IT IS FINISHED
Three words, Jesus said on the cross.
I didn't realize, until this past Sunday, that the Greek word
Jesus uttered was the word that the people wrote on debts that had been
paid. I mean don't get me wrong, I have heard my
whole life "Jesus paid it all" *cue the old school song* "Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe, sin had left a crimson stain, He washed, it white as snow" and our debt is "paid in
full" but I don't think I ever really got it.
If some nice person off the street walked up to you, handed
you your mortgage (or student loan papers, car loan papers, whatever) and on it
was a letter from the lender with the worlds "PAID IN FULL"
on it. Free gift from them. You don't have to do anything, but believe they did it.
What would you do?
I'd prolly dance for joy and jump up and down like I won the lottery or
the Super Bowl, or an olympic gold medal. Every time I thought about the payoff I'd be full of joy. I
also would tell everyone I ran into Hey, do you know so and so? Let me tell you
what they did for ME!
What would you not do?
Well, you can bet I'd quit worrying about that debt. Also, when time to pay next months bills
rolled around, I wouldn't try to pay it anyway.
I wouldn't keep sending a check.
I wouldn't feel guilty for using the money on other stuff.
Why then, is it so hard to accept the redemption that Jesus
offers? Deep down, we all want to be
loved unconditionally, have our sins and our debt to God "paid in full". The good news is, we can! Because God loves us so much, He sent is son to die,
to be the perfect sacrifice that would pay our debt to him in full. EVEN while we were sinners. EVEN though,
Jesus knew everything I would ever say and do, and even though I didn't deserve
anything from Him. I ought to be dancing
for joy, and not be able to contain the desire to introduce people to the One
who saved me - redeemed me, paid my debt to God in full, so that I can have
peace with God and not face his wrath? Instead I want to "earn" it "DO" something to show I'm
"good enough" to accept redemption, when the simple fact is, I will
never be. I can't be good enough apart
from Jesus. The ONLY path to
righteousness is having sin atoned - and the only way for atonement is through
a pure sacrifice, and the only pure sacrifice is Jesus. He paid my debt. In full. Because of God's mercy and grace. Not something I have done, not something I
can do, the only thing that is required of me is to believe.
"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained
access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of
God. Not only so, but we also glory in
our sufferings, because we know suffering produces perseverance; perseverance,
character; and character hope. And hope
does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out in our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. You see, at just the right time, while we
were powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a
righteous person, though for a good person someone might dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in
this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have been justified by the blood,
how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him? For if, while we were God's enemies, we were
reconciled through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled,
shall we be saved through his life? Not
only is this so, but we boast in God Through our Lord Jesus Christ, through
whom we have no received reconciliation."
(Romans 5:1-11)
This is NIV, but in the American Standard Translation exult
is used instead of boast. I like that connotation better - boast implies
"look at me, look what I've done" and exult implies "look at
Him, look what He did"
While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us - I wouldn't die for me. There are only a handful of humans on the planet I WOULD die for - yet Jesus died for all of us. ALL of us. Even the ones who don't look or act like us, even the ones that are mean to us, say horrible things about us etc.
Now, this doesn't mean we can walk an aisle, say a prayer,
and then go and live like hell on Monday- but it DOES mean that our salvation
is by faith in Jesus, because of Gods love, grace and mercy.
I am terrible about beating myself up about mistakes. But
Jesus knew every single mistake I'd make, and you know what? He still went to the cross for me. When our debt is PAID IN FULL
- that means its GONE. The next time we
stumble, God doesn't drag out all our old mistakes and go, well, I see you are
back again for this - no, he accepts our confession, wipes it away, and tells
us to "go and sin no more". Humans are the ones that drag up all our
old mistakes. Think about fighting with someone you love? Do you drag up everything they ever did to
tick you off when you fight? IF so, that
isn't true forgiveness. If you approach
each issue as separate, then you are closer. Personally, I'm situational. Sometimes I do drag up old stuff, sometimes I don't. I need to let God work on me there.
We'll never reach perfection until we are called home, but if we let
Him, God will make us a little more like him every day. We are always under
construction, but that doesn't mean we aren't useful, don't have a purpose. HA
you say, you don't know what I've done! No, I don't - but God does, and Jesus
went to the cross for you too. Sin is
sin to God. They are equal. Men place
sin on a scale of terrible, to not so bad.
To God, its the same. Lusting
after someone who isn't your spouse, is the same as murdering someone. THE
SAME. Both keep you from being reconciled with God, and keep you in a position
were you will face wrath and death. Am I perfect at this? Goodness no. I'm a rebellious 2 year old inside who wants to do it my way.
I used to think I'll do such and such and so and so in
missions or standing for Jesus when God and I have worked out this laundry list
of issues I have. Well, I now realize,
that every corner that has the light shone on it, allows me to identify and
confess something, and I can move on. That debt is paid in full. It doesn't
mean that I cant stand for Jesus while we are working on things. I'm a trainwreck and sure I feel like a hypocrite, cus every time God works out something in my flesh, something else is revealed. But, I can say if any
"good" is accomplished through me, its HIM and his strength, not me
and my weaknesses.
What I DO NOT want to be, is any of the people mentioned in
Romans 1:18-28. And if my choices in behavior,
what I will or wont participate in, or if I take a stand make me unpopular
today, that's ok. Id rather be unpopular
today that God "giving me
over" to anything that isn't reconciliation with him.
"Although they know God’s
righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only
continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them"
Romans 1:32
So when you ask me to go to a
movie, listen to a song, be ok with something in the culture at large that isn't
ok with Jesus, then I can't do it. I
can't condone it. I must speak out. Today that looks different than it did even a
year ago. Next year, more things may be added as they are revealed to me. Its a
work in progress, and that's ok.
