Misapplication of Grace?

I've often wondered how frequently the apostle Paul was haunted by his own past, after becoming a Christian.  Perhaps his spiritual ability to receive and to communicate the grace of God sprang from that grace liberally applied to his own life.  As a reminder, Paul (while named Saul) had many Christians killed for their faith, while he zealously persecuted the Christian movement.  He had much to be forgiven.

(If we are honest with ourselves, don't we all?)

This morning's news program featured a U.S. Congressman who was railing against the fact a certain public figure had committed numerous legal transgressions.  Yet, no action has been taken or is being taken against her.  She is unrepentant.  There seems to be, increasingly, an uneven, one-sided application of justice in our country, a "misapplication of grace".  Those who are of a certain political persuasion or social class or of "greater value to society" are apparently "above the law".

This misapplication of grace is rather prevalent in our country.  Admittedly, it is a conundrum.  As a parent, for instance, it is very hard to know when it is best to hold our children responsible for bad decisions and when to "rescue" them, when to give grace.

For some, the story of Onesimus rankles.  It bothers them that this thief is being "let off the hook". To them, Onesimus will always be defined in light of his mistake; he will always be viewed a thief.  Of course, we do not know all the details of the story.  We do know this, though, that Paul is requesting
a.  to pay the debt Onesimus owes his master, Philemon
b.  that Philemon treat the returning Onesimus as a brother in Christ, as opposed to merely a slave.

The entire book of Philemon is a picture of God's grace to each of us.  The heart of the letter is love, the "law of God the Son".  Paul, here, represents our Triune God.  Onesimus represents every repentant sinner. Philemon represents the Church.

1.  Paul represents God.
He does not force Philemon to accept Onesimus although, with apostolic authority he could have ordered Philemon to obey.  Paul instead reminds Philemon that it was through Paul's ministry he was led to Christ.  He appeals to Philemon on the basis of love.  Father God treats us the same way.  He does not force.  He invites.   He appeals.  He beseeches.
Paul also represents the Father in that he pays the price Onesimus owes (vs. 18-19), just as Jesus Christ, God the Son, did for us.

2.   Onesimus represents slaves like we (are/were).
He had gotten himself into a situation from which he was unable to free himself. He owed a debt he could not pay.  In trying to fix his own situation, he only made it worse.  However, upon hearing the gospel from Paul (which is not to say he had not already heard it in Philemon's household), he accepted God's "fix", God's solution to his sin problem...salvation through grace/faith in Jesus Christ.
So, Onesimus is not being "let off the hook".  Rather, a tremendous price was paid by God to "make things right" for him positionally and eternally, the price of God's own Son.  Being accepted in Christ does not automatically free the new believer of the consequences of sin here on Earth, as we all know. Physical scars remain.  Nor does salvation cause us to never sin again in this world.  Sin ever seeks to again enslave us, pursuing us as a cheetah pursues a gazelle.

3.  Philemon represents the Church, the brotherhood of the saints.  Oh how hard it is to model ourselves after the character of God, according to His Holy Spirit who lives within us!  Perhaps Philemon struggled with this as well.  Satan tempts us to deal with each other harshly and with an unforgiving spirit.  Again, the key here is that Onesimus was a changed person, a repentant brother in Christ.  Nowhere in Scripture is the covering-over of sin applauded. This letter is not advocating overlooking sin or condoning a lack of confession or repentance. True restoration must contain those elements before restorative grace can be applied to one another and fellowship reaffirmed.
May we never be a Church that defines repentant sinners in light of their sins.  Instead, may we "remember them against them no more" (Isaiah 43:25; Hebrews 8:12)

I am reading a book that contrasts the Muslim faith with the Christian.1  The writer, a former devout Muslim, now a devout Christian, points out that Muslims struggle mightily with the concept of the Christian God's grace.  It is totally foreign to them.  "Why obey if you are already forgiven everything?"  The Christian's answer:  the law of love.  He/she who has been forgiven much, loves much.  (Luke 7:47)

The Bible does not tell us whether or not Philemon received the transformed Onesimus as he would receive Paul, who led the both of them to faith in Christ.  But, I imagine he did.  May we do the same.

