I am a Branch... Sweet!

1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. 2 Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? - Galatians 3:1-3

As Americans we pride ourselves on our independence. It is the cornerstone of our rights and of our lifestyles. Gandhi believed that “To safeguard democracy the people must have a keen sense of independence, self-respect, and their oneness.” We pursue our individual freedom (and others right to theirs) and believe that happiness is secured by choosing, for ourselves alone, what is best. Right up there with Gandhi is Madonna who voices the heart of most Americans: "I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, and going after your dreams.” The rhetoric sounds great, but does it hold up to the reality of the world we live in?

As is usually the case, scripture stands in direct opposition to the beliefs of our culture. The Bible again and again states that true freedom is found in our dependence, not in our independence. The first sin ever committed was one of independence, and it made us slaves to that sin. True freedom is found in our dependence on Christ… our resting on him alone. In Sunday school we learned that we are the branches and he is the vine. We can try all we want, but we still need him for all nourishment, stability, and life itself. Our culture is full of people trying to be something they are not… little vines. It is time to embrace the reality that we are branches.

In this passage Paul uses surprisingly strong language, vehemently challenging the actions of the Galatian church. What were they guilty of? Exactly what we are… living to justify themselves before God, and thinking that now that they were saved by Christ they had to live a certain way. Their motivation was not joy through resting in the finished work of Christ, but a sense of obligation to live worthy enough to deserve of God’s love. The point of the gospel is that we are never worthy; we were not worthy when God called us, we are not worthy of the acceptance we now have, and we will never be worthy enough to give back to God in the least what we owe for the infinite joys of heaven. That is why grace is a gift… it cannot be merited or deserved. What is merited and deserved is justice for sin and wrath of a Holy God. We are utterly dependent on the mercy of our Father.

We forget so often that our sanctification, our growth in the Christian life, is a growth in grace and not a growth in works. It is a growth in our dependence on Christ and a deeper understanding that it is his Spirit in us that guides and sustains us. Dependence is our freedom and joy. We were created as dependent creatures to live in perfect communion and satisfaction when resting in him. How we have twisted that reality. O what a privilege, joy, and hope we have in being branches when united to such a marvelous, loving, and faithful Vine!

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There is Therefore NOW

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. – Romans 8:1

This past week I have been cycling this verse through my mind again and again. The natural bent of the human heart, and the root of all my sin is self justification. I think I am an independent creature and can satisfy my soul apart from anyone or anything. But the law is a mountain, constantly crushing and exposing my work for the terrible evil it is. I constantly struggle within myself, the redeemed son seeking to do one thing, and my sinful nature opposing and countering that trust. I reach the place of Paul in Romans 7, crying out, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”

Romans 8:1 is, right now, my favorite verse in the Bible.

“There is therefore…” The ‘therefore’ here refers to the victory over sin and death in Christ Jesus that Paul has been drawing out and building since chapter 3. It is a summary and conclusion; “Because of what I have explained to you about the nature of Christ, this is so.” The promises of God are as sure and concrete as they are glorious. Christ has accomplished all that my independence has failed and cost, THEREFORE I am not condemned.

There is always something in my life condemning me. I don’t live up, I don’t accomplish, I don’t love, I don’t care. Sin seeks to keep me in bondage to the slavery of condemnation. I think the hardest thing about the entire gospel to believe is that I am not condemned. I have lived my whole life in condemnation that when I am free of it, I have nothing to take its place and turn back to it just to fill the void. But Christ is constantly along side, scooping out the condemnation, reminding me that I am justified in him and that his peace fills the void. Justification is a legal standing; once given it is truth and reality, and cannot be revoked. It is a marriage covenant with the most faithful Being. He never rescinds or annuls his promises.

My favorite part of this verse is the word ‘now’. I can believe in a theoretical justification later, when I have my life together or when I am finally in heaven, but to think that I am justified NOW even in the midst of my sin is staggering. Christ’s atoning sacrifice covered all my sin: past, present, and future. He started the work in my heart and carries it to consummation. I am as justified now as I will be a billion years from now when I live in perfect communion and relationship with Him. This is Truth, Christ is Truth; He is the way, the means, the end. Everything is bound together in him, including us. We can cry with Paul, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” NOW... There is nothing so lovely in the entire universe.

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