How People Change 12

This first quote (go read now) made me think of the verses God had me pray through this morning:

My eyes grow weary looking for Your salvation
and for Your righteous promise (Ps 119:123)

Most of the time, when I pray for God to save me from some hard thing I'm facing, what I'm really praying for is a cheap salvation-- one that's only focused on me and one that's primarily concerned with just having my comfort restored to me. It's a shallow prayer for salvation. 

But the psalmist here didn't want a cheap salvation. He longed for the deep salvation of God, that wasn't just focused on himself but the salvation that was for all of creation for the glory of His name. We are just a tiny piece of God's story of redemption. It's not all about us! May we long for the salvation of God as He gives it, and not for some cheap restoration of our comfort while the roots of us remain dry and withered. 

There's so much more I could say about this chapter dealing with a changed identity because it's been such a radical concept for me to learn in a far deeper way than I ever grasped before, but I'll just let you read the notes for now :)

Chapter 12: Cross 2—The Cross and Daily Living

“We have new resources and potential because God has moved in. The basic spiritual DNA of every believer has been radically altered, and we are part of a new story of redemption that includes the entire creation!” (155).

The Work of the Spirit: Magnify Christ

1 Cor 2:6-16

“For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ” (v.16).

“The Holy Spirit enables us to see Jesus and all that we have and are in him” (157).

The Cross-Centered Life

“All of us live our lives based on some identity, some functional sense of who we are, what we are like, and what we are worth. Most of us are not particularly aware of our view of ourselves, but it nevertheless determines how we will respond to everything we face during the day—especially to the Heat in our lives” (159).

“The Cross must be central, because it defines who you are, who you are becoming, and who you will be!” (159).

Your Identity: “I Am?”

“How much of the way you view yourself is shaped by what Jesus did for you on the Cross?” (159).

Often, our roles, relationships, talents, experiences “begin to function as identities rather than callings”, gifts, blessings, etc. (159).

“My fundamental identity in the Cross of Christ supersedes whatever struggle I am going through now” (160).

The Cross is not just the entrance to heaven or the doorway to Christianity. Sometimes we think the Cross is just the beginning of salvation and then once it has washed us clean, we have to follow Christ’s example and finish the job, so to say. We would never say that, but that’s what our lives demonstrate much of the time. We are not passive; we are part of our growth. We do obey in faith and we do engage in spiritual warfare. “However, you are never to minimize your continuing need for the mercy and power of Christ in the process of becoming like him” (160).

The Normal Christian Life

That mindset of Jesus got me in and I have to do the rest can easily become a functional identity. My sense of acceptance before God quickly shifts from what Christ has done for me to what I am doing for Christ (161).

When the Cross is central in my life, it reminds me that anything good is the result of the grace of Christ at work in me. When the Cross is central in my life, it reminds me that Christ has given me a new identity and a safe place to deal honestly with sin, rather than wrongly handling my failures by wallowing in self-pity or despairing in guilt and shame (161).

Faith and Repentance are the Keys

Faith- seeing Christ’s glory and grace and turning to him

Repentance- admitting and turning from sin

“Faith keeps us laying hold of the grace and mercy of Christ and thereby avoiding despair. Repentance keeps us facing our ongoing struggle with sin and thereby avoiding pride” (161).

Faith: Seeing Who You Are In Christ

1 John 2-3

You are Justified

1 John 2:1-2

“One aspect of our justification that many Christians fail to see is that we are not just forgiven because Christ has paid for our sins. God also treats us as if we had perfectly obeyed the law, because Christ has obeyed it perfectly for us. He is our righteousness. This is truly mind-boggling!” (163).

You are Adopted

1 John 3:1-3

“God is no longer our judge; he is now our Father” (163).

“The order is essential: I am a new creation, accepted, adopted, and free; therefore I want to please God. We do not say: I will try to please God so that I may become a new creation, make myself acceptable, and hope that God adopts me and sets me free” (164).

“The truth is, you are already dead to sin and in a new relationship with the Father because of what Christ has done for you. This is how you are to think of yourself every day. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have done something truly amazing: They have made it possible for sinners to draw near! What should this produce in the Christian? It should produce a deep gratitude along with a new confidence to look honestly at sin and engage in daily repentance. The fact of my adoption also reminds me that I am part of a new family, the body of Christ. The change process must take place in the context of my relationship with brothers and sisters in Christ” (164).

Repentance: Turning from Sin

Luke 15:11-32

1.     Wake up: he came to his senses (v. 17)

2.     Own up: he admitted his sin (v. 18)

a.     Godly sorrow, not worldly sorrow

                                               i.     Worldly sorrow- being sorry you got caught; feeling that you failed to live up to your own standards and potential; tears of self-pity

                                              ii.     Godly sorrow- focuses on how you’ve hurt God and others; sees God’s love has been treated lightly; tears of true humility

b.     Seeing the sin beneath the sins

                                               i.     Breaking commands 1-3 in 10 commandments happens before you break 4-10

c.      Repenting of sin and righteousness

                                               i.     “Every time we try to build our lives on who we are apart from Christ, is an attempt to justify ourselves. It is a way to create a righteousness apart from Christ so that we can feel we earned our acceptance before God, others, and ourselves” (166).

3.     Shift weight: he received his father’s gracious embrace (v. 20)

a.     You begin to rest in Christ’s work as you confess your sins, asking for forgiveness and grace

b.     You get smaller and Christ gets bigger. You have a godly self-forgetfulness that is very different from self-loathing

c.      You look at Christ, not just at your sin

d.     You receive new energy, joy, gratitude, hope, perseverance, and purpose

The Real World Take 2

Use Phil 2:1-11 and take your idol to the test. Has ­­­________ laid down its life for you? Has it suffered in your place? Has it ever promised to intercede for you? Etc. etc.

The process so far:

“I have engaged in intelligent repentance and faith, identifying the heart sins beneath the behavioral sins. I have applied the powerful realities of the gospel to my life. The roots of…idolatry begin to wither, and I sink my roots more deeply into Jesus, the true Vine” (168).