During the Christmas Season, there is a lot of celebration. Lights, food, parades, family events, and more seem to come with this time of year. For many of us, this is a time to remember those who are no longer with us. I wanted to share some encouragement from The Grace Life with you today. Here is all of Chapter Eight. Read until the end for some encouragement if you are dealing with the heavy weight of loss.
In this chapter, I share some deeply personal weights my family and I have endured. I believe this will help you if you have been dealing with loss. Here is Chapter 8 from The Grace Life: How to live free from religious bondage. Blessings.
Salvation
Why Jesus did it
We have covered who Jesus ministered to. We have discussed what Jesus completed. The when and where are straight forward: first century Israel. Now let’s cover the why. Why would Jesus go through all He did on Earth? What would drive Him to endure constant ridicule from the religious leaders of His day? Why would He subject Himself to the fickle crowds who would shout “Hosanna” one moment and “crucify Him,” a few days later? Why would Jesus, being all-knowing, come to the Earth to be tortured and die with all the sins of the world on him? Why? Because of His great love for us.
What is salvation? For many years, I thought salvation was the ticket that kept me out of Hell and got me into Heaven. This Salvation Ticket was something I had to hang on to tightly. I had to make sure that I was worthy to have it. I had to work to maintain this ticket. It was almost as if it could slip out of my hand at any moment and blow away, leaving me stranded on the “highway to Hell.”
In Romans 1:16, Paul writes, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” The word, salvation, is from the Greek word, “sōtēria.” This means so much more than a ticket to Heaven. It has implications here on earth. According to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, Sōtēria can been translated to mean: deliverance, preservation, safety, and salvation. There is so much more to this salvation we possess than just avoiding Hell.
Salvation is Christ delivering us from the curse of the Law according to Galatians 3:13. We are no longer bound to the curses associated with failing the Law. Deuteronomy 28 describes the blessing and the curse of the Law. Verses one though fourteen describe the blessings in keeping the Law. Verses fifteen through sixty-eight describe the curse! I don’t understand why our nature is to want to hold on to the Law when we have been delivered from its curse. Jesus paid the ultimate price for our salvation. Let’s not cheapen it by attempting to keep a Law we were never meant to be able to keep, just so we can say we did our part.
When food is preserved, it is made to last longer than it would on its own. Through Christ, we are preserved from the decay of this world we live in. “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23) This verse says that we are sanctified “wholly.” In other words, we are set apart completely in all respects. As we are set apart by God because of our faith in Jesus, we can be kept until the return of Christ. We don’t have to be torn down by the world.
Have you ever watched someone walk a tight rope or fly on a trapeze in the circus? I have heard it said that high wire acts and trapeze artists are able to do these amazing tricks because they have learned how to properly fall into the safety net. They know that when they fall, the net will catch them and keep them from certain death. Salvation is also our safety net. Salvation through Jesus Christ keeps us from falling beyond repair. You may have seen someone fall, or fallen yourself and ask, “what about someone who had their life ‘ruined?’” Or, “what about someone who died?”
Someone who says a life is “ruined,” is looking at a life from a very narrow perspective. We all make mistakes. We all fail and spiral out of control in our own ways. Some of us get involved in addictions. Others of us just make stupid decision after stupid decision. If, in either case, we stop and take a snapshot of that moment, we could say we are doomed to fall to our demise. Know this: If you or someone you love is in a downward spiral, Salvation is safety. The same power that raised Jesus from the grave is on the inside of EVERY believer. Life is a long journey. If we keep moving forward, the scenery changes. Life in Christ will rise up because He will save all who ask.
While we are on this subject, I have made stupid decisions that caused tremendous pain for me and my family. I have seen others do the same. When I stopped relying on my own lightning fast mind to get me out of the situations it got me into, and started relying on the Wisdom of God, we experienced the safety net. We were able to rise up and move forward. I went from considering death as an alternative to the pressure, to enjoying life. I know myself well enough to know it wasn’t my ability to get us out of the mess I got us into. I have a wise God and an amazing wife who both love me more than I can even imagine. No matter how far we fall, there is safety in Christ.
