In my recent review of J.C. Ryle's Thoughts for Young Men, I noted how effectively Ryle advised that it is not enough to merely know of Jesus, you must know his mercy, grace, and power. I can speak for many when I note that I sat in churches for decades thinking that attendance was what I needed to do to cover my spiritual bases. If I showed up, I would make it. If only I had read Ryle's additional commentary:
"...if you think the mere carrying of your body to a certain building, at certain times, on a certain day of the week, will make you a Christian, and prepare you to meet God, I tell you flatly you are miserably deceived."
The truth is that it is not about our actions, it is about our relationship with Christ. I find that Churches today are not spending enough time focusing on the nature and dynamic of our human to Christ relationship. For us to be the humble, selfless, caring, and helping humans that we are supposed to become, it takes a strong relationship with Christ and a deep understanding of the dynamics of that relationship. If we try to become this person on our own, we will fail. if we try to act a certain way in order to gain favor with God, we will fail. If we try to act a certain way to force God to shower us with benefits, we will fail.
What do I mean by the dynamics of the relationship? Think of someone that you know. How you approach that person, engage that person in conversation, ask that person for help, and posture yourself when around that person all depends on a variety of factors. Do you know this person well? Has this person helped you in the past? Has this person been selfless towards you? Does this person act like they are above you?
Too often when we are trying to be the person we are designed to become, we rely on our own actions and, in passing, we rely on a shallow relationship with Christ. We need to deepen this relationship with Christ if we want any hope of becoming better humans. Deepening our relationship with Christ requires an understanding of the dynamics of the relationship .. like the examples I listed above.
When we really think about ourselves as small little humans who are perpetually doing wrong, it is amazing to consider that God designed us, loves us no matter what, listens to our needs, wants to help us, and sacrificed his son in order to save us from ourselves. As a parent, I know, on a significantly smaller scale, what it means to sacrifice for my children. The level of sacrifice God put forward to help us is staggering. The sheer grace that he shows us day in and day out as we try and fail is also staggering.
Once we comprehend ... truly comprehend ... that God is a real person, he has sacrificed mightily for us, and he loves us unconditionally, despite our significant flaws; then we have a comprehension of the dynamics of our human to God relationship. If we don't understand anything about the person we just met, then we don't know really how to react to that person. If we know well the dynamics of our relationship with someone, then we have a strong appreciation for how the relationship should go.
Once we have a strong understanding of the dynamics of the human to God relationship, we can comprehend how much we owe God, how much love God shows towards us, and how much grace God has shown to us. From that understanding, we have the basis to live a more humble, selfless life. When someone helps you in a truly selfless way, it is humbling. You want to pay it forward. The sacrifices God has made and the level of grace that God has shown should put us all into the mode of wanting and needing to pay it forward on a mega scale.
Becoming who are are designed to become is really impossible through our own actions. However, the good news is that once we comprehend the dynamics of our human to God relationship, our soul is steered towards humility, selflessness, and love for the rest of God's creations. This is God's way of helping us be the people he designed us to be.