The Grace Scandal: Grace Because Your Life Depends on It

Galatians 5:2-6
Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

In the OT it was a requirement for all men within the Israelite community to be circumcised. Jesus was circumcised and Paul was too. The issue is not with circumcision but with what following religion leads too. it leads to being alienated from Jesus. The greatest threat to grace-living is religion-honoring.

We don't look at grace-living as a life or death issue but it really is. Once I allow religion to start playing a role in my relationship with God I begin to feel that I don't need His grace. I start looking at my goodness like the Pharisees. When I live as though I don't need God's grace I take God out of my worship, my prayer life, the intent of my reading and understanding Scripture.

People that are religion focused point out the faults in others without remembering that they need, and still need, God's grace. The grace we've received is not a badge to wear to show how holy we are. If anything grace does quite the opposite it points out that I am like everyone else; in need of a Savior.

Hebrew 12:4
In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

I don't know anyone who has ever hated their own sin to the point that they were willing to shed their own blood for it. In the OT countless animals were killed for mankind's mistakes. Then Jesus the perfect Son of God came as the last and final sacrifice so that we could live. Still we have yet to shed our own. It is so easy to point out the sin in others and ignore the secret battle raging inside one's own soul.

What Jesus did so long ago was to shatter religions death grip on humanity. You can read of His criticism towards the religious leaders and teachers of His day in Matthew 23. One of my favorite, if I can call it that, is this verse.

Matthew 23:15
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

They made people fear their religious power rather than let them experience the redemptive freedom of God's grace.

When dying on the cross Jesus completed God's plan to have a personal relationship with His creation that He had missed since Adam and Eve.

Matthew 27:50-51
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He gave up His spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.

God is tired of religious hearts. He doesn't need any more bad press. God was tired of playing hide and seek with His children. He could now make Himself known to each one who sought after Him.

God wants people to realize that they can accomplish nothing outside of His grace and freely live as though their life depended on it.

Every part of your life needs to be dependent on God's grace. Without it your life in Christ will fade to just religion.

Love God

God is love. Therefore love. Without distinction, without calculation, without procrastination, love. - Henry Drummond

Mark 12:30
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.

A family member and I were talking about this the other day. Many times we divert to our strength in knowing God. If you are an intellectual person it may be very easy for you to build a relationship with God with your "mind". You can read theological books and become enamored with God. If you are an emotional person than you would find your relationship built with your "heart". You turn your iPod on and begin to listen to Jesus Culture and the culture around you surrenders to your starvation to be in His presence. And so on.

But what about, lets say, the intellectual who is very emotionally challenged? They find it hard to even talk about their feelings; let alone build a relationship with them. Is it ok for them to neglect the "heart" part of this command? I mean they love God with all their "mind". Shouldn't that be good enough?

I would have to say, "No, it's not good enough." You don't do one of these you're not loving God with your whole being and that is what we are called to do. Love God with every portion of your being. Your passions, your personality, your perceptions and your power are all meant to end on God.

Here's an argument:
But I'm not good at the "mind" thing! I like to feel God! (or whatever the weaker portion may be)

That may be the case but your worship of Him is incomplete. Just as in any relationship our communication has to be built. For instance, if I only loved my wife because of our physical attraction to each other sooner or later there is going to be a fall out in our relationship if I don't begin to try to know her more intimately. If I just say, "Well Honey, that's the way I am so you're going to have to deal with it" will only start a fight. Here is a good example for the fellas. If I am passionate about sports but don't show that same passion toward my wife she begins to feel less important to me. And I would get questions like, "Do you really love me?"

I believe that is what God asks when we only desire to know Him where it's comfortable, "Do you really love me?" I need to be at a place whether it's easy for me or not to want to know God in every single way possible.

Don't just pursue a love for God with your strength, make your pursuit perfect by enjoying a relationship that is complete.