No Shame, Guilt, or Blame

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In his post “More, Not Less,” Tullian Tchividjian shares how we are no longer under condemnation. As Christians, we are free to enjoy complete forgiveness and eradication of all our past, present, and future sin. We stand before God JUSTIFIED!

Tullian Tchividjian writes:

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)

However deep and wide you think the freedom offered to sinners in the gospel is–it’s more, not less. As my friend Dane Ortlund says, “It’s time to blow aside the hazy cloud of condemnation that hangs over us throughout the day with the strong wind of gospel grace.”

Robert Capon expounds on this:

Saint Paul has not said to you, “Think how it would be if there were no condemnation”; he has said, “There is therefore now none.” He has made an unconditional statement, not a conditional one–a flat assertion, not a parabolic one. He has not said, “God has done this and that and the other thing; and if by dint of imagination you can manage to pull it all together, you may be able to experience a little solace in the prison of your days.” No. He has simply said, “You are free. Your services are no longer required. The salt mine has been closed. You have fallen under the ultimate statute of limitation. You are out from under everything: Shame, Guilt, Blame. It all rolls off your back like rain off a tombstone.”

It is essential that you see this clearly. The Apostle is saying that you and I have been sprung. Right now; not next week or at the end of the world. And unconditionally, with no probation officer to report to. But that means that we have finally come face to face with the one question we have scrupulously ducked every time it got within a mile of us: You are free. What do you plan to do? One of the problems with any authentic pronouncement of the gospel is that it introduces us to freedom.

So, what are you going to do now that you don’t have to do anything? The secret of worship is that it’s only when you deeply grapple with the pride-smashing fact that you can’t do anything for Jesus, you begin wanting to do everything for Jesus. True discipleship happens when you come to terms with the fact that you are so unconditionally loved, forgiven, pardoned, and free that you say “yes” to whatever God wants.

The Right Path

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“1 Happy is the man who does not walk in the way sinful men tell him to, or stand in the path of sinners, or sit with those who laugh at the truth. 2 But he finds joy in the Law of the Lord and thinks about His Law day and night. 3 This man is like a tree planted by rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time and its leaf never dries up. Whatever he does will work out well for him.” (Ps 1.1-3 NLV)

“Gossip” by Billy Graham

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There is a story of a woman in England who came to her vicar with a troubled conscience. The vicar knew her to be a habitual gossip—she had maligned nearly everyone in the village. “How can I make amends?” she pleaded. The vicar said, “If you want to make peace with your conscience, take a bag of goose feathers and drop one on the porch of each one you have slandered.” When she had done so, she came back to the vicar and said, “Is that all?” “No,” said the wise old minister, “you must go now and gather up every feather and bring them all back to me.” After a long time the woman returned without a single feather. “The wind has blown them all away,” she said. “My good woman,” said the vicar, “so it is with gossip. Unkind words are easily dropped, but we can never take them back again.”

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer” (Ps 19.14).

 

Ten Facts Men Should Know About Their Wives

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Here is a great list by Perry Noble of “Ten Facts Men Should Consider About Their Wife!”

#1 – Before she was your wife she was God’s daughter…and He is VERY concerned about how someone treats His girl!

#2 – Women are responders, so if there is friction/conflict in the relationship she is most likely responding to something that is off center…and it is going to take an actual conversation where you use words to figure out what it is.

#3 – If a man will not lead his family then satan will!  (See Genesis 3!)

#4 – One of the biggest questions that a woman is always asking of her husband is, “can I trust you with my heart?”  And the answer to this question is not simply declared but rather demonstrated over time.

#5 – Every word you speak has meaning to your wife…and HOW you say those words carry even more meaning.

#6 – No woman responds well to condemnation…and if we are supposed to love our wives like Christ loves the church, and there is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1) then we MUST watch our words carefully.

#7 – It is a spiritual impossibility for an angry husband to love his wife like Jesus loves the church.

#8 – Your wife LOVES to know you are thinking about her during the day.

#9 – Surfing the internet or playing games on your smart phone while she is sitting next to you on the couch is NOT romantic.

#10 – Pursuit must be intentional!  You did not accidentally fall in love…and you will not accidentally stay in love!

“Tim Tebow on Tebowing” By Anugrah Kumar

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It’s the football off-season and Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow made appearances in Las Vegas, Nevada, over the weekend and spoke to thousands of his Christian fans about “Tebowing,” printing Bibles verses on his eye black and what Jesus means to him.

The 3,000-seat Canyon Ridge Christian Church at Lone Mountain Road and Jones Boulevard could not hold the crowd Sunday and about 1,800 people had to sit under a tent outside to watch the service via video feed, according to Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The Christian football star, who had brought the Bible he has used since his high school days, showed Senior Pastor Kevin Odor how to “Tebow” and prayed for those hoping to welcome Christ into their hearts, the Journal reported.

On Saturday night, Tebow spent about 45 minutes talking with Pastor Odor at Canyon Ridge’s auditorium. “I’m pretty sure I’m not the first athlete to get on a knee and pray,” Las Vegas Sun quoted the casually dressed Tebow as saying. “It’s funny, I’ve been doing this same exact routine for the last seven years and for some reason this was the first year that people started talking about it.”

Why does he do it? “There’s all this excitement in a game, whether it’s playing the NFL or college, with all the hype,” he said. “You’re going to do good, you’re going to do bad and all the eyes are watching you and for me, it’s to be able to take a moment to block out everything else and just get on a knee and thank the Lord.”

One of the reasons he gets on a knee, he added, “is because that’s a form of humbling yourself. I want to humble myself before the Lord and say thank you for this opportunity. Thank you for letting me play the game I love. Whether I’m good or bad, whether I’m the hero or the goat, whether I score four touchdowns or throw four interceptions, that will still be the same person, honoring the Lord.”

Tebow also shared about the Bible verses he frequently wore on his eye black until it was banned in 2010. He said he chose Philippians 4:13 because “there’s not a better verse for an athlete.” It reads, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.”

He contemplated changing passages – to John 3:16. “I told Coach (Urban) Meyer, and he said, ‘What?! That’s a good point, Tim, but Philippians 4:13 is what got us here.'” Tebow agreed not to change. But when he finally did during a national championship game against Ohio State, 94 million people did a Google search for John 3:16. “My first thought was how do 94 million people not know what John 3:16 is?” he said.

The verse, he added, presents the essence of what Christianity is. “It’s a verse that changed my life when I was a little boy,” he said. “It’s the essence of what I believe and that’s why I wanted to wear it, because it’s an amazing verse that has the power to change people’s lives.”

Tebow stressed the primacy of faith in his life. “You get bashed against the rocks sometimes,” he was quoted as saying. “But when you have a relationship with Christ … One of my favorite quotes is, ‘I don’t know what my future holds, but I know who holds it.’ I know what my rock is. I know who’s holding my future. It’s easy to get hurried and too busy and distracted from your priorities. Mine are faith, family and football, in that order. When those get jumbled up, you’re putting the wrong things first in life.”

He also mentioned during his appearance at the Las Vegas megachurch that his teammates would occasionally joke about him not cursing on the field. “Some of my linemen would come up to me and say, ‘What is that thing that stops the water in the middle of the river?’ and I said, ‘Dam?’ and they would laugh and say, ‘We got Tim to curse.'”