Grace: the Antidote for Stress

11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.” Acts 15:11 NKJV

 We've begun a new series of study on God's great Grace. We're focusing on the healing and restorative work of Grace in our lives once received in its fullness. So far we've seen Grace is the antidote for the hurts religion has inflicted. We've seen that Grace is the antidote for burnout.

 Today, I sense the impression to focus on the area of stress. Stress affects everyone in some way or the other. Be it financial, health, work/career, or family. Stress brings with it pressure, worry, and anxiety. Stress brings pressure and uneasiness but Grace brings peace, rest and full assurance. 

 In the Finished Work, God provided the way of rest. Jesus is our Sabbath rest. The Finished Work reminds us the work is complete. It is finished, nothing needs to be added to it. Not works, not performance, not more serving or promises to do better. If it's finished, then all we need to do is act accordingly and rest in Him.

 9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Hebrews 4:9-10 NKJV

 We can rest in Jesus' triumphant victory. Now, what does it mean to rest in Him? Putting it in the simplest terms, don't try to reinvent the wheel. In other words, if the barn has already been painted why are you buying paint, and brushes and rollers and attempting to paint it again? Can you imagine a painter going into the museum and trying to repaint the Mona Lisa? Or a road crew setting up to pave a road that has just been paved? 

 I hope you're tracking with me. Would a farmer go to a field that's just been plowed and then try to plow it again? That's foolish. We can readily see the foolishness of redoing what's already been done in this natural, secular realm. Yet, when we translate it into the spiritual realm it seems to so many that it's what we're supposed to be doing. 

 Why is this? Because it's human nature to want to contribute, to add to, to help out. Jesus finished the work. He rendered the enemy defeated. He purchased our complete healing and wholeness. He paid the full price and took all the punishment for all sins of all mankind. So how do we attempt to redo what's already done?

 When we believe the enemy is still undefeated in some way, and that by our prayer chains, our prayer marches, our fasting, our giving will somehow render the enemy really defeated. Look the enemy is either defeated or he isn't. Resting in Jesus is trusting fully, completely in what Jesus did. It's not us trying to do anything to make it so. Don't misunderstand I am not speaking of inactivity, I am speaking of Spirit-led actions based on the understanding that Jesus is the triumphant victorious King. It's fighting from victory, not for victory.

Have Faith in God

 Resting in Christ is walking by Faith. What is Faith? The Amplified Bible has the best definition of Faith I've ever seen, here. Now it's not Faith in our faith. Brother Kenneth Hagin once wrote a book about this topic. In it, all he was speaking of was having a confident expectation that your Faith will indeed work for you. Meaning, you didn't need some big name minister to pray for you to achieve results. 

 That is a truth that is important to remember. You can trust God and He will hear your prayers. That said, unfortunately, some took this idea too literally. The Word of Faith then morphed into some performance driven, works concept of faith in your own faith. In other words, the objective was to have faith in your faith, that's not the truth.

 Resting in Him is about putting our Faith in His Faith and Finished Work. Grace is about Christ living and working through us, not us working for Him. Faith isn't about achievements or strivings. It's really about resting in what He has already done. 

 You may be wondering, what's this have to do about the stress we face day to day? Glad you asked. This is about moving from being stressed out to a place of rest. 

2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 2 Thessalonians 2:2 NKJV

 In this passage, Paul is speaking of the coming of the Lord. He was easing the fear and worry and anxiety some had concerning the last days. What catches my attention is the phraseology he uses. Paul says don't be shaken or troubled by spirit or word or letter. This is a truth that will cause stress to fall away.

 Pressure and fear and worry and stress comes from only these three avenues. Think of it. Your spirit concerns the enemy trying to convince you of his lies. Word, is when someone speaks negative words or heralds bad news. Letter is when we receive troubling news by way of written words. 

 This covers all aspect of our lives. The Good News is that the Holy Ghost through Paul said we shouldn't be shaken or troubled. No matter what the situation or circumstance God is still on the throne. Jesus is still Lord. The enemy is still defeated. 

 Bringing this together, we must rest in Christ Finished Work at all times. When trouble tries to rear its head that's not the time to try and add to the Finished Work. Certainly, you may pray more and look to the Scriptures. Let that be a source of comfort and stability and a reminder of Jesus' triumph, but don't turn it into a work. 

 We can't control all situations or circumstances, or the actions or words of others. Therefore, there is no need to be stressed out by the actions of others. If people are harassing or haranguing you, trust Christ to turn it around for your good.

 I've had unruly neighbors who were destructive to their property and were troublesome. I've had really difficult co-workers and supervisors. I prayed about these situations. I trusted Christ. These neighbors moved away. These co-workers left me alone or some even transferred. The boss was reassigned to another place. My point is there isn't a circumstance that God can't bring victory to.

In summation, Grace is the antidote for stress. The Finished Work is complete and the enemy is totally defeated and rendered harmless and ineffective in all his schemes. Truly we may feel surrounded and overwhelmed at times. The real truth is we are surrounded. We are surrounded by His goodness and favor. We are surrounded by His love and kindness and mercy. We are victorious overcomers because of Jesus and His Grace. Stress out? No, relax because Jesus has got this!

