Dallas Willard has described our modern version of Christianity as the “Gospel of Sin-Management”, because of our propensity to think in terms of “what do I do about my sin?”. How do I stop, it? Is it sin if I…? What do I do when I do sin? How do I control my “besetting sin”? All these seem to be the central focus of christian practice. If not preventing or managing bad behavior, we are trying to foster “good” behavior. Read your Bible, Pray more. All these things seem so different from what Jesus seemed to say and do for people. How odd that the religion we named after Him promotes itself differently than He did.
Tag Archive - sin
Can we really be free (part 3)
I have been at Gateway Church for over four years now. I can only remember two times I heard our worship band make an actual mistake. Amazingly, one of them was my fault, and I was sitting in the auditorium. The guitar player had borrowed a vintage guitar from me, and it had some fret problems. In a song featuring a single note lead, the guitar line just died.
So, four years, three months, two mistakes, one of them the fault of some guy in the congregation. I began to think one day, and this is what I pictured: The worship leaders must show up every week-end and talk about every single mistake they can anticipate. They must point out to each member of the team where they are likely to blow it, and point out multiple ways to avoid this potential mistake. Don’t modulate downward, don’t count eight here…they must painstakingly line out a whole range of the pitfalls that lay before them each week-end and rigorously plan how to avoid each and every train wreck. You think? I don’t. I can’t think of a more destructive way to plan a rehearsal. Focus on the pitfalls, plan to overcome them.
Amazingly, this is how many live what we have come to call, “the Christian life”. Lessons on how-not-to-sin. Lessons on what to do-when-we-sin. Dallas Willard refers to this as the Gospel of Sin Management, which is of course no gospel at all, and certainly not the message of Jesus.
So picture this; each person shows up and is given their song list. If they do not already know their part, they talk through each persons role, function and contribution. Only acoustic here, screaming lead guitar there, soft keys and a gentle female vocal, then build to the crescendo. As each person is encouraged to know their role, and given clear direction, the complexity of a group of individuals becomes a single entity. Rough spots may be noted and overcome, but the focus is on each person fulfilling that purpose and role that they fulfill in the band.
We are here to be re-presentations of the Nature of God, deposited in us. I guess we could work hard at avoiding sin, but somehow it seems much more freeing to learn how to become the person I was created to be. Focus on the target, not the obstacles. Relax a little, enjoy the ride.
Is God mad at you?
While not spoken out loud, I think I lot of people ask, “Is God mad at me?”
We often think that admittance into heaven will be based on a giant scale. On one side, all the good things we’ve done, and on the other side, all the bad things. Then, whichever way the scale tips, that’s where we’ll spend eternity. More good than bad, then God is happy with us, and we’ll make it into heaven. But, if the scale tips too much towards the bad, then God’s mad at us, and then, it’s hell.
That’s not how it works. Righteousness, or right standing with God, is not based on having more good things in our lives than bad. Actually, righteousness is based on being perfect before God, having never sinned or never messed up. There is a scale in heaven, and on one side is all of the good things we’ve done, and the other side is perfection, having never messed up. That’s what God expects out of us, perfection.
That doesn’t sound very encouraging, does it? “All have sinned and fall short of God’s glorious standard” (Romans 3:23). “There is none who does good, no, not one” (Romans 3:12).
But, there is hope.
Most people misunderstand God’s requirements for heaven. They think God’s attitude towards them is based solely on their performance. If I give more, help more, volunteer more, do more good than bad, then God will be pleased with me. Then, my prayers will be heard. That’s not how it works.
Under the Old Covenant, before Jesus came to earth, God’s attitude towards people was based on their performance. There were more than 600 laws to keep. Each and every law determined their standing before God. But when Jesus came to the earth and died on the cross for us, he fulfilled each and every one of those laws. He was perfect. He was the only person who lived a perfect life here on the earth.
Today, under the New Covenant, we have only one thing that we need to do to please God–to believe and trust in Jesus. In John 6, the disciples were curious. They asked, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?” (v28). They wanted to know what was required of them. Jesus responded, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (v29).
That’s it. That’s the work that is required of us–to believe in Jesus. You see, he is our righteousness. All of his work can become our work through faith (through believing) in Jesus. Sin no longer matters. Sure, it has it’s consequences here on earth, but no consequences in heaven.
I’m going to make a bold statement here: Sin is not what sends people to hell. What sends people to hell is when they reject Jesus Christ. Sin has been dealt with. It’s done. It was nailed to the cross. When Jesus died on the cross, he said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). And, it was. Sin was finished. There was no more sin to be dealt with.
So how does that apply to us today? I’m a Christian, I believe in Jesus and I have put my faith in him. What does that mean to me, a believer?
First, it means that God is passionately in love with you. He is in a constant state of joy over you. He is never mad at you. He loves you. He’s passionate for you. He’s fighting for you with all of his power and strength. And, he’s wooing you. He’s calling you to him for relationship. He wants you to come to him confidently and boldly.
Today, we can do that. We can come boldly to God. Our sin is gone. Our righteousness shines in Christ. He is our new High Priest, our Mediator. He has made a way for us to come to God without sin. With God passionate for us and no sin to hinder us, it is up to us to come to God. “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it” (Hebrews 4:16).
What are you waiting on? God’s calling you by name. He’s ready to love on you passionately.
