Cheap Grace
As I was driving home the other day, I passed a local church whose marquee out front said "We support radical inclusivity." I read it and my first reaction honestly was one of utter annoyance. I know that sounds terrible, but let me explain. On this particular church's website, Inclusivity is listed as a core value and explained like this: "We embrace all as expressions of God." Hmmmm, where to even begin. I have to assume that this statement most likely reflects this church's stance on sexual orientation. So if that particular characteristic is covered as an "expression of God" then I also have to assume that someone's porn addiction, alcoholism, drug abuse, habitual gossiping and/or stealing are also just expressions of God in their personality, right? I mean, surely they are not saying that "all" includes only one thing? No, the word "all" means just that and if your stance is that one sin is okay, then ALL sins are okay. Otherwise, where do we draw the line? Answer: we don't draw the line, God does and it's been written down for over two thousand years now. I also think my annoyance comes out of my deep desire to make it known that my church is also a huge fan of inclusivity, but not just for inclusivity's sake. My church is a fan of it because Jesus is a fan of it... BUT do you want to know what Jesus is also a fan of? The conversion of a sinning heart into one that is washed white as snow because of the blood that He spilled in order to make it possible. I am so sorry my friends, but if you think for even a hot second that Jesus died the most excruciating death ever so that we can continue to be free to express ourselves in whatever manner we see fit, you have just cheapened what in reality is the most precious gift that has ever been given to the entire human race. And what's worse? Encouraging people to keep on in whatever lifestyle they see fit and calling it an expression of God. No sir, not today. Not any day.
As I have said plenty of times before in previous posts, you and I were created in the image of God. The very same One who spoke the entire world into existence with just a few words. That kind of power and majesty can only be imagined in our simple human minds and yet that was the model that was used when forming our very bodies from the dust of the ground. Sure, sin entered the world and a couple thousand years later things are pretty screwy out there as a result. But God wasn't kidding then and He's not kidding now when He tells us in Leviticus 11 and again in 1 Peter 1 to "be holy because I am Holy." Notice it doesn't say anywhere in the bible at any time that we are free to live the immoral lifestyle of our choice because after all, it's an expression of God Himself. Nope, but you know what IS listed in the bible as an expression of God in your life? Self-control. It's one of the 9 main personality traits listed in Galatians 5 that signifies a true and right relationship with Jesus Christ. I am pretty sure this idea of "radical inclusivity" as a whole doesn't much take into account a person's ability to exhibit self-control over the sin in their life. I imagine it takes a much more liberal approach and just sweeps all that nasty "sin" talk aside for the sake of making everyone feel warm and cozy. Oh how I wish the Christian life was nothing but warm coziness. Wouldn't that be something? John would never have had to say, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." because no one would be unrighteous in the first place. And Paul wouldn't have had to write: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." because everything would be good and acceptable and perfect already. Alas, this is not the case. So why then would these men be led to write such things if everything we do is simply "an expression of God?" Answer: everything we do is NOT an expression of God, it is an expression of our own selfish desires to do whatever the heck we want to do whenever we want to do it. "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." (Galatians 6:7) God WILL NOT be mocked. Do not try to justify your sin nature as being an expression of anything other than exactly what it is... yours. Your choices are your own and some of them need to be run through the holiness filter and ultimately thrown out if they are found to be out of alignment. I am talking to myself just as much as (if not more than) any of you reading this. There are days I feel like my relationship with Jesus is perfectly plumb and there are days I feel like a complete failure who is totally unredeemable. This same sin again? Really, Leslie? Really. And God brings it to my mind and I start the process of repenting and allowing His perfect restoration to set me back on the path again. You know what I don't do? Show up at my church and tell everyone that my ugly, hidden sin is an expression of God and they should all just accept it. No! I fight it, again and again and again if necessary until Jesus comes back and takes me out of this broken down earthly body and makes me perfect once and for all.
