I was recently inspired by a friend’s blog post to draft a decree of sorts summarizing my life as a christian. I used most of his text, but threw in some of my own. Enjoy!
I am a pilgrim here and my name is Christian.
I belong to the fellowship of the One who is holy and just. I am a sinner saved by grace abundant. I am totally depraved in nature and was once bound to just damnation in hell. Yet, by His steadfast love and tender mercy, was spared and given a new name and destination. My past is dead and my curse is lifted. I am now a new creature, thirsting for Him who was once my sworn enemy.
By His bidding, I have become a part of the chosen and regenerated body that now lives in union with Him both here and in heaven above (Col. 3:3). I thread the narrow way; the way that leads to suffering and eternal life. This way is the way of the cross. This life is not my own (1 Cor. 6:20). I have been purchased from the marketplace of sin and death at a high price. The life I now live is Christ!
This place is not my home. This world is now dead to me and I to it. My desire is my Father’s desire. My vision is my Father’s vision. My food is my Father’s will. By Him who works in me, I will persevere to the end.
I have His Spirit who continually works within me, transforming my life for the glory of the One who sent Him. I am not ashamed of what He has begun in me or called me to be. Though the world may see me as foolish and mad, I know that my salvation will one day shame the wise of this age.
In my pilgrimage through this wilderness, I take with me three things of need. I have the compass of His Spirit within to guide me and comfort me along the way, I have the staff of His good gospel to steady my feet when the ground gives way and the wolf accuses and condemns me, and I carry the book of His testimony to light my path and give me hope until my journeys end.
My life has become that of constant paradox…always dying, yet always living; striving yet always resting; empty and always full; broken and yet always complete; sorrowful yet always rejoicing; having nothing yet possessing everything. (2 Cor. 6:9-10)
I bear His Name and His Mark on my forehead and no force in heaven or hell can tear me from His hand. I now walk with the One who saved me. I wear Him as my clothing, take Him as my food, and flee to Him for refuge from the world, my own corruptions, and Satan. And though my heart is ignorant, sinful, and stubborn, by His Spirit I am continually transformed and renewed from one degree of glory to the next until I will finally become that which He has determined me to be from before the foundations of space and time.
I tread the path of those saints who have come before me. I take encouragement from their testimony and lives and count myself most blessed to be numbered among them.
“All for His glory” has become my song.
Blessed be the name of the Lord.
This is my decree.
Instead of sitting here sick and feeling bad for my poor little self, I thought I might actually make myself useful and actually post something! What a novel idea.
Like I said, I’m sick. Anyone who knows me knows that when I get sick, watch out for the most disgraceful wretch of a pitiful human being ever to grace the planet. Needless to say, I don’t “do sick well”.
Since I am *this* sick, I missed church this morning. I just didn’t feel up to it from all the medicines flowing through me and my general achyness that I have.
As I’m lying in the bed sniffling like a poor school kid who just had his skates stolen, I began to condemn myself. Ever so subtely, that inner condemnation that I know far too well began to sloooowly creep in. “Awe, c’mon Matt, you’re not that sick,” and “Isn’t He worthy enough for you to drag your pitiful carcass out of bed and into church to worship Him?”
Yeah, you reforming legalists out there know what I’m talking about and you know that voice too well.
It’s the voice of your filthy self righteous self telling you that the Lord is now looking down on you in displeasure. It’s you telling yourself that you blew it yet again and that now you need to beat yourself about the head with a clothes hangar for being such a wretch.
But hold your horses there chief. You’re forgetting something and if my hunch is correct, we legalsits tend to fall into this slough more than we would care to admit during the course of a day.
Winston Churchill, who suffered from a constant ongoing depression often referred to it as a “black dog”. It constantly hounded him and was incessantly digging its nails into his flesh. I read an article dealing with this depression of his and something jumped out at me that I saw as all to closely related to the forgiven man’s fight with his own leglsim and self righteousness:
“Black Dog” was Churchill’s name for his depression, and as is true with all metaphors, it speaks volumes. The nickname implies both familiarity and an attempt at mastery, because while that dog may sink his fangs into one’s person every now and then, he’s still, after all, only a dog, and he can be cajoled sometimes and locked up other times.
Get it? That black dog can be beaten back and locked up. But how? How do we, forgiven men and women, fight back that dog of legalism that so cunningly rears its ugly head to condemn us and rob our joy?
