In the 90's DC Talk release a song called "What if I Stumble". The chorus says this:
"What if I stumble? What if I fall?
What if I lose my way and I make fools of us all?
Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?
What if I stumble? What if I fall?
What if I stumble? What if I fall?
You never turn in the heat of if all
What if I stumble? What if I fall?"
I've been thinking quite a bit lately about stumbling. I've been meditating and praying about what redemption looks like for a believer who falls. I know that when an unbeliever comes to Christ they are "born again", they repent, turn away from their "old self", and become a new creation in Christ. What happens though when that "new creation" loses it's way? Is it possible for someone who is "born again" to again be redeemed? The answer that keeps rolling through my mind is, "Of course!"
We are all sinners, right? All of us; even those who have claimed Jesus as their Savior for years. The beautiful, undeserving gift behind the cross is that every sin, no matter what it is or when it occurs, is covered by the blood that was shed there. Thank you, Father!
When our "walk becomes a crawl" does He turn away? No! Though we struggle through our sin, our emotions, and our choosing to separate ourselves from Him by our choices, He is still the same!
Romans 8:38-39 says, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Nothing can separate us from Him; He "never turns in the heat of it all".
Someone I love very much is struggling with the feeling of not deserving God's love because of sin that was in their life; it's a journey that they're on, a part of their life that they are crawling through. God is faithful though, and no amount of time, or of hurt, or of anything else in this world will separate them from Him. He is patient through the storm.
I mention this because I struggle with Christians' reactions to sin in other Christians' lives. We alienate each other when sin rears it's ugly head. I have thought on this quite a bit lately, and the answer I keep getting is that we need to show "perfect love". Perfect love is the kind of love that is tough when it needs to be, but merciful and gracious to a fault. Sin isn't okay and it needs to be rooted out; sometimes a believer can be so wrapped up the tentacles of sin that they are almost unrecognizable, but underneath it all they are still a child of God and still deserving of love. It's a delicate procedure, separating the believer from the sin, but when it happens and repentance comes, perfect love let's go of the past and in front of it sees only Christ's redeeming blood covering over God's beloved creation. Perfect love shows mercy and grace; it forgives, forgets, and moves on in faith.
That's the kind of love Christ gives us; why is that so hard for us to give that to each other?
I was reading in Luke this morning, and two verses caught my attention:
"...there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent." Luke 15:7
"...there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." Luke 15:10
Heaven rejoices when a sinner repents; it doesn't doubt his sincerity, or cautiously approach saying, "well, we'll see...": Heaven REJOICES! God doesn't call back into view the past; He doesn't throw the sin of the man in the man's face...it's covered up by His Son's blood when that man places it at the foot of the cross. It is finished.
Perfect love loves at all times, even through the storm. God doesn't "turn in the heat of it all", and neither should we.
Last night I had a friend over for dinner. I was making lasagna, and as I went to pull it out of the oven I lost my grip and suddenly hot spaghetti sauce, cheese, and noodles covered my kitchen floor. It was a mess, and worst of all I no longer had dinner to offer my friend. I looked up at her shocked face, and instantly we burst into laughter; really what else can you do in these situations? She pulled the trash can over and together we went to work cleaning up the mess I had made; side by side, each naturally taking up a job in the process that needed to be done. Soon the ill-fated dinner was in the trash, the kitchen was cleaned, and Plan B (chicken nuggets...for the kids) was in the microwave. You see, life can be messy sometimes; we can have a plan, but sometimes we just drop the lasagna. As a family of believers, God doesn't tell us to sit back and point fingers while the one who lost his grip struggles to clean up the mess alone. He tells us to step in, come along side, and together clean it up. You may not burst into laughter over it the situation, it may actually may cause many tears, but ultimately mercy and grace are to prevail. That's the love of Christ.
"Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?" Christ's love will always continue; His perfect love never changes. If we are true Christ followers, we need to have that love for one another; do not merely listen to the Word...do what it says. (James 1:22)
The truth is that none us deserve love; we all fail, but it's not about "deserving". Love is a gift that we give to each other, freely. In the end, we actually all deserve death, but "the GIFT of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus." Praise be to God that He gave us the perfect example of perfect love.
Is someone that you love crawling through their spiritual life right now? Love them, completely; be tough when you need to be, but don't give up. Sin is strong, but Christ's love is stronger.
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