Desperate

Often when I'm getting dressed in the morning I turn on Pandora. Most of those occasions I pick a station that has Kari Jobe, Mandi Mapes, Meredith Andrews, Shane and Shane or ... (there are so many to choose from...) - the point is that I gravitate toward artists whose focus is intentional worship. It helps me start my day with the right mindset...anyway, for some reason I changed it up the other morning and started my Grits/Lecrae station. (Maybe I was feeling tired and needed some beats to perk me up a bit?)


One of the first songs that came up was 'Desperate' by Lecrae. Have you heard it? No? Okay, even if you've heard it before, watch the video below.

I had never heard that song before. Man, did it strike a chord in me! I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel exactly the way that Lecrae describes. I feel the deep shame that only sin can bring. My sins feel like a burden. They slow me down and discourage me. I get paranoid thinking other people know what I've done and are secretly condemning me for it.


We all feel that way at times in our lives, don't we? We're human and therefore sinful by nature.


I'll be honest (as I'm prone to do here) - if the song stopped at 1:00 or so, I don't know what I'd do. It's depressing to think about having no rescue from this world of sin and shame. All doubts aside, even if you don't believe in God or accept the Bible as Truth or want anything to do with 'that religious stuff,' we all have to admit that we know when we've done wrong. Even if we want to deny or justify the wrong we do in some way, we still know it's wrong. Because God made us in His image. And anything we do that doesn't fit that image is like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. We know there's an edge or corner that doesn't belong, even if we don't know (or want to admit) exactly why.


Thankfully, however, the song doesn't end after a minute. Lecrae so poetically echoes the voices of David and Paul from Psalm 51 and Romans 7, respectively.


So many times since then I have been reminded of that song and encouraged at the thought of the cross, of Christ and his sacrifice for me. Sometimes I just sit in awe of the grace that God has shown. Some people say that God is mean for punishing sin - what kind of loving God would do that kind of thing? My answer is two-fold. First, God is justified in treating sin the way that he does because he is holy. Second (perhaps more importantly?), God is, in fact, extremely kind and loving. Need proof?


He made a way where there was no way.


Not only does he have wrath against sin that must be satisfied, but he poured out that wrath on himself in order to be satisfied.


The Judge stepped down from the bench and took our place as the defendant.


Praise God! He has shown us grace so that when we sin against him, it doesn't have to be counted against us! He has shown us mercy so that when we sin against him, it's already paid for!


Don't live in sin. That says the cross doesn't matter.
But don't live in shame, either. That says the cross wasn't enough.

Mandates

"Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." Exodus 20:8


I learned recently that there are two kinds of command, a mandate and a prohibition. Mandates are the "do's". Prohibitions are the "don'ts". The fourth commandment, the Sabbath one quoted, is a mandate. In fact, with the fifth commandment (honor your father and mother), there are only two mandates in all ten of the Commandments.


I was thinking about that idea, of mandates and such, and something occurred to me. Prohibitions are easy to follow.
Don't murder.
Don't give false testimony.
Don't rollerblade without pads and a helmet.
I tend to gravitate toward them because it is easier to gauge whether I have measured up to the task. If I'm really honest, I must admit it's also easier to judge whether other people have lived up to it, too. Maybe that's why the Pharisees liked the rules so much?


Mandates, however, are much harder to follow because I never know how much is enough. The person who gives the mandate could always require more of me, could always decide there are further expectations of the previously mentioned mandate.


Jesus says, "Love your neighbor as yourself."
I think, "But how much loving do they really need? Can I love them once and be finished? Maybe twice? Just in case the first time wasn't loving enough?"
The disciples asked the same thing. You probably do, too.


I realized something else, though, and herein lies the key to figuring out mandates. Maybe all ten of the commandments are mandates at their core. I mean, prohibitions really just keep us from doing things. They alter our external behavior. But mandates, those are the ones that really get at the heart of the issue - namely, our hearts. They alter our internal attitude. When viewed that way, it's easy to say don't commit murder. But Jesus was right, hating your brother is the same thing because the attitude is the same in both scenarios.


