Day 67 "A Sinner or A Saint?"

How does one feel today? Do you feel like a sinner forgiven, yet, still walking around with your tail between your legs, spirit hung low, mostly looking to the past with remorse and regret, and seeing the future filling you with anxiety? Or do you feel like a saint, one who has been totally reborn again into a new identity, set free from the past, hopeful of the future, but completely content to look excitedly just to this day seeking to live fully in the mo-ment?

Steve McVey, in his book Grace Walk, puts it this way:

A sinner saved by grace spends his time on the defensive against Satan. Someone who is a saint goes on the offensive.

Mostly it is a matter of perspective, opposite side of the same coin for most people. But when one truly understands the concept of grace and the motivation instilled by such understanding, the coin suddenly becomes the same on both sides- both showing a saint. The paradigm shift occurs when we fully comprehend and grasp that when it comes to our salvation and our reconciliation back into a relationship with God, Jesus did it all! It no longer has anything to do with one's efforts or performance.

"For it is by grace that you have been saved through faith-and this not from ourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works, so that no one can boast."

Ephesians 2:8-9

"For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law." Romans 3:28

This is great news!!! It means spiritually, God has standardized or equalized all of us to the same level: being loved by God unconditionally, totally forgiven for anything we have ever done to break God's standards-past, present, and future. Spiritually, in Christ, we are completely and totally equal to one another. No more fear or anxiety to measure up to someone else. No more driving force within you trying to justify your way through life- in God's eyes, through Christ, he sees you fully righteous and holy as if you have never sinned.

"He set aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." Romans 10:9-10

Spiritually, you and I have been given a full and complete pardon by God through Christ. Let that sink in for a moment. Let it marinate your soul. God knows you completely, everything you have ever done, nothing is hidden or kept secret from him, and, yet, he still loves you- unconditionally! You are his child. As a ragamuffin before, you have now been transformed into a saint.

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" 1 John 3:1

"In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade-" 1 Peter 1:3-4

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." 1 Peter 2:9

Now, this is where things gets really interesting. This is where the church begins to recoil and fear that if its parishioners believe that they are completely free from the spiritual laws of God through Christ, walking around and living their lives as if they are fully pardoned, that they will revert back to a life of reckless sinning and an abandon all that which is considered to be good and holy. This is where the church tragically gets it wrong. The true motivation to live one's life worthy of what God has done for them in not found in the need to perform and act a certain way in order to appease God and seek to achieve a certain standing with God. Oh, no, the reason to live a life worth of God's calling on our lives is because of what he has already done for us! Through Christ, God has changed our identity. We are no longer merely sinners forgiven. We are sinners transformed into saints- a worm that has been changed permanently and forever into a butterfly. The heart of our motivation will arise out of our perception and understanding as to how God sees us. Steve McVey, again, gives us a great illustration by author Bob George to illuminate this point:

Imagine that a king decreed that a pardon would be extended to all prostitutes. Would that be good news if you were a prostitute? Of course, it would. You wouldn't have to worry any more about avoiding the law, or about having a criminal record. he pardon would definitely be good news to you. But it wouldn't necessarily give you the motivation to change your lifestyle.

But suppose that in addition to extending the pardon, the king came to you personally and asked you to become his wife. Would that give you reason to change the way you live? Absolutely! Who wouldn't trade the life of a prostitute for that of a queen? Gaining a new identity as the king's wife would be motivation to abandon prostitution.

Can you see his point? It is a huge difference to think of oneself in the mindset of a queen than as one as a prostitute. Why do most prostitutes end up in their profession? Is it not out of need and hopelessness? In Christ, we have been made spiritually complete in God's eyes. We are no longer strangers and outcasts to God. We are, now, his very children! So, doesn't it just make sense to live like God's child?

************************************************************************

A saint or a sinner? Who be you?

In his love, see your tomorrow...

"Carpe Momentum in Love" (Seize the moment in love)