Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. (Heb. 4:16)
(me...utterly enjoying more grace....)
I remember, in my twenties, becoming paralyzed by the teaching of a man I deeply respected. (A man no longer in my circle of associations...I do not know what has become of him.) He preached, passionately, that we've been given all we need in Christ. He very convincingly presented a gospel that declares a work having already been exceedingly and abundantly and completely done at the cross.
While every word of that is true, I then somehow came away with the wrong idea. I don't know if what I "got" from his radical sermons was what he meant for me to get - but what I heard was that the call of Christ was the call to come and die daily, the cross was all there was currently available to me, and thus I am to deny any personal desire to experience the love of God in fresh ways. The love of God was proven at the cross...what more did I need?
I've been years getting those concepts out of my spirit. In times of distress, depression, or even simple "stress", I have always tried to pull myself up by the bootstraps, and look at the cross alone. Right there, at Calvary, is my solution, cut and dried. I was taught by this great teacher that any ongoing revelation or experience of grace beyond looking to that cross, is entirely superfluous, and charismatic nonsense.
Well, now I know that we truly prophesy "in part". That was (and is) only a partial truth. It is truth, and it will need to be applied to our lives from time to time, and in certain situations. "Look to the cross, alone. It is enough". I have no doubt of it!
But the other part of the gospel is this stunning and ongoing involvement of the Father, in giving us "more grace". James 4:6 says "He gives us more grace." This verse is in context of our human propensity to sin. This verse is in the context of humility - God gives "more grace" to the humble.
More! Not some pre-determined, measured-at-the-cross, theologically correct amount of salvation. I can wallow in sheer over-abundance of moment-to-moment mercy, with more on the way in the morning. Not only that, but to she who possesses any God-gift, to her more shall be given.
Own the grace of God. Claim it with all the confidence in the Son's sacrifice. If you do that, more will be given. Utilize grace for every time of need. This is part of the humility that attracts "more grace" into our lives!
Humility comes entirely from an urgent awareness of our neediness. When I am most needy, most undone, altogether unable to help myself, God gives me "more grace".
"More" grace is Biblical! This continues to bring great freedom to my bound-up theology. God gives grace to help in time of need. This covers yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and it covers absolutely all reasons for my neediness. There is no qualification as to what sort of need qualifies for urgent grace. "Let us therefore come"....these words echo down through the corridors of history and time, and touch my spirit even tonight.
Let us come...today, tomorrow, and when we are much older. Let us come moment by moment, if we must. The more we come, the more we get. The only prerequisite is a knowlege of our need. Never...never analyze whether your need is theologically correct. Needy qualifies. Period. Thank God that He is delivering me from the paralysis of analysis, brought on by a zealous Bible teacher, more than twenty years ago.
Yes, the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Christ is more than enough. Forever. But you can experience something dynamic and fresh, in addition to all that unquestionable sufficiency. If your "time of need" is now, more grace is waiting. Go get it!
Liberating, no?
I remember, in my twenties, becoming paralyzed by the teaching of a man I deeply respected. (A man no longer in my circle of associations...I do not know what has become of him.) He preached, passionately, that we've been given all we need in Christ. He very convincingly presented a gospel that declares a work having already been exceedingly and abundantly and completely done at the cross.
While every word of that is true, I then somehow came away with the wrong idea. I don't know if what I "got" from his radical sermons was what he meant for me to get - but what I heard was that the call of Christ was the call to come and die daily, the cross was all there was currently available to me, and thus I am to deny any personal desire to experience the love of God in fresh ways. The love of God was proven at the cross...what more did I need?
I've been years getting those concepts out of my spirit. In times of distress, depression, or even simple "stress", I have always tried to pull myself up by the bootstraps, and look at the cross alone. Right there, at Calvary, is my solution, cut and dried. I was taught by this great teacher that any ongoing revelation or experience of grace beyond looking to that cross, is entirely superfluous, and charismatic nonsense.
Well, now I know that we truly prophesy "in part". That was (and is) only a partial truth. It is truth, and it will need to be applied to our lives from time to time, and in certain situations. "Look to the cross, alone. It is enough". I have no doubt of it!
But the other part of the gospel is this stunning and ongoing involvement of the Father, in giving us "more grace". James 4:6 says "He gives us more grace." This verse is in context of our human propensity to sin. This verse is in the context of humility - God gives "more grace" to the humble.
