Back before there was anything called Christianity, God set out to let the people discover for themselves that they did need Him after all.
Back before the 10 Commandments (which there were actually lots more than 10 in case you didn't know), in a Garden called Eden, God hung out with and talked with the people He had made there. Life as it was supposed to be.
The only thing He told them not to do was eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (for once they have that knowledge they are responsible for it) - this is why children do not need to be "baptized" when they are babies, they're not of an age of understanding, so they have a free pass.
Yup, one day off on their own they get some (wickedly deceptive) "bad advice" - they were hanging out with a bad influence you might say...
They couldn't even refrain from doing the one single thing they were told not to do...
Fast-forward: God tells people to "behave" and there are Judges in the lands to help remind the people to behave, after all, if they think they are "good enough" they don't need God to actually lay out the rules for being good, right? Don't people just "know" the difference between bad and good and just want to do the "right" thing?
Fast-forward: The people were outright vial in their ways, so God said, okay you tried in the garden, you couldn't do it.
You tried out on your own with "the knowledge of good and evil", you couldn't do it.
I'll go ahead and spell it out for you. So He gave the Commandments through Moses, we'll even just stick to the 10 for this...
After a not-so-long time it was clear that they had an impossible time keeping even those.
It became clear that it was nearly a loosing battle to actually "be good" - and how good is "good enough"?
After God gave the people ample time to prove to even themselves that they just couldn't overcome their own nature that drove them to do things that weren't virtuous, God said, ok, it's time. I'll step in and give you an out.
That's when He sent Jesus. The point is, "we can't be good" - no way we can be "good enough". We all have stains from some point in our life (maybe that hateful remark?) It stuck to you. It's like mustard on your white shirt, you can wash it and wash it, but it ain't comin' out.
But Jesus' point was to be the way. This isn't some "my religion is better than your religion" banter - it's a free world - which is how we got into this whole mess in the first place, but it's also the way to get free of it and safe from the long-lasting (okay, really long lasting - like eternal) repercussions of all that mess.
Yes, it's about the here and now. Sorry to give the news of reality, you still get to swim in some rough waters in life even when you accept Jesus as your life raft, the difference is, even in those rough waters, you won't be the one who sinks.
But, it's also about what comes next. Jesus is your "back-stage pass" to the good stuff after we leave this life. Why? Because God knew we could never be good on our own, (and He let us have several thousand years to kill each other and hate each other and all kinds of mess so that we'd know it too)so the gift of receiving Jesus who already paid a horrible cost for us through his remedy to death on the cross, would be available to anyone who wanted it.
He overcame death itself so that we could be victorious. If you don't want the gift, you are free to make the decision, but having decided Yes in my life, I'd never go back to trying to "do" it on my own - I am so free. (Free of guilt, shame, worry, wondering if I'm on the right path for life, it's nothing I can truly explain well enough unless you've known it for yourself).
Question though, are there any areas in your life that you know deep inside, every time you fail to overcome or do wrong and you know you are doing wrong that make you ready to say, "Okay, I can't do this on my own."?
If you want help, if you are ready for help (whatever the area is, no matter how big or small it seems), if you are ready to give it to God and allow Him to help, He will open Himself to you and receive you.
We aren't meant to do this ourselves, that's just pride and self-justification to think we can. It's not helping us, its just keeping us from the only One who can help us.
It all starts with a single decision "Yes, I will ask Jesus to be my savior, the own who took my place and let Him be my goodness, to wash away all of my stains. I can't do it and I'm done trying to hide them."
Then it continues with growing closer in relationship, where He really can make you more like Him in grace and wholeness, helping you overcome those areas where you kept falling into the things even you don't want to do but have been finding yourself in anyway. This comes out and is done-away with when you walk in the relationship. Bringing healing and restoration in areas you didn't even remember you were still hurting, and even to those you are acutely aware of. It's a life process and it just gets better with each step closer to the One, the Father, the loving God of all creation.
