Grace...

Just came back from Word Alive today - it was a last minute decision to go and i arrived a day late. But its been 4 days of wrestling with many issues, and the realisation that some of my fundamental doctrinal views are changing... That aside, there were many discussions on law & grace. But I felt that it was made complete only by God's lesson on the train on my way home.

Having being in Birmingham when I bought my ticket to Word Alive, I only had a return to Birmingham but forgot to purchase a new ticket to Coventry, and incurred a fine that got me thinking. The law doesn't give us power to change. It was introduced because of wrongdoing
(The law was added because of transgressions -Galatians 3:19),
but it doesn't give us the ability to - remember to buy tickets - or more importantly, the motivation to do so. All it makes us want to do is avoid paying fines, but could never cause us to desire paying the train company its rightful earnings
(Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. - Romans 3:20)
Only grace can free us in this way and make us want to do what is right. But how? How does the sacrifice of Christ turn us to give Christ the due in our lives?

-Imagine if: God said, "Okay, Jesus will take on the sins of murder, rape, blasphemy, but because the little sins don't matter, He won't bother bearing the punishment for them: for lying, gossiping, pilfering, thieving (yes it IS theft) - yes us. But you know what? These are the very sins that Jesus died for on the cross. We say of these sins, "Ah, God WILL forgive". Have we forgotten why He CAN? But the grace of God abounds more.

-Imagine if: God said, "Well, I'm a little busy with guiding the stars today, I don't think I'll turn up to church." or "I'll skip appointments with Man, he won't mind." or if Jesus had said "I'm feeling a bit tired today from being tortured - I don't think I'll turn up at the cross...." But He commits Himself to be always there - and on top a special promise when several are gathered in His Name.... Do we forget that when we are in church, cell, or personal prayer, God actually comes? How about God wanting to meet us?
(But if we are faithless, He remaineth faithful - 2 Tim 2:13)
And His grace is ever abounding... Have we glimpsed it yet?

Learn to allow Him to search us; for His grace teaches us to being free from law and free from sin. Please don't be bound by either anymore... It hurts to see it in our cell, but it pains God to see it in us far far more...


For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. - Romans 8:2-4