City Life Starter

Written by PJ Thomas

The Word

The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.

Romans 8:7

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Ephesians 4:22-24

Remember, this repentance, this willing submission to humiliation and a kind of death, is not something God demands of you before he will take you back, and which he could let you off if he chose. It is simply a description of what going back to him is like. If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen.

C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity Book 2, Ch 4

Exegesis

Paul takes great care in Romans and Ephesians to explain that accepting Christ and repenting from sin is not merely a fact that you acknowledge in the mind. It involves changing your desires, reflexes, actions, and purpose.

I have heard pastors describe our condition before this change as having hardware that’s corrupt. If you have ever had a laptop flash that “blue screen of death” you might have felt that your laptop is hostile towards you! Imagine how God feels as we go through the world putting ourselves first and seeking fulfillment everywhere but the place we were designed to find fulfillment, in Him. It may be easy enough to reboot your computer and get new software. But it may not be simple. Anyone that’s had to reboot a computer when the hard drive crashes knows that it likely will cost you something important.  In a way, the computer must die for it to be used the way it was intended.

Similarly, repentance is a kind of death. We give “all that we have” (Luke 14:33). The “all” is nothing less than our whole self. It is amazing that this is even an option, thanks to Jesus. People talk about cheap grace, and in one sense it does not cost us our acts or possessions. We do nothing to deserve it. But it costs us everything to truly inhabit and receive grace.  The cost reflects the value. This is why Jesus used the metaphor of finding treasure of great value and selling all to get it (Matthew 13:45-46). Interestingly, the merchant in this metaphor does not begrudge the cost or belabor the decision.  Rather, instead of focusing on what he thinks he may lose, he focuses on the treasure he will gain.

In the end,  just as it is worth it to reboot your computer in order to have it run the way it was meant to, it is also worth it to repent in order to have your life run the way it was meant to. When we get new software through Christ, we run differently than we did before we accepted him. Though we need “updates” by renewing our mind in God’s word, this renewal of our mind grants us greater ability to function in the kingdom the way God designed.

Application

Each day that we remind ourselves of God’s grace through Jesus, it allows us to see the surpassing value of submitting to him over everything else in our life. Take time to reflect on this and allow the Holy Spirit to put on your “new self” as you study Jesus’ teachings.

Prayer

Pray Psalm 51:10-12 (NIV)

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
 Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
 Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me