Relaxing Into God (May 2011)

Last month we talked about how all of us sin, and are thus imperfect, and need God’s help to be cleansed of that next one thing in our life. We need God’s help to be purified, and the Spirit of God in us is the worker toward, and reason for, a life that’s being continually molded more and more into the image of Jesus. But when is it good enough? When can we kick our shoes off, kick back in our BarcaLounger, and just relax? Well, the bad news is every rebellion, perversion, and imperfection is worthy of God’s judgment so, unfortunately, never. Not until we quit this life. We’ve always got something else to work on, no matter how good we appear to be. But the good news is that God never changes (Num. 23:19), so His plan of redemption through Jesus is the hope-filled constant in an otherwise disordered and chaotic existence.

There is a blessing behind this curse of sin, and it’s nestled in the consistency of the character of God. We already know what God wants! And so you know, if you look in the Word again tomorrow… it’ll still be the same! This God loves us immensely and has already shared with us the way to be made right with Him. We must obey and serve God completely or things won’t turn out too well for us. If we rebel against God’s commands, we’re imperfect; if we pervert what God says, in word or deed, we’re imperfect; if we even slip up (the Christian ‘oops’) and follow imperfectly God’s perfect law we are – you guessed it – imperfect. Now, I haven’t often been accused of being a Debbie Downer, but I can literally sense the words forming in your minds now. “Jeez, David, lighten up! Don’t be such a dill weed about sin – that’s not the way to get people to come to church!”

Everything that falls short of God’s glory, however, is sin and if God doesn’t change His mind, we’re better off orienting our thoughts to God’sinstead of ignoring the problem. Take some time to read a few times over 1 Peter 1:14-19. For many, it will be familiar or seem ‘old hat,’ but trust the Spirit to help you see something new of God’s character. For others, it may be foreign, seem too like ‘works-based salvation,’ or an unattainable ideal but not a realistically achievable goal. But here in these verses we see the battle of the flesh and spirit Paul talks about. The struggle that makes sense of foolishness, and such foolish ideas the very wisdom of God. God judges all wrong so if none but God can stand, then God alone must bear both standard and punishment.

And that’s the beauty and pain of Christianity. That God has set the standard and paid the penalty–not because He didn’t know what it felt like to be a human; not because He couldn’t make things work some other way; and not because He is a blood-hungry murderer. God rescued us this way because truth doesn’t change people against their will. Sacrifice and forgiveness despite our wrong humbles us, and shows us what love is really about. Love isn’t about nullifying truth, but inserting grace into the equation when truth would otherwise destroy us. Love is grace. And God is love.  When our guilt seems overpowering, just think on that in repentance… and relax.