Monday, August 12, 2013

TRADE

I wish we'd all stop trying to be so moral all the time ... 


. . .  so spiritual - so goody-goody.  It's all so draining.  Most of what you and I are walking thru as followers of Christ is about something other than that anyway.

It isn't about morality - spirituality - goodness - being better - trying harder ---- it's about trusting Christ.  And in that process, Jesus takes my distance from God and gives me His intimacy with the Father.  He takes my condemnation and gives me His love.  

That's a trade-in-a-half.  

If you aren't sure that's such a great trade, let me ask you this: Are God's commands and laws good? Answer that this way: Even if you don't like them, you still hope people observe them in relation to you, don't you?  You don't want to be killed, cheated, lied to, abused, robbed, gossiped about . . . right?

Even if you aren't sure you buy into this whole God-thing, just by having a conscience you know instinctively that these laws of God are good and right and healthy and necessary.  

And if you have bought into God, you've bought into all His laws.  But do we keep them?  Often, no.  Because the Bible tells us the law is amazing and you're not.

So we work work work work work work work super hard to be moral and spiritual and fair and good and pure and sincere at obeying them so when we stand before God we can say: 'This is what I did.  Here's my good resume.  I made great progress.  I'm better than I used to be.  I'm better than him over there.  I got further than pretty much everybody I know.'

And here's why that will never work.  If you try try try try try try try to be moral, spiritual, good, hard-working and pure, one of two things will happen.

One -- you will do better than most of the people around you and you'll become arrogant and sure of yourself - and now you're back to the very first sin - PRIDE.  And you'll be farther from God than the greedy person and the abuser.

Two -- you'll become frustrated and discouraged and you'll develop this picture of God as a mean judge - and when you fall beneath His mark, which is always - God will become your displeased boss.  And you'll be on the treadmill of guilt and shame and trying harder.

And that's the whole point of God's law -- to show you how crooked, bent and rebellious you already are so you stop trying trying trying trying trying - working working working working working - and instead you throw your hands in the air and say, "God, I can't."  That's when Jesus shows up to say, "It's OK.  I already did.  I took care of that and that and that and the other thing.  It's a gift.  It's grace.  Stop trusting your morality and trust Me.  Stop trusting your spirituality and trust Me.  Stop trusting your goodness and trust Mine.  Stop trusting your efforts and trust Mine.  Stop trusting your wisdom and trust Mine."

And that's one amazing trade.

And be blessed.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

This is so confusing to me. I've heard you speak of this before. I do try hard to be good and better than I used to be. I want God to be proud of me. I just know that when I fall, as I do sometimes, that He will forgive my sin. It's ok to be human...but not ok to go about my way and do things my way, not His. I guess that's what you mean about God's law being good and right and best for us.