Godly sorrow produces a work of repentance that releases the life of Christ in me. A life that gives to others good things. This is a New Covenant work of the fear of the Lord! It is rooted in my actions and their impact on my relationship with God and others.
New Covenant grace does not grant us the freedom to do as we would wish, but rather, it is to bring us into relationship with the God who loves us and is now able to dwell in us. It places us in relationships within the body of Christ where we are meant to grow.
God is still in the business of transforming lives by turning enemies into sons. Sons who love and respect their heavenly Father and once Jesus is living in them they delight to do His will. God promised He would give a New Covenant in which he would write His law on the hearts of those who believe. He has written that Law and it is not the Old Law. It is the Law of Christ.
The Law of Christ is love one another. It is in engaging this practice that we embrace our cross and find ourselves walking in the fear of the Lord.
Usually when someone speaks of taking up their cross they apply it to keeping some aspect of the law more devotedly. They speak in terms of giving up some particular thing in life. The cross of Christ was about more than just paying for sin. He paid for sin because sin was standing between us and God and it interferes with our relationship one to another.
Taking up our cross is realized in the giving of ourselves for one another in life. The cross Jesus bore was for others not Himself. Taking up my cross involves preferring you and wanting to see you walking in right relationship with the Father and with me.
This is what empowered the apostles under the influence of the Holy Spirit to address misconduct in the church by reminding them who it is they claim to have believed and what that means regarding their relationship to God and to one another.
Legalism demands a cold adherence to rules because it thinks sin is the only issue with God. It is concerned about appearances more than people.
Legalistic people can cut someone off someone without so much as a wink. They cut and run when the going gets tough. They do so claiming that they are walking in the fear of the Lord while they are oblivious to how it is directly tied to our relationship with the Father and our relationships within the body of Christ.
They do not direct others to Christ on the basis of grace because they do not understand that only through the grace of Christ can true change really come. They are sin conscious based on appearances and therefore unable to deal with others on the basis of relationship.
If you want to see a believer change point them to Christ.
If you want to see a sinner saved point them to Christ.
The power to change is found only in Christ.
The Christ who lives in us walks in the fear of the Lord which teaches us to hate evil, shouldn’t that effectively influence us to love God and each other?
Growth and change will always be relationally based. Our forefathers in the church grew stronger as they lived in the fear of the Lord. A fear of the Lord that was relational and others minded.
How is your relationship with the Father?
How are your relationships in the fellowship where He has placed you?
Are you committed in relationship to a group of believers?
About The Author
- Tim Atchley
- Knoxville, Tennessee, United States
- I currently serve as Senior Pastor of Harvest Church in Knoxville, Tn. I was sent out from Trinity Chapel of Knoxville in 1993 accompanied by my wife Sheila our four children Sarah, Hannah, Josiah & Isaac and a handful of bold, brave and committed believers determined to plant our first church. Pioneering is hard work but well worth the journey. That is why we desire to make disciples of Christ who will, like us, also embrace the call to plant churches.
