"For you are a chosen people.
You are royal priests,
a holy nation,
God's very own possession.
As a result,
you can show others the goodness of God,
for he called you out of darkness
into his wonderful light."
1 Peter 2:9 NLT
Jesus disapproved of the Pharisees, the outspoken members of Jewish society who considered themselves to be experts of both the written Torah and the oral tradition passed down through Moses. Their very name means "the separated ones" and they thought of themselves as devoted to God and His ways.
The problem with the Pharisees was that they became so caught up in their own holiness, that they grew in stature until they began applying God's Word to others instead of to themselves. They believed they were doing pretty good themselves so it was their duty to help others reach their level of devoutness.
Unfortunately, as well as the Pharisees knew the Law, they did not know the One who wrote the Law, and therefore missed the Messiah as He walked among them. They were so focused on eradicating the darkness that they missed the Light.
This brings me back to the words of my daughter's friend, Mary Catherine. She said, "If people only know what I am against but not what I am for. . . then I have failed in my mission to make known the incredible love and sweetness that only comes from the truth of the gospel. Jesus loved, me, the unlovable. . . now I have the exciting opportunity to love those around me. . . even though I fail every day. His grace is enough."
How do I guard against becoming more of a Pharisee and less of a lover of the unlovable?
Chosen People
I didn't choose my family, I was born into it. It's the same with God's family. We sometimes like to think we chose God, but Jesus made it clear when He said, "You did not choose me, but I chose you. . ." (John 15:16)
The Apostle Paul expands on this belief in Ephesians 1:4-5. "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will--"
As one of His chosen people, I am in the company of many flawed individuals who are saved by grace, not by my outstanding character, amazing abilities, or remarkable potential. I am chosen because it was a part of God's plan. God, in His unspeakable grace and out of His great love, chose me for no other reason than that He loves me. I am not lovable. I have no potential in and of myself. I am hopeless. But God loves me anyway!
In light of these truths, how should I then live? Compassionately, kindly, with humility and patience, always giving others a break, forgiving at all times, and freely and liberally loving.
But the only way I can live this way is if I constantly keep my brokenness before me. To forget who I am without Christ is to become a Pharisee. I will have the devotion to God, I will have the knowledge of His Word, but I will not have love. And love is the hallmark of His chosen people.
Remembering the truth of the Gospel keeps me humble and able to love the unlovable, of which I am one.
Living Sacrifice
When I think of worship, I usually think of singing my praises to God in a group of believers. But true worship takes place in the day to day living of my life. The Apostle Paul said, "I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him." (Romans 12:1 NLT)
Can I say, as Elizabeth Elliot has, "Lord, do anything you want with me. At any cost, work your will in me."? That is what I want to be able to say. To let go of all my fears, desires and wants and let God do as He wills.
This is my living sacrifice; that God gets His way in my life. In order for that to happen, I must surrender my will.
If I offer myself up as a living sacrifice, there will be no room for the judgment of others, the disappointment in the behavior of those around me, or the desire to help someone do the right thing. Instead, my being will be completely taken up with the love of God. . . and that love will spill out to those around me.
Offering myself as a living sacrifice means there will be more of God and less of me.
Dwell in the Light
Jesus proclaimed an astounding truth as he lived among His creation. He claimed that He was, ". . .the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life." (John 8:12 NLT)
I am no longer without choice. I don't have to do things the way I used to do when I had no hope. I see people all around me who are still living in that state; without hope. They follow their hearts desire, doing what they think to be right, only later finding it brought no fulfillment but only emptiness.
Without Jesus, I would be the same. I would be searching, frustrated and angry at how meaningless my life feels. I would be lost. I would be hopeless. Instead, Jesus drew me into His love and I now belong to Him, following Him toward life.
My family used to go camping quite often. One of the things I remember is the darkness that would envelope our campsite at night. Without the aid of artificial light, the darkness was oppressing. Consequently, we would build a campfire and sit around it, drawing close as the darkness crept in around us. The fire gave a sense of security and comfort in the inky blackness.
This reminds me of something Oswald Chambers wrote in "My Utmost for His Highest. He said, "To walk in the light means that everything that is of the darkness drives me closer into the centre of the light." The evil of this world serves to draw me closer to Jesus. But some of that darkness is within me. His light makes my sin painfully clear to me, serving to drive me even closer to Him in a quest for the forgiveness He offers in the cross.
The closer I get to Christ, the more I see my need for Him. And the more I see my need for Him, the more I want to shine His Light to all those around me so they can also travel the road that leads to life.
Loving the unlovable is difficult. Judging the shortcomings of those around me is easy. In order to move from the easy to the difficult, I must remember my brokenness as God chose me, that I am called to offer myself as a living sacrifice so God will be glorified in my life, and to dwell in the Light of life. Then I may be able to love as God has loved me.
As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I will not forget my own brokenness.
In what ways am I working on my own holiness and forgetting who I really am, without Jesus?
How is my coming closer to the source of Light exposing sin I didn't know existed?
No comments:
Post a Comment