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Grace:the Antidote for Burnout

11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.” Acts 15:11 NKJV

 We've begun a new series of study on the Radical Grace of Almighty God. We're centering on the restorative, renewing, and healing power of His Grace in our lives. Once Grace is freely received in our hearts, we will experience wholeness. 

 Today, I want to focus on an issue many believers have struggled with. That is this area of spiritual burnout. More clearly stated, this area of strivings, abiding in a performance-based faith, operating in achievement syndromes. This accomplishment rooted approach to God only produces more struggle and eventual burnout. 

 Many Christian sincerely desire to be committed, dedicated, devoted followers of Christ Jesus. This is commendable. However, what God wants is not a dutiful servant. He is not seeking interaction with people who relate or interact with Him out of a sense of obligation or moral responsibility. 

 What our Father seeks is a relationship. He is not our supervisor or manager or executive in the Heavens, He is our Father in Heaven. He is longing for a relationship, not a duty-minded servant. He is the good Father, who gave us His only Son as the payment for all our sins, redeeming us from the hand of the enemy, exchanging our old nature with a new nature, making us the very righteousness of God in Christ. 

28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 MSG

 God desires us to come to Him as His children, not His workers. He longs to interact with us as the loving Father who rejoices over us with joy. He strongly desires to fellowship with us like family, not as employees. He sees us as His sons and daughters, not subjects or dutiful servants. God longs to eradicate the image of God as the harsh taskmaster, who is never pleased, out of our thinking and to embrace the true image of God. That He is our good and loving Father who is always for us and never against us.  

 Spiritual activity such as prayer, devotion, church attendance, and even our giving are good things. We can experience growth and maturity as a result. However, prayer or Bible study was never designed as a task to complete or duty to fulfill. Going to church has always been about fellowshipping with fellow believers and bringing our supply to bless the Body of Christ. It was never about an obligatory, weekly chore that must not be missed. 

 The cure for this burnout is found in Grace. Paul masterfully expresses a truth we must never forget.

5 Don’t be mistaken; in and of ourselves we know we have little to offer, but any competence or value we have comes from God.              2 Corinthians 3:5 Voice

 Our sufficiency or Christ's?

 The key to overcoming burnout is realizing it's Christ sufficiency and not our own. That's Grace. When we focus on doing the good things and turn them into some type of chore or task to be completed we are operating out of our own sufficiency.

 Sometimes people mistakenly think they are operating out of Christ's strength when in fact they are in their own strength. You see reading God's Word offers comfort and strength. Hearing the Word preached also brings faith and encourages us. However, how we are to live and operate is out of His sufficiency not our own, as Paul said. 

 People take the encouragement from the Word and assume this is living and moving in Him. They then proceed to carry out the Christian "tasks" expected such as witnessing to the lost. Eventually, this work, work, and more work begins to grow tiresome and produces weariness. 

 In response, they increase their study time. They fast. They attend more church services. Still, the work makes them weary and has the potential to turn them bitter and cold. The solution? The answer? Knowing and understanding the truth that operating in Him is letting Christ work through us and not us working for Him. 

 We must know and understand where our sufficiency is. No matter how much Bible we read, no matter how long we pray, no matter how many sermons we hear, we must never forget where our sufficiency is. We are insufficient apart from Him. Our trust should always be in Him and not in anything we have done or are doing. 

 What we must understand is that our efforts, our works, are never sufficient in and of themselves. What Grace does is bring us to a point to realize no matter what we will always need God to work through us and in us. When we lose sight of this, we will burn out.

 In summation, how can we tell if we are on the path to burning out? How can we tell if we are on that road headed to weariness? When we begin trusting in our actions and disciplines when we see spiritual activities as duties or obligations to meet know we are on the wrong path. Thank God for Grace that directs our steps to a better way, the way of rest and refreshing. 

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Grace: The Antidote for the Hurt

11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.” Acts 15:11 NKJV




 We've begun a new series of study on the great Grace of God. Specifically, we are focused on the healing, delivering and renewing power Grace provides once received within our hearts. Grace is the antidote for anything that afflicts or brings torment. 

 In this life, we experience joy, peace, and comfort. We all have experienced victory and triumph in our lifetime even in the smallest circumstance. Be it something as simple as finding a good parking space at the mall, to something as profound as people escaping tyrannical governments. Point is we all have things to be thankful for. 

 That said, we must also acknowledge sometimes there are challenges to living life on this planet. Especially challenging is when those we trust bring us pain. Certainly, I can acknowledge we as finite beings can allow our emotions to rule a situation and "feel" hurts. Circumstances where the Pastor didn't shake your hand or the situation didn't turn out exactly like you wanted. 

