Two things continually amaze me about the salvation of the Lord.  One is how mighty God is to save from people in every different culture, with varying backgrounds and struggles, with varying economic levels, and with varying levels of education.  Each of us who have trusted in the Lord, display his mercy uniquely, in that God has uniquely shaped every one of us.  The second thing that continually amazes me is the exact opposite of the first – how similar we all are.  Ultimately, if you break everything down, we are all just sinners in need of the grace of God through Jesus Christ.  We all have, and continue to struggle with misplaced affections towards the world, when the only lasting satisfaction comes from an intimate relationship with Christ, delighting in the glory of God.

There are times when I want to encourage you with the doctrine of God, for you to see God clearly to better pursue Him.  There are other times I want to encourage you with the wrath of God, to spur you towards true repentance and faith.  I’m not really in a theology-type mood today.  I very much feel like Solomon, when He wrote Ecclesiastes 12:11-14 – “The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd.  My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.  The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.  For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.” Today, I want to encourage you with my own mistakes, so that you will be freed from any lies of Satan that might hold power over you now.  Especially those of you who are younger in years or where you faith is new, I want to encourage you and equip you for a lifelong fight for faith.  Christianity is not a belief to be known, it is not a place that one can “arrive” at, but it is a relationship, a battle for faith, and a lifelong race amidst suffering and sin; it is the path, guided and guarded by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ in you, whereby you are arriving.

My first mistake over the years has been to make quick judgments about people based on what they claim to believe or their life situations.  I’ve seen enough men and women with bad theology, still love the Lord and pursue Him. I’ve seen men and women with good theology, have absolutely no love for God.  The reality is that we’re all born with bad theology because we’re all sinful.  Only God can reveal His truth from His Word by the Spirit, which only shows much we are all in need of prayer.  This doesn’t mean we stop contending for the Truth, only that I’ve decided that trying to “label” people isn’t as helpful as I once thought it might be.  Ultimately, if you do find someone whose beliefs are so twisted as to blaspheme God and might lead themselves or others astray, by all means we are called to use the Word of God to instruct and rebuke, but that rebuke should always be accompanied by prayer and tears that God might have mercy to reveal Himself clearly to them.  I’ve seen men and women on fire for the Lord for a season, only to fall away.  I’ve seen men and women who I thought never would come to God, become strong contenders for the faith.  Some people will embody 1 John 2:19 – “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.”  Others (like me) will demonstrate for all eternity in a special way the depth of God’s love in salvation, magnificently displaying how God is mighty to save.  Psalm 106:7-8 – “Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.  Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power.”

My second mistake is wanting to compare myself to other believers.  Maybe this is due to my Baptist upbringing where everyone pretended like they were great and acted shocked if someone actually discussed real sin struggles or communicated an absence of passion for God.  This only leads to isolation and allows hidden sin to harden one’s heart against God’s glory in gospel.  This is so very unhelpful.  There is only one “you”.  Sanctification is going to look different for each person.  One person struggles with alcoholism, for me it was a simple thing to stop going out drinking heavily.  For another person it might be easy to not struggle with lust, for me it is a daily battle.  What I exhort you with is this – do not allow Satan or others to discourage you with where you are spiritually, especially compared to others.  Each person has a battle to fight.  Do not look to your right or your left to see yourself compared to others, but always look up, to the right hand of God, where Christ is.  In His light, we are all in need of grace and we are all not where we would like to be (In His presence TOTALLY without sin).  If you have felt judged before, or perhaps are burdened by the lies of Satan that God will not forgive you of past or present sin, be encouraged; today is the day of salvation.  There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1).  No matter what happened yesterday, if you have a heart to pursue the Lord today that is the Spirit of God in you, praise God for His mercy!  Therefore, as those who are forgiven, saved by the grace of God alone, fix your heart’s purpose to encourage your brothers and sisters in Christ (Heb 10:24-25).

Lastly, a mistake I have made over the years was to believe that there was a point at which I would “arrive” as a Christian.  Such a place does not exist.  There is no piece of knowledge of God, that once gained should produce in you contentment.  Such a Spirit is not the Spirit of one who knows and loves God.  Better is a person who is faithful with what He knows of God than those who are unfaithful knowing much of God.  You do not “arrive” as a Christian by conquering any given sin.  As soon as one sin is “conquered” the new battle with the sin of pride truly begins.  You do not arrive as a Christian once involved in a small group or ministry.  Small groups / a Christian support framework can be helpful, but does not guarantee anything, especially when someone is betrayed by a person they trusted.  Each of these things, although good, are only the means by which God will show you how desperate you truly are. Be prepared, that life as a Christian is one struggle after another.  In the South, where the “success” of churches is based on how big their sanctuary is, few people are truly cautioned well prior to professing faith in Christ.  Jesus counsels us in Luke 14:26-33 – “”If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.  Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.  For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?  Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’  Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace.  So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” God disciplines those He loves (Heb 12:6), suffering produces greater faith (Jam 1:2-3), and ALL things work towards good for those who love God, who have been called according to His purpose (Rom 8:28).  God has plans for your life, not just the next day, month, or year.
 
Do not lament over where you have been, or where you are today.  It is better not to think of yourself at all, but resolve instead to always pursue a greater knowledge of and affection for Jesus Christ.  Let the Spirit of God lead you. Trust that God is faithful to finish the work that he began in you.  When I die, I do not want it to be with a feeling of fulfillment.  I want my pursuit of the Lord only to further my hunger for me.  I want there to be a holy discontentment in my own sanctification, my own knowledge of God, with my own love towards others, such that when I see Jesus Christ, face to face, I will see the perfection, the source of my heart’s eager longing, that was never fully satisfied until that moment that will continue throughout eternity.

My hope and prayer is that God would teach you out of my own mistakes.  Be wise in your judgments, seeking always to build up and encourage those around you, strengthening their faith as well as your own.  Compare your holiness not to others, but to Jesus Christ, and do not be dismayed; rejoice that although a sinner, you have been reconciled to God through His death and resurrection.  The steadfast love of the Lord is neverending.  His love is an ocean, and we have only begun to wade into the water.  Do not seek to be content as a Christian, but know that God has a purpose in all things, and in everything we are to be growing in knowledge and affection for Christ and love for others.  Know you’re loved and prayed for.  May our mutual growth in faith be to the glory of God.

Grace and Peace,
Adam