October 26th, 2005
It’s a cold and overcast Wednesday here. It’s so dark at only two o’ clock this afternoon that it feels so much more like five o’ clock that I had to turn all the lights on around my desk. Hopefully even some rain is in store for us this week. Last night Bobby and I spent some time at our old apartment getting it ready to turn in our keys. For some reason it took much longer to simply spackle nail holes and scrub walls than I thought, so we will have to make another night out of it before we’re through. I have gotten a few more items in our new place unpacked and some furniture in place so it is slowly taking shape as “home”.
Yesterday I set out to find a small computer desk to put in the dining nook in our kitchen. I’m looking forward to that being my own little office space. Hopefully I will even blog more from home, rather than work. I know what a task it can be to hunt down the piece of furniture I’m picturing in my mind, so this time I did the research online and simply went to the store to purchase my selection. Sadly customer service must be at an all time low because I waited twenty minutes and had spoken with five employees before someone actually helped me get the piece and load it into the back of my car. Obviously none of them have read Bobby’s latest entry on service! Wal-Mart woes aside, it’s a nice piece of furniture for it’s price, and I got the pretty antique white finish so I’m glad someone eventually helped me!
Recently I began reading an older (but new to me) book by John MacArthur called Our Sufficiency in Christ. I was struck this morning by one of MacArthur’s simply put but resoundingly profound statements as he writes about 2 Peter 1:3.
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As Christians, we find complete sufficiency in Christ and
His provisions for our needs. There’s no such thing as an
incomplete or deficient Christian. Our Savior’s divine power
has granted us everything pertaining to life and godliness.
Human wisdom offers nothing to augment that. Every
Christian receives all he or she needs at the moment of
salvation. Each one must grow and mature, but no necessary
resource is missing. There’s no need to search for something
more. When Jesus completed His redemptive work on
Calvary, He cried out triumphantly, “It is finished”(John 19:30).
What can anyone add to that?
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I found myself stewing over this paragraph and referring to it several times already today because what MacArthur has expressed is not generally believed at most churches and in the lives of believers I know. It seems that we place far too much weight on professional counsel and psychology, spiritual self-help books and church programs rather than the Word and person of Christ. The idea that Scripture and Christ’s saving power are everything I need to live a godly life is a rarely talked about reality. Instead it seems that many Christians live just as most non-believers continually committing the same sins, relying on multiple medications, going in and out of “Christian” psychology offices, living in such a self-sufficient way that it seems certain that many do not even believe in the Holy Spirit’s power or ability to have control in our lives.
One prominent area that came to mind when I read MacArthur’s statement was that of prayer. I often pray asking the Lord for resources that I already possess, praying for the power of God, when I already have it. For example, “Lord, please grant me Your peace.” If I’m praying for God’s peace, then it seems that I don’t possess it. But all the while I might be living worried and fretting about things in my life. I have His peace; I’m just not living it. It seems that I am the problem here not my spiritual resources. MacArthur later states that in Christ we have”all strength, wisdom, joy, peace, meaning, value, purpose, hope and fulfillment in life now and forever…” So if I have His peace because it was granted to me when I believed, then why don’t I instead realize that when I began fretting, that essentially I was saying, “Lord, no thank you on Your peace right now. I’ll get back to You, though, if I feel that I need it.”
Sadly, many Christians have given up having confidence in the sufficiency of God’s Word and even doubt that their relationship with Christ has all of the spiritual resources that they need. Thinking they are incomplete, they look around, outside of the Word, outside of the church and try to find things that “work” for them. In their ignorance they treat advice that says, “God’s grace is enough for every need” as simplistic and unrealistic. This failure to grasp the beautiful truth of an all-sufficient Christ has opened the door for all kinds of lies, legalism and secularizing of our faith. We have become, as MacArthur says, “much more engrossed in a fruitless search for contentment in hollow human teachings” than seeking the all-sufficient God we serve.
I have been convicted reading this book so far as I can see how I am calling God a liar at times when I don’t live in the truth He has granted to me and the immense resources He has bestowed upon me. I hope that you too will be gripped with renewed awe for the sufficiency of God and His Word.
“My grace is sufficient for you,
for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
2 Corinthians 12:9
October 26th, 2005
Wow. You’re totally right about how we basically reject God’s provision when we wallow in ourselves. I like how you phrased this: “Lord, no thank you on Your peace right now. I’ll get back to You, though, if I feel that I need it.” Even though we don’t say that outright, it is very true that we think that subconsciously. We really do choose to be worried and unhappy. Thank you for pointing that out is such real language - it’s a good reminder to call myself back to leaning on God’s provision when I fall into self-pity.
October 27th, 2005
Christa! Thank you for the post, I am glad you got the desk and hope that it will be conducive to more posts like this one! Thanks for the reminder that we are sufficient in Christ! (I think I heard a song about that one time…)
Billy
October 27th, 2005
Thanks for the reminder of our sufficency in Christ. How we so easily forget! I especially appreciated your comment regarding praying for things we already have. I’ve been reading in Ephesians this month, and it mentions Paul’s prayers in chapters 1 and 3. Both times he prays that the believers would realize the resources they have in Christ (1:18, 3:18-19). We don’t need anything more, we just need to appreciate and utilize what we do have.
October 27th, 2005
Sarah- Thanks for calling that attitude out at “self-pity”. I agree that is exactly what we’re doing when we don’t accept God’s provisions to us…even if we don’t come out and say it that way.
Billy- I was thinking of that song the whole time I wrote this entry! Please follow the link to hear the wonderful song we are refering to…Godsongmusic “Sufficiency”
Mom- I like how you put those verses on here, they are both a good encouragement to do how you said, “appreciate and utilize” what God has given to us. Thanks for reading!
October 27th, 2005
Christa:
I read this book many years ago. You’ve inspired me to pick it up again!
October 27th, 2005
I also enjoy reading MacArthur’s books - as I am very interested in biblicial counseling. I just pulled his “introduction to biblical counseling” off the shelf today!
The passages you quoted - I needed a reminder of these basic truths - how simple they are on one hand but why so hard to grasp and fully live in?
Thanks for the great blogging and for introducing yourself!
October 28th, 2005
Sorry about the bad service..poor sis.
You should have gone to Home Depot. 