In case you haven’t heard, here it is: Living Grace is officially a church! No, we don’t have a building and we haven’t had a “real” service yet. We don’t yet have our tax exempt status. Nor have we registered a domain name for a website or even developed a logo. But, as anyone can tell you, those things aren’t what make a church.

This past Friday, I met with one of the officials from our Illinois district and got the “green light of happiness” (as I like to call it) to continue on with their blessing as we plant this church. Not only do we have their support, but I honestly think that the other pastors I have talked with about this vision are almost as excited about it as I am. And that’s saying something!

Sometimes the future can seem scary and unsure. But with God’s grace and favor upon us, as His children doing His work, the unknown is very do-able.

Buckle your seat belts. We’re in for the ride of our lives!

Some time back, I caught an episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show. (No. I don’t usually watch it. So, don’t start with me!) Jess must have had it on when I came home from work. I don’t think I intentionally plopped down in front of the television in order to watch it. But at some point, as I moved throughout the room, the topic caught my attention. (To be real honest, if I was in the same room very often, I think the topic would almost always catch my attention. And I’m way too manly and proud to say that I watch Oprah. So I try to avoid being in the same room when Jess has it on.)

Anyway, Oprah was talking about this book called The Secret by Rhonda Byrne which has taken the nation by storm. At the time, I didn’t know much about the book, but I was intrigued by its language. The people on the show were claiming that after reading it, it changed their lives. It changed their marriages, finances, careers, relationship, everything! They claimed that life had become more fulfilling after reading it. And all the while, I’m thinking, It sounds like they found Jesus! In fact, their testimonies sounded like the testimonies I have heard of people who have surrendered their lives to Christ and seen things turn around for the better.

These testimonies reminded me of something Jesus said that is recorded in John’s gospel. In chapter 10, verse 10, Jesus said, “I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full” (NIV). In another translation, Jesus says, “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (NLT).

Early on in the show and during the teasers, the people would hint that this “Secret” had changed their lives. But they wouldn’t say what The Secret was. To be real honest, I don’t remember what The Secret was after watching the whole show. Perhaps they just hinted at it and then said, “If you want to know The Secret, go out and buy the book.” In effect, leaving everyone hanging.

But the one thing I remember about this episode was that The Secret – according to the book – was something other than Jesus. And that struck me.

In John 10:10, in the sentence before Jesus’ comment about His purpose, He comments about the purpose of The Enemy (aka. Lucifer, the Devil, Beelzebub, Satan, etc.). He says, “The thief’s [devil's] purspose is to steal, kill, and destroy” (NLT). In John 8:44, Jesus says about the Devil, “There is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character. For he is a liar and the father of lies” (NLT).

One of the main ways the “father of lies” deceives is to take the Truth of God and change it slightly to where it is no longer true, but it has the feeling of truth. (Romans 1:25). In this case, the promise of The Secret is what Jesus promised (fulfilling life), but it is devoid of the source (Jesus Himself).

In Colossians 1:26-29, Paul writes about The Secret. He says that The Secret had been hidden from people for generations, but that God is now revealing this Secret to people everywhere of all backgrounds. He says in verse 27, “This is the secret: Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in His glory” (NLT). The Secret is Christ. When I put my faith in Him, He lives in me and through me and I have that fulfilling, satisfying life that is a byproduct of this faith. The Secret without Christ may feel like the answer for a while, but eventually that, too, is going to fail. Because our own human efforts are not easily sustained over time. In a natural sense, what goes up, always comes crashing down.

But when we surrender our lives to Christ, we find that He lives His life through us (Galatians 2:20). And as Colossians 1:27 goes on to say, “Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in His glory.” His glory isn’t a reference to the afterlife only. But it refers to this fulfilling life that begins now.

The introduction and back cover of the book The Secret by Byrne, makes this claim: “As you learn The Secret, you will come to know how you can have, be, or do anything you want. You will come to know who you really are. You will come to know the true magnificence that awaits you in life.” I completely agree with that. The Secret that Christ lives in me and assures me that I will share in His glory makes these claims true. Thank God that The Secret is as simple as putting my faith in Christ and living in surrender to Him.

I was struck by something in my time with the Lord today. It was something I have read many times, but has never impacted me like it did today.

I was reading in Romans 9 where Paul explains God’s sovereignty in choosing His children (verses 6-16). In these verses, he writes that God chose Jacob to be the carrier of His covenant with Abraham rather than Esau – the expected one. In fact, Jacob had three strikes against him, but still God chose him. Strike One – Jacob was the younger twin, and traditionally the elder son was given the family blessing. Strike Two – He was not daddy’s favorite. Genesis 25:27,28 tells us that Isaac, their father, favored Esau because he was a man’s man, and Jacob liked to stay home and cook. And Strike Three – Jacob was a deceiver. Not only did he actually trick his father into giving him the blessing in place of his brother, but his name can figuratively mean “he deceives.” Three strikes, you’re out. Or so you’d think.

But the whole point of Romans 9:6-16 is that God chooses who He wants. And He won’t be held to sticking with what is expected. Jacob’s trickery wasn’t beyond God’s providence. He didn’t catch God off-guard. Somehow, in the midst of all of it, God got what He wanted all along.

Romans 9:11, 12 says, “But before [the sons of Isaac] were born, before they had done anything good or bad, [their mother] received a message from God. (This message proves that God chooses according to His own plan, not according to our good or bad works; NLT.)” I love this! God’s choice of Jacob over Esau had nothing to do with their behavior. It had everything to do with His choice. His choice which was beyond reason.

Romans 9:16 says, “So receiving God’s promise is not up to us. We can’t get it by choosing it or working hard for it. God will show mercy to anyone He chooses (NLT).”

Like Paul, I want to think about God’s choosing in light of grace. As I understand grace, it is a gift freely given to anyone who will receive it. I don’t believe that God’s grace is exclusive. I believe it is available to all, but received by few. Those few are “the chosen.” But the point is that the “chosen” are not chosen because of their behavior. But we are chosen because God loves us and His grace is sufficient to erase all of our sins and make up for our shortcomings.

In short, if you’re a believer, God chose you because of His love. Not because of how great you were or how much you had to offer.

I’ve been meditating lately on what it means to truly live in grace. It sounds like such a simple concept, but isn’t it true that the simplest concepts are often the ones that go the deepest?

Jess and I have been talking about this concept and have really been exploring it for our own lives. We feel that living in grace goes so much deeper than simply being a Christian.

Living in grace means that we live with a strong conviction that we find our new identity in Christ. That the character and nature we see of Him, described in the Bible, is true of us when we put our faith in Him. It means we live in a constant state of humility, recognizing at every turn what Jesus has done for us. It means we extend the same grace to others that has been extended to us. It means that we live in the power of Jesus for everything we must do in life. It means that “in Him we live, and move, and have our being.”

You see, I’ve always heard, “You’re not supposed to compartmentalize your life.” In other words, you don’t have secular areas and sacred areas in your life. (ie. Work is secular, church is sacred.) Instead, living in grace means that everything we do, everything we are is sacred. And we do it all through God’s Spirit within us.

I have to admit, this is a real struggle for me. I find that I often want to make decisions based on my impulses. But my impulses aren’t always being led by God’s Spirit. Sometimes my flesh wants to take the lead. But living in grace means I am led by the Spirit of God within me, not my flesh, which has a tendancy to do evil.

Living in grace means I remember Galatians 2:20. “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

A new church.
A new city.
A new house.
A new blog.

The journey begins…