Trying to Paint Over Bad Paint: The Foolish Futility of Self-Sufficiency 

When we moved into our current home five years ago, we moaned when we saw that the back deck had been painted rather than stained. We tried every known remedy to remove all the paint. The best we could do was remove about 50%.

Of course, that means that, if we’re lucky, we can go two years between having to scrape, prime, and re-paint our deck. We keep having to paint over bad paint. And no matter how good the new paint is, it won’t stick for long. What we really need is a totally fresh start.

Trying to Cover Over Our Sins

After scraping, priming, and painting my deck the past few days, I awoke this morning not only sore, but also reflecting. Ever since Adam and Eve, we have tried to paint over bad paint. We have tried to cover over our sins.

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves” (Genesis 3:7).

For Adam and Eve, it didn’t work for two years, or even two seconds. Immediately when faced with the pure holy love of God, they “hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden” (Genesis 3:8).

Though “covered,” Adam realized they were totally exposed. “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid” (Genesis 3:10).

Receiving God’s Coverings

What did Adam and Eve need instead? What do we need? They needed to receive God’s covering rather than trying to cover their sin on their own.

“The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them” (Genesis 3:21).

So why try to cover? It’s much more than ignorance; it’s foolishness. It’s much more than self-effort; it’s willful, arrogant self-sufficient, proud rebellion.

John R. Stott reveals the depraved nature of our self-sufficient souls.

“The proud human heart is there revealed. We insist on paying for what we have done. We cannot stand the humiliation of acknowledging our bankruptcy and allowing somebody else to pay for us. The notion that this somebody else should be God himself is just too much to take. We would rather perish than repent, rather lose ourselves than humble ourselves. . . . But we cannot escape the embarrassment of standing stark naked before God. It is no use our trying to cover up like Adam and Eve in the garden. Our attempts at self-justification are as ineffectual as their fig-leaves. We have to acknowledge our nakedness, see the divine substitute wearing our filthy rags instead of us, and allow him to clothe us with his own righteousness” (Stott, The Cross of Christ, pp. 162-163).

Our God-Dependent Response to Our Sin

In Soul Physicians, I imagine a God-dependent response to our sin looking something like a combination of Genesis 3 with the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15).

“Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they realized that they were naked. Standing exposed as sinfully failed and flawed male and female, naked before Him with whom they have to deal.

Then the naked man and the naked woman heard the song of the LORD God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, as He always had for fellowship. And they stayed.

Adam cried out to God, ‘I am unworthy to be called Your son, for I have sinned against You in my self-sufficiency. I have failed to be the courageous man You designed and called me to be. I have been a coward rather than a protector. Make me like one of your animals, for I am soul-less.’

Eve cried out to God, ‘I am unworthy to be called Your daughter, for I have sinned against You in my self-sufficiency. I have failed to be the completing woman You designed and called me to be. I have poisoned rather than nourished. Make me like one of Your animals, for I am soul-less.”

Instead, the LORD God slew the precious animals He had handcrafted. He shed blood. Carefully, tenderly, with tears streaming down His face, He hand-crafted robes of righteousness for his son and daughter.

Then He ran to them, threw His arms around them, and kissed them repeatedly. Father said to His angelic servants, ‘Quick, bring the best robes that I have hand-crafted and put them on my son and my daughter. Put wedding rings on their fingers and sandals of peace on their feet. Bring the fatted calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine and this daughter of mine were dead and they are alive again.’ So they began to celebrate!” (Soul Physicians, p. 105).

Grace means never having to cover my sin. But Adam and Eve, having doubted God’s goodness, do not focus on His grace. Instead of depending upon God, they depend upon self.

Being naked and afraid, they hide. They turn their backs on and run from God. They work, sewing fig leaves together to make coverings for themselves. They attempt to make themselves acceptable by trying to beautify their ugliness.

In the flesh, we use every strategy at our disposal, every scheme we can imagine, to not need God’s grace. But our efforts are futile. Much more than trying to cover over old paint, we’re trying to cover over sin with the greatest sin of all—works-righteousness and self-sufficiency.

Join the Conversation

What fig leaves do we sew to cover our shame? What view of God does such shame and hiding suggest?

Grace Greater Than All Our Sin

When your guilt over your sin overwhelms you, what do you do? Where do you turn? Where do you find grace greater than all your sin?

The Apostle Paul warns us not to be ignorant of Satan’s scheme (2 Corinthians 2:5-11). And what is that scheme? To overwhelm us with guilt and condemnation (Romans 8:1). Paul tells us the remedy to Satan’s condemning narrative. Where sin abounds, grace superabounds (Romans 5:20).

Lighten the Conscience with Grace

Surprisingly to some, the Puritan soul physicians offer wonderful consolation to the tender conscience overwhelmed by sin. Better known for “loading the conscience with guilt,” we fail to remember that the Puritans emphasized “lightening the conscience with grace.”

