Thu 26 Mar, 2009
“Our sin ruins us in two ways. It makes us guilty before God, so that we are under his just condemnation; and it makes us ugly in our behavior, so that we disfigure the image of God we were meant to display. It damns us with guilt, and it enslaves us to lovelessness.
The blood of Jesus frees us from both miseries. It satisfies God’s righteousness so that our sins can be justly forgiven. And it defeats the power of sin to make us slaves to lovelessness. Sin is such a powerful influence in our lives that we must be liberated by God’s power, not by our willpower. But since we are sinners we must ask, is the power of God directed toward our liberation or our condemnation? That’s where the suffering of Christ comes in. When Christ died to remove our condemnation, he opened, as it were, the valve of heaven’s mighty mercy to flow on behalf of our liberation from the power of sin. In other words, rescue from the guilt of sin and the wrath of God had to precede rescue from the power of sin by the mercy of God. This is why the Bible can make the amazing promise: “Sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:14). Being “under grace” secures the omnipotent power of God to destroy our lovelessness (not all at once, but progressively). We are not passive in the defeat of our selfishness, but neither do we provide the decisive power. It is God’s grace.”
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Revelation1:5-6
Reflecting on this fact brings to mind a picture of a drowning man. Fallen off a ship in a storm, he is whipped by the churning, bitterly cold sea. He has the will to survive, the strength of an athlete and the training of a seaman. He’s a good swimmer but even if he were Michael Phelps, eventually the wrath and fury of the waves will claim him. This man’s rescue requires more than another man with better skills to save him. He needs to be plucked from the ravages of the waves and taken away if he is to live. That’s a visual of what God did for those who would believe in Jesus. Sin is a churning sea of fury. We all choose to dive in and swim. We even deceive ourselves that we can safely navigate its waters. However it will consume us in our deception. God doesn’t calm the waters so we can swim to shore of our own strength and have another go of it tomorrow. No, he plucks us out and He takes us to safety. We are no longer slaves to the waves.
Questions: Have you ever considered that sin is a raging sea consuming all that are swimming in it? Have you tried to fight against sin with your own power through self-help books, confidence builders, little lists of do’s and don’ts, attempting to keep the 10 commandments, by going to church or some other self-designated method? Why not try the only way God has prescribed for doing so; by grace through faith in Jesus.
Quote from “The 50 Reasons Jesus Came to Die”.
Questions and reflections by me.
Picture – The cross at Mount Erebus, Antarctica, commemorating the 1979 Air New Zealand Crash near Mount Erebus.
Ministry Addict says:
The five competitive swimming strokes as: individual medley, butterfly, breaststroke, backstroke, and freestyle. In freestyle events, the competitor may swim any stroke. The stroke most commonly used is sometimes called the crawl It is hardly surprising that racing swimmers, when given the “freedom” to choose any style they wish, choose the style which allows them to swim the fastest.
Likewise, Christians (those who are truly saved by grace through faith in Christ) are given freedom to run the Christian race in a variety of “styles.” “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” (Galatians 5:1)
The freedom we have in Christ is freedom both from the yoke of legalistic bondage, and from the slavery of sin. (Lamentations 1:14) But the Christian race is not a short “swim-sprint,” where the swimmer throws himself wildly into the water and violently writhes and thrashes his way to the other end of the pool, flopping out of the water and lying, chest heaving, exhausted and spent for the rest of the day. No, the Christian’s race is more like a long-distance swim, sometimes experiencing pounding waves, sometimes calm sea. One day carried along easily on the current, other times battling his way upstream. At times making progress through a violent storm, at other times treading in place, trying to keep his head above the surface.
The Holy Spirit commended, but also admonished, the Galatian believers in Chap. 5, verse 7: “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” If you are a Christian, you are free to swim in any style permitted by Scripture. This is the freedom granted by Christ’s shed blood on the Cross. If, when you were first saved, you made a public profession, joined a church, were Scripturally baptized – if you read your Bible, prayed regularly, told others about the Lord Jesus – then you “did” swim well. But if you have stopped swimming well, you should ask the question, “What has hindered me?” Are you sinking because you are burdened with unnecessary worldly possessions or interests that weigh you down in the water? Are you being slowed down because you haven’t spent enough time training with your Instructor or studying your “Training Manual?” Are you in danger of drowning before reaching the finish line because you lacked physical discipline and enjoyed the pleasure of a heavy meal right before jumping into the pool?
Swimmers, set free from rules which require them to swim in a certain style, use the style which allows them to swim most excellently. Christians should recognize their freedom in Christ as an opportunity to strive for excellence, not mediocrity.
Art says:
Dear Ministry Addict
Sorry about the delay on your comment. I just saw it listed in my admin panel. I like your analogy of swimming. Jesus set us free from the bondage of the law, not the need for the law. We are no longer trapped by it’s demands for righteousness because of Christ’s death on the cross and the Father imputing to us the Righteousness of Christ. This fact allows us to pursue the will of the Father in freedom. We should always be seeking the will of the LORD for which “strokes” are best for His glory.