(Disclaimer: although I appreciate the quote from George Muller, I disagree with his conclusions found in Wikipedia. Not that its the best resource, but I didn't know who this guy was.)
A social media post...
Andre
There many wise theologians and students of the Bible. A) is this Biblical? If so, what would it look like? B) What does the Bible mean that we should die to ourselves?
Comments
Dwight
To answer your questions, Andre, A) absolutely this is Biblical, as phrases in his quote are almost exact verses from Scripture, and B) to "die to self" means is very much what George said, which is to quit living for yourself.
But, this is only half the teaching in Scripture. The other half, the better half, is to "live to God." It's equally important to understand what that means, otherwise we'll be in danger of trying to become righteous by modifying our behavior.
Salvation is not about behavior modification, nor is it merely an emotional response. It's not about sacrifice, it's about humility. It's not about becoming righteous, it's about taking on His righteousness and growing in grace.
"It is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one can boast." (Eph 2:8-9) Now that you're saved, grow in grace and in the knowledge of the truth. It's not about your plans for success, or about worldly roles. It is about His will for your eternal life (John 17:3) and confirming to the image of His Son.
Jesus died for a miraculous reason, only part of it was for your salvation. The other part is the second half of 1 Tim 2:4 which says, "[God] who desires all people to be saved (first desire) and to come to the full knowledge of the truth (second desire)."
Here are a few Scripture references for George's quote: John 14:20; Col 3:1-3; 2 Cor 5:14-15, 17; Romans 6:7-8, 11; 2 Tim 2:15). However, I do not agree with His conclusions. Once he discovered that God had a plan for church-age believers, he failed to elaborate on that plan; what is the mystery, the secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before for the ages for our glory.
Dwight, a serious student of the Bible
Andre
Dwight, I am very grateful for your helpful explanation. But where does enjoying what God created and is lawful come in? Like giving us a huge variety of delicious food to eat, having a great beer, sexual intimacy with your wife?
Andre
What I mean is, dying to self means not caring about yourself?
Andre
I will embark on a study based on your post. Thank you for taking the time!
Dwight
Excellent questions, Andre. That's why you can't do one without the other. You must have the living part to even be motivated for the dying part. Dying is not fun. But, as the saying goes, some things are worth dying for, yet not literally!
Since you brought it up, let's use the marriage and intimacy analogy. I love it! Would you agree there are phases of you getting to know your wife and being closer to her, and she to you? Of course! But, it didn't start out that way, did it?
There was probably a time you didn't know her well at all, or at least not as well as you thought. You may have dated other girls beforehand. But they became less interesting to you as you got to know your future wife better. Eventually, you knew her, and cared for her, well enough to decide to commit to an exclusive relationship with her.
The wedding ceremony is kind of like baptism; it's an outward sign and celebration of this inward commitment you already felt in your heart. You were a little nervous, perhaps, and knew you didn't know all that the future held you two.
What you felt in your heart can be likened to salvation. That's the part where you believed in God's solution to condemnation and trusted in the righteous work of His Son. Likewise, you believed in your wife before the wedding, more likely the engagement. The wedding, the baptism, was what made the belief, the engagement, magical event, and a sheer delight.
Around this time, you may have acknowledged other women as beautiful and attractive. But you knew this one was special. You had wonderful hope for your future together. You trusted she was worth exploring. To trust, you had to be a bit humble. Through humility, intimacy could grow between the two of you. You may have had second or third doubts about your decision and commitment, but you stuck with it. You may have been tempted with an emotional affair, but you come back to your wife, recommitted, having faith, humble, trusting.
Sanctification with God is like that. Salvation, like the wedding, is behind you. You didn't have to know everything to be saved, just like you didn't have to know everything about your wife to get married. Your wedding is in the past, just as your salvation is in the past. God is now 100% responsible for your soul. You can rest and be assured in that. You don't continue to become saved, you are already saved.
In the same way, you don't live with your wife trying to relive the wedding over and over. Sure, you want to keep the relationship magical. But, over the years, magic is produced in different ways, more meaningful ways, ways others probably wouldn't understand.
It's only gotten better. You've experienced profound things together, laughter, adventure, boredom, arguments, making up. You've discovered each other's vulnerability, grew in deeper appreciation, and that brought greater maturity and understanding.
Now, after years and years of marriage, ups and downs and up again, you're at a point where the thought of being with another woman doesn't enter your mind beyond a fleeting moment before it's brushed away as silly and irrelevant. You know where your heart belongs. In fact, your heart would feel ripped to shreds if anything took that away.
Self was what you wanted long ago when you first dated.Dying to self would be impossible by itself. But when presented with the chance to live, love and cherish your wife, the self melted away. It died a quiet death. You didn't have to shove it in the coffin. For the desires of your heart were before your eyes, and the will to live for her consumed you, willingly, delightfully.
Dwight
Therefore, delight in the wife of your heart. Enjoy each other. Enjoy all creation, for He has created these things for good. But also know Him. "Delight in Him and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4) Dying to self is not a burden when we experience the profound joy of the fullness of Him who died for us.
He wants the desires of your heart to be for Him, above everything else. Seek Him, both of you, and He will become the desire of your heart (singular because the two have become one flesh). His love goes beyond all that we could think, ask or imagine (Eph 3:14-21).
May the joy and peace of the Lord be with you always!
No comments:
Post a Comment