Of course.
In fact, that's our only hope to avoid the consequences of our pending judgement: hell.
And we do this in and through Jesus Christ and what he chose to do for us on the cross of Calvary. Our lives are substituted for the life he lived (& continues to live in heaven) on our behalf. Therefore we, within our Heavenly Father's eyes, are perfectly sinless, perfectly presented, perfectly predestined. And it is through our God-given faith in Jesus that this substitutionary perfectness happens.
Therefore, this delightful, humbling truth should course through our veins each and every day in line with our own personal understanding of our depravity.
-------------------------
What in the world is depravity?
That's our imperfection as it relates to our propensity to sin. And it's best chronicled, at least for me, within my personal relationships.
This past week, I wrote a letter to a friend who's a youth pastor, but I gave it to him only as a placeholder. For the letter was addressed to my youth pastor of 1986 (when I was in middle school). My memories of my youth pastor from the '80s coalescence in so many ways with my friend (who's a 2020 youth pastor), and since I have no knowledge of where my former youth pastor is (or even if he's alive), I felt so moved to gift the letter vicariously. This was an exercise in chronicling one aspect of my depravity.
The letter was one of apology. For secretly sinning against my youth pastor in a sizable way (back when I was under his guise as a teen).
As Christians, the Holy Spirit resides in us. It reveals the thoughts of God to us. Thusly, we stand to often be convicted of both past and present sin (breaking the law of God). From there, we know well our depravity. And this propels or fuels our love that much further towards Jesus, our Savior, in line with his aforementioned substitutionary perfectness.
-------------------------
How does all of this that I've described above impact our reactions to our enemies? Especially if our enemies were once our (close) friends?
Christianity is rooted in grace. Grace is the foundational concept behind all of it. That should be clear by now having read through this commentary.
So what is grace?
I've always seen grace as a reaction more than anything else, and that reaction, for me, is best described as a consistent, unequivocal pursuing in love. Even if we've been sold out, maligned, demonized, etc. Grasping grace runs counter to our sin nature. It is the paradox of Christianity that overturns any and all personal responsibility regarding our salvation from the demands of hell.
Ultimately, it is through our comprehensive knowledge of God's grace towards us that we show grace towards everyone around us, and this in turn points back to my first question.
What separates us Christians from pagans relative to our behavior?
And this should especially be the case for those friends (who're perhaps now enemies) who may have a tendency to wrestle with their faith and all the connectedness / demands it entails. Even if they run over your dog, steal your wife, or burn down your house. All in all, think less of yourself and you will please God in the end.
No comments:
Post a Comment