Back to my church and our inclusivity for just a sec. As I said, we are also huge fans of inclusivity because Jesus is. He says come to me just as you are and so my church echoes that same sentiment. Come! Just come exactly as you are in this moment of your life. Battle worn, bruised, worn-out, smelly and dirty. You do not have to clean yourself up to be seen by Jesus and you do not have to clean yourself up to be seen by my church family. But here's the kicker, when you come to a place like my church with all of your skeletons, what you won't hear is someone telling you it's fine to continue on in the exact same manner as you have become accustomed to. We will not blow a bunch of smoke up your rear just to make you feel as comfy as possible. The ultimate goal of a place like my church is telling people biblical TRUTH to help them recognize the things in their life that hinder them from allowing Jesus to take up residency in their heart. And when someone makes the choice to finally lay down those skeletons at the feet of Jesus, HE will clean them up. Ohhhhhh my word will He ever clean them up! And then they begin life as a new creation and all of that worn-out dirtiness gets scrubbed to a perfect snowy white. Does it require work on their part? Yes. It absolutely does. Self-control is hard, it just is. Even for seasoned believers who have walked with Jesus for many years. It is a day to day, minute by minute choice and no one is immune. Your pastor is not immune. Your grandmother who is the strongest Christian you know is not immune. A woman who loves to blog about Christian topics is not immune. There is a reason Luke recorded in his 9th chapter these words of Jesus that were spoken to an entire crowd of people that were following Him: "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?" What does that really mean, to take up your cross daily? Jesus was required to literally take up His own cross and carry it on His back, that was already flayed open because of the monstrous beating that He had just endured, in order to be crucified on it at Golgotha. The taking up of His own cross meant certain death for Him and any other criminals of that day who were subject to crucifixion as their form of punishment. So, when you and I take up our cross today and every day, what it signifies is our willingness to die to ourselves, our dreams, our hopes, our plans, our passions, etc. for the cause of living our lives for Christ! Yes, you got it, this is haaaaaaaard stuff we are talking about now. And I am under no false pretenses that I am winning any popularity contests over the content of this particular post. But so be it. If your lifestyle is out of alignment with what I just said about taking up your cross, hear me clearly when I say this, it is NOT an expression of God Himself... it is SIN. And Satan is laughing all the way to the bank because he's got you believing the lie that it's really no big deal.
Remember Jesus' words above, "And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?" Mark records the same words in this way, "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" So many people are living on top of the world right now because they have everything they can ever ask or hope for. They wholeheartedly participate in any activity that comes their way that they deem as a good time. They unapologetically spit in the face of any sort of self restraint when it comes to relationships with others. To them, Jesus is a circus freak and they basically feel like they are untouchable. They have gained the whole world, but oops, let's not forget the second half. Unabashedly living for the pleasure of your own company is a one way ticket to the loss of your soul, so I guess I just need to say I hope it's been worth it. I sure do hope your 85+ years here on earth just living the dream was all you wished for because what's coming next won't be. There is a very real place that is the total antithesis of heaven and it's name is hell and unfortunately many folks who have decided that taking up their cross and dying daily to themselves is just too great a burden to bear, will be going there. And it's infuriating to me because no one has to. No one has to choose to live a purely self-centered life and no one has to choose to tell Jesus to take a hike. No one has to keep on keeping on in the same ugly pattern of sin all the while telling themselves it's just too hard and no one understands. Jesus understands! He understands perfectly the temptations we all face because He faced them too and never once gave into any of them. He understands how hard life can be and how cruel people can treat each other because He was treated worse than any of us can imagine and yet remained silent and sinless. And don't you think for a second that He couldn't have unleased the very power of heaven itself on those Roman soldiers for beating Him within an inch of His life and then nailing Him to that cross to suffocate and die, but instead He said, "nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done." He took up His cross! So can you and so can I. If you are looking for the easy way, then move on. But if you are looking for the way that leads to life eternal in a place so unimaginably glorious it can not even be fathomed, then a few years of self restraint really isn't all that much to ask.
