The beauty, and yet at the same time, excruciating difficulty of a life of faith in Christ in a world that is open to “all religions” is the part where our beliefs contain specifics, and the foundations and precepts of God are actually attempted to be followed.
It’s great for us to strap in, secure in those beliefs, until what we have become convinced of meets possible push-back or scorn, with us and any potential for relationship thrown out with the bath water (either by us or by the other person).
How can I hold true to what I am so contentedly and finally at peace with—not having arrived at this juncture lightly, and in fact, through much wrestling and winnowing of God in my very naive, broken, defensive and stubbornly righteous heart and mind?
This entire life of fits and starts—of two-steps foreword-one step back—has brought me to a place of coveted rest with myself and God, and also with others—regardless of who they are, their worldview and their reception of me.
Or so I think.
Until along comes the new friend with whom I am now in a quandary as to how to reveal my faith—not because I want to “share the Gospel” but because I want to be sincerely honest and transparent as to who I am, just as my friend is being toward me, and as all strong friendships are.
Certainly, ideally, I am to live Christ with everyone: it’s those initial deeper life and worldview discussions that will inevitably come up that will test my mettle to be an unwavering person of Christ at all times, especially when it comes to the “specifics.”
And that “rest” with other people that I mentioned having arrived at: does that remain steady when I meet the pro-abortion canvasser calling out from the sidewalk to “support reproductive rights?”
Or will the canvassers continue to bring out the “I don’t care what I say or how I say it” in me? Will grace clear out, leaving me standing there facing my “opponent” in unbridled passion and infuriating incredulity over the injustice to the unborn and the cavalier attitude and unchallenged worldview that advocates for their death?
God, I believe, will test our progress in one way or another.
And just when we think we’re standing, He will throw a curve ball to let us know whether we will fall or not: the test is for us, not for Him. He already knows. (1 John 3:20). It’s us He’s teaching and training in His righteousness, lest we hit the ground running in our own.
And so although I can be honest with God about anything, and live in His rest, I haven’t proven yet that I can come from His place of rest and remain there with others. Not always. Not initially.
And so it comes down to His grace, and trusting unequivocally that He will provide it when I ask Him.
His rest means the laying aside of any agenda or worries of myself, and letting His grace do what it will, and when. He will give enough; He will fill our lack (Hebrews 4).
But I must ask. I must rely.
It all comes down to His grace. And my wanting it bad enough.
Copyright Barb Harwood
“Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it. For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard. For we who have believed enter that rest…” Hebrews 4:1-3a.
"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:14-16
No comments:
Post a Comment