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    The Cross Chart: The Paradox of Christian Growth

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    Walter Vega Garrido
    The Cross Chart illustrates the principle that those who understand the magnitude of their sin and forgiveness experience greater love for God. The chart shows that spiritual growth involves seeing one's own sinfulness through God's holiness, admitting sin, and focusing on one's identity in Christ through repentance. This faith and repentance empowers one through the Holy Spirit to sin less and love more.

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    The Cross Chart: The Paradox of Christian Growth

    Uploaded by

    Walter Vega Garrido
    302 views1 page
    The Cross Chart illustrates the principle that those who understand the magnitude of their sin and forgiveness experience greater love for God. The chart shows that spiritual growth involves seeing one's own sinfulness through God's holiness, admitting sin, and focusing on one's identity in Christ through repentance. This faith and repentance empowers one through the Holy Spirit to sin less and love more.

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    The Cross Chart

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    The Cross Chart illustrates the principle that those who understand the magnitude of their sin and forgiveness experience greater love for God. The chart shows that spiritual growth involves seeing one's own sinfulness through God's holiness, admitting sin, and focusing on one's identity in Christ through repentance. This faith and repentance empowers one through the Holy Spirit to sin less and love more.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    302 views1 page

    The Cross Chart: The Paradox of Christian Growth

    Uploaded by

    Walter Vega Garrido
    The Cross Chart illustrates the principle that those who understand the magnitude of their sin and forgiveness experience greater love for God. The chart shows that spiritual growth involves seeing one's own sinfulness through God's holiness, admitting sin, and focusing on one's identity in Christ through repentance. This faith and repentance empowers one through the Holy Spirit to sin less and love more.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    The Cross Chart illustrates the Luke 7:47 principle - that He who is forgiven much loves much, but

    he who is forgiven little, loves little.


    7

    -

    3
    T
    Babe
    I get glimpses
    (narrow beam)
    I see more of
    God's holiness
    and my sin...
    But, I refuse to deal
    with what
    I see...
    Then...
    through the
    Spirit's gracious
    work, I believe
    the Gospel afresh,
    repent of my
    hardness of heart,
    and enter into my
    new identity in
    Christ.
    The Cross Chart
    The Paradox of Christian Growth
    eople tell me Im growing in grace, but I dont
    feel Im any betterespecially when I consider
    my thought life (envy, lust, jealousy, greed, a critical
    spirit, the lot). The truth is, I need the Holy Spirits
    power now more than ever. Thats the paradox. I
    know Im stronger than when I was a new Christian,
    but I feel weaker. Perhaps thats the point. Its just
    as Paul said: weaker is stronger! (1Cor. 15:9)
    P
    THE POINT? Spiritual growth comes as I see my sin, admit it, and let the Cross grow in my life. The power to change flows from this faith-action of focusing on my identity in Christ.
    Concept by Richard Lovelace (Renewal as a Way of Life, IVP, page 162); Paul Miller (Sonship WHM 1988); John Wade Long, Jr. (SONSHIP for Africa 2003 Nairobi & Grace4Life 2009 London). www.Grace4Life.org
    MY TIME LINE
    My Physical Birth
    Luke 7:47
    Seeing myself
    as a Big
    Sinner leads
    to BIG love.
    Seeing myself
    as a little
    sinner leads
    to little love.
    My sinfulness
    (grey area below the centre line)
    The shading below represents my inability
    or unwillingness to see my sin. I walk in
    darkness. (1John 1:6ff)
    The absolute holiness of God
    (grey area above the centre line)
    The shading above indicates that I cannot
    see Gods holinessor the standard of love
    to which I am called. Thus, I am not undone
    by as was Isaiah. (Isa. 6:1-5)
    MORE JOY
    as I repent, take
    my sins to Jesus
    for cleansing, walk
    in the light, and so
    am empowered by
    the Spirit to sin
    less and love more.
    MORE PAIN
    as I see more sin
    (my failure to love
    God and others),
    and my need to
    repent. (Isa. 6:5;
    Rom. 7:24)
    he chart explained: Before I knew Christ, I was in the dark concering Gods holiness and the magnitude
    of my sin (the solid grey area on the left). The new birth changed all that. As a babe in Christ, two things
    began to dawn on methe absolute holiness of God, and the ugliness of my sinespecially in light of the new
    life of love to which God was calling me. But, when I made a mess of it, I would repent, look in faith to Jesus,
    and trust in his righteousness to bridge the gap between what I should be and what I was (the small cross).
    Even today, the battle is in the choosing. Every time Im exposed as a sinner, Im faced with a choice.
    1. I can try to save face by lowering the standard, rationalising, fiddling the books, shifting the blame, or
    otherwise making excuses for my shortcomings (inserting wedges). At this point, my growth will plateau.
    2. Or, in repentant faith, I can bridge the gap by running to Jesus with my sinlet the Cross grow (see the
    large cross). There is no power in the discovery of sin. New life comes as I work the Gospeli.e. as I take my
    sin to Jesus, rest in my new identity in him, and rely on the Holy Spirit to produce his fruit in me (Gal. 5:22).
    READ & DISCUSS Luke 7:36-47 - With which character do you identify - Jesus, Simon, or the woman?
    I lower the standard of perfect love.
    I insert the Surely God cant be serious!
    wedge. e.g. Peter in Matt.18:21
    I cook the books.
    I insert the Surely I am not that big a
    sinner! wedge. e.g. Aaron in Ex.32:24
    I am loved,
    forgiven,
    righteous,
    adopted,
    accepted,
    delighted
    in by God!
    I become
    a Christian
    My New Birth
    The Gospel
    Light Dawns
    My New Identity
    in Christ
    Pretender
    Cheap Grace
    I parrot Gospel words,
    but I am not being
    changed by the Gospel.
    MORE WONDER
    as I see Gods
    holiness and the
    purity of his
    perfect law of
    love (Isa.6:1-4;
    Gal.6:14)

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