Love Finds You

The Galatians missed the point. They heard the gospel of grace and faith, received their salvation through Christ because of it, but still felt the need to add to the already finished work on the cross. That hit home for me. How often have I questioned God's love every time I fall short of His standards and the expectations I placed on myself because of it?

In his letter to the Christians in Galatia, Paul emphasized how legalism can diminish the freedom that we already have in Christ. Jesus died so that we could be free from the law; not to disregard the law but not be subject to it either. The commandment "thou shall not commit adultery" is only oppressive to someone who has the desire to break it. But if we lose the desires of the flesh (e.g., to lust for men/women other than our spouses), the law does not have power over us. It's dead. A friend once used the simple analogy of smoking. You would only care about the "no smoking" rule on an airplane if you have the strong urge to smoke. But if you have no desire to smoke, the sign in the bathroom that says "a fine of $5000 will be imposed to anyone caught breaking the policy" is merely reading material. 

However, we struggle because the voice of our flesh that says "That bagel looks yummy! I'll eat five of them!" is louder and more persistent than the voice of the spirit that says "You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). This is why Paul enjoined the Galatians (and us) to crucify the flesh and be led by the spirit. But it's a daily battle; for me, at least.

The bagel example is an oversimplification of a tug-of-war that happens within us. We are made of flesh and we can no more discard it than the skin over our bones. We are weak. None of us, no matter how spiritual we consider ourselves, are exempt from the siren call of our perceived wants and needs. We, to varying degrees, would fall flat on our faces more often than we can count on this side of eternity. And this is why God's grace is the most wonderful gift we could ever receive.

Not only did Jesus die so we could be free from the shackles of the law but so that when God looks at us, He doesn't see our shortcomings and repeated failures but the blood of the One who gave it all for our sakes. If you care to look at my history, the lies I've said, the wrong turns I've made, the anger I've harbored in my heart, the judgments I've passed on others, and the pride I held on to, you'd marvel at the thought of a pure and holy God who jumped into the deep hole of muck I dug for myself, sat patiently with me amidst the stench and ugliness and waited till I realized I needed help. All because He loves me.

But me being me, I screw things up. And despite knowing what I know, I constantly fight the urge to compensate for the things I've done wrong as though they could; as though I could gain more favor from God by doing so. A perfect example is I used to feel guilty for missing church. As if a perfect Sunday service attendance would soften God's heart towards me and He'd overlook the fact that I've messed up again and again. 

Why do we do that? It's as though we have been wired to be suspicious of anything that we know we don't deserve even if it was freely given. Because that's what grace is: free and unmerited. Our human nature is so entrenched in the belief systems of this world that we view God through the lenses of our own flaws. Like the Galatians, we hear God say He loves us unconditionally, we are free, we are His children, and if we have faith we are partakers/heirs of the promise He gave through Abraham. It all sounds good; but then, we wait for the other shoe to drop. 

The Galatians missed the point. I hope we don't. I certainly hope I don't. 

Daily Walk