2016 Belmont University Lenten GuideSample

It is difficult to wrap my mind around the idea of God as loving and kind while simultaneously judging and wrathful. I’m not quite sure how to make sense of the judgment he places on his creation as they will never be able to attain what his desire for them is in their humanity. He commands obedience, yet His chosen people, the Israelites, can never quite measure up. At times they get close, yet they are never perfectly obedient. I am reminded of a lyric by a songwriter named Jon Foreman: “I’m always close, but I’m never enough. I’m always in line, but I’m never in love.” I find this incredibly relatable to my life. There are days when I get quite close to living the life Christ calls me to, but there is always a flaw, whether I mess up along the way or obey God imperfectly. Perhaps I partially obey His glory out of love, but another part of me obeys in order to feed my own pride or win the approval of my fellow humans. So what is the solution in this state of consistent imperfection?

In Psalm 39, David asks the Lord to reveal to him his own frailty and humanity. He pleads for mercy and for the Lord to hold back his judgment for a little while longer that David might live in the Lord’s peace on earth and not be destroyed by God’s wrath. In this prayer, we see David’s desire for mercy, freedom and redemption for his own failures. David is often referred to as a man after God’s own heart. The desires of this prayer are also the desires of God’s heart. In sending Himself in the flesh to die a death upon a piece of wood, Jesus takes our failures upon Himself and fulfills the law we weren’t able to. His perfection frees us from our imperfection, and we no longer have to be good enough, but are covered in grace abounding. Therefore, the pressure is off to be “enough” because Christ is. There is no longer an ideal standard God asks us to meet. Instead, because grace has been fully given, He simply asks, “Will you come?” and He asks, “Will you follow me?” His love for us is what brings us into Jesus’ perfection. Instead of being condemned, through Jesus we share in life filled with joy and peace and community with God. Instead of wrath, He extends grace. Instead of condemnation, He invites us in.

“The man on the middle cross told me I can come.”

ANYSSA WALKER
Sophomore
Songwriting