We have been issued a divine invitation to partake of heavenly things. In 2 Peter we are told that we have "great and precious promises, by which we become partakers of the divine nature." (KJV). Scripture also speaks of the overflowing riches and overabundant grace in Christ Jesus our Lord. Many accept the truth that our salvation is by faith in Christ Jesus. We ask Jesus into our hearts and believe that we have experienced the fullness of this truth. But nothing could be further from the truth, for we have only just begun to understand what it means to have "this treasure in earthen vessels." What is this treasure?
As a young believer I was very much in love with the Lord. I had a deep desire to please Him. Not having an understanding of the nature and power of grace, I struggled within myself to please Him. For a few years my own strength was enough, and my private sense of righteousness went untouched. But in time, I was pulled away from my relationship with God by the desire for other things that seemed desirable and satisfying. I struggled with all of my might to do what was right, but to no avail. At the end of my own strength, I finally awoke one fall morning and raised the white flag of surrender. I quit trying. I was exhausted, and by this time, the lure of sin was much more enticing. I enjoyed throwing off all restraint. My heart was growing hard, and I began to crave excitement to fill the void of God's presence.
In time I began to hunger and thirst for the living God, not the imitations that I had turned to for satisfaction. My attempts to satisfy my spiritual hunger left me cold inside, and I was growing desperate for relief. Like the prodigal son, I had spent my inheritance and wallowed with the pigs, and now I had come to my senses. But how to get home? My strength and striving had only resulted in failure. I was angry at God. "Why do you have to make it so difficult?" I would rail at Him, "Look what you have done to me! I am far from you, because you have made all of this too difficult!" God seemed angry at me, and I was angry at Him. He was impossible, and I was a disappointment.
But one incredible day a shaft of light broke in upon my darkness. Some persistent Christians from my college had drug me to their weekly bible study. During that study someone mentioned a word that roused me from my hopeless stupor. The light came in the form of one word, g-r-a-c-e. Grace. For the first time that night I spoke up: "Can grace change me?" I asked. No one knew, they would have to ask the youth pastor and get back to me. All of my hope hinged on the answer that they gave me. After a very long week of waiting, they gave me the answer that I was longing to hear, yes, grace can change you too. Out of this fragile hope grew a weak, tiny, plea to God -" help." Just one little word- a plea for help- inspired by another little word-the promise of help- and together something wonderful happened; I began to glimpse the way home. I could come home now.
Grace is what this blog is all about. We have this treasure in earthen vessels. Earth is basically just dirt, and that is where we begin our journey, in the dirt. It is not my human strength or moral fortitude that has brought me face to face with my Savior. If that were the case, I would know nothing of Him. No, it is my weakness, my absolute inability that led me to Him. And it is this same weakness that keeps me there. I bring Him my earthen vessel, and He fills me with His treasure, day by day, every day. We have this treasure in earthen vessels. This treasure is precious, costly. It cost me something, and it cost Jesus something.
"I
waited patiently for the Lord, and He heard my cry. He lifted me up out of the
pit, and put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. (Ps
40)." This blog is, in part, my song of praise. I have been in more than
one pit, most of them of my own making. Is God mad? Does He reject my cries
because I made my own bed and now I must lie in it? No! No! A thousand times
no. That is how our small, human hearts reason, because our love and mercy is
so very small in comparison with His. In fact, there is no comparison.
The woman caught in adultery had a treasure within her too. While the religious people condemned her as a law breaker-doing nothing to actually help her- Jesus lavished grace upon her. She fell down in the dirt as a disgraced outcast, but she was raised up as a beloved daughter of the King. How she must have been transformed under the strong, gentle gaze of those eyes. Those eyes melted away every sin that she had ever committed. Reaching down to where she was, he raised her up to walk in newness of life.
Brokenness. It is the thing that we resist the most as Christians, and yet it is the lowly doorway through which we must pass to enter His Kingdom. You must become like a child to enter the Kingdom, Jesus said. Loaded down with pride, human strength and our own smug sense of righteousness, we are like camels trying to get through the eye of the needle, rich in our own human strength. If we cling to our own strength, our own strength will have to save us, and this we cannot do.
