Listen to the message HERE.
I recently listened to this message by Dr. Rod Rosenbladt. He is one of the contributors to the weekly podcast, The White Horse Inn.
Pastor Rod primarily speaks to two different groups of people in this message: the sad and the mad.
The sad are those who chronically despair that they are not saved because their lives fall so desperately short of being their best now.
The mad are those who routinely are provoked to anger by the mention of the church as a result often of a negative experience at or in one.
Pastor Rod stresses the point that Christ crucified is enough to save our dark souls. But do you we live and believe that? Do we really believe that His work alone is enough for us?
Pastor Rod asked a very profound and piercing question:
We all know that the Gospel can save sinners, but do we believe it can save Christians who regularly fail?
It is a tragedy that this question is to poignant. But I have to admit: It is legit to inquire.
Do we believe and trust that God will really see us as He sees Jesus? Even if we don't try as hard as we should? Even if we fall further than we admit? Even if we never reach our actualization?
It is a piercing question that forces the issue back to our real, ultimate source of trust. Is it in the finished work of Jesus? To the exclusion of everything else? Even our ability to earn it or pay it back after the fact?
i also loved the point he made in this (that you shared with me) that many (if not most) churches today operate under a pattern of 'law-grace-law': where we preach the law to break unbelievers and turn their hearts toward god's grace, but once they're believers, we preach the law again, that christians have a sort of responsibility and burden to work in themselves what only the holy spirit can accomplish - the fruit of the SPIRIT and resulting works.
ReplyDeleteExactly!
ReplyDelete"The law was our tutor until Christ came."