"To Him be glory forever": Galatians 5

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

How's Your Form?

A bit more than a week ago I ran the Shiprock marathon. It was my first road marathon in two years and coming off last year's prolonged injury and recovery I was a bit apprehensive about the race.

When I crossed the finish line it was with the knowledge that, all-in-all, I had had a pretty good day. I had several different goals for an overall time, and after running for 3 ½ hours I had come within 17 seconds of the best of them. I had a bit of a struggle over the last miles with the increasing heat. My toes hurt and my feet hurt on the soles. In the past 10 years I've also developed a tendency for my left foot to clip my right ankle as my left leg swings through. When this happens my ankle gets sore, at best, and lacerated, at worst. Trust me when I say that this particular marathon was the worst I've ever banged up my ankle.

It was a good day, and just about all I could have hoped for, and yet as I saw some pictures and thought about the race it occurred to me that there were a few things I could have done better. A few things that I'm beginning to work on to run a bit better the next time.

The picture is from late in the race, maybe mile 22 or so. Robin says that it’s a nice picture of me, with Shiprock in the background. I won’t dispute that opinion, but I also see a runner who perhaps shows his age a bit compared to pictures from 25-30 years ago. He's a little less erect, and seen here, in the middle of his stride, his hands are a little bit lower.

As a result I'm making a conscious effort to work on my basic form. To run with my eyes up and set down the road, straightening my back and lifting my hands in the process. Perhaps that will also help to straighten out whatever imbalance causes my foot to scrape my ankle as well. And even if those changes don’t make me faster, they should make me more efficient, which will pay dividends in the marathon's late miles.

Form is also something of value in the Christian life. As I was running this morning I thought about the passage in Galatians 5:19-22. A list of things that Paul calls the "works of the flesh" followed by another list, the "fruit of the Spirit." And I thought about Ephesians 5:10-20, the passage talking about the armor of God.

Both passages are filled with things to consider as I follow Jesus as my Savior and Lord. Are there works of the flesh that I am leaning into, instead of fleeing from? Are their particular fruits of the Spirit that don’t seem to be evident in my life? Am I wearing the armor of God as I live each day? All of these are opportunities for me to work on the form of my walk as a Christian.

How is your form? Where do you need the Lord to shape you as his servant? Each of us has something to work on, something to tweak, as we are shaped more and more in the image of Jesus. To him be glory now and forever.

Thursday, July 5, 2018

Costly Joy

Joy! What a delightful thing to see in others, and to experience ourselves. To be so filled with pleasure and happiness that they seem to overflow, to gush out, from a person. Like an open fire hydrant spraying on a hot summer day, joy is something that flows out from a person and soaks everyone who is near.

I got to thinking about joy when I saw something on Facebook from a friend of mine who is a pastor. At his church there was going to be a series of sermons based on the fruits of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23, where Paul writes:

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

When I saw that list, and went to read those verses, I was struck by something about them. They are all really good things that can be present within the life of the believer in Jesus. They are the kinds of things we would both like to see present in our lives, as well as being things that we want to grow in.

For example, I want to be loving towards others, and to grow as a loving person. I want to experience joy, and to grow in knowing more joy in daily life. I want to know peace in my life, I want to have more peace in my life, and I want the peace of Christ to be present within people whom I love.

But back to joy.

Paul is writing specifically about fruits, or benefits, that come as a consequence of having faith in Jesus. Faith in Jesus means believing that Jesus is both the Savior and Lord of a person's life. And to know Jesus as Savior means knowing that a person is a sinner, in need of salvation, or rescue, and believing that their rescue comes only by faith in Jesus as their rescuer. Jesus, only Jesus, and no one or thing else.

So what does all this have to do with joy, and particularly the title of this post, Costly Joy?

The point is that the joy a Christian knows in their Savior comes at a great price to God the Father. Last week I preached from John 3:16-18, where verse 16 says:

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."

Within those words is the idea that God the Father freely gave his only Son to suffer the greatest injustice in all of history so that those who would believe in the finished work of that Son could rest, forever, in the love of God.

Human language can only give us limited and imperfect ways of understanding God as God truly is. How painful was it for the Father to see the trial and execution of the Son? How hard did the Spirit have to work to sustain the Son in being faithful as he completed the task that no other person could even attempt?

We can know joy as we follow Jesus, but let us not forget that our joy came at great cost, not only to the Son who gave his life, but also to the Father who gave his Son, and to the Spirit, who works the will of God in all things.