Puritan pastor and author, Thomas Brooks, in Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices, spells out the danger of allowing guilt to blind us to grace. “Their being discouraged by their sins will cost them many a prayer, many a tear, and many a groan; and that because their discouragements under sin flow from ignorance and unbelief.”

Brooks also explains four reasons we fail to grasp grace.

“It springs from their ignorance of the richness, freeness, fullness, and everlastingness of God’s love.”

“And from their ignorance of the power, glory, sufficiency, and efficacy of the death and sufferings of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

“And from their ignorance of the worth, glory, fullness, largeness, and completeness of the righteousness of Jesus Christ.”

“And from their ignorance of that real, close, spiritual, glorious, and inseparable union that is between Christ and their precious souls.”

With worshipful gratitude for Christ’s gospel of grace, Brooks concludes:

“Ah! Did precious souls know and believe the truth of these things as they should, they would not sit down dejected and overwhelmed under the sense and operation of sin. God never gave a believer a new heart that it should always lie a-bleeding, and that it should always be rent and torn in pieces with discouragements.”

Grace That Exceeds Our Sin and Guilt

The song writer, Julia H. Johnston, in Grace Greater Than Our Sin, obviously understood Brooks’ words.

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,

Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!

Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,

There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Refrain

Grace, grace, God’s grace,

Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;

Grace, grace, God’s grace,

Grace that is greater than all our sin.

Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold,

Threaten the soul with infinite loss;

Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,

Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.

Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.

What can avail to wash it away?

Look! There is flowing a crimson tide,

Brighter than snow you may be today.

Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace,

Freely bestowed on all who believe!

You that are longing to see His face,

Will you this moment His grace receive?

Join the Conversation

In your life, how are you experiencing Christ’s grace superabounding over your sin and guilt?

The Anatomy of Anxiety, Part 17: How to Put Off Anxiety

Note: For previous posts in this blog mini-series, please visit: 1: http://bit.ly/aHstk, 2: http://bit.ly/20R01P, 3: http://bit.ly/HAoxI, 4: http://bit.ly/1I6XmF, 5: http://bit.ly/19Jdqt, 6: http://bit.ly/19vCXx, 7: http://bit.ly/21wPLg, 8: http://bit.ly/m50On, 9: http://bit.ly/4vhNIt, 10: http://bit.ly/1ClPr4, 11: http://bit.ly/2Sb2Ec, 12: http://bit.ly/2xv4BV, 13: http://bit.ly/baNuS, 14: http://bit.ly/UFIy1, 15: http://bit.ly/31fQYo, 16: http://bit.ly/3mmTm4

Does worry, doubt, or fear get the best of you sometimes? Do you wonder where anxiety comes from and how to defeat it in your life and the lives of those you love? Then we need a biblical anatomy of anxiety. And, we need God’s prescription for victory over anxiety.

Putting Off and Putting On

In our last post (http://bit.ly/3mmTm4), I discussed the “touchy” issue of exposing and dealing with sin issues involved in anxiety.

The Bible never talks about putting off sin without also instructing us how to put on holy, loving living.

Putting off heart sins of self-trust associated with anxiety, we need to put on trusting Christ as our Sentry.

Putting off relational sins of self-protection associated with anxiety, we need to put on tending and befriending—protecting others.

Motivations to Trust and Love

To be motivated to put off, we need to see the horrors of our sin—even in anxiety issues. Consider the three areas of our relationship to God (spiritual), others (social), and self (self-aware).

Self-protective anxiety is horrible spiritually because it reveals that we fear something more than we fear God. It means that we entrust ourselves to something more than we entrust ourselves to God.

Self-protective anxiety is horrible socially because it reveals that we tend and befriend ourselves rather than or more than we tend and befriend others. Even seemingly altruistic endeavors like public speaking may be fraught with selfishness if we speak as fearful people pleasers trying to impress others or fearful of what others think of us.

Self-protective anxiety is horrible in terms of our self-awareness because we believe lies about ourselves. We live the lie that we are slaves to fear and that we are babies, rather than living the truth that we are slaves to righteousness and that we are adult sons and daughters of God in Christ. We focus on self-esteem when we should be focused on Christ-esteem: Who Christ is and who we are in Christ.

“But It Can’t Be Sin!”

In the midst of anxiety, we may argue:

“But it can’t be sin! I would not have these feelings if I could get rid of them. They’re uninvited. Unwanted. Alien. Intruders. Invaders. I have no choice but to feel these fears!”

At one level, this may be somewhat true. We can’t totally control what feelings we experience. Plus, it is true that mentally and physically we can begin to habituate ourselves to these feelings.

However, at another, deeper level, it (anxiety) can be sin; can be a choice. We can control our spiritual, social, mental, volitional, and behavioral response to our feelings of anxiety.

