The Message of the Cross

"The Christian life is not hard to live." Pause.

Whoa. I heard this at a Campus Crusade meeting last week and I was honestly livid when he stopped there.  Thankfully, he continued after a few seconds.

"It's impossible. In fact, only One has ever done it."

The Christian life is full of rules. We have the 10 Commandments and a bunch of other rules that we follow from the Bible. It's ridiculous.

I can't do it. I've tried to be perfect, but I fail every time! It's disheartening when I see my sin and notice that I can't be what the law requires of me. Paul talks about that in Romans 7:

"For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out." (Romans 7:18)

But if you look a little earlier in that book, he writes, "For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace."

Grace: one of my favorite words! I've heard it said that "grace" is getting what you don't deserve. I don't deserve to be perfect-- I fall short of God's standards with every breath that I breathe. (Romans 3:23) I don't deserve God's love-- I stand as an enemy of God in my sin. I don't deserve any of it.

I do deserve punishment for my sin.

I bet you know what's coming. :) JESUS! He took that death sentence of mine-- of your's-- and brought it to the Cross. Now, as a gift of God, He offers us Christ's perfection in place of our sin. The Christian life is not about following a set of rules-- that's just like every other religion of the world. The Christian walk is a relationship with the Living God-- a personal relationship with our Heavenly Father and understanding of His love and forgiveness in your life.

"We don't read the Bible to follow the rules so that God will like us better. We read the Bible to get to know Him better on a personal level."-- Pastor Jeff Seaver

While it is important to recognize your sin and see where you stand under the judgment of God, you can't stay there. God offers a free gift-- redemption (My absolute favorite word! Meaning-- to buy out of. God BOUGHT us out of our sin.) and forgiveness through the blood of Christ. He longs for a personal relationship with you. Live in that grace, forgiveness, and freedom.

And while you're at it, read Hebrews 9:11-14. :)