Salvation
is a beautiful, free gift, accepted by humble faith and secure
forever. However, after
salvation,
there
is
the need to maintain a humble heart
to trust the Lord with the
continuing work
of sanctification.
In
my
personal
journey of sanctification, I recognize that I often fail in walking
in the daily humility that Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was enough
for sanctification as
well as salvation,
and my spiritual
works do not change how much He loves me (this
is not at all alluding to salvation by works, but the work that the
Holy Spirit does after salvation to grow me more into the image of
God).
Despite
how I feel or how “cleaned up” I attempt to make myself, it does
not add to or detract from His love for me. His
love for me is whole and complete and eternal, regardless of my work.
It is out of pride that I seek to take on the responsibility of
personal reform, and I see that I am subconsciously thinking that
then I will be more acceptable to God this way, but
what a stupid mask to take on!
To base my personal appearance or my spiritual “feelings” on how
much I am loved by God and the power of the cross in my life! How
many moments I have missed of walking in close and abiding fellowship
with my Heavenly Father because I am feeling
like
I can
and
should do
something so that I am acceptable to Him. It
is the Holy Spirit’s responsibility to create a change in me that I
could not ever attain to, and it is pride in my heart to think I could
or attempt that transformation.
I
think of a little kid when they want to play by covering their eyes
with their hands and think that since they cannot see you, you
cannot see them. I see this as a real reality of moments in my
relationship with my Lord. I see myself as falling short of the
sanctified perfection that I desire, so I try to cover myself with
efforts in fasting, full confession of sin, dedicated Scripture memory, prolonged time in prayer, daily time in the Bible, etc., so that I will feel worthy to be loved by Christ. These disciplines are
needed, but should stem out of obedience and thankfulness, not
from frantic attempts to gain the favor of God.
The humor in this false thinking is that He does see all of me, and it does not
phase Him. My weaknesses are an opportunity to show His power, to
extend His love toward me, and for me to humbly walk in the
sin-conquering victory of Jesus Christ. It must grieve His heart in
those moments when I am feeling the need to mask myself with my own
assumed spirituality and not bending my pride to accept the fullness
of the cross. He died, not so I could work more, but so that I would
accept His work for me…the fullness of the work. Isaiah 42:21 says,
“The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will
magnify the law, and make it honourable.” His righteousness’
sake, His own work, His sacrifice. The simple fact is that I am
not acceptable, never was and never will be in and of myself, and
cannot attain any good works in and of myself, it is all because of
Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit. It takes losing my pride to
acknowledge that to myself and the Lord. Yes, it takes humility,
humility to lose all of my spiritual “facade”, to acknowledge
that there is nothing in myself that works good, to tear off all of
my masks of self-clothed spirituality and fall before the Lord and
accept His sufficient righteousness and love to daily cover me. The
Lord sees all of me...and He loves all of me. So, in the moments (or
days) when I feel the temptation to work out my sanctification in my
own prideful strength, to choose instead to humble my heart before my
Lord, accept His grace, acknowledging my full, broken need, and then
walk in the fulness of the righteousness that Christ poured over my
in His death. His love is enough. His work is enough. His love was
great enough for salvation, it is great enough for sanctification.
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