Category Archives: Grace

Grace

Conviction and Confession: Opening the Doors of Perception

Let’s look at the story of the woman at the well. Jesus walked from town to town sharing the good news of His Gospel.

I want to reveal how our thinking can be influenced by the world in which we live and can keep us locked inside the darkness of our own personal asylum. Yet there is a way out.

Photo: Doors of Perception, Glen Jackman

“He had to travel through Samaria, so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well. It was about six in the evening. (John 4: 4-6 HCSB)

I was impressed with the gentle condescending of our Lord as He patiently talked with the woman of Samaria — the woman at the well.

As she approaches the well, He begins speaking to her by asking for a favour. “Give Me a drink.” She immediately asks Him a question: “How is it that You, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman…Jews do not associate with Samaritans” (John 4: 7-9) She firstly thinks of her religious differences with this stranger. After all, most Jews would not even speak to her, a Samaritan.

Jesus replied, “If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would ask Him, and He would give you living water.” (vs10) Now she counters by pointing out that Jesus doesn’t even have the physical means to draw water from this well inherited from Jacob, the forefather of both the Jew and the Samaritan. She evidently understands that they are distant kindred-cousins, noting their mutual ancestry.

At this juncture of the conversation, Jesus is graceful, lovingly sharing an important truth about His identity: “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again. But whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again—ever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.” (vs 13-14) She responds, again still in the dark as to His spiritual meaning of “living water” — He will impart the Holy Spirit to open up her mind to see that she is talking to the Saviour of the world. She said: “Sir, give me this water, so I won’t get thirsty and come here to draw water.”

The same was our condition when God, in infinite mercy, began His dealings with us—our eyes remained closed to the perfections of God’s Son, Jesus, — we hid as it were our faces from him. The dialogue shows the trend of her thoughts. Her mind centres upon wells and buckets! She is a representative character of humans staving off divine approach. Her mind is of the world — its religious differences — its duties and employments—she cannot rise to any higher thoughts: she could not discern who it was that addressed her, nor what He was offering. Many are being kept away from the things of Christ by the things of time and sense.

Now her mind is less resistant, as the Holy Spirit convicts her of the darkness wherein she has lived her life. She confesses to him that she hasn’t got a husband when Jesus said to her “go and get your husband and come back here”. He replied: “You have correctly said, ‘I don’t have a husband…you’ve had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” (vs. 18)

Here is where the miracle work of the Holy Spirit’s grace touches her. “Sir,” the woman replied, “I see that You are a prophet”. (vs. 19) Her spiritual eyes are opening: she sees — perceives that Jesus is a spokesman of God, as she is convicted that her life has been a living hell on earth — she is not free from sin and corruption, of inherent mental chaos which has blinded her from life’s best. And she confesses that, yes, Jesus has revealed the disappointing nature of her life.

Jesus said: “But an hour is coming, and is now here when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. Yes, the Father wants such people to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and truth.” (vs 23-24) Further, “The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will explain everything to us.” (vs. 24)

It was the conviction of sin that Jesus used gently to help her drop her guard, open up her heart to God, unlock any barrier that could stop Him from opening her mind to hear this truth clearly: “I am He,” Jesus told her, “the One speaking to you.” (vs. 26)

First the Spirit convicts each of us of our sin, then of our need of Christ who gave His life as an atonement for our sins. We have a lot in common with this woman.

The inability to see Jesus or hear Him speaking to us through the Gospel or a sermon is normal for human nature. We are all insane to a degree until we allow the Holy Spirit to open our mind to perceive who Jesus is – the one who can translate us out of darkness into the light. Living water is a metaphor for the Holy Spirit, whose work is to “teach us all things” about Christ. He opens our minds to spiritual realities, to know Christ and the presence of His indwelling.

Her mind was preoccupied with the world—its duties and employments—and hence she could not rise to any higher thoughts: she could not discern who it was that addressed her, nor what He was offering. And thus it is with all who are of the world: they are kept away from the things of Christ by the things of time and sense. Jesus in His parable of the sower of the Word warns that “the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things” (Mark 4:19 NLT)

This woman broke free — she came to her senses. As the story goes, she ran off to tell the whole town and brought them back to see Jesus for themselves.

Until we come to Christ, confessing our sins, we will wallow in darkness and sin’s entanglements and will not experience the joy of salvation. When we do come to accept Him the Holy Spirit will translate our mindset out of the darkness as we come into His light.

Grace, Jesus in Life, Law of God, The Final Judgment, Uncategorized, Your Identity in Christ

Good works do not result in salvation

Our good works do not result in salvation, nor do bad works result in being lost.

If good works do not result in our salvation, are they important? Moreover, if our bad actions do not cause us to be lost, then are evil deeds a non-issue? The key phrase “result in” means that the outcome of our works, do not determine our status with the Lord. However, behaviour, good or bad, can indicate our sincerity or a distancing in our relationship with Him.

It is not about the importance of or the purpose of our good deeds. It is about the method of salvation of which our good deeds are not the cause. They are the result.

What causes us to experience the joy of salvation if not our good deeds? Romans 3:20 states: “By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight.” Jesus alone saves us, and we are kept and accounted righteous by the faith expressed in our accepting Him and further abiding in a relationship with Him via the Holy Spirit. “There is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12). Our focal attention must not be on our goodness or our misdeeds.To seek for or experience salvation, we are to focus on Jesus. By beholding Him, we will become changed into His image and our joy shall be suffonsified.

