Grace Remix Read Online Free Page B
said they
were “sanctified in Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:2).
Jesus is holy and righteous and in him you are holy and righteous. A law-preacher says you
must strive to become holy. That’s like saying, “I don’t identify with Christ who is my
holiness.” But under grace we are exhorted to be holy (1 Peter 1:15), because that is what we are.
We don’t do to become, we do because we are.
7. You think you have disappointed God
Under law it’s natural to think that you have disappointed God. No one, except Jesus, has ever
lived up to the righteous requirements of the law. All fall short of God’s glorious standard
(Romans 3:23). But the happy truth is that it is impossible to disappoint God.
12
ESCAPE TO REALITY – GREATEST HITS VOL. 4
Disappointment results from unmet expectations and God doesn’t have any. The word
disappoint is not in his vocabulary and it barely appears in the Bible.
Before you were born your heavenly Father knew everything that you would ever say and
do. He knew how long it would take you to come to the cross. He knew how many times you
would stumble. He knew in advance when you would run like a coward and act like a dullard.
He even knows about all the mistakes you haven’t made yet. And knowing this he still loves
you! Isn’t he wonderful?
Under law it’s natural to think of our shortcomings and project them as disappointments
onto our heavenly Father. But grace opens our eyes to a good God who loves us with an
unfailing love and who, knowing all our faults, chooses to remember them no more (Hebrews
8:12). The next time you do something dumb, don’t listen to the lie that says you’ve
disappointed him. Instead, rest in his shadowless love and rejoice!
A word after
A reader called Michael queried the second sign (“You think we must do everything Jesus
said”). “Aren’t we supposed to obey the commands of Jesus?” asked Michael. “Isn’t that a sign
that we love him?” Indeed it is. Obedience is a fruit of trust. It’s the offspring of a loving
relationship. It is because we know and enjoy the love of Christ that we can love others, preach
the good news, heal the sick, cast out demons, and so forth.
Yet a law-minded person rarely does any of these things—when did you last hear good
news from a legalist?—because they are operating from fear instead of love. They interpret
Jesus’ words as commands that must be obeyed! They fear the consequences of disobedience. They worry they will lose their reward or their salvation if they don’t do what they are told. And
since they aren’t operating in faith they miss grace and curse all that they do. The only
“reward” for performance-oriented religion is anxiety and stress.
When the Galatians fell from grace, Paul asked, “Where is the sense of blessing that you
had?” (Galatians 4:15). A grace-filled life is a blessed life. A law-based life is a cursed one
(Galatians 3:10). Which do you prefer?
Jesus spoke words that the whole world needs to hear, but what you hear in his words will
reflect your heart. If you are confident of your own righteousness, you will hear condemning
law. If you are in need of grace, you will hear grace.
Read Jesus’ words as commands that must be obeyed , and you are setting yourself up for
failure. You cannot succeed. But come to Jesus poor in spirit, hungry and thirsty for his
righteousness, and you will be blessed (Matthew 5:3,6).
13
4. Is God Sovereign?
A friend of mine lost several million dollars in a bad investment. He is well into his seventies
and this was his retirement money, so this is a big blow. How did he lose it? He took some bad
financial advice from a dodgy analyst and put his money where he shouldn’t have. But my
friend doesn’t see it like that. He told me, “God is in control. I guess he didn’t want me to have
all that money.” In other words, God is to blame for his loss.
When I heard this I was too stunned to speak, but my
were “sanctified in Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:2).
Jesus is holy and righteous and in him you are holy and righteous. A law-preacher says you
must strive to become holy. That’s like saying, “I don’t identify with Christ who is my
holiness.” But under grace we are exhorted to be holy (1 Peter 1:15), because that is what we are.
We don’t do to become, we do because we are.
7. You think you have disappointed God
Under law it’s natural to think that you have disappointed God. No one, except Jesus, has ever
lived up to the righteous requirements of the law. All fall short of God’s glorious standard
(Romans 3:23). But the happy truth is that it is impossible to disappoint God.
12
ESCAPE TO REALITY – GREATEST HITS VOL. 4
Disappointment results from unmet expectations and God doesn’t have any. The word
disappoint is not in his vocabulary and it barely appears in the Bible.
Before you were born your heavenly Father knew everything that you would ever say and
do. He knew how long it would take you to come to the cross. He knew how many times you
would stumble. He knew in advance when you would run like a coward and act like a dullard.
He even knows about all the mistakes you haven’t made yet. And knowing this he still loves
you! Isn’t he wonderful?
Under law it’s natural to think of our shortcomings and project them as disappointments
onto our heavenly Father. But grace opens our eyes to a good God who loves us with an
unfailing love and who, knowing all our faults, chooses to remember them no more (Hebrews
8:12). The next time you do something dumb, don’t listen to the lie that says you’ve
disappointed him. Instead, rest in his shadowless love and rejoice!
A word after
A reader called Michael queried the second sign (“You think we must do everything Jesus
said”). “Aren’t we supposed to obey the commands of Jesus?” asked Michael. “Isn’t that a sign
that we love him?” Indeed it is. Obedience is a fruit of trust. It’s the offspring of a loving
relationship. It is because we know and enjoy the love of Christ that we can love others, preach
the good news, heal the sick, cast out demons, and so forth.
Yet a law-minded person rarely does any of these things—when did you last hear good
news from a legalist?—because they are operating from fear instead of love. They interpret
Jesus’ words as commands that must be obeyed! They fear the consequences of disobedience. They worry they will lose their reward or their salvation if they don’t do what they are told. And
since they aren’t operating in faith they miss grace and curse all that they do. The only
“reward” for performance-oriented religion is anxiety and stress.
When the Galatians fell from grace, Paul asked, “Where is the sense of blessing that you
had?” (Galatians 4:15). A grace-filled life is a blessed life. A law-based life is a cursed one
(Galatians 3:10). Which do you prefer?
Jesus spoke words that the whole world needs to hear, but what you hear in his words will
reflect your heart. If you are confident of your own righteousness, you will hear condemning
law. If you are in need of grace, you will hear grace.
Read Jesus’ words as commands that must be obeyed , and you are setting yourself up for
failure. You cannot succeed. But come to Jesus poor in spirit, hungry and thirsty for his
righteousness, and you will be blessed (Matthew 5:3,6).
13
4. Is God Sovereign?
A friend of mine lost several million dollars in a bad investment. He is well into his seventies
and this was his retirement money, so this is a big blow. How did he lose it? He took some bad
financial advice from a dodgy analyst and put his money where he shouldn’t have. But my
friend doesn’t see it like that. He told me, “God is in control. I guess he didn’t want me to have
all that money.” In other words, God is to blame for his loss.
When I heard this I was too stunned to speak, but my
Readers choose
J.S. Luxor
Pierre Boulle
Highland Fling
Joanna Trollope
Judith Laik
Karen Swart
Ian Fleming
Jackie Shemwell
Ray Garton
Joann Fletcher