If I Were God, I Would Kill Me!

For thus says the LORD, sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chiefs of the nations; proclaim, give praise, and say, O LORD, save Thy people, the remnant of Israel. --Jeremiah 31:7

“If I were God, I would kill me!” Have you ever felt that way about yourself? Have you ever wondered why God even puts up with you? The life of grace is so much higher than the life of legalism! The legalist could never even comprehend the difference; he is accustomed to moving smoothly between good flesh and bad. However, the least attitude that is anti-Christ in grace people will not go unchecked! Not only are there the daily struggles of either recognizing that we are abiding or not, there is the issue of our growth. As we grow in Him, we look back at last year, the year before that, and even the beginnings of our Christian life with a sigh and a moan. “How could I have been like that?” All of this leads to an inner whisper, “If I were God, I would not have put up with me.”

Why has He put up with us? It is because of the remnant! What remnant? There were many people in Israel who disobeyed the Lord, but there was always one man who obeyed and who became the remnant. It was because of the remnant that all the people were not destroyed; the remnant permitted God to put up with all the rest of the rebellious people. The remnant—the one man for the many--delighted Him. Noah and Moses come to mind; they dwelled in and among the people but were not like the people. The people did not change them; they worked to change the people’s hearts. Because of the remnant God continued to work with the people. Every believer is multi-faceted in that his soul comprises mind, will, and emotions and his body harbors desire, habits, protection, and reproduction. Over the years, even as believers, our minds were filled with chaos, our wills pointed toward self, our emotions bred hatred and jealousy, and the bodies expressed every kind of desire. Our soul and body participated in the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and boastful pride of life. Why did God not just wipe us out? Because of the remnant! There was something in us so great that it allowed God to overlook all of the failures and continue with us. The remnant in us is Jesus! He dwells in our spirit, He is pleasing to God in everything, and because of Him God will not withdraw from us. Our flesh will never affect Jesus, but Jesus will continue to have an influence on our flesh. We will grow and the outside influences that had control over us will lessen as He increases and we have the revelation of our new life in Him. The Remnant is in us!  

The indwelling of Jesus Christ in every Believer is always going to be one of the most unknown, misunderstood, and least appreciated truths of Christianity.  The totality of His Spirit being our spirit, His Soul being a part of us, us being complete in Him… this all is a lot to take in.  But when we grasp this, we will never take another breath the same as before that moment of revelation.

I remember “that moment” for me way back in 1980…Romans 8:11, “But if the spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodiesby His Spirit that dwelleth in you.”  I just about exploded!  It was no longer the “old I,” apart from Christ.  It was no longer just me in my flesh.  It is me with His Spirit a part of me that “quickens my mortal body” as I allow Him to.  Wow!  This is Pauline living!!!

But, stop and think about the beauty of it that Michael points out as to Jesus being the “remnant” in us that allows God to overlook so much, pleases God so much, and prohibits God from withdrawing from us.  All that we fret so much about is not even a bother to God.  He is the One who made us a “new creation,” complete in Christ, with some of the “fretful stuff” still hanging around.  Did He make a mistake?  No!  Absolutely not!  And another beautiful thing is how Michael puts it: “Our flesh will never affect Jesus, but Jesus will continue to have an influence on our flesh.”  Beautiful!  Amen! 

Growing in grace (His doing through us) as we abide, The Remnant in us.  This is one of the major privileges of being a Christian in this life.  Now wrap your pea-picking heart around this: at salvation, Christ did kill the “old man,” the “old me.”  The same happened to you if you are a Born Again Believer!  The “new man,” the “new me,” is Him.  That is why God doesn’t call His kids “sinners,” but He calls us “saints.”  Hallelujah!