In life, we will face what we consider tragedies. Someone we love has a terrible illness. Someone we love dies way too early. We face pain and loss throughout our lives. How do we reconcile this salvation with the pain we face? I have known many who have faced loss in their health, a loved one’s health, or the death of a loved one. Some turn to God and hold on with all their might. Others have walked away from Him.
First, let me say this: God does not put tragedy in the lives of those He loves. Who does He love? “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) If you are breathing, God loves you. There is no way on this earth that I would break my son’s arm to teach him a lesson in obedience. I would never give my beautiful daughter a black eye to teach her a lesson about vanity. Neither would you. Why do we assume the Father is teaching us by disease, lack, and death?
Yes, these things do occur to each of us at some point in our lives. My Dad fought a courageous war with kidney disease and many other medical issues. Some of the “smaller” issues he dealt with would have been enough to make a strong man curl up in the corner and give up. Not my Dad. He lost one kidney to cancer. He had several medical issues and miracles. Later, they found he had cancer in his other kidney. He made the tough choice to have it removed as well. His full-time job became dialysis and recovery. He went through the process of trying to get on the transplant list, but because of his other health issues, he was not eligible and he would not allow his kids to even begin to speak of donating a kidney to him.
We watched Dad fight battle after battle. Most wars don’t go on as long as he fought. We all, of course, prayed many times for his healing. We saw miracles along the way. We just didn’t see a complete physical healing. I watched Dad grow into a deep understanding of the Grace of God during the last years of his life. He was my original role model in the things of Christ, however there was something different about the peace he had in those last days. He was naturally tough and grounded in Christ. Even unbelievers marveled at his faith.
Did God put these diseases on my Dad to teach him a lesson? No. In John 10:10 – 11, Jesus says, “The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” The word “life” is from the Greek word, zōē. To understand zōē, let’s look at the Amplified version of verse 10: “The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance [to the full, till it overflows].” Jesus paid the ultimate price for us to have and enjoy life in Him. Why in the world would He put the curses of the Law (sickness, disease, poverty, shame, etc.) on us when He came to remove these burdens from our shoulders?
God is a good Father. My Dad taught me many lessons in life. There were two times that I can remember getting a spanking from him. Yes, I did get spanked. No, I was not abused or traumatized. If Dad was angry, he would not spank his children because he never wanted to hurt us in any way. He only wanted to impress on us to never do the action again that would get us or someone else hurt. I distinctly remember Dad talking with me before and after these two spankings to teach me and let me know that he loved me and was doing this for my benefit. I am better because of it. If I had a father who kept me under his thumb and beat me every time I made a mistake, I would not have the confidence or courage to do anything of significance today. I would be afraid of making a mistake and being severely punished. God loves you too much to abuse you.
Do we face times of tragedy, lack, and even chronic disease? Yes, we do. Do we learn lessons along the way and grow from these times? We can. Can God take us from the depths of despair and make our lives an example of His love toward us? Absolutely. Do I believe that God brings these things on us to demonstrate His power? Not in the least. I believe God knows the end from the beginning. He knows what will happen in our lives, so He provides along the way. He knows we live in a fallen world where sin abounds. He knows that because sin is so prevalent, people will make choices against His wisdom and direction. He is completely aware that mankind’s decisions have led to various diseases, plagues, and pain.
I know the following will sound like heresy, but stick with me. I will show you in New Testament scripture what I’m talking about. We have been taught that God is in absolute control of everything that happens in every person’s life. This simply is not true. In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul calls Satan “the god of this world.” Adam gave his authority over when he committed the first sin. Since then, “… your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8) We do have an adversary. We have someone looking to devour us. This is not an either / or situation: Either God loves me, or Satan is attacking me. This is a both / and: Both, God loves me (so He helps me along the way) and Satan wishes to tear me down because I have defected from his kingdom.
The common misperception is, because God knows what will happen before it does, He must be the one who is controlling everything. Look at it this way: He knows what will happen, so He puts blessings, miracles, and people in our path who will help us through the most difficult situations. Have you ever met the right person at the right time who was a blessing to you and your family? Have you ever had unexpected income when things were tight? Have you ever heard a doctor tell you your disease should be progressing faster than it is? This is the demonstration of the love of the Heavenly Father.
