Faith, Transformation, Obedience
- Jordan
- Aug 17, 2022
- 5 min read
Matthew 11:28 (NLT) -
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest."
Exodus 14:14 (NIV) -
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.
James 2:14 (NLT) -
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?
The other day, I decided to look back at some of my previous reflections on Scripture, and I found a note attached to James 2:14 saying, "FAITH comes first, followed by TRANSFORMATION by God's grace, THEN obedience to the law." I wrote this in 2020, and quite frankly I find it funny that I still struggle with the same issue now; that it's not by my own straining and striving that I stay in the will of God, but simply by accepting and receiving the grace that he gave to me - gave to us - on the cross through Christ the Son.
The last several months have been quite challenging for me as I've been getting stuck in cycles of distraction. Countless hours spent watching videos that are of little to no benefit to me and have long since lost any level of entertainment they once gave were pulling me from my studies, from my time with God, from my pursuit of this calling he's placed on my life, from my sleep, from my relationships, and from countless other things. To be entirely honest, it was destroying me, mostly because I knew how pointless the whole thing was. I knew that there was more for me - I'd experienced it earlier this year! Despite that knowledge, I struggled to reconnect with God and find the momentum that I had at the beginning of the year.
I felt as though I was tearing apart at the seams. My love for God and my desire to do his will, to show my actions by my faith, didn't seem to be enough to break me out of these destructive patterns of behaviour, even though it was all I could think about. My mind, my heart, and my will were at odds with each other in a 3-way tug of war, and I was caught in the middle, struggling to bring it all together.
However, over these last few days, God has been shifting some things. Last night, I realised that the shame I felt every time I slipped back into that old behaviour was deeply rooted in a need to prove myself to God, rather than just receiving his grace by faith. And as I have been discovering that, God has been releasing me from that sense of shame and bringing me back to a place of stillness and simple acceptance. I've stopped caring about whether I get it right or get it wrong, and have just been asking God to help me take the next step. Incredibly, I've felt more productive, less distracted, and more in the will of God these last couple of days than in the last 2 1/2 months combined, but I haven't had to put in one iota of effort.
God broke me and my need to prove myself, to work for my faith, down until all I had left was once again him and his grace - the cross on which Jesus died, the blood that forgives our sins, and the resurrection life that now lives in all believers. Finally, he brought me back to FAITH first. Since coming back to that place, God has been doing a work of TRANSFORMATION through that same resurrection life, which is the person of the Holy Spirit. He is teaching me to be still before him, lay down my burdens, and rest in his Presence. As I do, I am discovering a greater momentum than I've had in ages - NOW God is leading me in obedience to the law, not by my own strength and ability to live it out, but as a natural overflow of the intimate relationship I'm developing with Him.
For quite some time, I have had a sense of a spirit of weariness over God's people. I've particularly been noticing it in me and among my friendship group, since they're the ones who I see the most of, but I think it extends beyond just us. It is a spirit that has us frustrated because we've been trying for so long to do what God says but just keep falling back into the same old habits. It's a spirit that has us crying out to God, "Where are you?" as we feel overlooked and unnoticed by the people around us, despite us putting in our best efforts. It's a spirit that looks at all the wrestling, struggles, failures, stumbles, and disappointments of the last season and says, "What hope is there in continuing? I'm just so tired, and I want to give up!"
I believe that God wants to remind his people that it's not over yet. The battle has already been won, but Satan wants to take as many people down with him as possible - these are the days we have been living in, the one between Jesus' ultimate victory over sin and death on the cross, and his ultimate victory over Satan and his demons in the events of Revelation. Satan knows he's done for, but he's so bitter and prideful about it that he would rather disrupt God's reflection on earth, those made in God's image, than repent and turn back to God. He's like a toddler kicking a puddle of water while having a tantrum.
For those who are weary, come before Jesus Christ. Be still before him, without trying to prove yourself to him or be anything other than you actually are. God sees all of it anyway; all your victories and failures, your strengths and weaknesses, your joys and sorrows, so why try to hide them from him? Lay down your burdens at the foot of the cross and receive his infinite, necessary, fundamental, transforming, saving grace. Be filled with the Holy Spirit, who was the resurrection power that brought Christ back from the dead, and allow him to transform your spirit and renew your mind. Finally, from a place of rest, walk in the path that God lays down before you, and watch in awe and wonder as God performs mighty works in your life. He will lead you out of your Egypt; he will split wide that sea which you thought was going to be impossible to cross; he will lead you through the wilderness to refine, purify, and prepare you for the calling he's placed on your life; he will deliver you into your Promised Land, the fulfilment of every declaration he has spoken over your life and even more besides. You will walk in the fullness of freedom and life as he has intended for you to have from the beginning, because you will be walking with him.
If you want some further encouragement, listen to this classic worship song (I've been hearing it pop up again in several places lately, and I think it speaks to the season):
Bless you Brother