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This week Wilderness Wanderings is featuring a five-part series called Disruptive by Mr. Rick Verkerk. Today is episode 3.

Disruptive Paths

Read 2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Text: \u201cIn the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth\u201d (Genesis 1:1)

This first sentence of Scripture calls me to a decision: Do I believe this truth claim or I don\u2019t I?\xa0 I can continue reading the Bible, but I will eventually have to consider my acceptance or denial of that opening statement.\xa0

Then I must make another decision: Do I believe Jesus died for my redemption and deliverance from sin? If I do believe, then I must choose to trust Jesus as Lord and Leader of my life.\xa0 To trust Jesus impacts everything.\xa0 To follow him means I am no longer who you I once was and I am declaring a relinquishing of control, even on my worst days.\xa0 Jesus Christ is now the source of everything in your life.

\u2018Justification\u2019 means \u201cto be made right\u201d \u2013 and I was made right with God when I believed that what happened on the cross was for me.\xa0 Standing in this new place of having been justified by God two paths emerge.\xa0 On path A, I believe that now through my own effort and diligence I must pull up my socks and change into someone better.\xa0 This is sanctified self-effort.\xa0 Alternatively, on path B, I believe that I am already completely changed. I trust God has made me a new creation, the righteousness of God, even if I at times fail, and I will, as I learn this new life.\xa0 Following path B, I am maturing into who I already am in Christ. I will mature because of my identity in Jesus. I am already righteous and made right by God when I believed.

Path A is a cruel joke we play on ourselves and a standard we can never live up to.\xa0 On that path we strive for a righteousness we had all along. We imagine a false god saying \u201cYes, your sins are forgiven, but you are still a failure. You had excuses before but not anymore.\u201d\xa0 This view of God is distorted by shame and the lie that we can earn our way with the Father.

Those on path B, however, are joyfully allowing God\u2019s disruptive grace to intervene and free them to live their new standing. God has already given the believer the DNA of righteousness. Nothing we do will make us more righteous than we already are because our righteousness is in the grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ \u2013 it is not something we earn.\xa0 We will mature into what God has already formed, as we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Which path are you going to walk down today?