 Sure, in those times, we know when we are honest we may have just misread the situation and need to realize people didn't go out of their way to make our life difficult. These are things that we through growth, maturity, and managing our emotions overcome and find a better way to navigate feelings and expectations. However, there are real and genuine hurts and painful experiences that we need to receive healing and wholeness from.

 I said all that because often when we bring our pain to others sometimes these situations are dismissed as us being too emotional or too wrapped up in our feelings. When our pain has been dismissed these hurts and wounds begin to fester and they create anger and morph into bitterness. God wants to heal our hurts not dismiss them as imaginary or us overreacting.

 Jesus is the person of Grace. He is there for us when life brings about pain and misery. Today, I want to address the real pain religion and tradition afflict upon the masses. There are so many who have been hurt and mistreated by the traditions of men. 

 For instance, there is a tradition that divorce is the unpardonable sin. That if you divorce and the ex is still alive and you remarry then you are committing adultery. Sadly, so many churches and ministries adopt this view. 

 Their tradition so blinds them that they even insist on women who are in a physically or even sexually abusive situation with their husband that they must remain married. Sure separate they say, but you must not divorce. You must wait, (for an undetermined amount of time, until you die?) for that husband to change, and you must not divorce and definitely never remarry.  This is not Good News. God cares about our wholeness, not us upholding some tradition of man.

 If you've been hurt by religion and tradition I have great news. Jesus is the healer of the hurt. Did you know how Jesus deals with the hurts religion afflicts? We don't have to guess because the Gospels record Jesus dealing with this exact situation. 

 If you read John 9 the entire chapter,  you will see an exciting event unfold. What we see is Jesus encountering a man who was born blind. Now before we proceed, let's quickly address a tradition that has been formulated. 

 The disciples ask was the person born blind because of sin? That is the person's own sin or his parents? Jesus dismisses this nonsense and just proves His goodness and brings wholeness. God didn't cause the man to be born blind just so later in life Jesus could heal him. I believe God is Almighty and magnificent. He is not a weak, puny, pathetic god. He doesn't need to make one sick just to heal him. See more about this here. 

 Jesus heals the man and you would think there would be rejoicing and gladness. No, among the religious there was strife and variance. Some doubted the miracle, so they brought this man to the Pharisees, the religious leaders. Were they happy that a man born blind can now see? No, they were angry because their traditions were trampled on and that didn't sit well with them.

 The religious leaders doubted, questioned his integrity and even brought his parents before them. They began to intimidate his parents who had fears of excommunication. When the man reaffirmed the truth that he was once blind but can now see, and gave glory to Jesus, they became enraged. He told them once again of this great miracle. He once again gave glory to Jesus. They called him a no good sinner and excommunicated him.

 All this man did was receive a miracle from God and rejoice and give the glory to Jesus. Yet he had his integrity questioned. He and his family were intimidated. He was labeled a sinner and then removed from fellowship. That is a lot of pain inflicted upon him by religious leaders. Let's see Jesus' actual response.

35 Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding him, He said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 36 He answered, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?” 37 Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you.” 38 And he said, “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped Him. John 9:35-38 NASB

 Look at the response of Jesus the person of Grace. He heard they kicked him out. Jesus is attentive to the plight of this man. In other words, Jesus is looking out for you, you're important to Him. He found the man. This is amazing Grace. Jesus was seeking and searching for this man. Grace found him. He showed him the way and the truth. Jesus brought wholeness and restoration to him. 

 Jesus isn't done. Continue reading. 

39 And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.” 40 Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, “We are not blind too, are we?” 41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains. John 9:39-41 NASB

 Jesus reveals once again He is the Savior of the World, that He is come to save all people from their sins if they simply believe. Then He rebukes religion. Why? Because they are so self-righteous they cannot see their own brokenness and unrighteousness. 

 Grace is the antidote for the hurt and the pain. Whenever religion and tradition bring affliction Grace brings wholeness. When religion questions your worth, Grace reminds you whose you are. Believer, when religion calls you a no good sinner, Grace reminds you that you are the righteousness of God in Christ. When religion calls you unforgiven Grace reminds you that you're forgiven once for all time. When religion tells you that your salvation is uncertain or insecure, Grace reminds you that you are unconditionally eternally secure. Grace is the remedy for all the lies and slander of religion.

 With Jesus as our healer, we must remember not to lash out at other believers. The "institution" of the Church isn't the issue. It's the religious traditions and controlling leadership that is. We must not allow hurts to make us bitter and spiteful and resentful people. 

 Yes, the hurt is real. The pain inflicted upon us by tradition runs deep. Yet, Grace can uncover all the areas we are hurting. Grace can bring wholeness to all areas, even the hurts we refuse to give voice to. We must not allow pain to isolate us. We all need each other. Allow Grace to overtake you. Let His love cascade over you, showering you with healing and wholeness, acceptance, and restoration. 

 In summation, Grace is the antidote for all that afflicts. Tradition and religion seek to control. It seeks to impose its insidious rule over our lives. Under Grace, we are free from the religious traditions of men. We find our help, our hope and our being in His Grace and what His Finished Work made us.

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