This weekend our pastor gave a marvelous message on grace. His premise was that Jesus is the perfect husband. Think about it: the Church is the Bride of Christ, so He is the Groom. And since Jesus emphasizes love over the law, we do not have to be a slave to a list of Commandments in order to please Him. Paul said that when we were under the Law, we were forever reminded how many times we fall short of it (See Romans 6).
The law condemns.
Love forgives.
Romans 7:1-4 talks about how we were married to the law. We were not free to marry another as long as the law lives. This is a problem, because the Bible says that "heaven and earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away." (Luke 21:33). The only solution, then, is for us to die to the law. That way we share in Christ's death, just as we will share in His resurrection. As we are freed from the law, we can then become the bride of Christ.
Our pastor summed up his message by saying too many people who have professed faith in Christ Jesus, who fall under Grace, are still trying to keep the Law. We feel condemned. We feel ashamed. We feel dirty. The Spirit washes us clean, but still we want to please Him by keeping the same old list of do's and don't's. He said that Love is a better motivator to do good than Law. If I tell my wife that I have kept my duty to her to remain pure, to not commit adultery, even though in my base nature I really, really want to, but that I have been good, will she be impressed with me? Will she feel special? Probably not. But if I can look her in the eyes and say something like this: "When you open your eyes in the morning, it is like the sun rising. When you close your eyes at night, the stars shine. When I am at work, I think about you all the time, and I can't wait to get home to you. You are the world to me." How will she feel after hearing that? Will she be worried about my being faithful to her? I don't think so. True love is a much stronger motivating force than a list of rules could ever be.
1 Corinthians 13 says:
How can you know that, and put it into practice, without rejoicing? Does God really need our praise? No; He is perfect, in need of nothing. But our praise is the evidence that we are in right relationship with Him. The more we praise Him, the more He blesses us. The more He blesses us, the more we praise Him. It is a virtuous circle. "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." (James 1:17)
I've been toying with this analogy all week, and I hope that I can make it as meaningful to you as it is to me. Many times my prayers end up like a giant Christmas list. And when I don't get what I ask for, I tend to think in human terms: maybe God doesn't want me to have that blessing because I am not good enough for it. Maybe there is a line for that blessing, and I just have to wait my turn. Maybe God is all out of that blessing, and He must wait for some kind of backlog at the blessing factory, and will let me know when it is in stock. But when I truly seek His face, when I honestly try to know Him, I know that He is so much more than some galactic warehouse supervisor. He spoke the Universe into existence; He never runs out of what is good for us. James 4:2-3 says, "You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your own pleasures." If it is not for my good AND His glory, then I don't need it.
I have said this before, but it bears repeating. Revelation 5:12 says, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" If you have power, where did it come from? If you have wealth, was it not granted to you by God? "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." (James 1:5-8). Honor, glory and praise belong to Him, for it is He that bestows strength and wisdom, wealth and power to us.
I saw a cartoon last week that said, "Who is this Foreigner, and why do they demand to know what love is?" I laughed out loud, because I remember the chart-topping single in 1983 from the band Foreigner. The lyrics really sum up what the World has been searching for since the beginning of time. They are just looking for love in all the wrong places (with apologies to Johnny Lee).
And if Nietzsche felt that God was demanding praise from him, along with a long list of other demands, then he was under the Law, not Love; he was feeling God's Judgement, not Grace; he was tiring of religion, not relationship. O, that we would not fall into the same trap.
The law condemns.
Love forgives.
Romans 7:1-4 talks about how we were married to the law. We were not free to marry another as long as the law lives. This is a problem, because the Bible says that "heaven and earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away." (Luke 21:33). The only solution, then, is for us to die to the law. That way we share in Christ's death, just as we will share in His resurrection. As we are freed from the law, we can then become the bride of Christ.
Our pastor summed up his message by saying too many people who have professed faith in Christ Jesus, who fall under Grace, are still trying to keep the Law. We feel condemned. We feel ashamed. We feel dirty. The Spirit washes us clean, but still we want to please Him by keeping the same old list of do's and don't's. He said that Love is a better motivator to do good than Law. If I tell my wife that I have kept my duty to her to remain pure, to not commit adultery, even though in my base nature I really, really want to, but that I have been good, will she be impressed with me? Will she feel special? Probably not. But if I can look her in the eyes and say something like this: "When you open your eyes in the morning, it is like the sun rising. When you close your eyes at night, the stars shine. When I am at work, I think about you all the time, and I can't wait to get home to you. You are the world to me." How will she feel after hearing that? Will she be worried about my being faithful to her? I don't think so. True love is a much stronger motivating force than a list of rules could ever be.
1 Corinthians 13 says:
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is no rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.This, boys and girls, is the relationship that Jesus calls us to. He does not call us to righteousness, but if we are in right relationship with Him, we will put away unrighteousness. He did not call us to condemnation. "Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the one and only Son." (John 3:18)
How can you know that, and put it into practice, without rejoicing? Does God really need our praise? No; He is perfect, in need of nothing. But our praise is the evidence that we are in right relationship with Him. The more we praise Him, the more He blesses us. The more He blesses us, the more we praise Him. It is a virtuous circle. "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." (James 1:17)
I've been toying with this analogy all week, and I hope that I can make it as meaningful to you as it is to me. Many times my prayers end up like a giant Christmas list. And when I don't get what I ask for, I tend to think in human terms: maybe God doesn't want me to have that blessing because I am not good enough for it. Maybe there is a line for that blessing, and I just have to wait my turn. Maybe God is all out of that blessing, and He must wait for some kind of backlog at the blessing factory, and will let me know when it is in stock. But when I truly seek His face, when I honestly try to know Him, I know that He is so much more than some galactic warehouse supervisor. He spoke the Universe into existence; He never runs out of what is good for us. James 4:2-3 says, "You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your own pleasures." If it is not for my good AND His glory, then I don't need it.
I have said this before, but it bears repeating. Revelation 5:12 says, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" If you have power, where did it come from? If you have wealth, was it not granted to you by God? "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." (James 1:5-8). Honor, glory and praise belong to Him, for it is He that bestows strength and wisdom, wealth and power to us.
I saw a cartoon last week that said, "Who is this Foreigner, and why do they demand to know what love is?" I laughed out loud, because I remember the chart-topping single in 1983 from the band Foreigner. The lyrics really sum up what the World has been searching for since the beginning of time. They are just looking for love in all the wrong places (with apologies to Johnny Lee).
And if Nietzsche felt that God was demanding praise from him, along with a long list of other demands, then he was under the Law, not Love; he was feeling God's Judgement, not Grace; he was tiring of religion, not relationship. O, that we would not fall into the same trap.
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