Too Much Grace

I have to start by saying that I am amazed by God this week.  After I wrote my last post, like as soon as I hit the "publish" button, I started musing about grace.  Was what I wrote too focused on grace and ignoring the reality of sin and God's justice?  And then came the avalanche.  Everywhere I turned, I bumped into someone talking about grace.  Isn't it incredible how he does this?  I was so hesitant to even start this blog, but I'm glad I did if for no other reason than I realize now I sense his presence the most when I am writing.  I can't even tell you how many places I've seen the word "transformation" since I started this.  Maybe that's just a buzz-word in Christian writing these days, but I never noticed it before.  In other words, God is real, y'all.

But back to the subject of too much grace, and going back to my previous post (His Likeness Shall See), one thing that seems clear to me is that it would be pretty difficult for us to show one another too much grace.  When there is a question of welcoming in a 'sinner' versus shunning them, I hope to choose welcoming every time.  In The Ragamuffin Gospel, the author describes an AA meeting where one man comes forward and admits to going on a drinking binge the week before after 7 years of sobriety.  The group empathizes with him, says "I've been there", loves him, encourages him, prays for him, and promises to walk alongside him in his journey back to sobriety.  It's a beautiful picture.  Isn't that what church should be?  Sinners Anonymous?  Yet we note that there is an acknowledgment, even if it is not spoken, that what he did is not okay.  They do not brush off the weight of his drinking binge or invite him to go out for a beer after the meeting.  I feel this tension in the church, and it's such a fine line.  I DO think that some go so far in grace that they celebrate the sin itself and I think that's a dangerous line to cross, but again I think for most of us, more grace is in order.

Then comes the mega-question that's been on my mind this week, and that is God's grace toward us.  We know that we are saved by grace alone and not by works.  Jesus, his life and death and resurrection and salvation, is a beautiful gift to us and nothing we could ever do here on Earth could earn us that.  We also know that Jesus calls us to die to ourselves, to be willing to abandon everything to follow him, to care for the needy and oppressed.  We know that James says that faith without works is dead.  DEAD.  So should we rest in grace alone, bathe in the knowledge that we are loved by God, carry on with life as it comes, and not feel burdened to do more?  Is this new "radical" movement that I have gotten so excited about just works in grace's clothing?  When I find myself at the end of the day disgusted with myself that I've done so much thinking and talking and so little doing, is that from God or is that from the enemy?    

I read a few things this morning, and I felt like God was giving me the answer to my question.  I think the answer is the Holy Spirit.  Jennie Allen has a great quote that says "Without the Spirit of God to lead our anythings- we will will only be do-gooders with our own agendas."  (Amen!)  This morning I read an article by Ed Cyzewski that said this:

"From where I sit, you can’t do anything radical as a follower of Jesus unless you get spiritual formation right. If you can’t follow the Spirit, you can’t follow Jesus.  The most radical thing you can do as a disciple of Jesus is to wait for an invisible Spirit to tell you what to do with your life. If you’re worried about whether you’re living a radical enough life, the good news is that God’s Spirit will walk with you step by step."

Then I read an interview with Shane Claiborne.  The whole thing is a fantastic read, but the first question out of the box is essentially how to be radical in the midst of ordinary life.   My favorite part of his answer is: "Choosing non-conformity doesn’t mean we’re all going to end up doing the same thing, that we’ll all find ourselves working in a soup kitchen, or sleeping under a bridge. This is an invitation—a call— to re-imagine who we are and how we are to live in light of Jesus. And I get excited because I see folks who are doing that everywhere, in all kinds of different ways."  I think when we are really tuned into his Spirit, when we earnestly seek him and offer him all of us, then we will know.  (This is no small thing, by the way, and something I think many Christians are missing - I certainly was and still struggle with it now.)  If we are unwilling to go there, only THEN are we resting on too much grace and not being radical enough.  If we have done those things and the answer doesn't involve a homeless ministry or adoption or donating your life savings to charity, then we can be assured that we are radically following him even when it feels like ordinary dishes-and-laundry life.  Such a life can still be used by God for extraordinary things, whether it's the impact you have on your family or your kids' friends or your co-workers.  All because of his grace to walk with us and to show us the magnificent plans he has for us.  Too much grace indeed.

