1 John 3:18-20 – Forgiven in Fact
From 1 John 3… 18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 19 And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. 20 For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.
Lauren Daigle confesses the completeness of her confession when she declares to God in "You Say," "You have every failure, God, You have every victory."
I wonder which of those is harder to release. We hear much about surrendering our victories to the glory of God, and the toxic effects of not doing so. We can quickly become, to be sure, miniaturized versions of the nation of Israel and become so accustomed to a victorious, comfortable status quo that we begin to believe we are enjoying it because we deserve it. In turn, we can begin to judge those who are not experiencing victory and comfort to the degree that we are, when in fact their faith may be greater.
But while we may be scouring our hearts, and perhaps over-correcting, against the possibility of a proud spirit, its opposite exaggeration lurks. Does God really, as Lauren Daigle sings, have our every failure? Martin Luther, proclaimer of ultimate justification to the ages, suggests we think twice before answering that question. He warns, "The Deceiver can magnify a little sin for the purpose of causing one to worry, torture, and kill oneself with it. That is why, he insists, a Christian should not let anyone create an evil conscience within him. Rather," Luther models for us, let him say,'This error and this failing pass away with my other imperfections and sins, which I must include in the article of faith: I believe in the forgiveness of sins."
Greater even than Luther, we have the authority of Scripture behind us as we question the vestigial habits of guilt and anxiety and apply the righteousness of Christ to whatever sins this day shall reveal. The apostle John knew what it was to sin. He could have lived out his days in regret that he leaned on Christ's very bosom, was among His closest companions, and yet resisted His lessons. John was zealous, instead, for pride's fruit, ready to call down lightning, or to exclude from the fellowship those who were doing Christ's work.
Yet the latter-day state of John's heart, his perspective on the errors in his heart, is one to which we can aspire. Seeing us as we are, as awkward and beloved work in progress rather than as our pretensions would purport us to be, he calls out to us as little children, slaying by his wooing the very pride which would lead so heavily on us when we fail. He calls us to venture out from creedal belief well polished to taking action, something which, ironically, a disproportionate fear of failure can keep us from stepping into. There's something in the prideful heart, which, if it fears being shattered by reproof, is not going to try.
John has a better, more intimate, more affirming remedy. The truth of who we are in Christ, he says in 1 John 3:19, shall assure our hearts before Him. What a lovely Audience for such a self-autopsy! We examine our motives, our flaws, our wildly imperfect execution before Him because His verdict is the only one that matters. Likewise, we weigh ourselves before Him because He would guide us when our old, out-of-balance habits take over.
When we make too much, beloved, of what we actually tried in faith but which we dismiss because it didn't produce the visible results we desired, our Heavenly Father is there to remind us that He discerns more accurately. In fact, John 5 says the Father has given His Son to judge, and that Son is the One Who proclaimed from the cross His work on our behalf FINISHED! With Romans 8, then, we re-examine our nagging doubts, our naval-gazing, and our readiness to perpetually criticize our enactment of the faith compared to other people. It is Christ Who justifies, who is he who condemns?
Nothing shall separate us from the love of God, beloved. The most fearsome of spiritual forces shall not do it. Neither shall the nagging flaws this day reveals.
Lauren Daigle confesses the completeness of her confession when she declares to God in "You Say," "You have every failure, God, You have every victory."
I wonder which of those is harder to release. We hear much about surrendering our victories to the glory of God, and the toxic effects of not doing so. We can quickly become, to be sure, miniaturized versions of the nation of Israel and become so accustomed to a victorious, comfortable status quo that we begin to believe we are enjoying it because we deserve it. In turn, we can begin to judge those who are not experiencing victory and comfort to the degree that we are, when in fact their faith may be greater.
But while we may be scouring our hearts, and perhaps over-correcting, against the possibility of a proud spirit, its opposite exaggeration lurks. Does God really, as Lauren Daigle sings, have our every failure? Martin Luther, proclaimer of ultimate justification to the ages, suggests we think twice before answering that question. He warns, "The Deceiver can magnify a little sin for the purpose of causing one to worry, torture, and kill oneself with it. That is why, he insists, a Christian should not let anyone create an evil conscience within him. Rather," Luther models for us, let him say,'This error and this failing pass away with my other imperfections and sins, which I must include in the article of faith: I believe in the forgiveness of sins."
