Inside Out Living

I am constantly blown away by the gospel. It is hard for me to understand why people aren't jumping for joy every single day, like the man who went walking and leaping and praising God after he was healed.

For this is what Jesus has done for me. He saw me...He sees me now, just as I am. He knows all about me. He knows my thoughts, my words, my actions. He knows why I do what I do, and how I fail to do those things I know I ought to do.

And get this: HE LOVES ME! He approves of me. He is on my side. He helps me, He guides me, He whispers to me, He hedges me in, behind and before. He never, ever leaves me.

This is really, really good news. No matter what I face, no matter if my children are mad at me or my friends don't call or I don't get the laundry done or my neck hurts from picking the chicken off the bones for soup, I am deeply and thoroughly loved by the only ONE who really matters.

We all seek approval. We want to be recognized for our talents. We want to be acknowledged for our abilities. We long to be loved, truly loved, just the way we are. We go through life doing our best, but we always know deep down that we haven't quite measured up.

The good news is we don't have to! We'll never be able to. We can't do it. We're deeply flawed, and we'll never be that person we want to be - a perfect parent, a righteous child, a holy Christian, a loving friend.

The good news is that Jesus did it! He was the perfect Son of Righteousness. He lived that life on our behalf, and He died the death I deserved so that I might live.

Here is a message by Tim Keller that is worth listening to. If ever you've tried to live a godly life, but failed; if ever you've looked down on someone else for not measuring up to your standards, if ever you've tried your best to witness but come away discouraged and perplexed... here is a message for you. Stop trying to live a perfect life! You can't do it. Just be thankful that Jesus did live that perfect life on your behalf. Live from the inside out!

Of First Importance

I wonder if some of my readers sometimes ponder why I called my blog "Exulting in the Cross". Why would anyone exult (rejoice with praise; to show or feel a lively or triumphant joy; rejoice exceedingly; be highly elated or jubilant) in something as brutal as the cross? It was a place of torture, of rejection, of pain and anguish. Jesus, who never sinned, suffered there, His face marred more than any man. Why would I exult in that?

Because it's important. Not just important, but very important; of first importance!

It's important because Jesus took MY punishment for ME. He took my sin, and gave me His righteousness. He took the Wrath of God that was directed at me, and presents me spotless before the throne.

That's what Substitutionary Atonement is all about.

When I consider my life - my thoughts, words and deeds- and compare it to what God requires -pure, spotless righteousness- I know that I am lost and undone. I cannot stand before a Holy God. I cannot even approach His mountain. Not on my own. Not with my own righteousnesses, which are filthy rags in God's sight.

Yet because Jesus was willing to take my sins upon Him, and take the punishment I deserved, and exchange my filthiness for His spotlessness, I can not only know God, but love Him as my Father. I can serve Him in this life, knowing that Jesus is my mediator, Who stands before God, reminding Him that He already paid for that gossip, that snide remark, that pang of jealousy that plagues my heart.

So, I rejoice in the cross. I delight in the cross. I exult in the Cross of Christ.

The Worst Crime

Recently, Tim Challies quoted R. C. Sproul, who reminds us that we are debtors, enemies and criminals.

Tim wrote, that Sproul shows how

it is always the Father who has been offended and the Son who intercedes. We have committed crimes against God and are, thus, justly termed criminals. The Father stands as Judge, passing the just sentence of death. But Christ stands between us and the Father, acting as substitute. Our sin puts us in debt to God so that we are debtors to Him. God is the creditor who demands repayment, but Christ stands in as surety. And sin puts us at enmity with God, making us His enemies. He has been violated by our sin, but Christ intercedes as mediator, opening the way between man and God.

Sproul breaks this down into the following simple table:

Sin As…	Man	God	Christ
Debt	Debtor	Creditor	Surety
Enmity	Enemy	Violated One	Mediator
Crime	Criminal	Judge	Substitute

Christ, by His work on the cross, satisfied the demands of God’s justice with regard to our debt, our state of enmity, and our crime.

NO wonder we needed a Saviour.

And what a Saviour. Linda was thinking of this the other day. She wrote about it on her blog, Treasured Wretch.

She was thinking of the great crime of shedding THE MOST INNOCENT BLOOD of Christ. Who had to pay for that crime?

Why, Jesus!

The injustice of His death was laid upon His own shoulders!

Amazing grace! What a Saviour! He is the Prophet, Priest and King, and so much more. He is our Mediator, our Surety, our Substitute. He stands before the Judge, pleading our case...and He wins, every time! We stand there, undone, without hope, because we know we are guilty of the WORST CRIME - shedding the innocent, pure blood of the King of kings and Lord of lords. In awe we watch Him step forward and say, "I paid this one's debt!" And we are free. Free from debt - the debt that we owed. Free from crime - the life of a criminal that we lived. Free from being the Enemy of God - although we deserved His enmity.

Free to worship, free to serve, free to bow down, free to live a life in awe of the ONE TRUE GOD.

We're free, because of Christ. He paid the price. He paid it all.