- The Blueprint of “Renewing Your Mind” November 24, 2011
- Decisions that Define Us – Graham Cooke November 23, 2011
- God. is. with. You. September 30, 2011
- Weekend Trip September 29, 2011
The End of Performance
Published August 3, 2011originally posted here
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Your worth and your significance is not based on you have done or will do. Christianity is not based on how well your perform. It’s not based on how often you pray. It’s not based on how often you read your bible. It’s not based on how well you don’t sin. It’s not based on how involved you are with church. It isn’t based on well you’ve managed your anger. It’s not based how well you’ve loved those around you.
It is completely based on Jesus and what He has done for us. You are worth it, not because of what you have done, but because of what Jesus has done. You will always feel like a complete failure if you get your worth and your significance out of what you have already done.
But when you realize that your worth is solely based on what Jesus has done for you, that He bought you at a price, then you will be at peace. You will stop performing. You will stop comparing. You will stop striving for approval. You will stop working for love. You will be secure, knowing you are a son (Gal 3:26).
How do I know this?
This is what the Fathers do to their sons (Luke 15:18-23).
People perform when they feel like they have to meet an expectation. Or when they are trying to gain approval from others. Both of these do not exist when a son knows how his Father has loved him, because a Father has no expectation, and has already given approval.
The only thing that Father expected was for the son to receive His love which would result in absolute freedom from guilt, shame, and condemnation.
The only thing the son had to deal with was the judgmental, unforgiving brother. Your Father will not deal with you according to your actions (Psalm 103:10, 2 Cor 5:19, John 8:11, Luke 18:22, Romans 5:20). Know it, believe it. You’ll change, be rocked to the core because that kindness (Rom 2:4). Learn to extend the same kindness to brothers and sisters who are trying to hold your past against you, constantly reminding you of your failures and shortcomings. They do not know what they do, and they also need to know how the Father has loved them (Luke 15:31-32).
Stop performing and just be yourself. Accepted, whole, approved, beloved, and backed up by yo Dad.
Related Posts:
“Saints not Sinners”
Published July 7, 2011originally posted on tumblr.
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Question:
I was just wondering what your take was on confidence in identity versus pride in identity. A lot of Christians have difficulty believing in the “saints and not sinners” teaching because it’s difficult for them to find the humility in that area of teaching.
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Answer:
People find it difficult because they think that “sainthood” or “sinnerhood” is based on your actions.
The people in the “sinner” camp think they are sinners because of their actions. Therefore, when they hear people from the “saints” camp, calling themselves righteous, they think it’s arrogant because from an ‘action standpoint’ there isn’t anyone that has lived a life free of sin (which I absolutely agree with, that’s 1 John 1:8). So from their standpoint, it would be arrogant to call ourselves “righteous” when our actions aren’t consistent with that.
“For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.” – Romans 5:19
The distinction is here. The people in the “saint” camp are professing righteousness not based on their actions. They are proclaiming “sainthood” based on becoming righteousness through Christ (2 Cor 5:21) as shown in the verse above. It isn’t an assessment based on our actions, we are just agreeing with what is said about us in scripture.
It is absolute humility to say about yourself what God has said about you. Why? Because you didn’t do it to you. We weren’t made righteous because of righteous acts, neither are you made a sinner because you sin (Romans 5:19). You are a sinner because you were born in it. You are a saint because you were re-born in it (hence, born again).
Even if being a sinner was based on your actions, God still wouldn’t call you a sinner because doesn’t even remember your sin (Heb 8:12, 10:17). Like.. does. not. remember. No recollection. Like.. as if it never happened. So even from God’s standpoint, you’re righteous.
We don’t try to ‘argue’ this for the sake of arguing theology. We preach this stuff because understanding this is what gets you free from habitual sin.
Sinners sin. It’s their nature to. So if you believe yourself to “be a sinner”, you will reproduce exactly that. Sinners can only, at best, act righteous. They do not have freedom to behave other than what their nature dictates. So essentially, that’s what most church folks live in. “Sinners” who struggle to live righteous.
Because they don’t know that they’ve been given a new nature to be righteous, thinking themselves to still be sinners, they struggle and struggle never breaking free. Why? Sinners will always be slaves to sin.
But the moment they realize (renew their mind) the fact they have been crucified with Christ (Gal 2:20), that their past lusts and desires are dead (Gal 5:24), and as a result, they are no longer slaves to sin (Romans 6:6-7,11) but slaves of righteousness (Rom 6:18)… then they will walk in that freedom.
Saints live righteous. It’s their nature to be righteous. That is what they naturally do. At worst, they will act like sinners. They have been freed from their past nature, so they have liberty to live righteously (Gal 5:13). They are free from sin.
This is the point of telling people about their new nature, “things I write to you, so that you may not sin” (1 John 2:1).
Does that help?
