The Three R’s of the Spiritual Life

Renovation. Restoration. Redemption. Three marvelous words. Three words that capture the essence and magnetism of the Bible, the Living Word of God. Salvific words these are. Beautiful and inviting terms, and in so many ways, irresistible. From Genesis to the Revelation, God is tirelessly working to do what only He can do—to make the old new, to rescue the lost, and to bring the dead back to life.Who but God could “rescue” and elevate to vice-presidential status a man sold into slavery by his family, a forlorn Joseph languishing, forgotten in an Egyptian jail?¬¬¬ Who but God could take a washed up, former prince like Moses and make him a mighty leader and lawgiver for a horde of stubborn and complaint-filled Hebrews? Who but God could take a band of unlearned rejects and make of them a team of disciples that would change the world? Who but God could take a ravenous, abusive murderer named Saul and re-make him as Paul, the greatest missionary the world has ever seen? Who but God could take someone like you and me and make us the light of the world and the salt of the earth, the very children of God privileged to carry the Good News of renovation, restoration, and redemption to a damaged and distressed world? Only God. That is the overarching story of the Bible. It IS Good News. Very, very Good News.However, due to the ravages of sin, we all fall short of the glory of God; we all find ourselves in need of being re-made, of being redeemed. Some of us may fall farther and harder than others, but indeed we all fall; all of us like sheep have gone astray; and all of us can identify with Isaiah’s summation of our unredeemed status: our righteousness is as filthy rags. But that is only half of the story. There is a joyous ending. We have a Redeemer, a Restorer, a Savior—One who is full of grace and truth, One who imputes His righteousness to us. Jesus purchased us with His own life: we were bought with a great price. We ARE redeemed! That holy, unsolicited, sacrificial act on a cruel, Roman cross grants us infinite worth, eternal value. Praise be to Christ! Such love; such wondrous love!That redemptive love is metamorphic: it brings about a change in us. The old is gone, and the new has come. We have exchanged a set of sinner’s rags for the wardrobe of a King. Our heart of stone has become a heart of flesh, pumping with the vibrancy of the Spirit of Christ. We begin, in ways that we cannot fully describe or explain, to live the life of Jesus, the Christ-life. And that life manifests itself in myriad ways. We witness it on a continual basis, most significantly as we, the apprentices of Jesus, go forth into our community and world to continue His mission of renovation, restoration and redemption.In our local gathering of believers at Saragossa Nazarene we call that mission ACTS 29 (All Called to Serve). As you well know, the Book of the Acts ends at chapter 28 with Paul in Rome awaiting trial (and his eventual execution). But the Story does not end there. No, no. Far from it. It is ongoing right now as you are reading this, and it will continue unabated until Christ comes to retrieve His bride, the Church. That is exciting! We are a vital part of the unbroken chain of the redemptive work of God on earth from the time of Christ onward. We literally are an extension of what Christ began at Cana of Galilee when He performed His first miracle. Let that sink in for a moment. Then realize how profound our inclusion in the eternal mission of God really is. That unmistakably gives us meaning and purpose, a definite reason to arise each day in order to joyously labor in the Kingdom of our Father, where our concentrated intention is to do His will.We pray: Your Kingdom come, Your will be done. How that actually works itself out is up to God as we purpose to be His servants, as we willingly give ourselves to the work of Redemption. For us at Saragossa that means a variety of things. For example, we recently raised over $11,000 to send to Mali (north Africa) so that our missionaries there could dig a well. That well will provide water for thirsty Africans, the majority of whom are Muslim. Yes, they need physical water, but more importantly, they need the Living Water, the Water that redeems for eternity. By coming to the well, those Africans can be transformed just as surely as the Samaritan woman was when she met Jesus at a Palestinian well. They can be renovated, restored and redeemed.Another way that is working itself out at our church is with a new Divorce Care ministry we are inaugurating in January. So many of our sisters and brothers (including me just recently) have gone, or are going, through the heartache of a broken marriage or family. Such an experience can be devastating because it completely disrupts life as we have known it to be, and because it negatively impacts such a wide range of our family and friends. BUT even in the midst of unspeakable suffering, there is renovation, restoration and redemption through Jesus, who promises us an abundant life if we trust in Him. So we do. I know my Redeemer lives—in spite of the contrary designs of the evil one!I think it very fitting to end with this invitation from Jesus: 28 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matthew 11, NLT).May you be renovated, restored, and redeemed.A fellow beggar along the Way,Greg Tinker