Christ Relieves My Inadequacy

Christ Relieves My Inadequacy

Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to fulfill them. –Matthew 5:17

Dr. James Rosscup is a simple, studious man who teaches Bible exposition at Master’s Seminary. One semester, Dr. Rosscup had a student who depended on his wife to type his papers for class. One evening, the student called Dr. Rosscup to ask for an extension on a paper that was due the next day. He explained that his wife was in the hospital and there was no one to type his paper. He had hoped that Dr. Rosscup would relax his standards and allow him to be late this one time. But the standard was set, and Dr. Rosscup said he could not accept the paper if it was late. “Where do you live?” he asked the student. A short time later, Dr. Rosscup arrived at the student’s home, took his place at the typewriter, and began to type. Knowing his student couldn’t live up to the standard that was set and unable to lower the standard, he fulfilled the requirements of the standard in his student’s place.

This is such a beautiful picture of what Christ has done for us! The standard has been set. And the standard is holiness. It doesn’t take too long to realize that we can’t meet the standard. We can never be acceptable to God on our own. And while it might seem fair and reasonable to us that God could simply lower his standards to allow for a little sin, a little humanness, we know that to do so would make him less than God. Our pleas of ignorance are inexcusable, our comparisons with others are impermissible, our pious efforts are unacceptable, and the conclusion is unavoidable: We simply can’t live up to what God demands. “For no one can ever be made right in God’s sight by doing what his law commands. For the more we know God’s law, the clearer it becomes that we aren’t obeying it” (Romans 3:20).

We can be overwhelmed with our own inadequacy and in a state of constant frustration, or we can call on Jesus to fulfill for us what his righteous law demands. Jesus says to us, “Where do you live? I’m on my way over.” That is why he came. He came to live the perfect life you and I cannot live, to die the death we should have died. Love fulfills what the law demands, and we forever benefit.

Holy Jesus, sometimes all I can see is my own inadequacy. Will you lift my eyes to see your sufficiency on my behalf? Will you show me day by day what it means that you have credited your righteousness to my account?

DIGGING DEEPER