My mother likes to remind us "It's later than you think." With that in mind, this is my personal witness, my song, to the Lord for His abundant mercy, grace, and power. My hope is that others will be encouraged, strengthened, and maybe even enticed to plunge into the depths of God's grace. Because happy are the poor in spirit, happy are those who come to the end of their human strength, happy are those who recognize their own lack; the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. To enter in, we must lay our religious cloaks at the door of humility. To enter in we must lift our faces into the light of God's goodness and mercy, where we draw near, and nearer still, because a divine way has been made for us through Christ Jesus.
Yes, grace transforms, and it comes in a way that we may not expect. Transformation comes as we grow lower, and our faith grows higher. Transformation comes as we encounter His goodness and mercy and in the process we are being "changed into His image." It's a glorious, divine process. It is a gift for those who dare to believe it. When we perceive this awesome reality with unveiled hearts and minds, it is staggering, almost too good to be true. It is so good, in fact, that Paul was moved to pray in Ephesians (3:16-20) that we would have the power to comprehend how high, how wide, how deep is the love of God in Christ Jesus that surpasses our human understanding. Why? So that we might be filled with all of the fullness of God! This is the salvation that we have been invited into.
So join me in this journey. But do not be mistaken, this is not about striving to attain some religious ideal, nor is it a complacent acceptance of the status quo. It is a whole-hearted seeking after that which we were sought out for by God in Christ Jesus. It's really true. We have all been invited to partake of a divine banquet. "If anyone is thirsty, let him come." The way has been made. The food has been prepared. A special place has been set for you. He bids you come. "He brought me to His banqueting table, and His banner of me is love." Yes, even in the presence of your very "enemies", those situations and circumstances that threaten to overcome you. Most of all in that place, He will anoint you with the oil of His presence, and your cup of joy will overflow (Psalm 27). "Come, come all who are thirsy, come to the waters and drink."
The woman caught in adultery had a treasure within her too. While the religious people condemned her as a law breaker-doing nothing to actually help her- Jesus lavished grace upon her. She fell down in the dirt as a disgraced outcast, but she was raised up as a beloved daughter of the King. How she must have been transformed under the strong, gentle gaze of those eyes. Those eyes melted away every sin that she had ever committed. Reaching down to where she was, he raised her up to walk in newness of life.
Brokenness. It is the thing that we resist the most as Christians, and yet it is the lowly doorway through which we must pass to enter His Kingdom. You must become like a child to enter the Kingdom, Jesus said. Loaded down with pride, human strength and our own smug sense of righteousness, we are like camels trying to get through the eye of the needle, rich in our own human strength. If we cling to our own strength, our own strength will have to save us, and this we cannot do.
My mother likes to remind us "It's later than you think." With that in mind, this is my personal witness, my song, to the Lord for His abundant mercy, grace, and power. My hope is that others will be encouraged, strengthened, and maybe even enticed to plunge into the depths of God's grace. Because happy are the poor in spirit, happy are those who come to the end of their human strength, happy are those who recognize their own lack; the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. To enter in, we must lay our religious cloaks at the door of humility. To enter in we must lift our faces into the light of God's goodness and mercy, where we draw near, and nearer still, because a divine way has been made for us through Christ Jesus.
Yes, grace transforms, and it comes in a way that we may not expect. Transformation comes as we grow lower, and our faith grows higher. Transformation comes as we encounter His goodness and mercy and in the process we are being "changed into His image." It's a glorious, divine process. It is a gift for those who dare to believe it. When we perceive this awesome reality with unveiled hearts and minds, it is staggering, almost too good to be true. It is so good, in fact, that Paul was moved to pray in Ephesians (3:16-20) that we would have the power to comprehend how high, how wide, how deep is the love of God in Christ Jesus that surpasses our human understanding. Why? So that we might be filled with all of the fullness of God! This is the salvation that we have been invited into.
So join me in this journey. But do not be mistaken, this is not about striving to attain some religious ideal, nor is it a complacent acceptance of the status quo. It is a whole-hearted seeking after that which we were sought out for by God in Christ Jesus. It's really true. We have all been invited to partake of a divine banquet. "If anyone is thirsty, let him come." The way has been made. The food has been prepared. A special place has been set for you. He bids you come. "He brought me to His banqueting table, and His banner of me is love." Yes, even in the presence of your very "enemies", those situations and circumstances that threaten to overcome you. Most of all in that place, He will anoint you with the oil of His presence, and your cup of joy will overflow (Psalm 27). "Come, come all who are thirsy, come to the waters and drink."
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