Father God, I have so much for which to be forgiven, day in and day out.  But, I marvel at Your eternal grace, which has covered all my sin.  I pray that I may never make you ashamed of the grace You so lavishly poured out on me.  May I be even more emboldened and empowered to share that message of grace with others, who don't yet know You, who so desperately need to hear it, who so deeply desire to turn from their sins and find their eternal salvation (their soul's rest) in You.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Source:

1   Qureshi, Nabeel (2016). No God but one: Allah or Jesus?: A former Muslim investigates the evidence for Islam and Christianity.  Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

 

Baggage, Beauty and The Bride

When I awoke this morning I lay in bed and began to pray over a number of requests, my own and also those of others.  One that laid heavy on my heart was the small group of "home missionaries", Christian brothers, who are leaving town this morning to minister to flood-ravaged Denham Springs, LA, as well as their wives and children left behind.  Denham Springs received over 20 inches of rain over a 3-day period last month, more than they normally receive during the entire month of August.

One of my friends, who is also one of those wives, wrote eloquently on her Facebook page late last night that it was 11 years ago today she and her husband moved into the home of dear Christians in Denham Springs, as a result of Hurricane Katrina.  They lived there, in their home, sleeping on mattresses on the floor, for a year.  She spoke of what a blessing it was, because she was able to see firsthand how to "do ministry", how to be a "minister's wife".  Now, eleven years later, her husband is leading the team to go and BE the Body of Christ to them and their flooded church.

Such beauty!

On the morning news program a young singer (14 y.o) I'd never heard of was there to sing.  Her name is Mara Justine.  She is a beautiful child, seems to have a delightful spirit, and can sing like an angel.1 Honestly, this girl has "got it".  Long, long auburn hair, peaches-and-cream skin, huge smile, gorgeous voice....beautiful!

Mankind, God's second most amazing and beautiful creation!  Come on...ask me...."What's the first?"

His People...The Church.  Not the local church, per se.  We all know that the local church can be, but I am referring to the larger Church, what the old-time saints referred to as "The Church Universal". That sounds all "new-agey", now, doesn't it?  But, the term simply means "the total number of believers in Jesus Christ, scattered around the world, including the saints who have gone on before us and those yet to join us".

Jesus calls us His Bride, because He loves us so.  As such, He asks that we love one another.  When we do, we show our incredible beauty!  Don't you know?  It is HIS incredible beauty, at work IN us, and shining through us.

Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2

The law of Christ is the law of love.

Today, we begin the very short book/letter of Philemon (25 verses), another lovely example of the Body of Christ at work.

The book is titled, Philemon, because he was the immediate recipient, a friend of Paul's who lived in Colosse.  Paul wrote the letter from house arrest in Rome.  Actually, the letter concerns a man named Onesimus, a slave who apparently robbed his master, Philemon, in Colosse and then went "on the lam" to Rome, where he hoped to lose himself in the crowds there, to "disappear".

Providentially, though, he ran into Paul, who led him to salvation in Jesus Christ.  Those of us who know Jesus Christ as Savior understand the supernatural power of God to transform a life forever. This is what happened to Onesimus.   The Body of Christ gained a new member.  I look forward to meeting Onesimus one day, when I join him in Heaven.

We all either were or are the runaway slave, Onesimus.  Christians were, before they met and accepted Jesus as their Savior, lost and owing a debt they were unable to pay.  They realized with joy and gratitude that Jesus paid all of their debt...that all they had to do was to accept and receive it.  ("It is finished!", Jesus cried from the cross...)
Those who are currently firmly planted in the camp of unbelief today are Onesimus, enslaved by their own pasts, shackled to a unshakeable burden of sin, trapped, on the run from God, seeking asylum, thirsting for peace, craving relief from their bondage.

Ah, but like all of us, when we become His, we bring our assorted "baggage" with us.  Onesimus had some serious "junk in the trunk".  Jesus Christ forgave him all his sins, forever; but, Christ's forgiveness did not negate the earthly consequences of his thefts.  The law at the time demanded that he be executed for his thievery; however, it was within the control of the offended master to either hand him over to be prosecuted or decline to press charges.

*****

Can you guess what happened?  We'll explore the story more fully tomorrow.

Father, thank you for the love you show us, in all our life's circumstances.  Thank you for how you demonstrated your love for us most fully, through the gift of your Son, Jesus.  Please give us daily opportunities to share that love with this crippled world, so that they may see You and come to know You.  Please bless my brothers, who are traveling to LA today, and most especially bless the people of Denham Springs and surrounding areas who are struggling mightily to overcome the aftereffects of this terrible flood.  Make Your name glorious, precious Lord! Let Your marvelous, mighty works be known in all the Earth!  In Jesus' name, amen.

