Through the Stillness

Hi. My name is Stacy. I serve at my church. I read my bible. I pray. I have a Christian blog where I share my faith openly. I’ve been surrounded by churchgoing Christians all my life. I could sit and discuss theology for hours. I get ‘can’t sit still’ excited over it. Shall I list all my good deeds now? Should I tell you how I turn the other cheek? Don’t you see what a good little Christian I am? I’m really working my way up to heaven. Yep, I can see the building of my own place up there…it just keeps getting larger…more majestic as we speak. No? 

Maybe I should start again.

Hi. My name is Stacy. I am a sinner. No matter how often I go to church, no matter how much I serve, no matter how much I pray, I cannot earn my way up to heaven. Yes, all of that is a product of my ever-growing faith, but, it isn’t my salvation. If I lived like the above paragraph, I’d be living as a slave. I’d be as righteous as the pharisees. I wouldn’t need a savior. In a sense, I’d be worshipping myself…I’d be my own stinking idol.

I could say many Christians are accused of living their life as trying to prove their righteous ways. I could say they are accused of condemning points of the fingers. The problem is there really are people (too many) who try to earn their way to the blood. Some really are pointing fingers.

They have forgotten they are sinners like the rest of us. They have simply forgotten or maybe they have never even been taught the truth. Imagine that.

Can we place the blame on these modern day pharisees for the declining relevance of the church? I don’t think they deserve that. We need to look at them as being as lost as someone who has never stepped inside a church. Which means, what they deserve is to hear the true Gospel. They also need a big hug. They need to be told, “It is finished!”

Yep, it is finished. Jesus did the work. He lived a sinless life. He died for all of our sins. He rose from the dead! He did what we couldn’t do. He did what we will never be able to do.

Jesus was and always will be enough to finish the job. So, rest, my weary brothers and sisters. Just rest.