Paul, when speaking to the people of Lystra, said, “…the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein: Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” God was demonstrating His love toward all mankind, even before He was known or accepted. He provided all good things, from rain for the crops to joy in our hearts. He is the loving Father, not the abusive taskmaster.
If God was doing good for us before we accepted Him, how much more does He desire to do good toward us after accepting Him? You may ask, “but what about believers who suffer?” Sometimes, our faith is tried. Sometimes we face situations we don’t think we can handle. The Apostle Paul spoke of the “thorn in his flesh,” a heckler sent by Satan to disrupt his meetings. He prayed three times for this man to be removed from his life. His answer was not what he wanted to hear. “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) God did not remove Paul from the situation. He gave His Grace to get Paul through it. Paul’s perspective is what changed. He went from a woe-is-me mentality to “most gladly.”
Later, in 2 Corinthians 4:17, Paul writes, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” His perspective has changed from “I can’t handle this anymore,” to this “light affliction.” Understand, Paul was stoned and left for dead, imprisoned, beaten, shipwrecked, snake bitten, abandoned, persecuted, and defamed. He called it a “light affliction.” When we face trials in our lives, our perception of what is happening can change how they affect us. God’s Grace can overtake our lives and give us strength to get through the hardest challenges we will ever face. God sees that we are going to face hard situations and provides Grace to support us when we would be crushed on our own.
When I was in high school, I loved to lift weights. I still enjoy it today. One day, my brother, Juston, and I were at the YMCA. We were the only ones in the weight room. We were bench pressing what we thought was a heavy weight. It was for us, anyway. One of Juston’s high school friends, Grant, walked in. He had gone to Nebraska to play football and was home for a visit. He walked up to another bench and put nearly twice the weight we had on his bar. He asked Juston to spot him. He bench-pressed this weight, that would crush the average person, at least eight times. He then stood up, stretched a little and said, “Now it’s time to work out.” (He did go on to the NFL and has multiple Super Bowl rings that attest to his discipline and hard work.) This weight was more than I could move. From my point of view, it was more than I could bear. From his perspective, the same weight was a warm-up set.
I think this is what the Apostle Paul was speaking of when he said, “our light affliction.” Paul had been through so much in his life. He could have had a victim mindset. People turned their backs on him. They abused him physically and emotionally. He was lied about, ridiculed, and accused in courts of law of things he did not commit. He had close friends who faced deadly diseases. Paul wrote most of the new testament from a prison cell. Any one of these circumstances would be more than most of us would want to face. Yet, God’s Grace was sufficient to strengthen Paul to not only survive these things, but to have a testimony of His goodness through it all. God did not do these things to him. Paul understood that these situations were brought on by an enemy who is seeking to destroy what God loves, mankind. We all face trials, temptations, tragedies, times of lack, etc. We have a choice to make. We can be an overcomer by His Grace, through faith. Or, we can be crushed by the weight the enemy throws at us. I choose to hold onto God and not let go. I have witnessed too many miracles and examples of overcomers to think for a moment that God would let me down. This is not to say that I have always gotten what I’ve asked for. I have been through pain, depression, lack, loss, loneliness, guilt, and shame in my life. However, my perspective is God’s Grace is sufficient for me and His strength presents itself when I am at my weakest.
God does not put us through hell in order to teach us a lesson. He will occasionally lead us into a dry place in life to get us away from all the distractions. He does this for our benefit. His Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness (desert) for 40 days. He fasted and prayed during that time. After that, Satan himself came to tempt Jesus to sin. Jesus was prepared for it and won.
Paul went to the wilderness for three years. During that time, he was given the blueprint for the Church. He was given the doctrine of Grace. He personally spoke with the risen Jesus. Paul’s many trials came after his time in the wilderness.
