Monday, November 20, 2006
The Cross and the Dumpster
You’re probably thinking, “Now that’s an odd title for an article?” What does the cross have in common with a dumpster? Well, in fact, the two have quite a bit in common. The cross is the place where Christ bore all the sins of the world, including yours and mine, absolving us from our past, present, and future guilt. According to Webster’s New World Dictionary, sin is defined as, “…any offense or fault.” For the Christian, the cross is the place where we can lay down all of our offenses and faults and not have to feel guilt for them. We no longer have to pay for our sins with our own good works or with physical sacrifices or offerings as the Jews of the Old Testament had to do. We get to set our burdens at the foot of the cross and walk away empty handed, because Christ paid the price for us. In Matthew 26:28, Christ is recorded saying, “For this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” The weight of our sins is gone, paid for in full. There is no outstanding balance. Or, is there?
We know cognitively that we are not required to pay for our sins once we have confessed them to the Lord, but many of us lay them down at the cross and then take them back. We feel compelled to pay for them on our own, even though it does no good. The Bible makes it clear that we can add nothing to the payment Christ already made for us, for it was perfect and wholly adequate. We must simply put our faith in Christ and confess our sins to him. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9). Likewise, the Bible clearly affirms in Acts that it is belief in Christ that clears one of his sinfulness. Acts 10:43 declares, “…whoever believes in Him (Christ) will receive remission of sins.”
Similar to the cross sits the average household dumpster. It is the place where you can deposit all of your household waste, the things that you want to get rid of permanently. People do not generally throw their trash into the dumpster with the intention of taking it back. The rubbish is thrown into the magical bin and it never returns to your home. The trash company takes it from you, forever. It might sound insulting to equate God with the trash company; however, metaphorically speaking, it works, if you think it through. He too wants to pick up your garbage and take it from you eternally. He doesn’t want you to sift through the trash can to retrieve your old waste. Isn’t that a disgusting thought, to sort through your old trash? And yet, we as Christians rummage through our spiritual trash bins looking for old offenses and faults.
It seems obvious that we as Christians should not take back the burden of our past sins. Once we lay them down at the cross, we should walk away and not look back. Sure, we will need to deposit new ones at the cross, asking the Lord for forgiveness and cleansing, and then similarly walk away with HIS peace. We should take a deep sigh of relief that says, “Ah, it’s paid for and I’m free.” Hebrews chapter ten affirms the adequate payment Christ made on the cross for the believer. It proclaims in verse twelve, “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God.” It then goes on in verse seventeen quoting Jeremiah 31:34 stating, “…‘Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’” Paul concludes this point in verse eighteen saying, “Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.” It doesn’t mean we should take what Christ did at the cross lightly. But, it does mean we should take it seriously enough to honor what Christ did when he paid for our sins in full. Because of this, we should not take back our sins as if his payment was inadequate. Next time you take your trash cans out to the dumpster and dispose of your household refuse, think of the cross and how you can correspondingly let go of your personal garbage for good. You can walk away and feel your burdens lifted. When Satan tempts you to take them back, picture Christ hanging from the cross saying, “It is done.” Then, spend some time in prayer thanking Jesus for the amazing forgiveness he offers you.
We know cognitively that we are not required to pay for our sins once we have confessed them to the Lord, but many of us lay them down at the cross and then take them back. We feel compelled to pay for them on our own, even though it does no good. The Bible makes it clear that we can add nothing to the payment Christ already made for us, for it was perfect and wholly adequate. We must simply put our faith in Christ and confess our sins to him. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9). Likewise, the Bible clearly affirms in Acts that it is belief in Christ that clears one of his sinfulness. Acts 10:43 declares, “…whoever believes in Him (Christ) will receive remission of sins.”
Similar to the cross sits the average household dumpster. It is the place where you can deposit all of your household waste, the things that you want to get rid of permanently. People do not generally throw their trash into the dumpster with the intention of taking it back. The rubbish is thrown into the magical bin and it never returns to your home. The trash company takes it from you, forever. It might sound insulting to equate God with the trash company; however, metaphorically speaking, it works, if you think it through. He too wants to pick up your garbage and take it from you eternally. He doesn’t want you to sift through the trash can to retrieve your old waste. Isn’t that a disgusting thought, to sort through your old trash? And yet, we as Christians rummage through our spiritual trash bins looking for old offenses and faults.
It seems obvious that we as Christians should not take back the burden of our past sins. Once we lay them down at the cross, we should walk away and not look back. Sure, we will need to deposit new ones at the cross, asking the Lord for forgiveness and cleansing, and then similarly walk away with HIS peace. We should take a deep sigh of relief that says, “Ah, it’s paid for and I’m free.” Hebrews chapter ten affirms the adequate payment Christ made on the cross for the believer. It proclaims in verse twelve, “But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God.” It then goes on in verse seventeen quoting Jeremiah 31:34 stating, “…‘Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.’” Paul concludes this point in verse eighteen saying, “Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.” It doesn’t mean we should take what Christ did at the cross lightly. But, it does mean we should take it seriously enough to honor what Christ did when he paid for our sins in full. Because of this, we should not take back our sins as if his payment was inadequate. Next time you take your trash cans out to the dumpster and dispose of your household refuse, think of the cross and how you can correspondingly let go of your personal garbage for good. You can walk away and feel your burdens lifted. When Satan tempts you to take them back, picture Christ hanging from the cross saying, “It is done.” Then, spend some time in prayer thanking Jesus for the amazing forgiveness he offers you.