Every time we look at ourselves or our agenda alone, we will be unsuccessful. It is easy to be discouraged when we see our sinfulness and give up, or be proud of our excellent works and become proud. It is a dead-end street, either way, these delusions work to our misery. Only look to Jesus and know that you are secure. The bad thief on the cross looked to Jesus and said “Lord remember me in your coming kingdom” recognising Jesus as the Messiah. How did Jesus reply? “Today I tell you—you will be with me in paradise!”

Paul was radical about the subject of salvation by faith in Christ alone. He was not against good works – after all, he was one of the best-behaved persons in town. Writing Philippians 3, he disabuses his readers with some balancing humour: “If anybody has reason to boast of good works, I have matched or exceeded his record!” Summing it up, he counted his past life as loss – in fact, he viewed his behavioural perfectionism as crap — when compared to the glorious, merciful, faultless righteousness of Christ. Judged by the letter of the law as a good man, with an exemplary moral outward life, he had abstained from recognisable sin. Paul, reviewing his life, now honest, saw himself as God saw him — a man trying hard to be justified by works. He came to his senses and confessed that his need alone was Christ.

Our salvation finds union and security in our acceptance of Jesus — of His sacrifice for us – and our ongoing relationship with Him. It is not dependent on behaviour — salvation is much more than behaviour. Good works are not bargaining chips for eternal life. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life”. Actions alone do not determine one’s eternal destiny — whereas our open-hearted, unashamed and honest relationship with Jesus as your Saviour does.

Good deeds will show up in your life, but they will never cause your salvation. God does not judge by the outward actions, but by the heart from which flow all the issues of life (see 1 Samuel 16:7; Proverbs 4:23).

Grace, Parenting, Uncategorized, Your Identity in Christ

Learning from the faith of children

“And they were bringing even their babies to Him so that He would touch them, but when the disciples saw it, they began rebuking them. But Jesus called for them, saying, ‘Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.’” (Lk 18.15-17)1

The acceptance Jesus offers to children promotes their simple potential faith in Him. Recall a child hanging on its mother’s hand. Ask, “Do I turn to Jesus Christ and our heavenly Father like that?”

A child trusts its parents, knowing a calm nearness and unity of engagement. Unlike most adults, a child’s mind is fully at peace in the moment when a loving mother or father engages with their child.

There are no stresses and fears entering the mind of a child because most young children are not worrying about their future. Nor are their memories of past regrets or harboured bitterness in the mind of a child, as most are not culpable of racking up traumatic memories of harm to or by others. Children are not generally focusing on the past, again free to experience the moment of parental unity.

I am hoping to be more like a child when I come into the moment with our Lord, to experience His presence with His Father, both who desire to dwell with us ongoingly. I know that only when my mind is practising the presence of God can His Spirit’s love, compassion, and kindness flow through me to those I connect with.

They will see Christ in us, and together with Him, we will make a difference in the lives of others that can impact their lives for eternity.

All stresses and fears enter our mind when we are thinking about the future. All regrets and bitterness come into our mind when you are focusing on the past.2 Mindfulness is lost and our faith life while living in Christ in the moment is distracted and lost in time. (see Mat 6:34)

Take a moment and think about how beautiful it is to see a child walking by the side of a parent with a small hand stretched up as high as it can go so his or her fragile fingers can lock onto the hand of Mom or Dad. The child’s feet scurry to keep up with the parent’s gait. In that scene is a picture of you, a child of God.

We are to metaphorically place our hands in his and walk with him at our side, letting him direct our steps. The humility, trust, and dependence of a child teach us to seek the face of our heavenly Father and stay close to him as we walk with him.3

1 New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.
2 Scott, Steven K. (2015-12-15). Jesus Speaks: 365 Days of Guidance and Encouragement, Straight from the Words of Christ (p. 1). The Crown Publishing Group.
3 Life Application New Testament Commentary, Luke, Darrel L. Bock
Grace

By grace alone you have been saved

“For by grace, you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9 ESV)

Grace is God’s unmerited favor on those who have broken his law and sinned against him. God’s grace offers and secures salvation. Believing in Jesus Christ is an act of choosing to receive His gift of eternal life — to choose allegiance to Him and His Word, as we turn away from a life of disobedience and lawlessness.

Woman taken in dultery

Jesus stands up for the woman caught in adultery.

This radical change, though seemingly chosen of our free will, occurs by the acting divine principle of mercy enabling us to see God’s love in Christ demonstrated — “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19) and we reach to Him — to entirely deliver us from God’s wrath at the final judgment (see Rom. 5: 9). The tense of “have been saved” indicates that a Christian’s salvation is fully secured. And it is secured through our simple childlike faith — through faith.

I want to emphasize that “this…is the gift of God,” the pronoun this referring to the entire process of salvation achieved by grace through faith — it is all a gift of God. God initiated your salvation, by calling you into His presence by wooing you by His Holy Spirit, and we are promised that He will resurrect us unto eternal life on Judgement Day. Jesus made this clear: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”(John 6:44).

Such a magnificent salvation is not by works. If it were, then those who are saved would get the glory. Our entire salvation is God’s new creation as He transforms us from sinner to saint . . . for, not because of good works. Grace, amazing grace — your salvation is “not a result of our works.” Our call from the state of spiritual death to the point when we believe, is achieved by the same almighty power of God that resurrected Jesus from the grave (see Ephesians 1:19-20).

Let’s give God alone all the glory. Salvation is not based on our initial efforts or works — any good works that Christians do, are the result of God’s new creation work in them from beginning to end.