I have heard Christians say, when faced with the reality of sin in another human's heart,
"I can't believe it. How could someone who appears so good do something so vile? "
Why are we shocked by sin?
We should be deeply grieved over it as the Father is,
but why are we surprised when people do what is in their nature to do?
We all have that sin nature in us.
We all have the option to coddle it,
think about it,
justify it,
and act on it.
Which nature will we feed, our new nature in Christ, or the old man that we should be dead to? The one we feed will inevitably win.
Some people look at the world through lenses of black and white and categorize people accordingly. With those lenses on, other humans are either God's perfect showcase trophies confidant in their own merit... or they are utterly disgraceful and hopelessly irredeemable. The two shall never cross.
We, as Christians, love to put people up on pedestals.
Then we become shocked and destroyed when they fall from it.
Why don't we see our brothers and sisters as humans , capable of sin, given to pitfalls, and in need of accountability and encouragement?
"Black and white" thinking doesn't account for when the "good Christian" is secretly wicked and the disgraceful wretch is on her knees at the foot of the cross.
He is shiny and polished ...and she is stained and broken.
Which one understands grace?
Which one knows the heart of the Father?
Even the trophy Christian who shines his shoes, and lines up his kids for church every Sunday is nothing without grace. He is no more than the beggar at Jesus feet.
When will we stop looking so intently on the outside and starting looking at the reality of what lies underneath?
Under the suit and tie might be a broken man shackled by the sin that he desperately hides.
He needs grace. He needs someone to see past the facade. Someone to who can lead him back to the only one who can cast off the chains.
Behind the lipstick and pasted on smile might be a woman who is has no clue how to deal with the pain that threatens to overwhelm her.
Honestly,
We don't want to know.
It's messy. It's ugly,
but at the same time it is beautiful.
It is the fullness of grace.
We are engaged in a battle between darkness and light. Deception and truth. Freedom and bondage.
When our hearts filled with darkness meet with the light of God's grace it creates something completely new in us.
We should see people through those new eyes.
We will see something that can't be seen through the black and white lenses we proudly wear.
God's eyes see through our walls, our works, our masks...
He knows the man ,or woman, that we hide underneath.
He's not shamed by your shame.
He's not deceived by your secrets.
He's not afraid of your fear.
He's not shocked by your sin.
He is there ready to take it and trade it for grace.
When we confess before God ,as well as others, it brings us face to face with our own sin. We acknowledge the condition of our heart and stop hiding behind our mask of false righeousness. We understand our need for the Savior and only then does the healing begin.
Until that point, you can go on pretending, hoping no one will see who you really are....
"..When you come to where you're broken within
The light meets the dark
The light meets the dark
Afraid to let your secrets out
Everything that you hide
Can come crashing through the door now
But too scared to face all your fear
So you hide but you find
That the shame won't disappear
So let it fall down
There's freedom waiting in the sound
When you let your walls fall to the ground
We're here now.."
"...Sparks will fly as grace collides
With the dark inside of us
So please don't fight
This coming light
Let this blood come cover us
His blood can cover us"
Some thoughts from Tenth Avenue North on their song "Healing begins"
