Phriday Photos
…on Saturday, technically.
Sorry for the delays in posting. I was at UT CCF for their Worship Night… and I’ve come home to my laptop running Windows Vista RC2, which for some reason after downloading C.H. Spurgeon’s “All of Grace” mp3 audio book… something now is eating up 100% of my cpu cycles! Argh :S I can’t even get the Task Manager to run to figure out what’s wrong… I’ve tried Startup Repair, but it didn’t! ~sighs~ Definitely have to report this bug before Vista goes RTM.
Reflecting a bit of all that was sung during the Worship night, I am yet again baffled by the continual cycle of burdening issues that some Christians find themselves struggling to carry–year after year, season after season, again and again. The word I want to use is hypocrisy, and I know it is a very strong word, but a very appropriate one for the issue I speak of. Quite simply, in one instance I see a Christian (and a leader in even) worshipping their hearts out to God, lifting their hands, bowing their knees, hands in their face, tears falling down their cheek, leaning on the shoulder of a friend for comfort, and crying to God for forgiveness. And THEN in another instance, hearing about the same person going to a club, dancing, grinding, drinking, and just having a fun time of debauchery so as to forget about THE issue that has been plauging their lives for as long as they can remember. Furthermore, the so-called committed Christian leader even has the audacity to share with other friends that they are STILL struggling with putting GOD in priority, having the LORD Himself as sufficient, and obeying God’s commands.
~sighs~
After all these songs… song after song after song, that seemingly invite authentic worship in the Christian… no change has come about. There is no fruit of a life that has been justified and sanctified by grace alone in this pursuit of holiness; I feel like this person’s been making a mockery out of the LORD’s grace and mercy. I don’t know what to say anymore; if one has been saved by grace they also should live by it. I hope and pray that such a person would be empowered by the Spirit to immediately STOP digging such an inescapable pit (of having God as last priority, positioning the world & its pleasures as all they need, disobeying God’s commands) for themselves and START deliberately sowing the seeds of the Word into the soil of their life.
7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all.
pear-i
Sometimes I wonder why that is — the lapse back into walking according to the ways of this world (Eph 2)– is it because His Grace was insufficient, powerless? definitely not! but what is it that inhibits a believer from fully comprehending, understanding and intimately, realistically knowing the Grace of God?
I was sharing about Eph 2:8-9 a few weeks ago and after that God really convicted me of the hypocrisy I had on that — like its simple to say “It is by Grace we have been saved, through faith and this is not of yoruself but a gift of God, not by works so that no one can boast..” And for the average Christian that is all true — until the point of conversion..
but I think we lose out on the reality of understanding the Doctrine of Grace after that — we become part of the community we serve on leadership do all this ‘Christian stuff’ — but all on our own efforts, ‘it is by grace we have been saved, but it is by works we live out our faith’ we try to ‘earn’ our own keep, its our ‘gratitude’ to Jesus what a Christian ‘needs to do’ our responsibility — paying our taxes in some ways..
Which from Galatians we read (your favorite verse :p — o you foolish galatians), inhibits Grace — once we start working; God stops because in everything the cry in His heart is for us to know him, to have a deeper faith in Him — though He can give us all things; it would be useless to Him if our trust is in ‘him’ and our actions somehow subtly try to add our own effort –
and i think — thats what holds many of us Christians shallow, ‘works’ self trying — i pray to God but i have to deal with it myself..
like you said — hypocrisy,
I profess a life saved by Grace — but i live that same life by works.
I suppose the subsequent following of that is — we do not truly know God — there is no transforming power — for transformation is by Grace not by works (psychology/religiosity - change behavior);
Galatians 5:16 & on —
Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the flesh — flesh lusts against the spirit;
Walk in the Spirit — which is received from Grace, not flesh / law — self trying (Gal 3) and you won’t fullfil the lusts of the flesh; but rather you will be driven by the desires or ‘lusts’ of the Holy Spirit — so debauchery, gluttony, drunkenness and all is fruitless..
The Fallacy I suppose is the inevitable question of “How?” “How do I walk in the Spirit?”
And that question, like the rich young ruler — comes to Jesus and asks what must i do?
The predisposed err’d question:
How can my works — accomplish your Grace.
And Jesus’ answer — sell all you have take up the cross and follow me –
Get rid of all your works, everything you have earned for and just follow me,
mmm — haha sorry alex i think i ’spammed’ your comments with this insanely, just it really comes to heart — just our failure in trying, yet the victory is ours — has been ours — Grace accessible, but the lies of false doctrine drains the soul of everything but the likeliness of godlienss..
Nov 04, 2006 @ 12:10 pm