A Wrech like Me

In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his tradeAnd he carries the reminders of every glove that laid him down or cut him’til he cried out in his anger and his shameI am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains . . .
--Paul Simon, “The Boxer”[1]
We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed . . .
--Another Paul, 2 Corinthians 4:8, 9

I used to wear a tee-shirt that said, “I’m the wretch the song refers to.” I threw it away when I quit being a wretch and stopped thinking of myself in wretched terms. At that point, I started peeking at my reflection though the eyes of my Beloved. “You are all fair, my love, and there is no spot in you.” (Song of Solomon 4:7) Praise God!

Regardless if we’re trembling at the altar for the first time or we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun, any believer can confidently make bold identity statements based on biblical promise.[2]

I’ve read countless verses that literally knocked me to my knees in awed and speechless gratitude, but I rarely hear believers profess their righteous standing in faith. Instead, many make apologetic declarations. “I’m a sinner saved by grace.” “My righteousness is as filthy rags . . . I’m the wretch the song refers to.” Is that any way for a being indwelt by the Spirit of God to carry on?

Self-effacing assertion may be made in an honest attempt at humility but ends up being more of an expression of pride—“If I can’t be the most righteous, by golly, I’ll be the sorriest sinner in this congregation!”—and the focus shifts away from the glorious Redeemer and onto the sorry sinner.

Don’t get me wrong. Chest beating is fine for unconfessed sin, but after sincere and contrite repentance, 1 John 1:9 kicks in. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” This verse rings triumphant in any translation and I highly recommend yanking it off the fridge and cross stitching it on your heart!

In the meantime, let’s keep in mind that Scripture is wrought with all sorts of exhortation and assurance like this, so why don’t more Christians have that joy, joy, joy, joy down in their hearts? What exactly do believers believe in? What lies between the sinner’s prayer and grave? Does faith prorate the promise of salvation, in the hereafter, into abundant life in the here and now?

Ironically, believers sometimes depreciate the Word of God; dismissing it as poignant poetry for weddings and funerals. Caving into the relentless pressure of the world view, some have all but dismissed the literalism of the Bible.[3] Almost without pause, we believe Paul Harvey, Dr. Phil, and even the Emptier’s lies, but squirm when confronted with the conviction of truth that beckons to a higher purpose.

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.” (1 Corinthians 9:24, 25)

Personally, I don’t agree one hundred percent with anybody apart from the inspired writers of Scripture. Even Billy Graham’s saintly soul resides in a fallible jar of clay. The teaching of man is bound to be biased by doctrinal agenda or simply tainted with pride; my own not withstanding. I sit at the feet of many great teachers and preachers, but, to borrow the words of a dear and wise woman I know, I eat the chicken and leave the bones. (My proof text is too good to footnote) “Test all things; hold fast what is good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

Ultimately, I trust the Word of God.

[1] © 1968 Paul Simon
[2] Kenneth E. Hagin, Bible Faith Study Course, Fourteenth Printing 2005, Faith Library Publications, 72-78
[3] Ken Ham, The Big Picture, Creation Magazine, Volume 23, Issue 2, Published March 2001, www.answersingenesis.org (accessed September 15, 2005)