out of the mire

Interestingly some of the silliness (for lack of a better word) between postmodern innovators and some evangelicals - and I say silliness because then both sides get to stereotype the other based on concepts that aren't true - is the idea that evangelicals are about "getting to heaven". While this post by R.C. Sproul doesn't deal with that directly, I think it's a good reflection of the heart of a true evangelical in regard to humility, God's work in us, freedom and holiness in Christ, the power of the Word and the Holy Spirit, etc... which confronts the notion of self-reliance, a formula, a ticket to heaven, etc... The self-reliance being an error I sometimes see in postmodern innovators, the formula an error I sometimes see in both camps, and a ticket to heaven the focus some postmoderns wrongly superimpose on all evangelicals.

Our souls cannot climb out of the mire of sin because they are dead. Salvation comes not to those who cry out, "Show me the way to heaven," but to those who cry, "Take me there for I cannot."

Lest we see the sinner's prayer as mere technique, we must remember that Christ raises the dead that they might walk. We do not mumble the magic words and then wait to die. Christianity is about spiritual growth as well. It is about work, the hard work of sanctification. Regeneration is monergistic, God's work alone. Sanctification, the process by which we are made holy, is synergistic, God's work with us.

God's part is easy for Him. He needs no shortcuts because He never tires. We, though, must ever fight the temptation to seek the shortcut. No technique will make us holy. No technique of the Devil's, though, can stop the process of Christ making us into His image. Those whom He calls He sanctifies.

Our sanctification requires the Spirit of God and, because He has so ordered His world, sanctification requires the disciplined and repeated use of the means of grace. Five minutes a day of Bible study smells like technique. Arid, it is sure to fail. We must immerse ourselves in the Word of God. Then, as Jesus promised, we will know the truth and the truth will set us free. Then we will be His disciples (John 8:31-32).

Coram Deo: Remember, God is at work in you. He never tires. Give thanks for the process that is underway.

John 8:31-32: "Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, 'If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.'"

John 8:36: "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed."

Psalm 40:2: "He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps."