Balance- it is a word with a simple definition: an even distribution. In the Christian life however it is anything but easy. No matter where I am in my walk with the Lord, or who I read from (living or dead), there seems to be this constant struggle to find the balance in many areas of the Christian life. Most recently I have thought about, prayed about, and been studying about balance when it comes to my pursuit of holiness vs my rest in the Gospel.
We come across verses like these: verses that call us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12), or command us to cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit (2 Cor. 7:1), or warn against even a hint of immorality among the saints (Eph. 5:3).
And then we come across verses like these:
"So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for Hisgood pleasure." -Philippians 2:12-13
"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age." -Titus 2:11-12
How am I as a Christian supposed to FULLY rest in the Gospel and what Jesus did on the cross and yet REQUIRED to pursue holiness and righteousness in my own life? How does my pursuit stay clear of legalism? This question plagues my heart and mind continually, and although I believe I have grown in my understanding of the answer, I know that I will never exhaust the Truth, or resolve the tension this side of heaven. I have come to accept the fact that God doesn't want me to FULLY grasp these Truths.
You see, how can I PERFECTLY pursue holiness while trusting fully in the Gospel? I would have to understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its entirety, pining every depth, and my own sinfulness yet redeemed righteousness in its completeness...impossible this side of perfection. But I believe this is exactly where God wants us to be. He gives to us His Word, His Spirit, and the grace to grow; and yet we will never arrive. There will never be a day, before heaven, where we somehow know all the answers and have mastered the Christian life. It wasn't meant to be. It is a PROGRESSIVE Christian life, not a perfect one. And in that Truth I can rest.
Does knowing this make me lazy? Quite the opposite. If I know that God has promised to work IN me (Philippians 2) and that He has given me the Holy Spirit to walk a life worthy of what I have been called to and to say no to sin, how much more of a motivation and a hope to I have to pursue holiness and righteous living in this life?! It is all the more compelling knowing there is power in Him to live a holy life.
The BALANCE comes in my remembering WHO is at work, WHY He is at work and HOW He is at work. If I lose sight of that, my motivation can easily become self-centered, self-serving and even self-righteous. When Paul says to examine ourselves in 2 Corinthians 13, he is actually making a plea to look and see if you see JESUS in you! Does your life mirror Christ? He isn't asking the believer to sit down and examine how many ministries they are serving in, how perfect their holy living is, etc., but rather how their life is reflecting Jesus Christ in fruits of the Spirit, in deeds, and in words and heart. I think that is such a precious reminder to all of us that the balance is JESUS! The balance is keeping your eyes fixed on Him and what He did on the cross for you and for me and walking as He walked (striving to live a holy life).
Charles Spurgeon says it well, “Now, what is it to have Jesus Christ in you? The Roman Catholic hangs the cross on his bosom; true Christian carries the cross in his heart; and a cross inside the heart, my friends, is one of the sweetest cures for a cross on the back. If you have a cross in your heart - Christ crucified in you, the hope of glory - all the cross of this world’s troubles will seem to you light enough, and you will easily be able to sustain it. Christ in the heart means Christ believed in, Christ beloved, Christ trusted, Christ espoused, Christ communed with, Christ as our daily food, and ourselves as the temple and palace wherein Jesus Christ daily walks.”
We come across verses like these: verses that call us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12), or command us to cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit (2 Cor. 7:1), or warn against even a hint of immorality among the saints (Eph. 5:3).
And then we come across verses like these:
"So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for Hisgood pleasure." -Philippians 2:12-13
"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age." -Titus 2:11-12
How am I as a Christian supposed to FULLY rest in the Gospel and what Jesus did on the cross and yet REQUIRED to pursue holiness and righteousness in my own life? How does my pursuit stay clear of legalism? This question plagues my heart and mind continually, and although I believe I have grown in my understanding of the answer, I know that I will never exhaust the Truth, or resolve the tension this side of heaven. I have come to accept the fact that God doesn't want me to FULLY grasp these Truths.
You see, how can I PERFECTLY pursue holiness while trusting fully in the Gospel? I would have to understand the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its entirety, pining every depth, and my own sinfulness yet redeemed righteousness in its completeness...impossible this side of perfection. But I believe this is exactly where God wants us to be. He gives to us His Word, His Spirit, and the grace to grow; and yet we will never arrive. There will never be a day, before heaven, where we somehow know all the answers and have mastered the Christian life. It wasn't meant to be. It is a PROGRESSIVE Christian life, not a perfect one. And in that Truth I can rest.
Does knowing this make me lazy? Quite the opposite. If I know that God has promised to work IN me (Philippians 2) and that He has given me the Holy Spirit to walk a life worthy of what I have been called to and to say no to sin, how much more of a motivation and a hope to I have to pursue holiness and righteous living in this life?! It is all the more compelling knowing there is power in Him to live a holy life.
The BALANCE comes in my remembering WHO is at work, WHY He is at work and HOW He is at work. If I lose sight of that, my motivation can easily become self-centered, self-serving and even self-righteous. When Paul says to examine ourselves in 2 Corinthians 13, he is actually making a plea to look and see if you see JESUS in you! Does your life mirror Christ? He isn't asking the believer to sit down and examine how many ministries they are serving in, how perfect their holy living is, etc., but rather how their life is reflecting Jesus Christ in fruits of the Spirit, in deeds, and in words and heart. I think that is such a precious reminder to all of us that the balance is JESUS! The balance is keeping your eyes fixed on Him and what He did on the cross for you and for me and walking as He walked (striving to live a holy life).
Charles Spurgeon says it well, “Now, what is it to have Jesus Christ in you? The Roman Catholic hangs the cross on his bosom; true Christian carries the cross in his heart; and a cross inside the heart, my friends, is one of the sweetest cures for a cross on the back. If you have a cross in your heart - Christ crucified in you, the hope of glory - all the cross of this world’s troubles will seem to you light enough, and you will easily be able to sustain it. Christ in the heart means Christ believed in, Christ beloved, Christ trusted, Christ espoused, Christ communed with, Christ as our daily food, and ourselves as the temple and palace wherein Jesus Christ daily walks.”
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