More! Not some pre-determined, measured-at-the-cross, theologically correct amount of salvation. I can wallow in sheer over-abundance of moment-to-moment mercy, with more on the way in the morning. Not only that, but to she who possesses any God-gift, to her more shall be given.
Own the grace of God. Claim it with all the confidence in the Son's sacrifice. If you do that, more will be given. Utilize grace for every time of need. This is part of the humility that attracts "more grace" into our lives!
Humility comes entirely from an urgent awareness of our neediness. When I am most needy, most undone, altogether unable to help myself, God gives me "more grace".
"More" grace is Biblical! This continues to bring great freedom to my bound-up theology. God gives grace to help in time of need. This covers yesterday, today, and tomorrow, and it covers absolutely all reasons for my neediness. There is no qualification as to what sort of need qualifies for urgent grace. "Let us therefore come"....these words echo down through the corridors of history and time, and touch my spirit even tonight.
Let us come...today, tomorrow, and when we are much older. Let us come moment by moment, if we must. The more we come, the more we get. The only prerequisite is a knowlege of our need. Never...never analyze whether your need is theologically correct. Needy qualifies. Period. Thank God that He is delivering me from the paralysis of analysis, brought on by a zealous Bible teacher, more than twenty years ago.
Yes, the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Christ is more than enough. Forever. But you can experience something dynamic and fresh, in addition to all that unquestionable sufficiency. If your "time of need" is now, more grace is waiting. Go get it!
Liberating, no?
6 comments:
Yes, liberating. And fresh and true. Grace everyday. Grace as a noun. And grace as a verb. Excellent posting, Sheila.
Sheila!!!
Please tell me I don't come across as teaching a dried-up theology. Slap me through the ether if I do!!
This is a wonderful post and probably points out why people get tired of hearing "finished work" teaching. I never REALIZED!
The beauty of the cross is that not only did I die with Christ, but also (BIG BUT ALSO) that I received His Life in place of mine. My body, my soul, His Spirit: ever fresh, ever new, springing up from within me. Not a past "this was enough",you have salvation deal, but a you have died with Christ and He NOW lives in you deal. Not you, but Him.
I don't go back to the cross to get cupfuls of Grace, when I need them; He lives in me, supplying all my needs. Yes?
There are two sides to the cross: our death side, in Him, and our Life side, Him in us.
Very thought provoking; thank you.
Jamie (it is Jamie, right "RJW"?)
No...not at all. No slapping necessary. ACK! This is entirely referring to what I, myself, have been years overcoming...a glitch in my spiritual process, brought on (unwittingly, I am sure...I'll always give a man or woman of God the benefit of the doubt!) by a teacher in the Lord from many years ago.
I love, live, and breathe by that "finished work"...it has just taken years for me to understand that it is a finished and daily efficacious work! It still MUST be experienced fresh and new in my life.
My suspiciou is that I am not the only one who has ever struggled with wondering what was wrong with me...why looking to the cross "alone" seemed to not be delivering me, and feeling I was all alone in that experience.
Mine was a misunderstanding of grace...a mis-application of a TRULY finished work.
Nothing to do at all with anything I've heard from you...your blog is *great*!
Sheila,
we need to plough through all these things. We need to leave no stone unturned with any of us.Holding every doctrine up to the Light for examination on all sides. What seems to sound good and Biblically based has to also pass the Life test. It has to have a pulse.
There are believers out there...and parts of all our lives...where we are not "seeing correctly". To some it may sound spiritual.
But if others around us, be it family or local church people, get this leaden feeling in their stomach ....
If the actual effect of our doctrine seizes us up from functioning correctly...like a seized up engine...
if the Holy Spirit is "shut out" in some way whenever we are pursuing this pet doctrine....
If this doctrine itself doesn't have the sound and song of heaven ringing somewhere in it....
It's to be chucked out, or adjusted or at the very least re-examined.
Ooh wa wa! I love this picture and I love this woman. Could I have your number? Maybe we could go out on a date. I am smitten!
...and my husband is a nut. Here I am, trying to be all serious about grace, and he HITS on me.
Babe...name the time and the place, and it is a DATE. You'll always be my man...
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