Mercy and grace
Confession.
I’m reading Tim Keller’s new marriage book. Am I married? Nope. Engaged? Negative? Dating? No. Close to dating? That would be a no. So your question to me may be, “Amy…WHY are you reading a marriage book when your answer is no to all of those questions?” Well, it could be that a) I’m crazy…(which as those who are close to me could attest to be true)…or b) that I genuinely desire to redeem this time in my life that I have been given as a gift. Being a single person is a treasure, whether I’d like to admit it at times or not. It is my responsibility to use this sweet time in my life to grow in my relationship with Christ and to glorify Him. I want to learn things that I can now…not because I think that by doing that I’ll have it all together if and when the Lord brings someone into my life. I just want to be a life-long learner and this is a part of that. As I’ve been reading the first few chapters of this book, I came across a quote that I wanted to share a quote that applies to all- married or not.
“The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope. This is the only kind of relationship that will really transform us. Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports and affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. Truth without love is harshness; it gives us information but in such a way that we cannot really hear it. God’s saving love in Christ, however is marked by both radical truthfulness about who we are and yet also radical, unconditional commitment to us. The merciful commitment strengthens us to see the truth about ourselves and repent. The conviction and repentance moves us to cling to and rest in God’s mercy and grace.” -Keller (Meaning of Marriage p.48)
I’m somewhat overwhelmed by all of the truth packed into this simple paragraph. I don’t know about you but I want to speak that saving love into people’s lives. I don’t want to just give love without truth…or truth without love, nor do I want to be the recipient of such. We so desperately need to be reminded of the truth of who we were without Christ and the truth of who we now are because of him. In my Philosophy of Ed class, I’ve been learning so much about humanity. In our sin, we are not fully human. Being human means being what God intended us to be. Whole. Complete in Him. Yet when we choose to take our own selfish path, we become less of what we were intended to be. Praise God that because of Jesus we can be forgiven, whole, complete, sanctified and rescued! God has made a radical commitment to us. When I stop to truly think about the fact that God sent Jesus to become ridiculed, despised, rejected and betrayed I am caught up in both a realization of how unworthy I am to be called His child in and of myself…and yet full of glorious joy when I remember that I am now called worthy because of Christ’s sacrifice. The reality of the cross should transform us. I don’t know why I’m just now truly ‘getting’ this concept as of late. Grace isn’t just something that paints a coat of nice shiny gloss over our ugly sin and calls it a day…it has the power to transform that ugliness into a beautiful treasure. Grace doesn’t just stop at saving us, as beautiful as that is. No, it TRANSFORMS.
Walk in these truths, friends. He has transformed us. He has made us NEW. Rest in His mercy and grace.