So often I tend toward the legalistic approach of doing, doing, doing. The problem is, these Ten Commandments are merely the minimum. They could all be rewritten in the form of a mandate, specifically a mandate that is of such a high standard that I could never do enough. I can never live up to the expectation that God has for holiness.


It's crucial then to remember two things - futility and grace. Futility looks at the commands of God and honestly says, "I have no chance." The mature Christian must realize the gripping reality of his hopelessness before God. But grace! Grace allows us the freedom to follow the mandates of God and offers us the forgiveness to fail. And fail we will.


That's why Jesus came. Because it was such a futile effort to live up to the standard which God has set for us. Jesus lived a holy life, according to all the "law" of God, not just because we couldn't but so that we didn't have to. Not only did He live the life we couldn't live but He died the death that we deserved. All so that we could be brought back to a right relationship with God.


This grace truly is amazing. This grace is so overwhelming, so lavish, so above and beyond anything we could have hoped or expected that the only response is worship.


How could it lead to anything else?

Colors

Have you ever been somewhere when someone said something absolutely awkward and unexpected?




I know I have.  And a couple of times that person was me, so I know all too well what that is like.  I don't know what's more painful - having to suffer through the awkwardness of the moment or realizing you're the person who caused it all in the first place.


This very thing happened to me the other day, though (thankfully) it was while I was driving with Isabella.  In fact, we were the only people who present.


I was scanning through radio stations and stopped on a station playing "Someone Like You" by Adele.  I commented to Isabella that it was a really good song (her voice is incredible!) and we continued driving, listening all the while. About halfway through the first chorus Isabella asked a question that (insert awkward moment here) blew me away,

"Is she black?"

Umm...what??  Where did she learn that?  I can promise it's not from me and Beth - we love people of all races and proudly have friends from all over the spectrum of race, nationality, and culture.  Regardless, this is what I (and countless others, I'm sure) refer to as a "teachable moment."


So, we talked.  For a long time.  About how there are all varieties of people, from all over the world.  They have different skin color, language, culture, personal experiences.  All things that make them unique and beautiful and wonderful.


But they all have one thing in common.


God loves them.
He made them in His image.
He sent His beloved Son to die for them.
He wants them to worship Him with all of their lives.
And He commissioned us to tell them.


I don't know about you, but talking with my daughter about the gospel was even better than the song playing in the background.  I hope we have many more like it.




Starting a new thing on this post - question of the day. Leave your comments in the space below!


QOTD: What interesting or deep questions have your children asked you?  How did you respond? If you don't have kids, what questions did you ask your parents?  How did they respond?

Blood

I'm starting to get a glimpse of how the Jews might feel about the Old Testament sacrificial system.


Burdened. Overwhelmed. Hopeless. Lost.


My Bible reading plan for 2011 involves reading through the whole Bible.  Part of that includes the book of Leviticus - which I've been avoiding (most likely subconsciously) due to its content.  I mean, who wants to read rules we don't even follow anymore?  Right?


I have to be honest, though, reading through the book of Leviticus so far has been a very eye-opening experience.  I think I came across the whole point of Leviticus in today's reading.  Chapter 11, verse 45.  "You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy."


My thoughts are all jumbled when it comes to the subject of Leviticus because I'm still new to the concept of ritual sacrifice.  I'm still processing all that Leviticus means to me and how it affects my faith and my relationship with God.  In words, the idea that keeps coming to mind and weighing on my heart is "burden."  I mean, I read through the first 7 chapters and literally got up from each reading feeling heavy.  I felt weighed down and burdened by the amount of blood that had to be shed just for the atonement of the priest, not to mention all the Jews who also had to sacrifice for their sins.  I started to think about my own life, my own sins, and what I would have to sacrifice were I living during that time.  How much blood would I have to offer for myself and my family?  It's too much!  How can anyone live under that burden?  How can anyone exist knowing that what you offer will never be enough, will never satisfy the burden of sin that is on your life and can never be fully atoned for?  It's just too much!