Greater even than Luther, we have the authority of Scripture behind us as we question the vestigial habits of guilt and anxiety and apply the righteousness of Christ to whatever sins this day shall reveal. The apostle John knew what it was to sin. He could have lived out his days in regret that he leaned on Christ's very bosom, was among His closest companions, and yet resisted His lessons. John was zealous, instead, for pride's fruit, ready to call down lightning, or to exclude from the fellowship those who were doing Christ's work.
Yet the latter-day state of John's heart, his perspective on the errors in his heart, is one to which we can aspire. Seeing us as we are, as awkward and beloved work in progress rather than as our pretensions would purport us to be, he calls out to us as little children, slaying by his wooing the very pride which would lead so heavily on us when we fail. He calls us to venture out from creedal belief well polished to taking action, something which, ironically, a disproportionate fear of failure can keep us from stepping into. There's something in the prideful heart, which, if it fears being shattered by reproof, is not going to try.
John has a better, more intimate, more affirming remedy. The truth of who we are in Christ, he says in 1 John 3:19, shall assure our hearts before Him. What a lovely Audience for such a self-autopsy! We examine our motives, our flaws, our wildly imperfect execution before Him because His verdict is the only one that matters. Likewise, we weigh ourselves before Him because He would guide us when our old, out-of-balance habits take over.
When we make too much, beloved, of what we actually tried in faith but which we dismiss because it didn't produce the visible results we desired, our Heavenly Father is there to remind us that He discerns more accurately. In fact, John 5 says the Father has given His Son to judge, and that Son is the One Who proclaimed from the cross His work on our behalf FINISHED! With Romans 8, then, we re-examine our nagging doubts, our naval-gazing, and our readiness to perpetually criticize our enactment of the faith compared to other people. It is Christ Who justifies, who is he who condemns?
Nothing shall separate us from the love of God, beloved. The most fearsome of spiritual forces shall not do it. Neither shall the nagging flaws this day reveals.
"John has a better, more intimate, more affirming remedy. The truth of who we are in Christ, he says in 1 John 3:19, shall assure our hearts before Him."
ReplyDeleteOur tendency for self-condemnation is staggering, however, self-aggrandizement is rarely in short supply. Through CR I see people each week that blanket the full spectrum of these extremes. There are those who are riding high on a wave of successful recovery (i.e. behavioral modification) who are quick to give God credit. Then, there are those who feel hopeless and helpless, wrestling with guilt, shame, fear, and contempt of themselves who feel that they could never stand before God. Yet I wonder each week, which is better?
In reality, neither option is better in terms of divine favor. Psychologically, it is better to engage positive thoughts of self and optimistic overtures of our actions and lives. However, biblically, the latter proves more true of our condition. Yet, when we consider the entire narrative of the Bible, what we realize is that BOTH are true of us each day, yet neither extreme is destination - they are both starting points in the gospel.
The gospel colors in "the truth of who we are in Christ." We are redeemed, beloved, justified, sanctified heirs of a kingdom filled with good works and the knowledge of God. However, we are also duplicitous, envious, selfish, haters of good, who malign the truth of the gospel with every sin and prove our unbelief. The truth of who we are in Christ is that everything we are, with our penchant for sinfulness and unbelief, is redeemed by the perfect life, death, and resurrection of our savior. We, as Christians, stand as righteous before God because of this and there is nothing that can take remove us from this position. The swing of our emotions, despair, and self-confidence before God should all point us back to this truth, "He made him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor. 5:21).
So when we feel confident - praise God in Christ that he has superintended good works through us and not regarded our sin as our own.
When we feel defeated - praise God in Christ that our identity is not defined by our sin and failure because, in Christ, we are purified.
In both of these extremes we can hope in the God who saves and has called us to himself. With hearts that no longer condemn we can have boldness before God (1 Jn. 3:21) to know our identity in Christ and give us confidence and assurance to find peace and rest in him.
Thanks for fleshing this out further. You are right we can go wrong both ways. Even when it seems holier to not let go of our sins, even this actually leads to self-indulgence in some other area.
Delete