The gospel. It’s the gospel that we need to daily administer to ourselves as one gulps down that bitter medicine when they aren’t feeling well. To the self righteous, that beautiful gospel at times may be bitter to take down. To simply rely on the rightousness of another admits that I in my self am not. It’s a direct assault on the pride and frankly, it’s designed to do just that. To assault you right where you think you have it all together. “Filthy rags” are what you and I bring, we need to remember that at all times. We stand where we stand in a complete alien righteousness that is at times so bizarre and unbelievable to us, that we tend to disregard it and not believe it.
But we must pray “Lord, I believe! Help my unbelief!” You’re a sinner, but a forgiven sinner all the more. Sin boldly we must, but believe on the Lord Jesus 10 times as much.
When that dog creeps in, swallow that gospel and tell the father of lies and the accuser of the bretheren to stand behind you.
By His stripes, you are healed.
This has become one of my favorite sermons of all time. I invite you to take an hour to watch it through. You’ll be glad you did…:)
Teaching tithing as New Covenant law only shovels more condemnation on the sheep.
Follow the linky.
We are FREE in Christ! The law can only bring death, not life!
Wanna’ keep the law? Fine. Then you must keep the rest. Good luck with that. I wish you the best…all the feast laws, all the ceremonial laws, all the cleanliness laws; every single one of’m.
When you finally realize you can’t, Christ will still be waiting with open arms.
…stupid sheep that we are.
And yes, I’m yelling….:D
I just noticed that my hit stats just passed the 75,000 mark. Why on earth any of you visit me here to listen to what I have to say is well beyond me, but for all who have subscribed and comment here, I only have appreciation and gratefulness toward you.
Thanks for making the effort worth it!
Matthew Blair
When you purchase a new hardback, do you leave the dust cover on or do you pitch it?
Vote here. 
HT: Tony Reinke
Check up above and you’ll se a new page…“Bible Hacks/Tips”
All right, sue me….I’ve been stealing a lot from other bloggers as of late…
“Remember that the man who truly repents is never satisfied with his own repentance. We can no more repent perfectly than we can live perfectly. However pure our tears, there will always be some dirt in them; there will be something to be repented of even in our best repentance. But listen! To repent is to change your mind about sin, and Christ, and all the great things of God. There is sorrow implied in this; but the main point is the turning of the heart from sin to Christ. If there be this turning, you have the essence of true repentance, even though no alarm and no despair should ever cast their shadow upon your mind.”
C. H. Spurgeon, All Of Grace, page 70.
HT: Ray Ortlund
After a great review of Paul Miller’s recent book “A Praying Life” by Tim Challies, the author popped in on the thread and offered his response to some of the gentle critisisms brought up in that review.
I commend both men for the kindness and love used in their words.
“How, then, can we behold the glory of Christ? We need, firstly, a spiritual understanding of his glory as revealed in Scripture. Secondly, we need to think much about him if we wish to enjoy him fully (1 Pet. 1:8). If we are satisfied with vague ideas about him we shall find no transforming power communicated to us. But when we cling wholeheartedly to him and our minds are filled with thoughts of him and we constantly delight ourselves in him, then spiritual power will flow from him to purify our hearts, increase our holiness, strengthen our graces, and sometimes fill us ‘with joy inexpressible and full of glory.”
- John Owen via OFI
“The more we Christians pursue worldly relevance, the more we’ll render ourselves irrelevant to the world around us.”
- T. Tchividjian via @GoDoSomething
This side of heaven, we must fight with every ounce of our minds ability to see the wondrous sweetness of our brother Christ.
Even with our regeneration, our inner corruptions cause our vision to become insistently muddied toward capturing Him in our minds for the full worth of His majesty.
The christian fight is the fight to keep our vision firmly planted on the center and cause of our hope.
O’, how this world so readily captures our affections and allegiances from our Lord.
Yet we continue still, day by day, from glory to glory, to lay hold of our Masters cloak and fight not to let go.
How worthy is He, yes, how worthy.
So deserving of every shred of our love and desires, yet, we find in us still this holy war.
This constant, wretched battle with the rotting corpse of our old man and nature.
We fight though.
By God, we fight.
We fight to see Him with these fallen eyes.
Fallen eyes which, seemingly, are utterly incapable of real sight.
“Our paradox: always a sinner/always righteous, always incomplete/always complete, always empty/always full, always poor/always rich.”