Saturday, November 04, 2006
Forgiveness and Grace
If you read my latest entry titled, “A Watched Pot Never Boils,” then you have read my reflections upon the last days of pregnancy and our recent desire to meet our blessed little one. Well, our third little angel did arrive eleven days early. She was welcomed by one very excited preschooler and one not-as-thrilled toddler. Tomorrow, she will be four weeks old and it is amazing how the time has flown. I’m sure I will look back years from now and this time will be remembered as a fuzzy blur. We have been somewhat sleep-deprived as all parents of newborns are, but the time has been an incredible blessing to our entire family. Our preschooler is still absolutely in love with his newest sister and kisses her at every possible chance. Our toddler has adjusted to her as well and really likes holding her, kissing her, and petting her like a kitty.
I am absolutely in love with our newborn. It amazes me how one can be so attached to her newborn instantly. It’s ironic that I would have had concerns about how I would feel about this baby, even though this is Baby #3 for us and I had possessed similar silly concerns when we were pregnant with our second. You do wonder though, “Will I love this baby as much, or how will I feel about this one?” It is quite amazing to me how in love I feel with this third baby as I did with my first two. I’m convinced it’s a God-given maternal instinct to love your own creation passionately…no matter what number he or she is in the line-up. I’m so thrilled to have a new little addition to our family and am thankful for my joyous feelings towards her. Likewise, I’m blessed by our kids’ positive adjustment and enthusiasm towards her as well.
Mixed in with my blissful feelings towards my newborn are feelings of impatience with my other children. I am currently trying to adjust to having three children and am trying to find the balance of loving them all well and simultaneously holding all of my emotions together in a self-controlled manner. At times, I feel like a failure as a mom, because while I do extremely well handling the three throughout most of the morning hours, by the afternoon, I am so exhausted that I frequently lose my temper inappropriately with one of my other children. I need to remember to go to the Lord in prayer for forgiveness and for grace. It’s something I readily preach to others about, but which is much harder for me to apply to myself. I find that the Lord is using motherhood to shape me, even though it is at times uncomfortable and I would quite prefer to be made whole and more patient instantly.
I know that when I do blow it, I can apologize and ask my kids for forgiveness and that they can be learning that even mommy needs to receive grace. I recently lost my cool with our son and had to ask him for forgiveness. I then expressed to him our need for forgiveness from Jesus and commented on how what HE did on the cross pays the price for all of us and for our imperfections. It’s ironic that our little ones would be learning about Christ’s grace through our own personal shortcomings. However, I am so grateful that the Lord would use “…all things for good to those that love HIM and are called according to HIS purposes” (Romans 8:28).
Our quick admittance of our failures helps our children to see that we as parents need God’s help. I try to take prayer opportunities with our children, while asking the Lord to “make mommy more patient.” I hope that our children are seeing our sincerity alongside our deficiencies and how we want to be more like Christ in our own lives. I hope this entry encourages you in your journey as a parent and as a believer. I want to remind you for times when you blow it, that “If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9). Grace and forgiveness be upon you in the coming days, weeks, and years.
I am absolutely in love with our newborn. It amazes me how one can be so attached to her newborn instantly. It’s ironic that I would have had concerns about how I would feel about this baby, even though this is Baby #3 for us and I had possessed similar silly concerns when we were pregnant with our second. You do wonder though, “Will I love this baby as much, or how will I feel about this one?” It is quite amazing to me how in love I feel with this third baby as I did with my first two. I’m convinced it’s a God-given maternal instinct to love your own creation passionately…no matter what number he or she is in the line-up. I’m so thrilled to have a new little addition to our family and am thankful for my joyous feelings towards her. Likewise, I’m blessed by our kids’ positive adjustment and enthusiasm towards her as well.
Mixed in with my blissful feelings towards my newborn are feelings of impatience with my other children. I am currently trying to adjust to having three children and am trying to find the balance of loving them all well and simultaneously holding all of my emotions together in a self-controlled manner. At times, I feel like a failure as a mom, because while I do extremely well handling the three throughout most of the morning hours, by the afternoon, I am so exhausted that I frequently lose my temper inappropriately with one of my other children. I need to remember to go to the Lord in prayer for forgiveness and for grace. It’s something I readily preach to others about, but which is much harder for me to apply to myself. I find that the Lord is using motherhood to shape me, even though it is at times uncomfortable and I would quite prefer to be made whole and more patient instantly.
I know that when I do blow it, I can apologize and ask my kids for forgiveness and that they can be learning that even mommy needs to receive grace. I recently lost my cool with our son and had to ask him for forgiveness. I then expressed to him our need for forgiveness from Jesus and commented on how what HE did on the cross pays the price for all of us and for our imperfections. It’s ironic that our little ones would be learning about Christ’s grace through our own personal shortcomings. However, I am so grateful that the Lord would use “…all things for good to those that love HIM and are called according to HIS purposes” (Romans 8:28).
Our quick admittance of our failures helps our children to see that we as parents need God’s help. I try to take prayer opportunities with our children, while asking the Lord to “make mommy more patient.” I hope that our children are seeing our sincerity alongside our deficiencies and how we want to be more like Christ in our own lives. I hope this entry encourages you in your journey as a parent and as a believer. I want to remind you for times when you blow it, that “If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1John 1:9). Grace and forgiveness be upon you in the coming days, weeks, and years.
