How Small We Make Something Big

If you have spent long in church circles, you have heard this question:

If I died when I was about to ________, would I make it to heaven?

Before I prayed the prayer.

Right before I confessed Jesus as Lord.

Right before I was baptized.

The essence of the question is really this: What is really essential? How much must I really do? What are the requirements?

I see two major problems with this mindset.

First, this is the DEFINITION of works. We are saved by grace, not works. Salvation is a gift. Many of these questions arise in the debate over whether baptism is a work or not, but as soon as we begin looking at ANY of our responses to grace as required activities, we are focused on works and not grace.

Therefore we make prayer a work.

We make confessing Jesus a work.

We make baptismal submission a work.

Second, this question displays a worldview problem. We are consumed with the bottom line. The smallest number, the least possible work with most reward idea.

We minimize God's grace on the cross to a checklist.

When did Jesus say he wanted us to complete the paperwork?

Didn't Jesus come to heal sick people inside and out? Didn't Jesus come to seek and save those wondering lost?

The moment of my salvation was about 2000 years ago, halfway across the world.

Everything, and I mean everything I do now is a response to this grace.

Grace.

The books I immerse myself in reflect my response to grace.

My willing submission to Scriptural teaching reflect my response to grace.

My laughter, anger, dreams, fears, lusts, self-control, schedule, work, family, finances, worship, ideas, art, and hope all become recreated in response to grace.

Grace is big, let's stop treating it small

Drowning and Worship: Theological Thursday!

I've almost drowned a couple times. Growing up my brothers and I loved to swim. My older brother was great, I was solid, my little brother was less than solid. When we all got together in a pool, all Hades always broke out.

What would start as innocent pushing and dunking inevitably led to water wrestling, holding each other under, and (without realizing it) nearly killing each other repeatedly.

I remember being under a chocker hold of my brother, head under the water, and realizing that I can't escape. I panicked. My arms flailed, my legs failed me, I was flopping in water like a fish out of water. The arms became heavy, tired fighting for the last bit of oxygen in my body. My eyes lost their vision, slowly turning black. My body would not last much longer, there was no more air in my lungs...

...and then my head came up out of the water. And I gasped the great joyous air around me. And I felt life spring into my body like knives, slicing my lungs, my heart, my muscle. Tissue hurt with joy. My eyes ached with the blinding light, my head throbbed with life giving oxygen!

And that is how worship should be. Worship is our bodies, our lives, response to the life giving breath of the Spirit of God in our lives. We were drowning in our sin. Our life ebbed away, and our fight slowly faded. Yet then God's Spirit breathes life into us, and it is shocking, painful, and joyous!

True worship is shocking! True worship causes pain and joy. True worship is desperate breathing in of God, accepting fully his life.

Let us worship desperately!