When someone goes to see a doctor, the doctor may ask the whole history of the patient. What problems – pain, fever, dizziness, headache, vomiting, etc – the patient is experiencing in the body. During this conversation, with correct answers from patients, the doctor finds a direction to a specific disease. For further diagnosis, the doctor may ask the patient to go through some blood test, or MRI or CT-Scan or X-ray or EGC, etc. Let’s assume, a patient tries to hide the problem or symptoms. What will happen? Something definitely will go wrong – no healing.
Apostle Paul was very honest to say his problem in Roman 7:24, “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?”. He was fulfilling the commandments of Moses, but was not able to overcome lust. He was very much clear on that, and believed that it’s only Christ who can deliver him from this(Romans 7:25). This was the reason, he emphasized this in the epistle to his beloved spiritual son Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15.
2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Neither Paul was able to perform himself to present himself approved to God, nor he was able in rightly dividing the word of truth. None can get approved by God by his own effort, never. Otherwise, there would not have been a need for the blood of Jesus. Paul asked Timothy to exercise this – because he knew that it’s a broken heart that God desires as a sacrifice.
Now, let’s assume an iPhone. It’s the manufacturer who knows it the best, and has the capacity to repair the iPhone. The Apple company has all the parts of the iPhone, and can replace or repair the best way than others. But whenever there is a problem in any iPhone, that has to be brought to its authorized repairing center. Of course, the iPhone is for consumers not for the Apple company, but all that needed in an iPhone to represent the manufacturing company Apple, has to come from the Apple company. Romans 11:36 says, all things belong to God, and from God. Therefore in the very next verse 12:1, Paul says to Romans, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”
Living sacrifice is something which still can perform but not without the manufacturer. Living sacrifice is something which still can represent its manufacturer but not without power from its manufacturer. We need to be a living sacrifice to God, to be his sons – to represent Christ, the first son. But not without him binding and healing us, and to get healed in our flesh (as spirit is already new) we need to be honest to him. Yes, he knows everything, but wants us to acknowledge it in front of him. He loves it when we go to him this way, because he is our loving Father.
Mark states a profound truth in Mark 8:37, which says, “What will a man give in exchange for his soul? (NKJV)”. There is no better offering a man can give to God but a soul. The soul is our feelings, desire, emotions, thoughts, etc. – this is carnal, and needs to be taken care of by the Spirit of God alone.
The flesh will fail; it is always prone to be broken.. Gospel can bind up and heal brokenhearted.
Most of the time, I hear preachers preach messages from Luke 15 – prodigal son. Some preach this as lost son, some as lost father, some as backslidden sons, so forth. However, a great truth gets missed in between.
Luke 15:21 The son declared, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.” It’s where we miss. Our heavenly father wants us to acknowledge that we have failed somewhere, and our effort is not enough to overcome it, correct it, but through the love of father alone, through Christ alone, through his Holy Spirit alone. When we come to him with this heart – which is considered a broken heart, father loves it. He says, “my power works best in your weakness”(2 Corinthians 12:9). Further down in the parable, we read that Father ran immediately to his son, embraced him, and kissed him.
2 Corinthians 7:10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.
Godly sorrow is the broken heart, and acknowledging it and submitting it to God believing he is able to bind and heal our heart is the process of repentance, then comes actual salvation. However, if we do this for the same sin or weakness, repeatedly, perhaps we are missing true repentance – and hence missing the true salvation in that particular area. It could be anger, or love of money or bitterness or unforgiving heart or slander or adultery or any kind of idolatry.
Let’s be honest enough to go to our father God, believing that he is able, and will accept us regardless of our sins, and heal us, then we become more like Christ. This is continual sanctification. Paul notes that he has not yet reached perfection but presses on toward the goal.(Phil 3:12).
May you always walk in the guidance of God’s love. Amen.