"You shall be holy therefore, for I am holy."


And yet God's standard is the same.  For all of us.  Be holy.


You might recognize Romans 3:23, "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"


It's a verse that makes it clear - none of us has met the standard God has set for us.  None of us are perfect.


Maybe less recognized, but all the more important, are verses 24 and 25:

"and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood..."

If there is one thing I come away from reading Leviticus with, it's an even greater appreciation for my salvation.  Christ, a perfectly sinless man, died a cruel death on a Roman cross, so that through the shedding of His blood, we who are sinners - who have no hope and would otherwise be "dead in our trespasses" - can be justified and redeemed.  In light of that, how can we do anything but praise Jesus for His sacrifice and tell others about this incredible gift we've received?


"O, praise the One who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead!"

Rocking Chairs

Isabella has this little $2 plastic chair that she LOVES.  I mean, she will get it out, push it around, pull it from room to room, sit in it, get up, move it to another spot, sit in it again, and on and on...It's crazy how much she enjoys that chair!


This morning, in the midst of playing with her chair, she discovered that she could lean and make the chair rock back and forth.  The problem is - it's not a rocking chair.  Not at all.  In fact, this chair is barely solid enough to hold her up while sitting normally (hence, the cheapness).  So, grinning happily, she leans forward and tilts the chair.  Then she leans back and tilts it further.  Over and over, forward and back, progressively leaning more and more away from the chair's center of gravity.  Of course, you know what happened next.  She leaned too far back and - BONK! - on the floor she went...


Five minutes of tears and snot later...


I'm sitting there rocking her in my arms, wishing I had been fast enough to catch her, and rewinding the whole thing in my head.  You know what kept coming to mind while I pondered?


A line.  Specifically, a line established by God as the standard between right and wrong.  I know that seems like a wild connection, but hear me out.


I think sometimes we treat our freedom in Christ like that chair.


Christ came to free us from the law through grace (Romans 6:14), true.  But that doesn't mean we don't have any limitations to our living, that we can just do whatever we want to do (Romans 6:1).  Christ came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17), and so there's this line drawn for us in the sand.  A line that differentiates us from the world.  A line that sets us apart as holy for the purpose of glorifying our Father in heaven.  And yet, I see people stepping closer and closer to the line.  I see this chair being tilted forward and back, precariously close to falling.


I hear people say, "Nothing's wrong with having one or two beers.  It's not like I'm getting drunk."  Or they say, "Just because the music I listen to has cuss words in it doesn't mean I'm cussing."  Oh, and this is my favorite - "I'm not lusting.  I'm just appreciating God's creation."


Are you kidding me?!


All over the world there are believers (and I include myself in this) getting as close to the line as they possibly can, abusing and making a mockery of the grace that they've been shown.  To quote Paul, "By no means!"


Since when did it become okay to do wrong (by Christ's standards, not the world's) and then justify it in some way or other?  If we are doing anything that causes or could cause a brother or sister in Christ to stumble, to trip up, to fall into sin - we are wrong. We. Are. Sinning. (Romans 14:13-23)


So, what should we do?  What's the take away?


We should be trying to live a life as far away from the line as possible.  We should be sitting in that chair as still as can be, or not even sitting in the chair at all.  Know why?  Because if we don't stop leaning, if we don't stop playing around right on the edge of danger - we'll fall.  Big time.  With a bruise and bump on our noggin to show for it.  While I didn't let Isabella fall on purpose, that fall certainly taught her a lesson.  Later, she went back to it very carefully, making sure that she didn't lean at all.  I don't think God wants to see His children hurting, but He certainly isn't beyond letting us "fall out of our chair" to teach us a lesson (Proverbs 3:11-12, Hebrews 12:4-11).