In terms of confidence, I think Steve Thompson did a good job elaborating on that:
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Check out my friend’s site: http://www.saintsnotsinners.org/
Related Posts:
The End of Worthlessness
Published July 2, 2011This is a follow-up post from my other article on pride and worth issues.
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In the parable of “the prodigal son”, when the son returns home, hoping to return to his father, he says, “I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.” (Luke 15:21)
What was his thinking? He no longer felt worthy and significant because of what he had done. He got his identity out of what he was doing (his failure) instead of whose son he was. He felt like that his actions determined his worth in the eyes of his Father. Yet, his failures, shortcomings, and sins were completely irrelevant from the Father’s perspective.
“Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet.” (Luke 15:22)
So many believers feel worthless or guilty because of the failures in their past, how they have sinned, or how they have failed to acsend the church “ladder”. They think that God is mad at them, or that God is punishing them with lost opportunities, difficulties, sickness, and/or trials. They think “How can God ever use me?” or “I’ll never amount to anything.” They think that God is keeping a record of their past and now counting their sins against them. This is completely contrary to the heart of the Father.
“…God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them” (2 Cor 5:19)
What did the Father do to the prodigal? He didn’t count his son’s sin against him. That’s how there was reconciliation.
He treated him as if he had never sinned (that’s called forgiveness).
He wasn’t mad!
He didn’t condemn.
He didn’t judge.
He didn’t even require repentance.
He forgave.
That’s called kindness that draws repentance (Rom 2:4).
He treated him according to the fact that he was His son, not according to what he had done; the Father treated the son as if he was righteous (2 Cor 5:21, Rom 5:19-20), not according to his sin (2 Cor 5:19).
This is the good news, we aren’t treated the way our actions merit. That, my friends, that is called grace.
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us…when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son.” (Rom 5:8,10)
This is what love does. It keeps no record of wrong, it’s not easily provoked. You are worth the price that was paid. You are priceless. Stop feeling worthless. Stop acting worthless. Stop holding yourself in the light of your past failures because your Father doesn’t. He sees you as if you have never sinned. He’s not the great “list-keeper.”
He’s invited you to be part of a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9), stop acting like a small, timid, penniless beggar without vision. He’s given you the ability to walk like the King of Kings (1 John 2:6) because He calls you son.
You’ve been given the best robe, and you’ve been chosen to represent the Family name. Stop saying that you’re “unworthy” and calling it humility. You are significant because He made you significant.
You are free to be a son.
You are free to live as if you’ve never sinned, because as far as the Father’s concerned, that’s how He sees it. (Heb 8:12, Heb 10:17)
You are free to be without condemnation.
You are free to be confident in who you are.
You are free to be unashamed.
You are free from your past.
You are free.
Dare to believe it.
Related Posts:
Unveiled.
Published June 27, 2011Sooo… you know how in the Old Testament, there was the Holy of Holies?
There was a veil separating anyone (except the appointed priest… once a year) from “entering” the very presence of God.
The average Joe could not “encounter” the presence of God.
So…. remember what happened on the cross? The veil, that separated the normal people from God, was torn so that we could all have constant accessto what an Old Covenant, holy priest only had access to once a year. (Matthew 27:51)
If you say things like, “the presence of God was there”, or “God was in that place”, or “God showed up”, you have actively created a mindset that puts God back into that room behind a veil.
HE LIVES IN YOU.
You have become the Holy of Holies.
You have become the Most Holy Place.
You have become the temple in which He resides. (1 Cor 6:19)
You have become one spirit with Him. (1 Cor 6:17)
You have been hidden in Him. (Col 3:3)
He is living in you. (Gal 2:20, Col 1:26-27)
You are constantly in His presence. Do not wait to go to a building to become aware of it.
God doesn’t “show up”. He was always there. The only thing that changed was that you became aware of it and actually dared to believe Him at his word, “I will never leave you”, “greater is He that is in you than he that is in this world”, “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Heb 13:5, 1 John 4:4, Rom 8:31).
Do not trade a lifestyle for watered-down, centralized, program-based, event-based religion.
[read the book of Hebrews]
Related Posts:
- Grace as a ‘License to Sin’ & God’s Disinterest in Our Sacrifice January 28, 2012
- Questioning Everything January 24, 2012
- Deception, Persecution, Freedom, & Dinosaurs January 20, 2012
- Incomplete Vs. Complete Forgiveness November 25, 2011
- 20 Rob Rufus Quotes On Law vs. Grace November 23, 2011
- When Kids Pray… November 20, 2011
- Five Ways Jesus Revealed Grace February 1, 2012
- Do Everything Jesus Said? January 29, 2012
- The Happy Gospel, by Benjamin Dunn January 24, 2012
- Jesus miracles at the hospital..Holy Ghost! January 31, 2012
- Stephanie’s crooked leg straightens out and she comes home to the Fathers house! January 27, 2012
- Incredible Jesus miracles and salvation! January 14, 2012
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