Romans 6:13
(Amplified Bible)
Do not continue offering or yielding your bodily members [and faculties]
to sin as instruments (tools) of wickedness. But offer and yield yourselves to God as
though you have been raised from the dead to [perpetual] life, and your bodily members
[and faculties] to God, presenting them as implements of righteousness.
John 11:43b-44
(Amplified Bible)
... He shouted with a loud voice, Lazarus, come
out! And out walked the man who had been dead, his hands and feet wrapped in
burial cloths, (linen strips), and with a [burial] napkin bound around his face.
Jesus said to them, Free him of the burial wrappings and let him go.
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When you think of your "born-again" experience - the day, the moment, you
accepted Jesus as your savior - do you realize that you were spiritually dead? Oh,
your body may have been walking around, your mouth may have been speaking, your eyes could
see and your mind was able to make plans - but - you were a member of the 'walking dead'!
I know I never thought of myself as a dead person. I didn't fully understand
what happened when I asked Jesus to save me. I didn't really understand --
I just couldn't comprehend the concept of hell - of eternity separated from God.
My mind was in denial. I would not allow myself to believe that a "Good
God" could allow anyone to go to a place as horrible as hell has been described to
be. I didn't understand that it was me, my own decision that would make the
difference. Yes, I heard all the teaching about 'free-will'. How God gave man
the right to decide. How He sent Jesus, His only Son, to this earth to give man a
way back to Himself - by taking all our sin and unrighteousness - and through the simple
act of believing on Him to give us the right to stand before God clean - 'washed in the
Blood', cleansed by His sacrifice. I knew all this. I knew it in my mind...
my spirit had not really gotten hold of it all. You know the difference
between hearing someone tell you a few facts and truly understanding what they are talking
about. When you understand you become 'a part' of the conversation! You are
interested and enthusiastic! You have an opinion - you know - you
understand!
When I realized what this scripture in Romans was saying I had a picture of myself - as
Lazarus must have looked. Stretched out on a stone cold slab, my body wrapped and
then tightly bound. Suddenly I hear the voice - the words settle in deepest part of
my being. "Come out!" That mind, the
one that does all the planning for me hears. At once the 'reasoning' begins.
"You can't get up.... your dead!" The voice - the command "Come out!" I can't ignore it - I begin to move.
"Ok," the mind says, "so you can move... But you can't
get up... you're wrapped too tight." "Come out!"
I push with all my might and my legs come off the slab and my feet hit the floor.
I continue ... this takes all the determination as I can muster ... but I
pull my body to a sitting position. "hmmm" -- The mind starts up
again. "Ok, now your sitting! Great, what do you think you can do?
You are wrapped so tight you can't move your hands or feet! Well, you can't even see
where you are - let alone where you want to go!" "Come
out!" The voice, the command keeps echoing somewhere inside of me.
With all the strength I can gather I force myself to stand. "See, see,..... what did
I tell you. You can't see a thing! You can't go anywhere! Sit down, stop
this foolishness!" The grave cloth still covers my face and binds my body - but
I can actually catch a ray of light in the corner of my eye. Someone has rolled the
stone away from my tomb. Light is streaming in. I hear the voice more clearly
now. "Come out!" I can not walk,
my legs are bound... with my last bit of hope and now only focusing on the command
... I move ... hop, jump, shuffle - but I move toward the voice. My
effort is rewarded. As I reach the opening to the tomb I feel heat - my body begins
to warm. One last argument. "Look at you , standing out here wrapped in
grave cloths. What a fool you are. Everyone must be laughing at you. No
one wants to be near you. Get back where you belong!"
But then.... that voice. That wonderful, sweet beckoning voice issues a new
command. "Loose him." At once many are
at work cutting the bindings, unwrapping the cloths removing the linen from my face.
And now I see - I see the one whose voice I could not ignore. He stands
before me and motions me to come to Him. I have been dead, I 'stink' - all the grave
cloths are still hanging from my body. Still He motions to me to come to Him.
I thought the reasoning was finished - but I hear my mind say - "You can't go!
You are dirty, smelly - look at how wonderful He is. You can't take this mess to
Him. Wait till you get cleaned up. Then - when you are clean enough - then you
can go to see Him." This one is even harder to fight. I look down at
myself and I am ashamed. I cry for what I have become. Through the tears, the
disappointment, the shame - I see that He has opened His arms wide to welcome me to
Himself. The hesitation is over. No more waiting, no hopping, no shuffling, no
crawling - I run with overwhelming joy into the arms of my waiting Savior!
In His arms I am transformed. My body becomes like His body - I am clean, I am
renewed. My mind now ruled by my spirit which has become one with His Spirit.
And with Him I will continue - all the days of my life.
Observation --
The act of making the decision to 'move' - To me represented the initial
act of saying "Jesus, be my savior, I want to obey you, I want you to be Lord in my
life"
The continued struggle out of the 'tomb' -- My decision to follow
Romans 12:2 - Do not be conformed to this world -- this age, fashioned after and adapted
to its external, superficial customs. But be transformed (changed) by the [entire]
renewal of your mind -- by its new ideals and its new attitude -- so that you may prove
[for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing
which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you]. We can only be
transformed as we accept more and more of the truth of His Word.
The 'many' who helped remove the grave cloths -- Represent the prayers of
all those who care for me and many who do not even know me and yet pray for the salvation
and needs of others.
And - of course - being received by Jesus -- the end of life as I know it
now, the final 'calling home'. When He shall appear in the air and call His people
to 'Come up hither'. Then we shall see Him face to face and we shall be changed in
an instant to be like Him. Hallelujah!! |
