Holy

You know that moment when God chooses to reveal another part of His character to you? To me, it feels like a bunch of puzzle pieces that have been slowly gathering all of a sudden came together, and I see something I never saw before. I understand something that affects how I live in the day-to-day moments.

My most recent "aha" moment, courtesy of the Lord Jesus Christ, came as I was preparing to speak to some of our lovely women in Mars Hill West Seattle. Reading through Ephesians, I kept being brought back to the truth that if you are in Christ, you have Jesus' righteousness. You have His perfect record. God looks at you and sees perfection, as if you have always obeyed. This is not our own merit, but a gift from God in Christ Jesus (referencing Ephesians 1-2, Romans 3, 2 Corinthians 5:21).

Immediately, here's my internal dialogue: "But wait. As a Christian, as a daughter of God, I still sin. Every day. Sometimes every minute. God still looks at me and sees perfection? He's not dumb. He knows I'm not perfect. I believe God hates sin. I believe it grieves him. I don't understand."

Here I get to preach the gospel right back at myself: "Yes, Melissa! Isn't that good news? God isn't dumb. He is more aware of the gravity of your sin than you are. By His grace, you're becoming more aware of how grievous your sin really is. God looks at you and sees perfection because as Jesus took on the cross and chose to die, he TOOK your sinful identity and gave you his perfect identity. Period. Every sin you will ever commit has already been paid for by Jesus' blood. Nothing has to be done anymore. It is finished. You are perfectly righteous before God because He said so. You can never change who you are in Christ."

Amazing news, isn't it??!! I'm not a slave to my sin anymore! I'm righteous in God's eyes!

Now comes the new truth God taught me about the Holy Spirit, the third member of the Trinity. I've been reading through Genesis & Exodus lately, and being reminded of how holy and powerful God is. After God delivers his people from their slavery in Egypt, and he brings them to the wilderness, he gives instructions on how to build the tent of meeting. This is where God's presence would come. When God spoke, the people would tremble. Yes, they disobeyed often. But when they heard from God, they feared him and would not want to be face to face with him. God's presence was not common. He did not appear to everyone. In fact, when Moses, who was the one who spoke most with God, asked to see God's glory, God told him he could see his back as he passed, but not his full glory or Moses would die. God is holy. This is the same God I worship, the same God all Christians worship. He cannot dwell with sin, because he is without sin. He could not live with his people because they were sinful. He made ways for them to atone for their sin (sacrifices), but he did not dwell with his people.

Fast forward to now, to when Jesus came to be our sacrifice. When he died, and rose from death, conquering sin and Satan. What is one of the promises Jesus gives us when he saves us? That he will send the Holy Spirit (John 14) to every new believer (Ephesians 1). The Holy Spirit is God. Once we become a believer, God the Holy Spirit comes to dwell IN US. God cannot dwell with sin, as he is perfect. The very fact that God the Holy Spirit lives in each believer is sure evidence to me that before God, we are completely and perfectly righteous & holy.

So now, when I doubt my righteousness before God, when I begin sinking into the pit of despair because I keep sinning, this gives me great hope. I have the Holy Spirit in me, and he couldn't be in me unless I had Christ's righteousness too. This is something I can never earn and never lose.