Are You Enough?

Last week was the biggest event in football - the Super Bowl.  Did you watch the dramatic ending?  Or were you more focused on the commercials?  I admit to both.  I enjoy watching a good game and the good commercials are always fun.  There was a lot of drama surrounding this year's game and personally as a Bronco fan, I didn't really care too much who won.  I'm not a fan of either team.  But something hit me when I heard the news about the Patriot's homecoming celebration in Boston.

They had delayed the big parade because of the weather, which still wasn’t great the day of the parade but the fans still showed up in huge numbers to cheer on the Super Bowl Champs.  As I was listening to the radio news describe the event, the broadcaster remarked at how the Patriots were holding up four fingers to the fans, representing the four Super Bowl victories they had won since 2002 under the leadership of Bill Belichick.  A pretty remarkable feat no matter how you feel about the team.

What surprised me, and made me a little sad, was what the broadcaster said next.  As the Patriots held up four fingers, the fans held up five – signifying they wanted five wins now.  Wow.

As if four wasn’t a great accomplishment in and of itself, the fans wanted more.  Four is great but five is better!  Almost immediately I heard the Lord remind me, “The world will always want more.  You can never do enough or be enough to satisfy them.”

How true.  I have encountered this more times than I’d care to admit.  How many times have I tried harder, worked longer, made up my hair/face/clothes to match the magazines, read the blogs on being a better wife, mom, homeschool parent, friend, pastor’s wife etc… All to no avail.  I fall flat when I listen to what the world wants. 

You didn’t yell at your kids today?  Good for you.  Now make sure they excel in sports and education.  Cooked a gourmet, organic meal?  Eh.  Grow your own veggies if you really cared about your family.  Went on a date with your hubby? Make sure that your body looks like the model on the magazine or he’ll look elsewhere. 

It’s enough to make you crazy and feel like you’re a hamster in a wheel.  Running and running but never really getting anywhere.

But then I tune my ears to God. I seek Him first and I measure up every time.  Not because I am perfect but because He is.  I'm always growing and changing but it isn't to please the un-pleasable, it's submitting to the One Who knows me intimately and wants the best for me and my family. Opposite of the cookie cutter, impossible to achieve expectations the world gives us. 

Feeling like just when you get ahead you discover you're actually far, far behind?   Who are you listening to?

Law vs. Grace

I've done several studies into Galatians, James, John, Luke, Philippians, Timothy and Romans.  God has opened up His word to me like a flood!  So much has poured out on this journey.

This time, specifically, Law vs. Grace.  I have no doubt that it is because Christ followers battle that delicate balance daily.  And many times we wind up still going to one extreme or another!  What does the law do in our lives?  What is the purpose?  Why grace?  How do we experience, and give, grace?

After meditating on all those questions for a while, here is what I have begun to understand: God gave us the law in the Old Testament to guide and protect us, to make us holy and in fellowship with Him.  When the Israelites followed and obeyed, things were good and conversely, when they rebelled, things were bad.  The OT showed us our need for a Savior.  We, alone, are not capable of fulfilling the law.  We try and we fail.

Then Jesus comes and He fulfills the law, takes our punishment and pours out grace!  Wonderful!  But why is there still the law then?  We are set free from the law right?

Yes, but the Lord still uses it to show us "The Way".  The law is still for a Christ follower, it just isn't what saves us.  Christ begins His sanctification (the act of being sanctified which means set apart and free from sin) in us the moment we surrender our lives to Him.  Daily, He does a work in us and brings us closer to Him.  He fulfills the law in us, piece by piece.  And when He does, we experience holiness and freedom and abundant life.  The law still does the same thing as it did in the OT - it guides and protects us - but it doesn't save us...Christ does. 

I see the law like a test.  I give my children tests to see where they're at in a particular subject.  To see what they know.  Where they fall short are the areas we continue to work on.  It's like a mirror of their knowledge.  God's law works the same way.  It shows us where we are falling short.  If we struggle with lying (God's law says do not lie) then we know that's an area where God's grace needs to come in and heal.  It's the mirror of what's in our heart.

Sometimes, as Christ followers, we can shift our focus from Jesus, to what He's done in our lives. It's a subtle shift and one I do not think we intend to do but we do it.

For example: God convicted me on submitting to Mark.  As I submitted to him, I experienced joy and freedom and a deeper intimacy.  Naturally, when I look at struggling marriages I would encourage women to submit because that's what worked for me!  The problem is that it isn't submission that set me free, but Christ! Jesus sanctifying me and revealing my lack of submission, along with my subsequent obedience, has brought me freedom.  Make sense?  Because we confuse the work of the law and the work of Jesus fulfilling the law, we misdirect Christians and non-believers.  We point them to the behavior that needs fixing rather than Christ who fixes them (Grace!).  A subtle, yet dangerous, misguidance. 

Law, alone, brings judgement and resentment.  Grace just loves and looks at the heart. What if we, as Christ followers, stopped using the law in judgement of others and used it only as a test for us and what's in our hearts?  What if we really believed that our only commandments were to Love God and love His people?  Let God, alone, use the law to sanctify and change us. After all, it is His kindness that leads to repentance.