Paul had a little bit of a death wish. The poster child for robust Christianity said something very strange but since it made it into scripture, it deserves a look.
If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Philippians 1:22-24
He didn’t say it was better. He said to leave this planet (death) was FAR BETTER than staying here. Either Paul was depressed and mentally unstable or he was one of the wisest men who ever lived. I tend to think, in Paul, we see what an almost perfect Christian looks like.
“He was a man who became, deep inside, truly like Jesus Christ.”
He was a man who became, deep inside, truly like Jesus Christ. He didn’t wear the bracelet that said, “What would Jesus do?” He did what Jesus would do. He said something I’ve never heard another person say.
For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race….
Romans 9:3
In other words, Paul would have been cut off from God and gone to hell for the very people who hated him if they could be saved in his place. That is the heart of God beating in a human being’s chest.
How did he arrive at such a place? Is it possible for us to live there? I’m going where angels fear to tread and say “yes,” we can live there if we want to. When we talk about our own weaknesses and failures all the time, it sounds humble to man but blasphemous to God.
“We are to boast in our weaknesses SO THAT the power of Christ may rest on us (2 Corinthians 12:9), not so we can excuse away a mediocre life.”
We are to boast in our weaknesses SO THAT the power of Christ may rest on us (2 Corinthians 12:9), not so we can excuse away a mediocre life. We are to humble ourselves and admit our weaknesses so we can exchange them for power.
Christ died a horrible death on a cross, took our punishment, absorbed the entire wrath of God against sin, completely defeated hell, death and the grave. Yet we walk around as if salvation is a fragile thing and we are barely getting by.
If we really let scripture preach truth to us, we would be beside ourselves daily.
For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Hebrews 10:14
Before God, we are perfect forever. The cross has spoken. It is finished. Perfection is ours. However, “being made holy” takes a hot minute.
Upon salvation, we got the deposit of God’s perfect Spirit inside of us. From that moment, discipline started to happen. What is discipline? Hardship is discipline (Hebrews 12). People who sign up to be a Christian for an easy ride are in for a huge disappointment. When we become a child of God, He takes us into His heart and starts to make us like Him; in our core. If we resist, we will never be transformed. If we let Him have His way, we will start to think and live like Paul.
How did Paul arrive at such a place of love? He ceased to care about his own life. He cared about God and letting Him get His will done on earth; period. To be one with God, means we get the privilege of walking in His joy, His love, and His peace.
In the book of Revelation, we get to see what is normally unseen; heaven. We get a glimpse of how things are supposed to be. No one is thinking about himself or herself. Everyone is focused on God and Christ.
…the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
Revelation 4:10-11
“When sin entered the world, a tragedy happened.”
When sin entered the world, a tragedy happened. We became the center of the universe instead of God. Our self-obsession is unnatural and makes us miserable. Our minds are meditating machines and unfortunately, they often meditate on us all day. Even when we think about others, we are often thinking about them because of how they affect our lives.
- Do they like me?
- Do they think I’m smart?
- Am I pretty (or prettier than her)?
- Is my stomach flat enough?
- What will the neighbors think?
- What if I get Covid?
- What is God’s plan for my life?
- Why did I say that?
- Why am I thinking that?
- Will I ever feel normal?
- Will I ever get married?
I felt stressed just typing those questions. That’s probably less than five minutes inside a normal person’s head.
“Christ died to reset our minds to factory condition.”
Christ died to reset our minds to factory condition. We were made in His glorious image and sin killed that glory and made us all a little (or a lot) crazy. When we get God’s Spirit inside of us, he resets us to perfection. However, it takes time (and effort) for our sin nature to cease to control us.
How did Paul go from saying, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Romans 7:18), to being willing to go to hell for people?
“God changed Him through a new birth and shaped him through suffering.”
God changed Him through a new birth and shaped him through suffering. Think of it this way. God puts His Holy Spirit fire in us while simultaneously using the fire of circumstances to burn away all that is opposite of God.
When the outer fire burns through to the inner fire, we become aflame with His Presence and nothing else matters.
After Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, Jesus told Ananias to go to Paul and pray for him.
But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”
Acts 9:15-16
“Suffering perfected Paul to such a degree that he cared only about what God cared about.”
Suffering perfected Paul to such a degree that he cared only about what God cared about. Suffering burned away his connection to ego, what others thought of him, and every other hindrance that kept his soul from soaring to the high places with God.
“To me, the best part of heaven (besides being with Jesus) will be that we get to finally be free from this body of death.”
To me, the best part of heaven (besides being with Jesus) will be that we get to finally be free from this body of death. We will be free to be who we truly are. Nothing will hinder us from worshipping God and loving each other. There will be no jealousy or competition. No trying to make others feel small so we can feel important. No strutting around like the little idiots we are (as C.S. Lewis said).
Most people fear tyranny in government. I fear the tyrant that lives inside of me more than I fear anything else.
“Although I hate my sin nature, I love being me.”
Although I hate my sin nature, I love being me. I have scripture on my walls and in my heart. I love it and I beg my good Father to make His girl just like Him in the recesses of my very soul. It’s a burning desire and the farther I progress in His love, the more addicted I become.
To feel the love of God being poured through our souls back to Him and to others is what we were created for. We never really heal this wretched thing we live in. We simply cooperate in our crucifixion so Christ can live through us in all His glory.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
Galatians 2:20
“Therein lies the key to true life; I no longer live.”
Therein lies the key to true life; I no longer live. Christ lives. Paul lived by faith in what Christ was able to do in Him. We have no idea the power each of us possess. If we would believe God enough to turn to the power at work inside our souls, there is no end to what God could do through every person reading this blog. Only one person can stop God from taking any of us to the same place of love He took Paul. That person is you.
