GOSPEL :: FAMILY :: MISSION
Last week we talked about how we are powerless to change ourselves. Though we are powerless to change ourselves, we are not without hope for change. When we look at our struggles, we often feel helpless in our sin. But this is right where the heart of the good news meets us: “While we were helpless, Christ died for the ungodly” (Romans 5:6). God can and will liberate us from the power of sin.
The foundation of spiritual growth is acknowledging that we are powerless to change ourselves. Because we are self-reliant people, we try (repeatedly) to stop doing things we shouldn’t and start doing things we should, using nothing but our own effort and willpower.
Believing the gospel and applying the gospel go hand in hand, but the order is important. Of first importance is what God has done for us in Christ. God’s grace toward us in Christ is the foundation of all our obedience and application. Yet, in the midst of all the practical instruction, we must not lose sight of the principle that the gospel changes us from the inside out. Without that, we are doing little more than whitewashing tombs.
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