Have you ever had something occur only to realize that it
was an answer to a prayer you had prayed some time past and had since
forgotten? That experience was mine last week, and it wasn’t the first time
such a realization had swept over me.
What was different this time was that I had been feeling somewhat
discouraged in my walk with Christ, and the prayer I had prayed weeks earlier
was less-than-heartfelt. So when God clearly answered it and graciously caused me
to remember my request, it was a beautiful encouragement reminding me that He
knows all, that my prayers are always before Him, and that He is very present
in my life.
As I was marveling in the immanence of God, I thought over
what had been discouraging me of late. My own sin and weakness had been
becoming more and more glaringly obvious to me. While I knew that many
theologians explain that this is the mark of a true believer—an increasing
awareness of one’s need for grace—and thus should be an encouragement to me,
oftentimes all it seemed like was that the process of sanctification (i.e. of
being made more like Christ) was in full-on one-step-forward-two-steps-back
mode. How on earth could God be so patient with me?
On top of that, I’d been wrestling with the things we are
called to do as followers of Christ—not with the things themselves but rather
with how we are to do them. For instance, take sharing the Gospel. Speaking
about the Gospel is something that requires a crazy amount of effort on my part.
I can write about it all day long, but opening my mouth is an entirely
different story.
If I don’t make a concerted effort to verbally share the
Gospel, I don’t do it. Yet as I have become more intentional about openly
speaking of Christ, sometimes the effort it requires produces in me the feeling
that I’m trying to do it on my own and because it’s what I’m supposed to do
rather than in the Spirit’s power and out of the overflow of a changed and
enthusiastic heart.
As Christians, we know that being a “good person” doesn’t
save us, but after we are saved we are
to become good (i.e. holy) people. And while this holiness does not consist of
what we do but of who we are (of the transformation of our heart by God), we
are still very clearly commanded to do
things as Christians—things that require effort on our part.
So where is the line between exerting the effort we need to (a
good thing) and trying to live a holy life in our own strength (a not-so-good
thing)? I’m still seeking the answer to this question, but what has encouraged
me as I wrestle through constantly having to ask myself, “Why and how are you
doing such-and-such?” is this: sanctification is a process, and God is
patient.
One day several months ago, I overheard a video of a speaker
talking about sanctification (if I knew who it was, I’d definitely give him
credit). He was addressing the reality I alluded to earlier, that God helps us
overcome one sin pattern in our lives and then turns around and reveals another
one to us. He acknowledged that this can be frustrating and discouraging as we
are constantly confronted with more and more areas of our lives that are not in
line with God’s will.
But then he went on to explain that the very nature of
sanctification’s being gradual is evidence of the mercy of God. If we were
exposed to the entire reality of our depravity at once, he said, we would be
crushed—even to the point of death. We wouldn’t be able to handle it. God knows this, and He has mercifully chosen in
His kindness and gentleness to reveal only gradually the countless ways we
don’t measure up. (Lightbulb!)
So instead of getting bogged down with an overwhelming sense
of failure each time we encounter the realization of yet another unholy facet
of our lives, we can be deeply encouraged that God Himself is working in us
according to His perfect timing to gradually, patiently, steadily grow and
shape us to be less like our former master and more like Him. And in realizing
this, we can endure the painful pruning and chiseling of sanctification and
know through it all a deep, enduring joy.
To read the Arabic translation of this post, click here.
لقراءة الترجمة العربية لهذا المنشور إضغط هنا.
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