The pressure’s off
I don't know about you, but I've spent most of my life feeling like I'm not good enough, don't fit in, don't measure up and wondering if there was any hope for being acceptable to God and others. I grew up in a well meaning Christian tradition that had a lot of standards for how a Christian should live, look and act. I would say that early on, my understanding was that I was saved by grace through no merit of my own, but that I had to now keep myself acceptable to God through my performance and behaviour. It was an unspoken thought that my spiritual growth, and even keeping God pleased with me was up to me. I had a view of God as being loving but often unable to look at me because of my sin. I often felt He must be disappointed in me and my behaviour. Performance, trying to be like Jesus, and living the Christian life "right" dominated my thoughts and emotions. However, never knowing what would constitute "good enough" left me feeling overwhelmed, anxious, depressed and to be honest hopeless. Then, over the years, Jesus gently and lovingly revealed to me the truth of my co-crucifixion and resurrection with Him; the death of the sinful unacceptable Nate and the birth of the new holy Nate (Romans 6). He taught me about my total cleansing and forgiveness at the Cross, past, present and future sins already washed away by His blood (Hebrews 9:28, 10:14). He showed me that my acceptance, righteousness, and His delight in me are not based on me but on His finished work at the cross. But He's also been teaching me that even as a new righteous, and acceptable creation in Him (2nd Cor 5:17, 21), I don't have to live the Christian life, He will live it through me: the pressures off in every way. Does it get any sweeter?
The truth is though, many of us try to pull-off the victorious Christian life as if it was up to us. We try to keep ourselves from falling through our own effort. We try our hardest to be like Jesus, which seems like a noble pursuit. After all, we're trying to be like God. ...But wait a minute, trying to be like God through our own effort sounds a lot like what Adam and Eve tried to do in the garden when they ate from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. So...if trying to be like Jesus isn't how we're supposed to live the Christian life, what are we supposed to do? The key to the Christian life is Jesus Himself, learning to let Him live through us. Afterall, who can do a better Job of living like Jesus, us, or Jesus? Of course we would say Jesus can. But where does Jesus live? He lives inside you and me (that is, if we've trusted Him as our Saviour). So why would we try to imitate Him, when we have Him, and can let Him live and be Himself through us? I think this is what the Apostle Paul was saying when he wrote Galatians 2:20. "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me" (NASB-emphasis added). Take a moment and read that verse again. In this verse Paul explains that Jesus lives in Him and that he trusts Jesus to live through him throughout the day. Instead of trying to follow a bunch of rules, religious practices, or trying to be like Jesus; Paul trusted that Jesus living in him would lead and guide his whole being throughout the day. He trusted Jesus to not only guide his desires, but to actually take action through him to live the Christian life (Philippians 2:13). I think we could paraphrase Galatians 2:20 by saying "the old sinful me died with Jesus on the Cross and now I'm a new creation, and Jesus lives in me. But I don't try to live the Christian life, I've learned to trust Jesus to live it through me." I hope this is an encouragement to you, as you and I learn that it's not up to you to be like Jesus, it's up to Him to live through you as you trust Him to do so.
In His grace:
Nate
