The Source

This weekend My pastor used this example to bring home a point. He had a small lamp next to him on the communion table and brought out that if the lamp is not plugged into the the source, it will not perform as expected. I frequently use this same example. As I listened, it made me think that it's important to consider what "being plugged in" actually means.

For believers, God is clearly "the source." There was a time when I could articulate this fact, but my life seemed to lack the energy that comes from a strong connection. I lived a frustrated life, my light was lit, but it was so dim. I took it with me everywhere I went, but it was easily snuffed. I could easily quote the principles of the Bible, but consistently applying them was almost impossible.

In the Old Testament, being connected to God came through "keeping" the law. The outward appearance was important. We are sinful and God can't even look on sin so He gave us rules for our behavior. In theory, keeping those rules would keep us pure and able to be in relationship with God. If you know Old Testament history then you quickly come to realize that, even when it was clearly spelled out for us, we weren't willing or able to eliminate sin from our lives. God knew that we were created to have Him as our source. He wanted that more than anything so another way was provided.

Now, the Bible clearly indicates that God has three distinct "persons, " the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It also indicates that all three persons have been present through out time. Your understanding of this is critical to knowing how to be plugged into the source. There are no shortcuts. If you don't understand this, then we need to have a discussion around this topic.

So we've established that, as humans, God determined that we are not able to do what it takes to stay connected to Him, the source. And His desire was SO GREAT for us to be connected, that He made the way. That way came through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the second Person of God. He came to the earth, lived a life that was perfect [pleasing and acceptable to the Father]. In other words, he kept the law, and willingly sacrificed his life, on behalf of you and me. This is the gift of salvation. What that means now, is that keeping the law is no longer the way for us to directly connect to God. We are directly connected to God by accepting the gift of salvation. In this simple action, we are "plugged in."

So why did I feel dimly lit? Why did my light go out so easily? For me it came from a lack of understanding. I didn't understand how the law still applied to my life, even though it's not the way I'm connected directly to God. I also didn't understand that there's another power. It's the power that Jesus refers to in the gospel of John 14:15-31. It's what gave Jesus the power to live out his life, here on earth, in an acceptable and pleasing manner to the Father.

Stay tuned for the second part of the discussion and for my important discovery that keeps me well connected to The Source and keeps my light brightly lit!