The grace that God offers to each and every one of us is not cheap. It was bought and paid for by Jesus' very own blood being spilled from His bruised and battered body. And when I hear churches make statements that sound a whole lot like "You do you. Don't let anyone tell you any different. Be exactly who you choose to be." you are taking God's grace that Jesus paid for with His life and selling it at the Dollar Store and I won't have it. No, we definitely will never be able to attain Jesus' sinless standard and we shouldn't even try, but going the complete opposite way and not aspiring to live a holy life at all (yet still fully expecting God's favor) is just foolish. "So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16) No one has to go anywhere other than heaven when they die. Not a single person has to go to hell! The temporary pleasures of this world are just simply NOT worth losing your soul over. There is nothing that is too hard to give up for Jesus, not one thing. Y'all, there is no relationship on earth that can replace the one you could have with Jesus. But Jesus isn't here, He's not tangible, how is that supposed to be the same? All I can say is if you are willing to dive deep and put forth the effort to get to know Him on an intensely personal level, He can and will satisfy every desire of your heart. And again, we are only here but such a short time! Do not allow Satan to convince you that your sin doesn't matter. It does! And you and I who are made in the very image of God have His divine power within us to resist all of it if we will only try. "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14) Show people the Lord today by striving to live holy.
As I have said plenty of times before in previous posts, you and I were created in the image of God. The very same One who spoke the entire world into existence with just a few words. That kind of power and majesty can only be imagined in our simple human minds and yet that was the model that was used when forming our very bodies from the dust of the ground. Sure, sin entered the world and a couple thousand years later things are pretty screwy out there as a result. But God wasn't kidding then and He's not kidding now when He tells us in Leviticus 11 and again in 1 Peter 1 to "be holy because I am Holy." Notice it doesn't say anywhere in the bible at any time that we are free to live the immoral lifestyle of our choice because after all, it's an expression of God Himself. Nope, but you know what IS listed in the bible as an expression of God in your life? Self-control. It's one of the 9 main personality traits listed in Galatians 5 that signifies a true and right relationship with Jesus Christ. I am pretty sure this idea of "radical inclusivity" as a whole doesn't much take into account a person's ability to exhibit self-control over the sin in their life. I imagine it takes a much more liberal approach and just sweeps all that nasty "sin" talk aside for the sake of making everyone feel warm and cozy. Oh how I wish the Christian life was nothing but warm coziness. Wouldn't that be something? John would never have had to say, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." because no one would be unrighteous in the first place. And Paul wouldn't have had to write: "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." because everything would be good and acceptable and perfect already. Alas, this is not the case. So why then would these men be led to write such things if everything we do is simply "an expression of God?" Answer: everything we do is NOT an expression of God, it is an expression of our own selfish desires to do whatever the heck we want to do whenever we want to do it. "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." (Galatians 6:7) God WILL NOT be mocked. Do not try to justify your sin nature as being an expression of anything other than exactly what it is... yours. Your choices are your own and some of them need to be run through the holiness filter and ultimately thrown out if they are found to be out of alignment. I am talking to myself just as much as (if not more than) any of you reading this. There are days I feel like my relationship with Jesus is perfectly plumb and there are days I feel like a complete failure who is totally unredeemable. This same sin again? Really, Leslie? Really. And God brings it to my mind and I start the process of repenting and allowing His perfect restoration to set me back on the path again. You know what I don't do? Show up at my church and tell everyone that my ugly, hidden sin is an expression of God and they should all just accept it. No! I fight it, again and again and again if necessary until Jesus comes back and takes me out of this broken down earthly body and makes me perfect once and for all.
Back to my church and our inclusivity for just a sec. As I said, we are also huge fans of inclusivity because Jesus is. He says come to me just as you are and so my church echoes that same sentiment. Come! Just come exactly as you are in this moment of your life. Battle worn, bruised, worn-out, smelly and dirty. You do not have to clean yourself up to be seen by Jesus and you do not have to clean yourself up to be seen by my church family. But here's the kicker, when you come to a place like my church with all of your skeletons, what you won't hear is someone telling you it's fine to continue on in the exact same manner as you have become accustomed to. We will not blow a bunch of smoke up your rear just to make you feel as comfy as possible. The ultimate goal of a place like my church is telling people biblical TRUTH to help them recognize the things in their life that hinder them from allowing Jesus to take up residency in their heart. And when someone makes the choice to finally lay down those skeletons at the feet of Jesus, HE will clean them up. Ohhhhhh my word will He ever clean them up! And then they begin life as a new creation and all of that worn-out dirtiness gets scrubbed to a perfect snowy white. Does it require work on their part? Yes. It absolutely does. Self-control is hard, it just is. Even for seasoned believers who have walked with Jesus for many years. It is a day to day, minute by minute choice and no one is immune. Your pastor is not immune. Your grandmother who is the strongest Christian you know is not immune. A woman who loves to blog about Christian topics is not immune. There is a reason Luke recorded in his 9th chapter these words of Jesus that were spoken to an entire crowd of people that were following Him: "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?" What does that really mean, to take up your cross daily? Jesus was required to literally take up His own cross and carry it on His back, that was already flayed open because of the monstrous beating that He had just endured, in order to be crucified on it at Golgotha. The taking up of His own cross meant certain death for Him and any other criminals of that day who were subject to crucifixion as their form of punishment. So, when you and I take up our cross today and every day, what it signifies is our willingness to die to ourselves, our dreams, our hopes, our plans, our passions, etc. for the cause of living our lives for Christ! Yes, you got it, this is haaaaaaaard stuff we are talking about now. And I am under no false pretenses that I am winning any popularity contests over the content of this particular post. But so be it. If your lifestyle is out of alignment with what I just said about taking up your cross, hear me clearly when I say this, it is NOT an expression of God Himself... it is SIN. And Satan is laughing all the way to the bank because he's got you believing the lie that it's really no big deal.
