Tuesday, February 10, 2015

The 'But' Gospel

Our bellies were full with all things delightfully southern; catfish, okra, greens, and hush puppies. My Mississippi passport had been stamped yet again with a new adventure, "Carmack Fish House!" For real, don't mess with the deliciousness of food coming out of a gas station.

The six of us, plus Larry and Jere', were all together in the van winding through the dark, back-roads of Choctaw County, when from the back seat we heard Anderson say, "What does extraordinary mean?!" Trying to offer a definition suitable to a 5 year old's brain, Grandy said, "It means, really, really good!" To which Anderson replied, "I don't feel extraordinary!" Tears brimmed the bottom of my eye lids and my heart sank, Mark whispered only loud enough for my ears to hear, " that's every man's struggle, son!" 

I wanted Mark to pull the van over right then. I wanted to sprint to the back of the van, fling the tail gate open, flail my grown body over the back seat while the bench pierced my gut, and cup that baby boy's face in my hands and tell him all the ways he was he was extraordinary. None-of-which, had anything to do with WHAT he did, simply WHO he is. He is our son, our only son. He is a brother, a grandson, a nephew, a cousin, a friend and he was made from a 'holy huddle of love' that defines his very existence. 
(Ann Voscamp)

How wretched it felt that my five year old was already feeling the inadequacies that plague (or as Lucy says it, "PLAH-ZYEW") so many hearts and lives. I have sipped many cups of coffee around warm and intimate tables and living rooms, as people have shared their sweet stories with me. And the longer I sit and listen, I mean REALLY listen with  more vulnerability and less categorizing, I hear a desperate cry of the heart, "MORE GRACE! Less of the 'but' gospel."



The last 15 months, I slowly trudged through this book that has had lasting impacts all over my life and in every venue. My conclusions are long and deep, and could never be covered in a single blog post. Mark, poor Mark, has listened to me regurgitate these thoughts for a LONG time now. He has seen me wrestle with them as they have flushed themselves out in my very own life. This book has profoundly changed me more than any other book (besides the Bible---Awana hangover---) on earth. For those of you new to these parts, THAT'S A MAJOR STATEMENT. I read A LOT. I love a lot of different books, but this one holds the cheese, or the cake, depending on where you are from!

I want you to give just a small excerpt from the book. Not for you to pick apart and criticize, (you have to read the whole book before you get an opinion around here) but to encourage people who are longing to be freed from the captivity of a life without grace, and want to taste it extravagantly. You will NOT be disappointed.

Unknowingly, I was terrified of grace before I read this book. I had a lot of deeply ingrained 'buts'. BUT what if I taste grace and go on sinning, will grace end?
BUT what if my behavior never changes, will grace end?
BUT what if, at the end of my earthly life I am still struggling with the EXACT same sin I was struggling with at the beginning of my walk with the Lord, will grace end?

By God's extravagant grace, I am a different person.... TOTALLY! I see my sin and other's sin so differently now. And it's freeing, and it's joy filled, and it's calm, and it's life giving, it's not critical, it's not impatient, it's not self righteous, and it's NOT 'but' filled ANY MORE! It's exactly where I know the Lord wants me to be RIGHT NOW!! And I am HUMBLED!

"Let's be honest; if the chief work of the Holy Spirit in sanctification is to make Christians more sin-free, then he isn't doing a very good job. The church throughout the ages and throughout the world has not usually been known for its purity and goodness. Instead, it is wracked by a constant history of strife, violence, and hypocrisy. People often cannot differentiate a believer from an unbeliever by their apparent goodness. In fact, there are many unbelievers who are morally superior to Christians and live lives of far greater nobility, generosity, and purpose than we who profess faith in Christ.

God could have saved us and made us instantly perfect. Instead, he chose to save us and leave indwelling sin in our hearts and bodies to wage war against the new and blossoming desires to please God that accompany salvation. This is a raging battle that we often lose, and that often leaves us feeling defeated and joyless in our walk with God. We know that God does all things for his own glory and the good of his people, his decision to leave Christians with many struggles with sin must also somehow serve to glorify him and benefit his people. This is shocking news, isn't it?

Think of what this means. God thinks that you will actually come to know and love him better as a desperate and weak sinner in continual need of grace than you would as a triumphant Christian warrior who wins each and every battle against sin. This makes sense out of our experience as Christians. If the job of the Holy Spirit is to make you more humble and dependent of Christ, more grateful for his sacrifice and more adoring of him as a wonderful Savior, then he might be doing a very, very good job even though you still sin every day.

What difference does it make whether you believe that Christians should go from strength to strength and live victorious lives of obedience, or whether you believe Christians will remain on earth in a state of great weakness and utter dependence on God for every single good thought? It makes all the difference in the world. It matters immensely what you believe about yourself and about God. It matters that you have a true and accurate assessment of who you are as a believer before God, what God expects from you, and what you should expect from yourself. It matters a great deal that you understand what the Holy Spirit is up to in your life and how he does his work.

If you are a discouraged Christian who is surprised by your sin and sure that God is disappointed with you, then you need truth from God's word to free you from the emotional roller coaster ride of your successes and failures. If you are a proud Christian who feels better than others because of your many strengths and triumphs, you need God's Spirit to show you the truth about your heart and humble you.

Sinless perfection and complete peace and joy must wait for heaven, but abundant joy here and now in Christ is your birthright and your inheritance, even when you sin and fail miserably to be a good Christian."

Barbara Duguid, Extravagant Grace

BUY IT!
~Sara

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