, to pour out His blood on those parts of ourselves we hide in dark rooms, and keep hidden from the world, and the Church especially; we present ot our brothers and sisters the Israel self, that wants to do God's will, but hide that Jacob part of ourselves that wrestles with God and our human nature. We forget to tell people Jesus is the Medicine, but our bodies are still sick with weakness (sin), and will be until He comes on clouds and cures our bodies in same way He cured our spirits; He will give us new bodies that conform to His nature (1 Corinthians 5:35-58); and until then He has made proptiaiton with His blood, and covers our sins always (1 John 2:1-4).
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This life is meant to make us desperate for Jesus, to cling and even latch on to Him for dear life, and He knows how harsh this world is, how cruel, and how it beats at us and claws at our insides. This world is meant to drive us into Word of God, into Jesus Christ's arms, and there only do we find hope, healing, and heaven (eternal life). This life is meant to drive us to Jesus, to so disappoint us and break us so that we may only find Life in Christ (John 14:6) and want Him above this life and world. X X X ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We fail to present Christ as the antidote for this life, that He who made us (John 1:3) and died for us (Romans 5:8, 1 Peter 3:18, 1 Peter 2:24) wants us with all our egos, eccentricities, faults, and struggles; He proposed marriage to us on the cross when we were cloaked with all our baggage and sin, "For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation." (Romans 5:6-11), so why do we present Him as if He is waiting for us to be perfect, righteous, and holy enough to be His bride? Make no mistake, I think bearing fruit, and Godly character is important, but Christ reminds us this cannot be done in of ourselves, only through him, "Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:4-5). Christ doesn't want perfect paladins and disciples, He wants us, His children to be with Him (John 14:3, John 6:40, John 3:16). We fail to see we are God's children, made in His Image! (Genesis 1:26-27). He doesn't want us to fail, to be destroyed, or be harmed; He is Good Father and Savior, who has made the only way to be saved and have eternal life through Jesus Christ (John 14:6, John 6:40, Acts 4:10-12). Jesus wants us, as husband wants His new bride, and yet often we make Him out to be some perfectionist who demands a perfect bride, when He already made the bride (us) perfect with His blood! (Hebrews 10:14)
Oh that we would look upon Jesus as He is, a Lord of Mercy! For as Christ and apostles tells us that mercy swallows up judgement, "Then he added, "Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: 'I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.' For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners," (Matthew 9:13), "But I tell you, something greater than the temple is here, And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless, For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath," (Matthew 12:6-8), "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel," (Matthew 23:23-24), "Jesus replied, "The most important commandment is this: 'Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strengtgh. The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” The teacher of religious law replied, "Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other, To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God." And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions," (Mark 12:29-34), "When Jesus heard this, he told them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor--sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners," (Mark 2:17), and"For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment," (James 2:13). Jesus Has already shown us great mercy by taking our sins and punishment we deserved on the cross (Romans 3:21-31, 1 Peter 2:24), and instead giving us paradon and eternal life! (John 6:40, John 3:16). We Christians who love, believe, and know Jesus Christ are promised to be spared of wrath!, "But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us, Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!," (Romans 5:8-9), and "For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him." (1 Thessalonians 5:8-9). This is heart of God, that Jesus has not appointed us for wrath, but to be With Him! So why then do we present Him so harshly?! I blame our insecurities, it is because we have fear, which God's love castes out, "Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. We love because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19-20). It is fear, fear of puniushment that causes us to recoil and present our Redeemer as Judge ready with a sword and axe to grind! But Jesus is love (1 John 4:8), and He has already poured His wrath upon Himself on cross, and if we trust in Him, love him, and know him, then we need no fear wrath, but rejoice in salvation! Oh please understand, we are not under wrath as wicked are (Revelation 19:11-16), we shall not be subjected to Jesus Sword of Justice, but we are embraced by Christ as a friend (John 15:15-17), a bride (Revelation 19:7-8), as children (Galatians 3:26), and as co-heirs (Romans 8:17). He wants to hug us, kiss our cheek, and hold us in His loving embrace, not strike us for our imperfections!
Our tender and merficul Lord Jesus knows how hard it is for us on this planet. We do not have God who cannot sympathize or understand our fialings, for Jesus said, "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak," (Matthew 26:41), "Therefore, since we have such a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet he did not sin," (Hebrews 4:14-15), and we must remember the weight of this world's hatshness fell on our God Jesus Christ to point that he sweat blood, "And being in agony and anguish he prayed more intently (fervently). And his sweat became as great drops of blood, falling down upon the earth," (Luke 22:44), and even said though not sinning, "Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine." (Luke 22:42). It is Gethsename and Good Friday on Cross that should remind us that Jesus not only understands our struggle on this earth, that its pressure, pain, and power seeks to crush us under its weight, He felt it and suffered under it, so that He may intercede for our sins, "My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that [propitiation] atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world." (1 John 2:1-2), "Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted," (Hebrews 2:18), and "The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure." (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Jesus is not standing there gleefully or sullenly as we are tempted, He does not tempt, "When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone," (James 1:13), but wants to help us in our struggle on this world until He comes on clouds of heaven, because He himself struggled in this life, finding how oppressive this world really is under Original Sin and Death. Thankfully He now holds keyes to Death, taking away our terror, "What we do see is Jesus, who was given a position "a little lower than the angels"; and because he suffered death for us, he is now "crowned with glory and honor." Yes, by God's grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone, Because God's children are human beings--made of flesh and blood--the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death." (Hebrews 2:9, 14), and, "I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." (Revealtion 1:17).
Jesus is not standing there gleefully or sullenly as we are tempted, He does not tempt, "When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone," (James 1:13), but wants to help us in our struggle on this world until He comes on clouds of heaven, because He himself struggled in this life, finding how oppressive this world really is under Original Sin and Death. Thankfully He now holds keyes to Death, taking away our terror, "What we do see is Jesus, who was given a position "a little lower than the angels"; and because he suffered death for us, he is now "crowned with glory and honor." Yes, by God's grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone, Because God's children are human beings--made of flesh and blood--the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death." (Hebrews 2:9, 14), and, "I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." (Revealtion 1:17).
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