Having lived in a Christian context for over 45 years, I now realize that there are two communal atmospheres available to the Christian. Either he is breathing the air of law or the air of grace. Sadly it has taken me a very long time to understand the difference between the two atmospheres. And, may I add, it is very possible that you, the reader, have not properly understood the distinction either.
The reason for this is that we tend to think that churches that teach the doctrine of God’s free grace to sinners are gracious churches. A church community that understands and teaches grace is light years away from a church community that lives under grace. The remainder of this article will be to outline some of the distinctive qualities of communities that ultimately find their identity in law and those who find it in God’s grace. This, I pray, will enable the reader to better evaluation his or her church situation.
For purposes of this article we will call churches that are ultimately ruled by law a works-based community. Many of these communities believe that the salvation of God is a free gift that requires no payment yet attached to that salvation are subtle conditions. Salvation in these communities is considered a miraculous work of God but the work is always confirmed by the existence of certain spiritual qualities in the convert. Chief among these is holiness of life. Holiness is defined as a convert displaying great changes in his or her deportment which fall in line with communal standards. Such changes are associated with a miraculous work of the Holy. Among these changes are included such things as the breaking of addictions, a voracious appetite for the word of God, sacrificial service to the church, and a notable change in former habits and speech. The saved community is identified with those who display these qualities while all others are viewed as those who in some way are falling short. This distinction based on changes in life fosters a climate of constant evaluation one person to the next and opens up the door for mutual judgmentalism based on those aforementioned standards. Over time, this further breeds a subtle suspicion even among the ‘saved’ who are now in competition to be more holy than their competitors. On the leadership side, laying down these behavioral standards affords the leaders the warrant to apply a host of corrective measures in order to bring the erring parties in line with the communal standards. These standards vary among group to group and include but are not limited to: 1. Good Theology. 2. Good family/dating practices 3. Selfless activism in the group and 4. A general attitude of esteeming unity in the group as the chief virtue. Living under this pressure (bondage) drives the saints to a forced obedience which is always the byproduct of trying to improve by law. Not surprisingly in such communities hypocrisy reigns. Those who are honest enough to buck against the communal standards are explicitly or implicitly marginalized which leads to membership attrition as these folks slowly and surely filter out of the body. This only serves to strengthen the group’s standards because all dissonant voices have been removed. Nothing is ever said publicly about this dynamic. People simply leave and are never heard from again. These broken people who had the audacity to raise concerns are thus ushered into that vast land of spiritual disenchantment where they often fade away. But the mother on, now more homogenized than ever and solidly unified behind an enlightened leadership which has once again saved the body from voices of opposition. One of the dangers of this quiet attrition of opposing voices is that the members who are solidly devoted to the group never see that such a thing is happening. The application of communal standards seems normal, right and just. So the machine simply keeps running and as the years pass there is less of a chance that there will arise any correctives to stay the continual erosion that is secretly eating away at the health of the body. Law, as it always does, leads ultimately to death.
In a grace-based community, there are no bars put up to salvation; no prerequisites, no visible entrance requirements, no moral additives to improve on the members’ blood bought redemption. The ruling passion here is not the community, but the cross. By everyone looking at the cross eyes are taken off one another and placed firmly on the one who is lifted up before them as crucified. Thus, everyone in the community have no desire to focus on one another but upon the God who took it upon Himself to save them through the person and work in Jesus Christ. Salvation therefore is not something to be exhibited or practices but something to be seen and received. And once received, it can never be taken away, even if the community and its leaders determine to do so. Strangely, in this climate of grace, mutual evaluation and judging begins to experience a slow death. One’s security has now shifted from group evaluation to the loving, gracious, gaze of Jesus Christ. This engenders in the members the ability to live life freely and without reference to the eye of man or the law. They are now permitted to ‘work out their salvation’ under patient, loving eye of a Savior who is wholly on their side and has freely granted them all things for life and godliness. Living under the meek and lowly Savior serves to engender in them a growing gratitude which leads to organic changes in their lives fueled by the freeness of grace. Change is no longer something that ‘must’ be done, no longer something measured by standards, but something that is freely and happily done for the glory of the crucified one. No longer does anyone in the group ‘have’ to do anything. They are motivated, rather, by a much more powerful force which gives them hearts that gladly do God’s will. Change occurs subtly, organically and inexorably because it is no longer in the hands of an inflexible system but a loving and active Savior. Change is now rooted in one’s relationship with Jesus which means it is as varied from person to person as any relationship is in the human dynamic. Now, instead of secretly judging others, the saints continually remind one another of the place where they were once-for-all forgiven. They are reminded of their acceptance by God and they are continually promised that Jesus will never leave them nor forsake them no matter how difficult or sinful things get. In preaching this gospel to one another the saints have unwittingly transferred the effective agent of change from legal evaluation to the gospel. If God is doing all the giving, and God loves to give, then this produces a collective sigh of relief as all the striving to do better by the law is now removed. How vastly different now are the dynamics of this new community which basks in the governance of a loving, longsuffering, kind and gracious Hand who wants only good things for His people and who loves nothing more than to forgive them. And in the lightened air of this freedom the very person of Christ is not only exalted but His very nature begins to flow in and through the members of His community not by the force of law but by the immeasurable power of the Holy Spirit. This smothering canopy of grace freshens everything it touches and produces streams in deserts and copious generosity in hearts once ruled by self-protection. At last we have discovered the aromatic presence of Christ on earth. Here forgiveness reigns, law is no longer handled as a weapon, patience flows freely, and encouragement thrives. At last we have a taste of heaven on earth. And in this clean, crisp air souls are vivified and filled with joy because everything is saturated by this oxygenated wonderland of grace.
Last word: if you feel beat up or discouraged or stressed in your interactions with your community, you are no doubt in a legalistic one no matter how much they talk about grace. If, however, you leave your group experience, joyful, light on your feet, optimistic, and feeling more empowered than ever to do God’s will, you are no doubt part of a community of grace… and there you should remain.