Grace Again

In his book, In the Grip of Grace, Max Lucado addresses the question of whether we can use up or run out of God’s grace and forgiveness with a tongue-in-cheek response letter from heaven:

“Dear Mrs. Smith:

I’m writing in response to this morning’s request for forgiveness. I’m sorry to inform you that you have reached your quota of sins. Our records show that, since employing our services, you have erred seven times in the area of greed, and your prayer life is substandard when compared to others of like age and circumstance.

“Further review reveals that your understanding of doctrine is in the lower 20 percentile and you have excessive tendencies to gossip. Because of your sins you are a high-risk candidate for heaven. You understand that grace has its limits. Jesus sends his regrets and kindest regards and hopes that you will find some other form of coverage.”

Will God refuse to listen to my prayers if I’m in a rotten mood, if have wronged someone without making amends, if I harbor resentment in my heart or have difficulty forgiving someone? What if I have a bad attitude or have offended God’s perfect laws and am not even yet aware of it? Will the Lord, who gave his life for me when I was his enemy, turn his face away from me because I have not come to a satisfactory level of repentance and true confession for every way, shape and form that I have not met his requirements of holiness?

On the contrary, He is waiting for me to come to Him in the middle of my unholy ways. The blood of Jesus cleanses me from all unrighteousness, continuously. I’ll be needing it as long as I am in this earthly body. It’s the righteousness of Jesus I am clothed with, as I receive again his forgiveness and grace. It’s a heart filled with gratitude that receives it, over and over. I bow at his feet, I lay my head on his shoulder, I yield to his unconditional embrace, and I am renewed again. And as I spend time in his presence, his grace enfolds me, and by association and impartation, through faith and the Word He speaks to me, I become a little more like Him again.

The Great Divide

Cleft of a Rock

The Cross of Jesus Christ is the Great Divide, a line in time and eternity that splits apart two eras: Law and Grace. In the Old Covenant from God, the Law was given, but in the New Covenant, Grace came - in the Person of Jesus Christ. Now we can be made new (2 Corinthians 5:17). We could never keep the Law and be righteous. But now, in Christ, we are the righteousness of God -- a free gift from the Only Righteous One (2 Corinthians 5:21). Believe and receive, and you will be forever a new creation!

Now we see that all Scripture must be filtered through the Cross of Jesus.  From the Law of Moses to Jesus' death and resurrection, people lived under the Old Covenant, B.C., otherwise known as the Law, the Ministry of Death.  But now, those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, have been transferred from the Old into the New, the Covenant of Grace, the Law of the Spirit and life, the Covenant of Promise.  Like our spiritual father, Abraham, we become righteous, through faith, by the power of God's saving grace.  It has always been by faith in His grace, and the Law showed us how much we needed it.  For there is none righteous, no not one, and there never will be -- except Jesus.  It is His righteousness that we receive when we believe.  We still cannot ever be righteous in ourselves, but we are no longer tied to the Law; we are captured by His Grace.

Changed Into His Likeness

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. – 1 John 3:2-3

I am purified by focusing my hope on Jesus Christ. I cannot purify myself. He does it, when I focus my attention on Him. For as He is [now], so are we in this world – It is finished: He has done it! (1 John 4:17).

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.  But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. – Eph. 1:18-23; 2:5-7

This is where I am and who I am in Christ! He is the head, and I am part of His body, seated in the heavens at the right hand of God.

But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. – 2 Corinthians 3:15-18

I am transformed into His image as I turn to the Lord (away from the Law and trying to keep it) and by beholding the glory of the Lord. As I focus my gaze on Him, I am transformed in ever-increasing levels (from glory to glory).

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. – Hebrews 12:1-3

I can run the race with endurance, by laying aside (stop being conscious of) my sin, fixing my eyes on Jesus and considering Him. For He is the writer and the completer of my faith (not me!) It’s not my endurance that gets me through, but His. It’s not my righteousness that makes me walk blamelessly, but His. It’s not my perfect behavior that makes me pure, but His! Thank you, Jesus! This righteousness is imputed to me by the powerful finished work of His blood shed on the cross.

Much about Muchness

Alice's Wonderland Box, originally uploaded by Cher's Passion.

In the 2009 film, Alice in Wonderland, the Mad Hatter complains to Alice:

“You used to be much more . . . muchier. You’ve lost your muchness.”

This is easily the most written-about line from the film, not surprisingly. In this dark world, the “here and now,” it seems that everyone is looking for more – much more. Where is the muchness? Where is the more? There doesn’t always seem to be much love, much peace, much joy, much power for life and for living it. We want more. And we want to be much more. It seems that we’re looking for something supernatural, since the natural is so much less than what could be so much more.

But Ah! Frabjous Discovery: I’ve found the Muchness; I’ve found the More! –

 

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own 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! For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how MUCH MORE, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man [Adam], how MUCH MORE did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! Again, the gift of God is not like the result of the one man's sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how MUCH MORE will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ. [Ah, the Muchness!]

Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. The law was added so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, GRACE INCREASED ALL THE MORE, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through (HIS) righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. – Romans 5:6-11; 15-21 [NIV]

All the Muchness, all the More we need, is in the Person of Grace,

Jesus Christ the Righteous! Are you in?

Who Am I?

Calvinist – No!


Arminian – No!


Baptist? Methodist? Wesleyan? Presbyterian? American Baptist? Southern Baptist? Lutheran? Anabaptist? Congregationalist? Episcopalian? Quaker? Moravian? Salvation Army? Dutch Reformed? Christian Reformed? Church of Christ? United Methodist? Evangelical? Pentecostal? Pentecostal Holiness? Church of God in Christ? Church of Christ in God? Church of the Holy Spirit? Church of the Holy Spirit in Christ in God? Apostolic Church? Four Square?  Trinity Triangle?  Free Evangelical? Free Methodist? Free Evangelical Pentecostal Church of God in Christ in the Holy Spirit? ? ? Menonite? Assembly of God? Congregation of God? Church of God?


No.  (I mean no disrespect, but God is bigger than all of it -- than all of us.) 

Jesus Christ, the Word of God, the Righteous Son of God, the Living One, Messiah, Savior, Healer, Deliverer, Redeemer, and Eternal, Sovereign Lord of all; Perfect Sacrifice and my Righteousness in God; Author and Finisher of my faith, Lover of my soul, Who is able to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, finally, and for all time and eternity) those who come to God through Him, the Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, Counselor, Comforter and Friend; King of kings and Lord of lords, the Faithful God of peace who calls me, sanctifies me wholly, preserving my whole spirit and soul and body blameless unto His coming – YES, YES, YES, a thousand times YES!

My identity is not in an affiliation with any organization or belief system or packaged list of doctrines; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. My identity is in Jesus Christ alone, the One Who saves me by His Grace.  No matter how hard I try, I cannot fit Him into my doctrinal statements.  HIS WORD is Truth. 


Oh, Lord, unify Your church. Protect us by the power of your Name–the Name you gave Jesus–so that we may be one as you are one. Move us to listen to the words of Jesus so that we may have his full measure of joy within us. Protect us from the evil one. Sanctify us by your truth. Your Word is truth. May we be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent Jesus and have loved us even as you have loved your own Son. Continue to make Yourself known to us, Jesus, so that the love the Father has for You may be in us and that You Yourself may be in us fully – Christ in us, the hope of glory! 

I am a child of God.  And the greatest truth of all is this:  God is Love.