a perfectionist’s guide to salvation

[Today is post #7 in our annual, summer Guest Writer Series. Note that the opinions expressed may or may not be held by the Intramuralist.]

We live in a performance driven culture. Most companies center around performance metrics. Evaluations are based on accomplishments, not intentions. Talk is cheap. You must walk the walk. Actions not words. What have you done for me lately?

When I became a Christian, this is the prism through which I viewed my relationship with Christ. As I understood it, sin separated me from God and separation from God meant death. However, God loved me so much that he sacrificed his Son to die in my place. If I acknowledged this truth and confessed my sins, I would live.

I am also a perfectionist by nature, so after accepting Christ as my savior, I focused on living a sin-free life. I would berate myself for the smallest infraction. After all, what if I were killed in an accident before I had the opportunity to confess my sin?

Striving to live a moral life is a good thing, but there were several problems with my approach. Of course, no one is perfect. Setting an unattainable standard is demoralizing. Not accepting any mistakes at all means not being accepting of yourself which can lead to low self-esteem.

Furthermore, those unwilling to forgive themselves find it challenging to forgive others, especially when others express no contrition. All of us at some time in our lives will be wronged by someone else, often someone we care about. The thing is, if you don’t forgive, even when the other person doesn’t ask for forgiveness, you are the one affected most. Holding on to anger and resentment will only eat you up inside.

There were a couple extreme examples last year of Christians who truly understood “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.” In June 2015, relatives of nine people gunned down at a Charleston, SC church forgave the killer at his bond hearing. In November 2015, the widower of a woman raped and murdered in Indianapolis, IN forgave the three men responsible. Amazing statements… incredibly difficult to say, yet liberating as well. If those people can mean those words, you can, too, for much smaller offenses.

In my original understanding of how salvation works, I had the facts right, but I had the order wrong. Long before I ever sinned, God gave me the gift of grace. That is the starting point. When I accepted this gift, my sin was wiped away. I still try to live a sin-free life, but now my motivation is love for God, instead of a fear of death.

None of this diminishes the importance of obeying God’s commands. Both grace and obedience are vital to living a Christian life, but you can’t perform your way to heaven. It’s grace that comes first. God gave grace to you, and He expects you to give it to others.

Respectfully…
PJM