The Right to Roar!

Gracie gets a bit bored from time to time and we would catch her going out onto the covered porch at the front door just standing staring until something moves so she can bark at it.  When she finds such an innocent victim - which is normally an unsuspecting neighbor walking their dog or just going on a stroll minding their own business - she would bark and howl and create such a ruckus that the poor neighbor would stop and apologize for walking by even though they have all the right to do so.  Gracie would then come in all happy and smiling and tail wagging while I am fuming, ready to give her a quick sendoff right into doggie heaven.  She runs back into the house without a trace of guilt as if she hasn’t done anything wrong.  You can try and shame her, but the moment she walks back in, she has already put it behind her and is ready for the next adventure or something tasty to eat.

I was thinking about the fact that God wants us to always have the confidence to run to Him with great boldness, not letting our sins or failures or even very recent wrongdoings keep us from coming and expecting that He will always gladly receive us.

Heb 4:16 NKJV - Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

If you are born again, you are now righteous before God because of what Jesus did on the cross.  No matter what we do or how bad it seems, we can always run to the throne of grace.  

2 Cor 5:21 NKJV - For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

So, am I saying that we can just go out and wilfully sin and expect the grace of God to cover it every time?  Am I supporting hyper grace?  I don’t even know what hyper grace means, except that it seems to mean that you can wilfully go on sinning because you just expect God in His grace and mercy to keep on forgiving.  Will He keep on forgiving?  Absolutely - He is that good.  He will never punish you for your sin, no matter how big or small.  If He did, then it means that He would have to go around Jesus and the finished work of the cross to get to you to impute that sin to you.  He would by implication say that what Jesus did on the cross wasn’t enough to cover all sins.

John 19:28-30 NKJV -  

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” 29 Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. 30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

The provision has already been made for all your sins to be forgiven - past, present and even those you are yet to commit.  How amazing is that? (See also 2 Cor 5:19, Heb 8:12, Heb 10:12 and many others)

1 Pet 3:18 NLT - Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.

But what then?  If God won't punish our sins, then it seems I can just continue with a sinful lifestyle.  Yes, you can, but you would be foolish to do so.  Sin always has consequences and while God will never hold your sins against you or punish you for them, the enemy will most definitely step in.  If you willingly keep living a sinful lifestyle, then you become a slave to the devil.

Rom 6:16 BLB - Do you not know that to whom you yield yourselves as slaves for obedience, you are slaves to him whom you obey, whether of sin to death, or of obedience to righteousness?

God hates sin. He doesn't want us to sin because it can cause us harm, it can be deadly. The commandments God gave in the Bible is still valid today. There are also certain sins that if we continue in them, will cause us not to inherit the Kingdom of God (2 Cor 6:9-10, Rev 21:8). Walking in sin can as a natural consequence cause injury or sickness, even death. Bottom line is, God wants us to know that when we sin, the provision of forgiveness has already been made available. But continuing in a habitual sin will always cost us in the long run.

Then what is grace and how does it help us?  Grace is God’s ability and provision to do for you what you can't do for yourself. It helps you be victorious in any situation.  So, if you understand anything about God’s grace, then you will know that grace is able to help you get free from no longer walking in habitual sin.  

2 Tim 2:1 NKJV - You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 

Be mindful of the fact that we are now in the Kingdom of light and not of darkness.  We should no longer be overly fixated on sin and the author thereof, satan.  We should not give him any place in our lives.  

Eph 4:27 NKJV - ..nor give place to the devil.

We give him place in many ways and as this is not the topic of this blog, I will just mention a few, such as attributing everything bad that happens to you in some way or another to the devil that is after you, or you having an open door through some sin that you might not even be aware of.

If you get overly focussed on sin and try to avoid sinning at all cost, then all it will do is create a bigger focus on it.  What you focus on, becomes bigger.  Have you ever tried not to sin only to find yourself thinking about it constantly?  It is like me telling you not to think about a blue elephant.  See how that is working for you - I bet you are picturing a blue elephant right about now.  The trick is not to try not to sin, but rather to immerse yourself in the truth that is in the Word - who the Word says you are and what you have in Christ Jesus.  By magnifying the Word, its light and truth will begin to drive out the darkness and before you know it, you no longer think about that sin or have a desire to do it.

What should our response to the devil be?  The Bible says to submit to God and to not tolerate the devil, but to resist him.  

