Tuesday, November 16, 2010

What's in the name: "ruinous REDEMPTION"


The ruinous REDEMPTION of LOVE removes religious riddles and relational retardation; revealing the radically ravenous REDEMPTION writhing restlessly & within reach of those remembered by the righteous God.

Some have asked what this ruinous REDEMPTION is that is the title of this blog. The word ruinous is in lower case because of the importance it has in the sentence structure. Though it is first in order it is the less important of the two words. What does ruinous mean? Ruinous forces destroy and lay to waste whatever they touch. A tornado crosses the path of a house and it smacks the house straight in the face. The house is razed, unrecognizable and in need of major rebuilding. The landscape around that house completely changes and landmarks that once demarcated an essence of an area become useless. Life, if not completely destroyed, is damaged and ravaged.

Redemption, on the other hand, infuses life to that which was lifeless, purposes to the purposeless and gives form back to the formless. This seems to be an authority acting in complete dichotomy to that destruction produced by the ruinous. So how is it that these oxymoronic words co-exist? Because it is the way that Kingdom works. The redemption that is given to us by the Lord is a gift, it is free, undeserved and cannot be earned. However, there is an effect, the redemption that we seek and need is given freely, but in true acceptance of that gift we find ourselves misrepresented in motive and different in our desires. Before my children were born I was selfish and interested in things that would make me happier. After they were born my desires became less and less about me and more and more about how I can make their lives more joyous. In a way my paradigm was destroyed and new values and purposes manifested within the deepest bowels of my being.

The same is true with the ruinous REDEMPTION that is given to us by our Creator. Often times I hear Christians claiming how they were a mess before God got a hold of them and then like one of Lewis Carrols magic cakes, God’s entrance signified that everything in life seemed to become the right size for Alice. The truth of the matter is when God entered into my life he completely ruined the plans and paradigms I had established. He led me to something with a much greater purpose and fulfillment, but it required a lot more work. Instead of treating others as secondary to my happiness, I began to realize that true personal fulfillment came from considering others better than myself (Philippians 2:3). Instead of living with a religious-spirit guided by law, I opened up and found that Love is a much better source of discernment than law can ever be (Philippians 1:9-11).

This is the ruinous REDEMPTION that I speak of. This redemption ruins the false paradigms, broken relationships and religious mindsets that have guided our lives to a place of complacency, and then it redeems, rebuilds and renovates the heart to desire the good kind of life, the abundant kind of life (Mark 8:35). This ruinous REDEMPTION requires a lot of demolition and construction, which feels a lot like hard work, sacrifice and growing pain; but the journey is worth it. Allow the ruinous REDEMPTION to ravage your heart and mind, and find that the Creator’s good life.