In 1517 Martin Luther posted his 95 thesis declaring salvation by grace through faith. Today the church desperately needs a second reformation of sanctification by grace. Christians are chained to a treadmill of trying to please God by their behavior, of trying harder and sinning less. If they can just discipline themselves enough and be determined enough, they are deceived into thinking they can become righteous and holy and be close to God and He will be pleased. Grace tells us that our relationship and intimacy with our Father in heaven is no longer dependent upon our behavior...or lack there of. Grace tells us we no longer have to strive to become righteous, because He has given us a new nature that is righteous. Grace tells us that it is the only thing powerful enough to deal with our sin. Grace tells us that God is already head-over-heels in love with us and nothing we do can change that. Welcome to "Formed by Grace."

Monday, April 26, 2010

"Sow an act...reap a character" theology!

A friend asked about Colossians 3:12, "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, humility, meekness..." Can this be read through a lens of grace rather than moralistic effort? Good question. I read this verse wrong for years. I pictured it as meaning I should go to the closet, "put on" some clothes and behaviors that really are not me, and if I practice them long enough, I will become like my behavior. Somehow my behavioral efforts of acting kind will seep into me and I will be transformed into a kind person. This is the "sow an act - reap a habit, sow a habit - reap a character"theology! And it is wrong. It requires nothing redemptive.

What if this new nature I have, that God describes as righteous and holy, means that the DNA of kindness is already in me! What if this was an exhortation to let what is already true about me come to the surface so others could see it and experience it? What if I don't have to try to become someone different from who I am, but I just need to live out of who God has already made me to be?
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4 comments:

  1. AubreyApril 26, 2010 at 1:47 PM

    Dad - This is a topic that I would like to see get a lot more play on your blog. Because I find it very difficult to clearly articulate a theology of sanctification that gives proper biblical emphasis to the redemptive grace of God, and also proper emphasis to the fact that there IS effort required on our part. It is not an effort to try and win god's favor, but an effort of obedience because we already have god's favor. -jeff

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  2. AnonymousApril 26, 2010 at 5:12 PM

    How refreshing...and overdo in the too often "Blog Wasteland!" Keep on sharing the discoveries of God's redemptive DNA through your "spiritual microscope." Love the Lord you God...with all your strength...(and) love your neighbor as yourself (Mk. 12:30, 31). We love and miss you and Sue. Always be encouraged as you do so in each of our lives. Greg & Carole

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  3. UnknownMay 24, 2010 at 4:46 PM

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  4. UnknownMay 24, 2010 at 4:53 PM

    Hey Bill,.
    consider this nutshell outline of a thought, weighing it for gold or dross...based on the temple model of a human being (Jesus was a temple, what was the temple-a three part structure roughly corresponding to body/soul/spirit. My spirit is where God lives in me, empty or occupied by others in a non-Christian. My body is the outer court, interacting with the external everything. My soul is an area of interaction between the two.

    If there's any gold there, then, my spirit is redeemed/renewed/sanctified...it is the new identity in me. My body is not. My soul is mixed.

    So, while I can not earn or work toward a new identity in my spirit, I must work to direct my body to follow my spirit. So behavioristic, cause-and-effect, act-habit-character processes apply for my body, even as they apply for all animals... (? :) Scott

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