James 4:7 NKJV - Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 

You don’t need anyone’s permission to resist him.  The Bible says to resist him and so if you don’t, no one else will and then he gets to stay.  We are not to be scared of him.  Running from the devil is not the same as resisting him.  The Bible says if we resist him, he will flee from US - not from Jesus.

But won’t the devil turn around and attack me through some form of backlash if I start to resist him and cast out and nullify demonic activity?  

If I in my flesh and human nature come against him, then he will laugh at me and send me running.  But I don’t approach him in my humanity.  I approach him based on my righteousness in Christ Jesus.  The Bible says that before we resist him, we need to submit to God.  This is mentioned in the first half of that scripture.  If I first submit to God, then I am going to God based on Jesus' righteousness.  In my own flesh, I will only be able to resist the devil if I am totally perfect and obedient in my daily walk and conduct.  No matter how hard I try, that will never be possible.  But, because of Jesus and the fact that I am righteous in Him, His perfection and perfect submission and obedience to the Father now gives me the right to resist the devil and he has to flee from me.

If you are a Christian, you will encounter the devil.  This is not me prophesying bad things over you, the Bible says that the devil is walking about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Pet 5:8-9).  But know this that you have been given authority over him based on what Jesus did for you on the cross.  Get your confidence up.  Jesus mandated you to resist the devil and he has to flee from you.

In Mark 16:17 Jesus said to His disciples that in His name they will cast out demons.  He said this to them, but it will work for you if you are a brand-new, born-again believer, or if you have been a Christain for a long time.  These signs shall follow those who believe.  All you need to do is believe the Word enough to act on it.

I didn’t intend to spend so much blog space on the enemy, but it seemed good to do so.  Now back to approaching God by coming boldly to the throne of grace. 

When we come to God, we should always approach Him from who we are in the spirit - based on the victory that Jesus purchased for us on the cross.  We don’t come to God rehearsing our failures and our brokenness.  We come from who we are in Christ, and we thank Him for what Jesus did for us even though in the natural we are not yet walking in the fullness of who we are in Christ.  When we do this, we show God that we believe what the Word says about who we are and that is how you start to see that victory manifest in your everyday life.  I know Christians who go before God and rehearse how sorry and sinful they are, or how sick and broken and broke they are.  Can I tell you; God doesn’t relate to that.  It is not that He doesn’t care, but I am sure He is thinking what on earth did you do with your Bible.  Do you not know the good news of what Jesus did for you?  In the Bible you will find who you are in the spirit - the victory that you now possess because of Him.  We can still come to the Father and thank Him for what Jesus did for us, but we should always pray the answer, pray from a position of victory. Then we can ask Him to help us to receive and appropriate what was bought and how to walk in the fullness of the cross. It is so important that we get into the Word daily to get our minds renewed so we can know what Jesus did for us and who we are as a result.  If you don’t, you will keep living and speaking and looking like the world - in conformity to it.

Rom 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

We need to start seeing ourselves as God sees us.  He sees us perfect in Christ, free from any guilt or condemnation because the work of the cross has been finished.

The Apostle Paul, who wrote a big portion of the New Testament, is such a good example of someone who knew who he was in Christ.  It is well known that he persecuted Christians far and wide before he came to salvation.  Yet, even with that kind of a past, he was able to receive forgiveness and cleansing by the blood of Jesus to the point where he could say:

2 Cor 7:2 NKJV - Open your hearts to us. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have cheated no one.

He was fully living in the new creation reality - he knew he was a new man on the inside:

2 Cor 5:17 NKJV - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

So, no matter what you have done in your life, how bad it was and how difficult it seems for you to forgive yourself, the good news is that God has already forgiven you.  When He looks at you, He is so happy with who you are in Christ.  He sees you as an overcomer - victorious in every way.

1 John 5:4 NKJV - For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

Who knew that Gracie, just being herself, could get us going on such a rabbit trail - and even though I am in no way comparing her doggy nature to our Christian reborn, righteous nature - we can still learn from her to have boldness and confidence and not let our sin shame us into hiding.  

So, the next time you see the devil stumbling around like a roaring lion looking if he may devour or accuse you, stand tall and roar - make it a big, loud, confident roar, and see him flee. 

Jesus - the Lion of Judah - gave you the right.

(Mark 16:15-18, Luke 10:18, Col 2:15)

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