Sent: January 16, 2005 23:01
Subject: Re: [TruthTalk] Traditional
Christian theology
John wrote:
> David, have you done everything
possible today,
> for the service of the ministry. This
day, did you
> pour yourself out for the
afflicted? Is there any
> degree of selfishness or pride in your
life.
> You you say that you lived your life exactly
as
> God in Christ would have to do in every
respect.
We continually grow in
knowledge and understanding, but this does not mean that we are condemned at
sinners just because we have room to grow. When was the last time you
looked at a baby? Did you say, "what an evil child, so selfish, crying
too often, does nothing but eat, sleep, cry, eat, sleep, cry, every two
hours!" Most people look at a baby and say, "oh, how beautiful, how
perfect, how innocent." Why? It is because they see the
potential. They perceive the lack of motive to hurt others, the
innocency of not knowing how evil the world is around them, and they see
potential to grow in the right direction.
In like manner, none of
us have arrived. None of us are in the full image of Christ, and none of
us alone will reflect the full image of Christ. Nevertheless, we can
reflect that part of him for which he has manifested his grace in
us.
Suppose I pass a
homeless man on the street and he asks me for a quarter. So I reach in
my pocket and give him a dollar and go on my way. I'm busy. I
don't want to get involved in his life, but I do kind of care about him, so I
give him something that does not mean too much to me. Suppose you then
come across this same man, but instead of just giving him a buck, you take him
home with you. You feed him and give him a shower and some new
clothes. You take him out the next day and help him get a job. You
help him find an apartment and bring him to church with you several times a
week. Which of us loved the man better? Which of us was less
selfish. You would be the greater lover here. You would be the
least selfish of the two of us. But does that mean that I sinned because
I only gave the guy a buck? No. Emphatically NO! Think about
it.
I have sometimes said to people, "my life may not be like Jesus Christ
when he was 32 years old and ministering to others without a place to lay his
head, but maybe, just maybe, his grace has worked within me so that I am like
Jesus Christ when he was 5 years old." Now the analogy is not
perfect, but it makes a perfect point. The idea of Jesus being perfect
is not static one. The Scriptures teach that he grew in wisdom and
stature, and he learned obedience by the things which he suffered. Just
because we might not compare to his life in what we see in Scripture as he
ministered, this does not mean that Christ does not live in us and through
us. The way he lives in us and through us might be like that of an
earlier time of his life, and that as we mature in Him, we can expect our life
to more closely approach that which we read in the Scriptures. The only
caveat is that we will never look exactly like him in every way, but we can
look exactly like him in that part which the Spirit has chosen to impart to us
as individuals. We can perfectly represent one aspect of him, even
though as a lone individual we do not represent all of him. It is only
the entire local church that can represent all of him, in all of his
glory. This is why relationship and community is very
important.
Peace be with
you.
David Miller.