Remember Jesus' words above, "And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but are yourself lost or destroyed?" Mark records the same words in this way, "For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?" So many people are living on top of the world right now because they have everything they can ever ask or hope for. They wholeheartedly participate in any activity that comes their way that they deem as a good time. They unapologetically spit in the face of any sort of self restraint when it comes to relationships with others. To them, Jesus is a circus freak and they basically feel like they are untouchable. They have gained the whole world, but oops, let's not forget the second half. Unabashedly living for the pleasure of your own company is a one way ticket to the loss of your soul, so I guess I just need to say I hope it's been worth it. I sure do hope your 85+ years here on earth just living the dream was all you wished for because what's coming next won't be. There is a very real place that is the total antithesis of heaven and it's name is hell and unfortunately many folks who have decided that taking up their cross and dying daily to themselves is just too great a burden to bear, will be going there. And it's infuriating to me because no one has to. No one has to choose to live a purely self-centered life and no one has to choose to tell Jesus to take a hike. No one has to keep on keeping on in the same ugly pattern of sin all the while telling themselves it's just too hard and no one understands. Jesus understands! He understands perfectly the temptations we all face because He faced them too and never once gave into any of them. He understands how hard life can be and how cruel people can treat each other because He was treated worse than any of us can imagine and yet remained silent and sinless. And don't you think for a second that He couldn't have unleased the very power of heaven itself on those Roman soldiers for beating Him within an inch of His life and then nailing Him to that cross to suffocate and die, but instead He said, "nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done." He took up His cross! So can you and so can I. If you are looking for the easy way, then move on. But if you are looking for the way that leads to life eternal in a place so unimaginably glorious it can not even be fathomed, then a few years of self restraint really isn't all that much to ask.
The grace that God offers to each and every one of us is not cheap. It was bought and paid for by Jesus' very own blood being spilled from His bruised and battered body. And when I hear churches make statements that sound a whole lot like "You do you. Don't let anyone tell you any different. Be exactly who you choose to be." you are taking God's grace that Jesus paid for with His life and selling it at the Dollar Store and I won't have it. No, we definitely will never be able to attain Jesus' sinless standard and we shouldn't even try, but going the complete opposite way and not aspiring to live a holy life at all (yet still fully expecting God's favor) is just foolish. "So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16) No one has to go anywhere other than heaven when they die. Not a single person has to go to hell! The temporary pleasures of this world are just simply NOT worth losing your soul over. There is nothing that is too hard to give up for Jesus, not one thing. Y'all, there is no relationship on earth that can replace the one you could have with Jesus. But Jesus isn't here, He's not tangible, how is that supposed to be the same? All I can say is if you are willing to dive deep and put forth the effort to get to know Him on an intensely personal level, He can and will satisfy every desire of your heart. And again, we are only here but such a short time! Do not allow Satan to convince you that your sin doesn't matter. It does! And you and I who are made in the very image of God have His divine power within us to resist all of it if we will only try. "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14) Show people the Lord today by striving to live holy.
I am so glad I don’t live by that church anymore. As much as I loved my house there I feel it exsumes evilness. And I feel I lost a lot of my life living there. And lost my family!!!
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