You might be wondering why I honestly share all the excremental slurry from my life. But the more I expose my heart, the more I can expound upon my HOPE. And that hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ and the precious Gospel.
At my church, the mission statement is summed up in three words, “Gaining Gospel Progress.” I really like that! I know that when we hear the word progress we often think that it means sharing the Good News so that others can come to faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ…in essence so that the Kingdom of God increases in number. While it says in Mark 16:15, that we are to “Go into the entire world and preach the gospel to all creation”, it is also commanded in Matthew 28 to “make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” That means not only is the Gospel spread out to all people, but that the Gospel truth is also supposed to burrow deep into the roots of each quickened heart.
As I mentioned in the previous blog, the Gospel is not just good for the day of our salvation, but it is necessary for our further growth and sanctification in Christ. That is what I have come to learn and have experienced over the last several years, despite my emphasis on law-keeping and seeking the approval of man. As one theologian once expressed, “One can be addicted to either lawlessness or lawfulness. Theologically there is no difference since both break relationship with God the Giver.” The Gospel: repenting and placing my faith in Christ’s crucifixion, death and resurrection is the only cure. Sometimes that remedy must be administered repeatedly, not for salvation, but for sanctification. Rooted in Christ, the Gospel poultice can be applied in many ways.
- Gospel Reality
What I have come to appreciate about the Gospel is that its truth still withstands the reality of who I am. Though I am converted, redeemed, and saved, I can keep it real with my Savior and my God. That is one of the comforts of my salvation. I am not kept by my perfect record, which is non-existent. I am kept by Christ’s. Striving to gain God’s approval has ceased, and that is real good news for the perfectionist, approval whore that I am. It is still good news even if I forget all that too, because the Lord will cause me to return to that truth.
I remember in my old small group one of the men often called me, “ Little Miss Can Do Know Wrong, ” and though I think to some degree he meant as a compliment of my sincerest attempts at being obedient, it fed the prideful part of my heart that wanted to so badly to live up to that title. But in reality, I cannot. I am more like “Little Miss Muff It Up”. Even on my best days when I am not challenged to the uttermost and then appear better than I really am…I still know that deep down I have a long, long way to go.
The beauty of the Gospel is demonstrated by the fact that God still loves believers despite their sin because He has chosen to forget it. Though it is forgiven at salvation, continued sin needs to be confessed not to re-attain that salvation, but to restore our fellowship with our Heavenly Father.
Nothing surprises our Father either. He knows our hearts even better than we do. I think that if He allowed us to see just how evil they really are, that much sin exposure foiled against His pure holiness could kill us. But God’s grace is real even as He gently shows us our sin. He only allows us to see it one small frame at a time, not the whole movie of our idolatrous hearts at one sitting. Even if the devil would love to promote the world wide release of what he thinks would be a box office hit, “The sins of Gina Stearns”, my Lord and Savior has already seen the premier viewing. The good news is that He still loves me. Yes, I am the one He died for– the snippets that I dare see and the deep roots of idolatry that He knows all too well. The reality is that I am His. Now. And Forever.
2.Gospel Rest
As a result, whether I have had the worse day of my life feeling distraught and ready to give up– or I have had a “good” day of obedience often leading to sinful pride—at the end of the day, I am still covered in my white nightie of Christ’s Righteousness. When I got saved, I came to God with nothing good, and I can continue to rest heavily on the Gospel Truth, no matter how that day culminated. Since I am in Christ, it means that He took my lifetime of sin at the cross– the horrid box office hit and all its seedy sequels.
In addition, my righteousness nightie is embroidered in with His perfect record. Not only do I not have sin on my record, but in fact, it states that through Christ, I fulfilled all the Law, perfectly. That’s how God sees me. As a perfectionist that gives me greatest rest, the kind mentioned in Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Again we see the Gospel Rest in Hebrews 12:1-3. We need to keep fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before Him He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Thus at the end of the day, I can and do sleep well.
3.Gospel Power
So is there any hope for me if I try to do right and then fail or have mixed motives? After all it does appear pretty impossible. But with God, all things are possible and that is the key—“with God”. The problem is that we try to perform out of the flesh, usually because we are trying to impress God or others. Hypocrisy is not appreciated by either. Yet, if we are already saved, then we are already approved by the Lord, and can rest in that assurance, no matter what others think. A pure motive can stay intact because then we are serving out of motivation based on God’s love for us and resultantly our love for him. It isn’t because of fear or pride, but a devoted heart.
In addition, I have often taught, that the real work of the Christian is not more striving, more doing, more performance, but simple surrender. When the white flag goes up, Christ exchanges it for a purple flag of Victory. Through surrender, the Lord can have reign over our hearts and in our lives through the power of Holy Spirit. It will be seen in our thoughts, attitude, and actions. But it cannot be willed into existence or faked. It occurs only when we are utterly dependent on the Holy Spirit’s reign. From there, we can appreciate His many gifts and pleasures: the gift of repentance, delicious feast on the Lord’s precious Word, opportunities to use His gifts to build up the church, the yield of genuine fruit that helps us in gaining Gospel progress.
4.Gospel Freedom
When Jesus came upon the harlot, Mary Magdalene, she was in the throes of sin that according to Jewish law required her to be stoned. This Easter as I contemplated my whore-ish connection with her, I was overcome by Jesus’ compassion on her. With His authoritative command of the Word, He was able to dispel the crowd of accusers. He reached out to her in total love and rescued not just her body, but her mind, soul, and heart. Forgiveness was her greatest need and so too it is ours. She surrendered in the sea of sand, lowly before the King of King’s sandals. He reached out to her, lifted her up in every way. “Go and sin no more,” for then her shackles were broken and she now had the power to make that choice. Jesus, the King, the Messiah, Lamb of God gave to her that day: Gospel Reality, Gospel Rest, Gospel Power and Gospel Freedom.
Despite the promises of the world, the devil, or our lusty, loud flesh, salvation comes only one way. It will take surrender, repentance and belief. But it must be IN the only one who is capable to receive it. Only through the cross, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ can we experience Gospel Progress which is powerful enough to redeem the whore in all of us. It is not just good news, it is the best news! And despite our Hearts, it is our only HOPE.
Deserts Like Eden 