Frankensteinian Spirituality

You may be familiar with a fictional novel, Frankenstein, written in the early 1800s, by a young Englishwoman, Mary Shelley.  It was a short work of gothic horror and science fiction, one of the earliest, and has become an American classic1.  The story is of a young scientist, who is able to create a "living" man from the various parts of other dead humans - - - a brain here, a torso there, you get the picture.  Grotesque, isn't it?

The modern day parallel is the immensely popular television series, The Walking Dead.  Man has for centuries been fascinated with bringing the dead to life again, and has tried many different approaches to make this happen.  I'll spare you the gory historical and deeply-buried (if you'll pardon the heinous pun) details.

Since death is our enemy, we try to slay it in our own power.  And, especially in the realm of the spiritual, again, the results of such misguided attempts are grotesque.

1And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

Ephesians 2:1-3 (NET)

Here, Paul describes what it is like to be spiritually dead, by using the analogy of physical death, something every human comes to understand, sooner or later.  Let's decompose it (sorry...my macabre humor is out of control).

• First of all, what killed the spirit of man?  Answer: trespasses and sins.  "Trespasses" or "transgressions" in some passages, means to "wander off the path" or "fall off the wagon". "Sins" is a word Paul uses in the general sense to mean "falling short of God's standard" or "missing the mark" (Benson)2  We are told in Romans 6:23 that the consequences of sin is spiritual death.
• Second, what does spiritual death mean?  It means that the human, although physically alive, is living under the control and rule of the evil one and/or his minions/demons.  Now, I predict that, at this point, some of you are going to "bow up", raise your hackles, and disagree with that last statement.  The Bible is plain, however.  Each person alive today is either serving and following Satan, OR he/she is serving and following Father God, Jesus Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit.  There's no other option given or allowed.  Serving the former leads to eternal spiritual death, the experiencing of God's wrath; serving the latter leads to an eternity of life and joy.
• Third, what does this "walking in death" look like?  It is demonstrated by a life disobedient to the ways of God, habitually, as one's custom, indulging the desires of the body and a dead, corrupted mind.  It is evidenced by rebellion, going one's own way, by a careless disregard or disdain for "the Way, the Truth, the Life", Jesus Christ.  Look how The Message version described that old, stagnant life-walk of spiritual death.  "You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience.  We all did it, all of us doing what we felt like doing, whenever we felt like doing it, all of us in the same boat." 

Pretty damning, isn't it?

So damning that most people will not accept this truth, even though acknowledging it is a foundational prerequisite for becoming spiritually alive.  How can one be made alive, if he or she will not even accept that he or she is dead?!  It is impossible, just as impossible as it is for a person to make him or herself spiritually alive.

Oh, but we try.  We make our spirits Frankensteinian!  (I'm told that adjective is not a word; but, I'm ignoring....)  We put on masks to hide the depths of our sin and despair.  We use techniques like "self-improvement" or "social justice" or "charity" or "service leagues" - - - and we make of ourselves spiritually-dead zombies.  None of the "good works" mentioned are bad things, unless they are used in attempts to "raise the dead" soul. Properly used, these things are OUTWORKINGS from an alive spirit; they flow out of the abundance of the transformed, Christ-follower!  Look....

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away.  Behold!  All things have become new!"

2 Cor. 5:17 (NKJV)

In the original King James version, the word "creation" is "creature" - - a beautiful, new, alive creature, not a cobbled-together horror show.  Only the true, living Savior, Jesus Christ, can bring the dead spirit to life.  Only He can make this transformation. (John 14:6)

Lay down your bone saw and scalpels, Dr. Frankenstein, and open your arms to the Living One, the only One who gives eternal life!

Dear Father, I was bemused to see when I googled the word "Therefore", the first word in 2 Cor. 5:17, that verse immediately popped up.  Probably, it is the most important "therefore" in the entire Bible.  I praise You, the only One who can raise the dead, the only One who can give life eternal.  I thank You for giving it to me, and I pray for those reading this who may have seen themselves in a Frankensteinian state and who long to be re-born, made new, re-created, made alive by Your almighty hand.  I pray that they will put their hand in your outstretched hand today, Lord.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Sources:

1  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankenstein

2  http://biblehub.com/commentaries/ephesians/2-1.htm