His Likeness Shall See

We were singing a hymn on Sunday called Take Time To Be Holy and one of the lines says "By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be; Thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see." It really got me thinking.  His likeness shall see.  That's a pretty hefty responsibility.  I can think of a lot of things I portray and I'm not sure how often Jesus' likeness is it.  Instead of gossip or complaining, worry or criticism, I need to be showing Jesus' radical, unbiased, overwhelming, undeserved, lavishing love all the time. And that's not easy. It requires investment into relationships - relationships with people that I might not normally choose to befriend.  Am I willing to start calling people my friends, not because we click or have a lot in common, but just because God tells me to love and serve them?

When I think about Jesus and the people he engaged, the people he loved, the people he ministered to.. it's so hard to live up to!  How did he do it?  This is kinda weird, but sometimes I drive past this adult video store on the highway and think, I bet Jesus would walk right in there and talk to the guy working at the counter. But I wouldn't. Someone might see my car out front and get the wrong idea. Something might offend my pure, virgin eyes.  Counter Guy might not be receptive to my message. Bottom line, I'm afraid. I've had some conversations recently about answering your front door and talking to strangers on the side of the road. No doubt in my mind that Jesus would never look through the peephole and decide not to answer the door. Jesus probably wouldn't have a peephole at all. But I do. And you can be guaranteed that if I don't know the person on the other side, I'm not opening it. Bottom line, I'm afraid. I've got to get to a place where I hand my fears over to Jesus and trust him to love people through me.  (Praying for his wisdom and guidance in all things, of course.  I'm not suggesting we be reckless just for the sake of being reckless.)

I've been thinking a lot about the things it seems we Christians are willing to make noise about.  I hesitate to give specific examples because I don't have enough time and space to give all the disclaimers and caveats and good points on both sides, but I think y'all know the major issues at play in the political and religious arenas these days.  Point being, there's an awful lot of noise coming out of Christians right now that is not rooted in love, which means it's not displaying Jesus' likeness.  And if that's all people hear, then can we blame them for thinking Jesus is not really someone they'd like to follow?  Now, I know there are mountains and heaps of love in The Church. I see it all the time. But for some reason, it just doesn't seem to permeate to the outside world. Though there are people adopting babies and feeding the hungry and loving their neighbor all over the place, still the message the world receives is Judgment. Hypocrisy. Narrow Minded.  Why?  I don't think we can attribute all of it to an unbelieving world rejecting or persecuting the true gospel of Christ (certainly some, but not all).  Might it be that many of us, myself included, have been raised to stay inside the safe walls of the church and lavish our love on each other such that we don't give much of it away to the broken, the needy, the foul-mouthed, the Counter Guy? The ones that threaten our precious morality and catapult us right out of our comfortable places?

I was preparing for a bible study lesson a few weeks ago and did a quick little research project on Jesus' commands. My goal was to prove that Jesus commands us to go and do and serve because that fit in really nicely with what I wanted to say.  What I found instead was a whoooole lot of "be holy and righteous and love God" commands and a healthy sprinkling of "go and do and serve" commands.  So basically we are to get our own righteousness in order - quite the never-ending project - and then love other people.  Never, ever does Jesus instruct us to rant and rave about the sins of unbelievers. (Disclaimer - Is there a place for speaking the truth in love regarding sin to our Christian brothers and sisters? Yes.)  Paul traveled to some of the most pagan, hedonistic places on Earth - places that make America look downright puritanical - and never did he argue with the people about their idols or their lifestyles.  He simply preached the gospel, that people might hear that Jesus was really the son of God and the source of salvation for everyone.  And I can't help but think that's because you can't change a person from the outside in.  What good is it to try to force someone to follow a moral code?  Even if we could do it (and we totally can't), then what?  That doesn't change hearts or transform lives.  Transformation has to come from the inside out, and how can that happen but from a relationship with a person who shows them His likeness?  May we be those kind of people.

