The Supremacy of Christ
…The things that brings us unhappiness are the
festering sores from old wounds that will not heal because we will not
forgive. It does not matter what injuries
we have received. What matters is that we somehow manage to apply the love of
Jesus to that old sore spot and let forgiveness heal it up and thus get rid of
the pain. Who needs it? If we are not tired of it by now, our friends
are tired of hearing about it. Let the Spirit of God cut it out like a
surgeon cutting out cancer, and be rid of the deadly disease and its
poison!
Submission
is another word for love, but the flesh does not like to submit. The sustaining force behind humanism is
self-will. We do not welcome
interference. This is why marriage is difficult; it infringes upon our
independence. This innate dislike for interference is the tension point in any
relationship, whether between parents and children, employer and employee,
neighbors, or friends. Each relationship
spells additional restrictions and fewer freedoms. This is especially true of our relationship
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
He, in fact, desires a total relinquishing of our will so that we may fully
accept His will. At this point, the
humanistic struggle ensues. We will
either accept His will superimposed upon our own, or rebel at His authority and
go our own way, thus enthroning self rather than Christ, and in so doing become humanists. Humanism has many expressions, but only one
single root ~ self-will in opposition to
the supremacy of Christ.
Consider the many
who were at odds with Jesus during His life among us
on earth. The scene at the cross is
conspicuous for the presence of enemies and the absence of friends. Human nature has no time for Jesus and no
inclination to be submissive. We are
charmed by His charisma, but often repulsed by His supremacy. We enjoy being loved and coddled, but recoil
at the mere thought of being loved and controlled. We can readily admire Jesus
as the loving, faithful Friend, but when submission enters the picture, we
quickly look for an escape. The Rich
Young Ruler experienced this sudden change of attitude from admiration to
rejection as his will was crossed and his human desires violated by the mere
suggestion from Jesus that he pay the price to follow by giving up his riches.
To admire Jesus and
then choose to continue in self-determined independence is to fail as totally,
as if the initial attitude were one of hostility. We have given Christ nothing if we offer Him our heart with strings
attached. His love for us was expressed by the
sacrificing of His life for us. It was
total. It is still the same kind of love today. It has no limit, no reservations. It is deep and strong, lofty and sweet. It invites reciprocation in kind, but demands
nothing. You are free to love Him or to crucify Him. The decision is ours, and
we make it daily. We make it in a
special way at certain crisis points in our lives, such as at the time of
initial conversion, but we also make it continuously. The Bible tells us it is like the marriage
relationship. The ceremony, like the
conversion experience, is one point in time; but the nurturing and full
flowering of devotion is a process involving years. The submission and
responses of affection are part of a continuing
commitment, and any harbored resentment will mar the harmony of the
relationship.
Life will not be
all happiness, but if we trust His love, we will not blame God for the unpleasant
experiences in life. I once knew a
saintly elderly gentleman who remarked that he had never had any trouble, when
in truth, it was a known fact that he had suffered
much as an early missionary to
From
Total Love, By Frances Roberts
Christ in Full
Possession ~
Mendelssohn, it is said, once visited the Cathedral at Fridbourg,
and, having heard the great organ, went into the organ loft and asked to be
allowed to play it. The old organist, in
jealousy for his instrument, at first refused, but was afterward prevailed on
to allow the great German composer to try the colossal “thunder” of the
cathedral. After standing by in an
ecstasy of delight and amazement for a few moments, he suddenly laid his hands
on the shoulders of the inspired musician and exclaimed: “Who are you? What is you name?”
“Mendelssohn,” replied the
player. “And can it be! that I had so nearly refused to
let Mendelssohn touch this organ!” How
little the Lord’s people know what they are doing when they refuse to let
Christ have full possession of their entire life and evoke the full melody and
harmony of which it is capable!
Gospel Herald