As you can see, God takes people to the wilderness, or dry times, to prepare us for something greater than we have done before. This is a time of limited distractions. It may be a time of being alone. However, it is not a time of loneliness. There is a difference between God taking us through a season of preparation and a time of being attacked by the enemy. If you are experiencing theft, death, or destruction: this is an attack of the enemy. If you are experiencing a season of guidance, course correction, and seclusion: this is the Father preparing you for more.
The Father wants to help us become more through seasons of growth. He does not stomp us down. Instead, He builds us up. There are many times where it is uncomfortable to be corrected. This may hurt our ego. However, it will not hurt us at all. A proper sense of who we are is extremely valuable.
The enemy will send attack after attack attempting to destroy us. He does this because he hates us. There is no other motivation. He does not want us to grow from our experiences. He wants to crush us. The Father molds us and shapes us into the best versions of us. He does this for our benefit and for the advancement of His Kingdom. Do you see the difference?
You may ask, “but why would an all-powerful, loving God allow such pain and sorrow in the world?” There is no easy answer for this question. What I do know is this: God gave dominion of the Earth to man. Through one man, Adam, sin entered into the world. The end result of sin is death. Before sin, there was no death. As we move forward in time, there will be more destruction due to sin. God loved us enough to provide salvation for all mankind. Not all people will choose to receive salvation. Instead, they will choose to live a life apart from God. Even though, in Christ we are free from the curse of the Law, we are not free from the results of our own rebellion.
God knew our failures before we committed them. Because of His love for us, He gave us opportunities to turn around. He made your body reject that first cigarette by coughing uncontrollably and feeling nauseous. If you choose to push beyond this natural rejection and smoke for 50 years, your body will probably succumb to lung disease, heart disease, or cancer. If you decide to drink and get behind the wheel of a car, you will eventually cause untold pain in your life and in the lives of others. In the second part of James 1:15, James writes, “sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
We go through many trials in our lives; some of our own doing; others being no fault of our own. Thankfully, we have a Savior who laid His life down for us because of His overwhelming love toward us. When Paul was writing to the Philippians, he was facing death for preaching the Gospel. This is what he had to say about salvation: “For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:19 – 21)
Notice what carried him through this time of immense trouble. He turned first to his salvation. He then leaned on the prayers of those who loved him. He received from the Holy Spirit by faith. After reflecting on all of these, Paul knew he could face what was coming his way. He was going to magnify Christ no matter the outcome of this trial. If he lived, Christ would get the glory. If he died, he would be present with the Lord. All his troubles would be behind him. He could not lose.
“There is no situation where a believer does not win. Even if we die, we have the ultimate victory.” – Pastor Michael T. Smith. When I heard this for the first time, the “yeah, buts” started to come up in my mind. Then I reflected on my own life. There were times where I faced trials I never wanted to face. In the darkest moments, I didn’t know if I was going to make it through. Yet, I’m here today. Not because I’m so strong, but because of the strength inside of me through the Spirit of Christ. I told you about my Dad. Did he lose his fight? Hardly! He won overwhelmingly! He is in a glorified body with no pain or suffering. He is with Jesus. He has the ultimate victory. He has experienced the result of salvation.
Salvation is for here and now. It is here to give us strength to not only survive difficult situations, but also to thrive no matter what we face. We have victory regardless of the obstacle or the outcome. We cannot lose in Christ. These “light afflictions” are working for us, not against us as they were designed to be.
I once saw salvation as a fire insurance plan. In the unlikely event of a terrible accident or terminal disease, this policy will keep me out of Hell’s fire. In the likely event that I reach an old age and die of natural causes, this policy is still in place to keep me from being tortured in the fires of Hell. Either way I was covered because I said a prayer and I went to church. Christ’s salvation is so much more than a fire insurance policy. While it does contain deliverance from an eternity in Hell, it also involves preservation of our lives, and safety on this fallen Earth.
Why did Jesus come? To bring us an abundant life. Don’t let religion tell you any differently. We are supposed to overcome in this life. We don’t have to wait until we are in Heaven to live victoriously. We don’t have to be timid doormats that the devil just walks all over. We who have faith in Christ have ALL the benefits of His Salvation. Now we just have to find out who we are in Christ so we can live out this victorious life we have in front of us.
DAN TURNER JR. 