To The Last Drop

I was once in a church service with started off with a skit which showed a "discipleship" meeting between a "discipler" (the one doing the discipling) and a "disciplee" (the one being discipled).  It went something like this:

Discipler: So how did you do this week with that thing we talked about last time?
Disciplee: Oh man, I blew it.  I don't know what's wrong with me.  I don't want to do it, but I keep falling back into it.
Discipler: We talked about this last week.  You really need to stop doing it.
Disciplee: I know!  But man, you don't know the week I've had and what happened this week.
Discipler: I don't care.  Stop making excuses and just stop doing it!
Disciplee: But I've had a really awful week!
Discipler: Look man, until you take responsibility and just cut it out, I don't know if there's a reason for us to continue to meet.

The disciplee left dejected, and the discipler shook his head and said a prayer that the other guy would get his act together.

I (and others) thought the message would be about grace and heart issues and that life isn't as easy as just, "stop sinning" and that the "discipler" was out of line and not treating the one who was struggling with love, compassion, and grace.  But the message was nearly the opposite.  The discipler was justified, and the disciplee really did need to just stop making excuses, power through, and stop sinning.  We were shocked.  Even horrified.  How far removed from what Paul says in relation to this struggle with sin.

¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do... 18...For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹ For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. ²¹ So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! - Romans 7:15-25

I had talked with one of the pastors a couple years earlier and asked why grace was never talked about.  I was told that they didn't want to spend much time talking about grace so that no one would take advantage of it and think they could do whatever they want.

But that meant that no one received God's grace, had grace for others, or had grace for themselves.  They didn't think they could do whatever they wanted -- they thought they had to do whatever any leader told them.  It fostered feelings of failure, inadequacy, pride, inferiority, shame, fear, even self-hatred and loathing... and on and on.  The consequences of not talking about grace are grave -- they rip at the heart and soul, rob us of hope, and keep us from the Lord. 

Paul begins nearly every letter with "grace and peace to you", and Peter and John each start a letter with the same greeting and extension of grace.  Paul also says, "I do not set aside [avoid talking about] the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law ['just stop sinning!'], Christ died for nothing!" (Galatians 2)

Putting aside grace out of fear that someone might take advantage of it will prevent people from doing so, but it will remove the meaning and power of the cross and death of Christ in their lives.  "By His wounds we are healed", but without receiving His grace, the healing power of His wounds cannot be applied to our lives and He was whipped and beaten for nothing.  Jesus's blood was shed to cleanse our sins, but if we don't receive and live in God's grace and try to be righteous by our own efforts ("no excuses -- stop sinning!"), we say that we don't need the blood that He shed -- thanks Jesus, but all that was really unnecessary.  I got the sin thing handled now -- "stop" button activated.

I once had this amazing glass of wine.  Truly the single best wine I've ever had.  Amazing flavor, smooth, creamy, perfect balance of tannins and sweetness.  I didn't want a drop of that to go to waste -- it was just so good.  The blood of Jesus is far more valuable than that.  Why should I let one drop go to waste because I think, even in one little area, that I can be "good enough" or "follow the rules" and forget about God's grace?  I need His grace, and I need every drop applied to my life -- I don't want to let even one drop "go to waste".

Verse Abuse

It's been around for centuries.  Sometimes it's unintentional or not having a full understanding.  Other times it's with full understanding -- like when Satan used Scripture to try to manipulate Jesus.  And he's still using Scripture to manipulate us today.  I know he's tried to (and sometime succeeded in) use verses against me and convince me of something that isn't true.  Or take a general Biblical concept and twist it to mean more or less than God actually intends.  Like the idea of God being able to meet all your needs turning into, "Get all you need from God," which, by extension, means you don't need people and can live without them.

Sometimes people speak verses to us when they don't apply -- it doesn't fit the context of our current life situation or is somehow misapplied.  I've seen this with the Proverbs 11 verse that says, "those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed."  Sounds pretty good.  There's certainly a measure of truth to that.  But I've heard this stated to small group leaders when they were tired -- people who were already giving of their time and energy trying to "refresh" or meet the needs of others.  If God isn't in our service of others, and particularly if He's actually saying, "REST," going out and working hard to serve more and better will not bring refreshment.  I'm pretty sure it will do the opposite, in fact.

And then the oft used line, "God will never give you more than you can handle."  The incorrect application of this verse was actually mentioned in church last week, again this week, and a coworker just mentioned it concerning the various circumstances in her life.  This idea is from a verse in 1 Corinthians 10, and has transformed a bit from the verse in the Bible, dropping the concept of being tempted and replacing it with a general idea of life dealings.  The verse actually reads, "He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear," and the preceding sentences are addressing temptation.  The verse really has nothing to do with cars breaking down, family members being sick or in the hospital, dealing with cancer, finances, job loss, stress.  It's about temptation.  And even then, it's not, "God won't let you be tempted more than you can handle -- you got this!"  The rest of the verse says, "He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."  The way of handling it?  Knowing God's exit plan.

As for dealing with life events... I'm just gonna be real.  Life is more than you can handle.  Well, it's at least more than *I* can handle.  This was the verse brought up today: "We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life."  It goes on to say that it's only God who could deliver them, they will continue to put their hope and trust in God to continually deliver them (WHAT?!  We're not just delivered once and for all and may need to be rescued again??!), as people continue to pray for their deliverance.  Sounds like we can't handle life without God and a small army of praying saints.

I thought I was supposed to be able to handle moving, but I couldn't handle moving to Michigan on my own.  I needed help moving.  I needed to hear from family and friends.  I needed time to adjust.  I needed new friends.  I probably needed to go home more.  And I probably needed to be visited more.  I may have needed more prayer.  I certainly needed more wisdom and insight.  And needed to fall head-long into the hope of Jesus delivering me.  Again.