It's Just A Game

I think one of the hardest things about transformation is the letting go of the world that you have to do.  Those darn verses like Matthew 6:24 - "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money." - yeah, I tried really, really hard to prove those wrong. I loved my stuff, and I wanted more of it. At some point a few years ago, I actually sat down and wrote a list of all the things I wanted to have by the end of the following year. Things like a DSLR camera, a new couch, etc. I honestly thought if I could just get the things on that one list, then I'd be happy and that would be enough and I would stop wanting more. But of course it's never enough. And it's true, you can't serve God and money (aka possessions). You will get comfortable and secure in your own ability to get stuff, or you will be discontent and bitter and resentful because you can't get the stuff, or you will become obsessed and distracted by all the stuff. And God really cannot be Lord and King when you're in those places.

In one of my must-read books (Seven, I'm pretty sure) the author talks about consumerism as a machine, how advertising and media have invested billions in making us believe we need this and want that and have to have the other.  But what if we all just unplugged from the machine? Objectively, when you look at it on the whole, you know it's an illusion, right? I could redecorate my house and overhaul my wardrobe every year to keep up with the trends, make all the crafts on Pinterest, throw the best parties, and buy the latest gadgets, and where would it get me?  Exhausted, empty, and out a whole bunch of cash.  Who exactly decided this stuff was cool, and why do I care?  Not to mention that in a breath, the trends will change and I'll be right back where I started.

I used to think that Ecclesiastes was so depressing - all "life is meaningless" and such - but now I think I'm starting to get it.

All things are full of weariness;
a man cannot utter it;
the eye is not satisfied with seeing,
nor the ear filled with hearing.

What has been is what will be,
and what has been done is what will be done,
and there is nothing new under the sun.
...
I have seen everything that is done under the sun,
and behold, all is vanity and a striving after wind.  Ecc. 1:8-10, 14

Don't you feel that, at least sometimes?  This world cannot offer us anything of lasting value.  Not one thing.  So what if we all decide we aren't going to buy in anymore?  What if we said, "This is what God has blessed me with, and it is enough." This salary is enough, this house is enough, this closet of clothes is enough, the kids have enough toys (can I get an AMEN?!).  Maybe it's even too much and we need to downsize in some areas?  With all that freed up time and money and energy spent chasing after the wind, what meaningful things we could do? Sponsor a child? Take a mission trip? Invite your neighbors over for dinner? Observe the Sabbath?? (ouch, log in my eye there)

Sometimes wisdom comes from the funniest of places. I bought some songs for my daughter by a group called Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. (Yeah, I don't get it either.) They're cute little hip hop songs for kids. Anyway, part of their song "Gotta Be Me" goes like this:

Some people think making you feel bad
will make them feel good and that’s just sad,
but no matter what they do or say
it’s just a game and you don’t have to play.

I don't know why, but that song makes me tear up almost every time.  Yes, a kids' rap song makes me emotional.  Probably because I so desperately want my kids to understand that.  But grown-ups, we need the message too.   It IS just a game.  The posturing, the keeping up, the never-ending parade of trinkets and treasures that we want, want, want.. it is not real.  Moth and rust destroy, and thieves break in and steal. (Matt. 6:19-21)  But we have something better.  We have the love of Christ, and we all have a purpose in Him, to be salt and light, to make disciples, to pursue holiness and to help the poor and oppressed.  Nothing can destroy or steal those things, and the best possessions money can buy cannot compete with them.

Footnote - It's important for me to clarify, I am not saying we should never enjoy a nice dinner out or buy new clothes or a new couch or whatever.  But there is a very marked difference when you let go of that rope that tethers you to the world.  You don't need it anymore to feel successful or comfortable or valuable.  You can just enjoy things as they come, thank God for them, and go on with your life.  Life is so much better that way!