Many people think Christianity is about judgment, rules, and condemnation, for instance of minority groups, and individuals, not following the Christian value.
This is a heinous misrepresentation.
Most critically Christianity compels us to find God in relationship. And why would we need to find God in relationship? This is the plain truth: we’ll never become the people we can become until we know God.
When we explore God, with an open mind, openhearted to what might be revealed to improve our lives, we find a truth so fundamental to all humanity: for all the sense of human rejection, even by those who love us, there’s a deep soul urgency to be accepted; to be forgiven in the comprehensive sense. Our deepest selves claw for harmony; a harmony we can only find for ourselves in the unconditional love of God. All else is emptiness in comparison. Human love, alone, can only, ultimately, fail us.
And how would we get there—to find God in relationship?
There is a vehicle to relationship with God. Stripping all else away, particularly thought for judgment, rules and condemnation, relationship with God persists in this one word: repentance. Relationship with God, truly, without any doubt, depends on a heart for continual repentance—to be kept to truthful account for our actions, to God alone, where there’s to be no fear of failure or rejection.
And this becomes, for us, freedom.
Repentance – Uppermost Quality In Relating With The Divine
“O Lord God, forgive, I beg you!
How can Jacob stand?
He is so small!
The Lord relented...”
~Amos 7:2, 3a (NRSV)
The pattern in Amos, featured above, is the pattern of God all through the Bible. Yahweh sends Amos a terrible vision of judgment for sin, and destruction as a consequence. Amos is seen to intercede on behalf of his people. The Lord sees such repentance and relents, changing the Divine mind: forgiveness for remorse.
This pattern of forgiveness is known nationally and personally—anywhere a relationship exists with God. And since everything created exists in relationship with God, everything has the ability to find harmony with God.
We can trust God’s loyalty to respond to our repentance; the only true way to freedom.
Repentance Leads To Freedom
God simply cannot hold back a heart turning back to Divine right. The Lord has promised to be with us, with favour, when we turn to him.
Having attested before God, the truth about our lives, without fear, the Lord opens up the floodgates of mercy and we receive the greatest blessing: intimacy with God. Wholeness beyond comprehension may, in fact, be the byproduct, among a plethora of others benefits.
What we experience, more and more, in journeying with God, is freedom beyond the dreams of our former selves. The wondrous thing about this reality: the revelation of this freedom is ours and ours alone; the Lord makes it utterly personal, and in that we feel never more special.
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Freedom of spirit is quite simple. We have one way to true harmony with ourselves, and it beckons through relationship with God; the Lord of eternal liberation. Never do we exhaust God’s ultimate patience. His grace is more magnificent than all our sin.
© 2012 S. J. Wickham.
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