So why would we choose to stay stuck in anxious patterns?

“Secondary Gain”

To understand that, we need to understand “secondary gain.”

What do I get out of staying fearful? What responsibilities and callings do I avoid? What pampering do I receive?

I may or may not be able to control the physical reaction or the immediate emotional response when anxiety strikes. But I can control my relational, mental, motivational, and behavioral responses. When I don’t, I need to ask myself:

“What am I getting out of staying stuck in my pattern of anxiety? What does it buy me? What does it protect me from?”

The Rest of the Story

So just how do we put off the sins of self-trust, self-protection, and self-esteem? How do we put on trusting Christ as our Sentry, tending and befriending others, and living out our new identity in Christ?

In the rest of our blog series, we’ll explore specific biblical guiding principles that answer these vital questions. We’ll use the following categories to find victory over anxiety:

1. Relational: Spiritual, Social, Self-Aware—How to Love Sacrificially

2. Rational: Beliefs and Images—How to Think Biblically

3. Volitional: Motivation and Behavior—How to Choose Courageously

4. Emotional: Reactions and Responses—How to Manage Our Moods

Stay tuned and continue to join the journey.

The Anatomy of Anxiety, Part 16: God Is Faithful Even When I Am Unfaithful

Note: For previous posts in this blog mini-series, please visit: 1: http://bit.ly/aHstk, 2: http://bit.ly/20R01P, 3: http://bit.ly/HAoxI, 4: http://bit.ly/1I6XmF, 5: http://bit.ly/19Jdqt, 6: http://bit.ly/19vCXx, 7: http://bit.ly/21wPLg, 8: http://bit.ly/m50On, 9: http://bit.ly/4vhNIt, 10: http://bit.ly/1ClPr4, 11: http://bit.ly/2Sb2Ec, 12: http://bit.ly/2xv4BV, 13: http://bit.ly/baNuS, 14: http://bit.ly/UFIy1, 15: http://bit.ly/31fQYo.

Does worry, doubt, or fear get the best of you sometimes? Do you wonder where anxiety comes from and how to defeat it in your life and the lives of those you love? Then we need a biblical anatomy of anxiety. And, we need God’s prescription for victory over anxiety.

He Is Faithful to Forgive Us Our Sins

Discussing “sin” and “anxiety,” with a person struggling with anxiety can produce…more anxiety. However, we would be naïve to try to be victorious over anxiety without addressing personal responsibility.

The core heart sin with anxiety as we’ve defined it in this blog series is failure to trust God. We decide to trust our puny resources rather than to entrust ourselves to Christ’s infinite resources.

We can trace the tracks of mistrust to our sinful suppression of the truth that God is strong and caring, holy and loving, in control and comforting.

Based upon our failure to hold God in awe, we self-protect through flight and fight behavior.

You think, “Well, that sure helps a lot, Bob! Now I’m anxious about my relationship with God!”

And I say, “Good…as long as you deal with those concerns biblically.”

We need to confess our sin of self-trust and self-protection and of mistrusting God and believing lies about God. We need to repent of our sin of turning God’s good gift of “vigilance” into the haunting sin of “stuck vigil.”

And, we need to accept His forgiveness; we need to accept our acceptance in Christ.

God is faithful even when we are unfaithful.

God still forgives, loves, cares, and controls even when I doubt His faithfulness, even when I choose to self-protect, to turn to my own idols to make my life work. Even when I refuse to fear God and I choose to fear others, I never need to fear that God will refuse to forgive me.

Freedom from Final Fear

Interestingly, we can ultimately trace all anxiety to what I call “spiritual separation anxiety.” Luther used to call it by the German term “anfectungen”—the primal fear that God will reject us.

So, what can conquer our ultimate fear more than knowing that even when we fear man instead of fearing God, we never need to fear God’s ultimate rejection?

If the God of the universe forgives me for failing to trust Him, if He is faithful to me in Christ even when I am unfaithful to Him, then do I really have anything to fear in life? Since Christ has conquered my ultimate fear, I can face all of life’s daily fears.

So, while some may balk at my insistence that we address the sin aspects of anxiety, I would insist that addressing the sin lying within anxiety is the only cure for anxiety! By dispensing Christ’s grace for our disgrace of self-trust, we finally grasp that there is nothing to fear in life because Christ has faced and conquered our greatest dread—separation from God.

In confessing the sin of anxiety and receiving Christ’s forgiveness, we learn life’s ultimate lesson—nothing can separate from the love of God in Christ. Fearless spiritually because there is no condemnation in Christ, we become fearless personally and relationally.

The Rest of the Story

Having confessed and received forgiveness for sinful anxiety, we still need to put off the old habits and put on the new fearless person we are in Christ. In our next post we learn how.