Back before the 10 Commandments (which there were actually lots more than 10 in case you didn't know), in a Garden called Eden, God hung out with and talked with the people He had made there. Life as it was supposed to be.
The only thing He told them not to do was eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (for once they have that knowledge they are responsible for it) - this is why children do not need to be "baptized" when they are babies, they're not of an age of understanding, so they have a free pass.
Yup, one day off on their own they get some (wickedly deceptive) "bad advice" - they were hanging out with a bad influence you might say...
They couldn't even refrain from doing the one single thing they were told not to do...
Fast-forward: God tells people to "behave" and there are Judges in the lands to help remind the people to behave, after all, if they think they are "good enough" they don't need God to actually lay out the rules for being good, right? Don't people just "know" the difference between bad and good and just want to do the "right" thing?
Fast-forward: The people were outright vial in their ways, so God said, okay you tried in the garden, you couldn't do it.
You tried out on your own with "the knowledge of good and evil", you couldn't do it.
I'll go ahead and spell it out for you. So He gave the Commandments through Moses, we'll even just stick to the 10 for this...
After a not-so-long time it was clear that they had an impossible time keeping even those.
It became clear that it was nearly a loosing battle to actually "be good" - and how good is "good enough"?
After God gave the people ample time to prove to even themselves that they just couldn't overcome their own nature that drove them to do things that weren't virtuous, God said, ok, it's time. I'll step in and give you an out.
That's when He sent Jesus. The point is, "we can't be good" - no way we can be "good enough". We all have stains from some point in our life (maybe that hateful remark?) It stuck to you. It's like mustard on your white shirt, you can wash it and wash it, but it ain't comin' out.
But Jesus' point was to be the way. This isn't some "my religion is better than your religion" banter - it's a free world - which is how we got into this whole mess in the first place, but it's also the way to get free of it and safe from the long-lasting (okay, really long lasting - like eternal) repercussions of all that mess.
Yes, it's about the here and now. Sorry to give the news of reality, you still get to swim in some rough waters in life even when you accept Jesus as your life raft, the difference is, even in those rough waters, you won't be the one who sinks.
But, it's also about what comes next. Jesus is your "back-stage pass" to the good stuff after we leave this life. Why? Because God knew we could never be good on our own, (and He let us have several thousand years to kill each other and hate each other and all kinds of mess so that we'd know it too)so the gift of receiving Jesus who already paid a horrible cost for us through his remedy to death on the cross, would be available to anyone who wanted it.
He overcame death itself so that we could be victorious. If you don't want the gift, you are free to make the decision, but having decided Yes in my life, I'd never go back to trying to "do" it on my own - I am so free. (Free of guilt, shame, worry, wondering if I'm on the right path for life, it's nothing I can truly explain well enough unless you've known it for yourself).
Question though, are there any areas in your life that you know deep inside, every time you fail to overcome or do wrong and you know you are doing wrong that make you ready to say, "Okay, I can't do this on my own."?
If you want help, if you are ready for help (whatever the area is, no matter how big or small it seems), if you are ready to give it to God and allow Him to help, He will open Himself to you and receive you.
We aren't meant to do this ourselves, that's just pride and self-justification to think we can. It's not helping us, its just keeping us from the only One who can help us.
It all starts with a single decision "Yes, I will ask Jesus to be my savior, the own who took my place and let Him be my goodness, to wash away all of my stains. I can't do it and I'm done trying to hide them."
Then it continues with growing closer in relationship, where He really can make you more like Him in grace and wholeness, helping you overcome those areas where you kept falling into the things even you don't want to do but have been finding yourself in anyway. This comes out and is done-away with when you walk in the relationship. Bringing healing and restoration in areas you didn't even remember you were still hurting, and even to those you are acutely aware of. It's a life process and it just gets better with each step closer to the One, the Father, the loving God of all creation.
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