New Year, New Failures, More Grace!

I do not mean to sound negative but let us face it, there are going to be ups and downs this next year. It is just the truth! As the new year came in this year I decided I would start a fresh Bible reading plan (as well as this blog thanks to Pastor Blairs prompting). I’ve never made it through one of these Bible reading plans before. Either it turns into a teeth pulling experience where I dread to read another day in Deuteronomy or I just go to the places in the Bible that I find interesting. It is so easy to get side tracked. I’m not excusing myself or others because let’s face it, God has revealed Himself through his Word and if we don’t take it in, we are in sin my friends. As the old saying goes you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink’. Thankfully this doesn’t apply to those of us who are born again! That is great news!

In our flesh we are bound to fail. We may even succeed but pride will make waste of any gains. Thankfully for the born again person Jesus paid it ALL. Not just for some failures but for them ALL. If you are a believer, the Grace of God is stocking you like a tsunami wave. Run all you like but you will get crushed by His Grace! We need to learn to stop running and give up fighting it. We need to remind ourselves of what Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20. ‘I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me, and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.’ That is one of the few verses I have memorized. For one reason I have ‘Galatians 2:20′ tattooed on my arm so it would be pretty weak if I didn’t know what the verse was. The other reason is that we need to remind ourselves of the Good news of what Jesus Christ accomplished for us continually! It is in remembering that we are free in Christ’s finished work that we can ourselves be free to say no to sin! Without continually turning to Christ we will continually fail and fall into sin. Making rules for ourselves doesn’t help either. We are unable to live by the law when we try to find our power source in the law. The law was never meant for that. The law shows us our sins and Christ frees us from its bondage, daily…

All of this is true and yet we all know we sin even when we remind ourselves of the Gospel. Get used to it! Until Jesus returns or you die, you will always be in battle with sin. You will always be fighting your flesh. We definitely shouldn’t give up in defeat but continually remind ourselves that Christ is our righteousness! That is the key! He is our fuel. He is the one who has ALREADY done it for you so rest in that Christian! The hard work is to not work!

So I think new years resolutions are just fine, but be sure when you fail (which you will) you turn to Christ and remind yourself that IT IS FINISHED! Enjoy that this new year!