“Imagine yourself as a living house.
God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to?
The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace.
He intends to come and live in it Himself.”
- C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
CHAPTER ONE: The Ruins
You live in a broken, run-down house. You’ve been here as long as you can remember. You know nothing else. For a while you were able to at least keep it looking nice on the outside, but it’s always been falling apart.
You recently discovered that the foundation has massive cracks, with huge chunks falling out. In some places it looks like somebody just spray painted over some really sandy soil (Matthew 7:24-27) to look like concrete. You don't know much about foundations, but this seems like a problem.
The landlord seemed like a great guy at first (2 Corinthians 11:24). He allowed you to skip rent. He let you host all the parties you wanted – he even helped fund more than one. Sure, your friends trashed the place, but you trashed theirs, so it all seemed fair in a messed up kind of way.
But you slowly realize that the landlord is a hard owner. You thought he was your friend. He isn’t. That rent you thought you skipped shows up in different fees, and when you think about the math you know the cost is more than you realized.
The landlord keeps promising that you will have a better house and a better life if you will just do one more thing: fix the roof, mend some pipes, hang new drywall, repaint, rebuild the foundation that keeps sinking further into the sandy soil.
But all those things cost money that you don’t have, so you borrow money from the landlord at what you know is a ridiculous rate, but nobody else will loan you money. But even that growing debt can’t keep you ahead of the decay of this house. The only thing that ever pans out is pandemonium.
You spackle over holes in the wall when you need a new wall; you wrap duct tape around leaking pipes when you need new pipes; you keep putting new vinyl tile on the floor to cover up the cracks when you need a new floor. Really (and deep inside you know it), you need a new house, because this house is doomed (Jeremiah 19:13).
It doesn’t help that you are really sick (Psalm 38). You feel as run down as your house looks. Maybe it’s the asbestos in the walls, and the ton of lead in all the paint, and what you are starting to think are purposefully leaky pipes in the gas stove. Maybe it’s the hint of sulfur that’s always in the air.
Maybe it’s the snakes that keeping waiting outside the door to bite your feet (Genesis 3:15). Maybe it’s the parties that trash the whole property, or the foolish things you’ve done thinking they would make the house better when they just made everything worse.
Whatever the reasons, there’s something toxic about this house. It’s killing you. But as far as you know, this is all you have. This is the only place to live. All of your friends live in houses like this; the stories they tell about their landlord make it sound suspiciously like yours. You hate the person you have become in the house you’ve allowed to fall apart.
To make things worse, you realize one day that somebody is following you. Literally. He’s one step behind you everywhere you go. When you are finally able to catch a glimpse in a mirror, you realize… it’s you.
Not just like you, but a zombie version. This other you looks like one of the Walking Dead. By the end of the day, he’s got a hand on your shoulder. The next morning, he drapes his arms around you and makes you carry him everywhere you go.
He stinks. He’s dead weight. (Romans 7:24). You call your landlord hoping he can do something, but he already knew. “Yeah, they always show up in my houses.”
“Who is it?”
“It’s you. It’s just the real you. The dead you.”
“Why did it show up just now?”
“Oh, it’s always been there. You’ve been dead for years. You just couldn’t see it. ”
There’s nothing you can do. The landlord doesn’t care. Most of your friends hang out somewhere else, and the ones that show up get really uncomfortable when you start to talk about it. You aren’t sure if it’s because they don’t see the dead you, or if they have their own haunting them. They just change the subject.
But they are your friends, so they try to help do things like paint the siding that is falling off the side of the house, and you continue to help them too. (Jeremiah 8:11) It’s tough to paint while carrying death around.
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CHAPTER ONE ENDNOTES
Among other horrible things that happened during Bible times, captive soldiers were sometimes forced to carry a dead body until the rot of the corpse killed them. The Roman poet Virgil wrote: “What tongue can such barbarities record or count the slaughters of his ruthless sword?
’Twas not enough the good, the guiltless bled,
Still worse, he bound the living to the dead:
These, limb to limb, and face to face, he joined;
O! monstrous crime, of unexampled kind!
Till choked with stench, the lingering wretches lay,
And, in the loathed embraces, died away!” About 100 years later, when Paul was looking for an analogy about how much he hated the part of him prone to sin, he wrote:
“Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:24)
Several commentators have noted that Paul was possibly referring to the same thing Virgil did.
CHAPTER TWO: Bring Out Your Dead!
The next day a man walks onto the porch and crushes a snake twisting up from the steps. “Bring out your dead!” he calls out cheerily (John 11:25).
You study him for a moment. “Don’t I know you? I do! You offered one time to fix my cabinets and, uh, I didn’t hire you. You’re Mary’s boy, right?” He nods amiably. “Why are you asking for dead? Haven’t you been helping your daddy build houses?”
“I have indeed been about my Father’s business,” he responds, “but there’s more than one kind of house, and more than one way to build them. Bottom line: I am here to help you with your housing situation.”
“What makes you think I need help with my house, and what makes you think there are dead here?”
“I could see it from the road. I can smell it on your breath; I hear it in your words (Romans 3:13); I see it in your eyes. Oh – and it clings to you like a monstrous burden.
This house has killed you. Your landlord cracked the gas lines and installed the asbestos. Your landlord made sure there are no detectors for smoke or gas. He made sure you owe him so much money that you feel like he owns you. He loads this property up with snakes.
Your landlord likes to get everything he can from his tenants before leaving them dead. But you were meant to be alive (John 5:21). And I can get rid of that body of death and make this house livable.”
This sounds great, but… “How can I trust you?”
“Why do you think you even know that death is haunting you? You thought you were tired and sick. But that day you first saw yourself in the mirror, I was the one who showed you what was real. I was the one who opened your eyes. You needed to know (2 Timothy 2:26). You can trust me, because I bring you truth that will set you free (John 8:32).”
”I don't think you understand. It won’t be that easy. I drowning in my debt; I’m dying in my sickness. I’ve explored other options, but as best as I can tell, I’m doomed to live here until this house collapses or I do. I’m a captive here.”
He nods. “I do understand. I’ve been in this neighborhood for a while. I actually moved into the area to live with you and your friends. And I’ve got good news: I have a plan to pay for your debt, and I’ve got a pretty good track record of bringing beauty from ashes (Isaiah 61:3).”
“How will you do that?”
His smile is gentle, and grave. ”It will be…costly. But I will take captive the things that have captured you; I will pay your debt. I will take that load of death onto me so that you can be free from it. I am here to offer you freedom from your landlord and your dead self (Romans 5:6-21).”
“Why me? I’m nothing. Nobody. I’ve done nothing to deserve this.”
“Why not you? I care about you. I am here to seek and save people and situations that seem hopeless (Luke 19:10). Plus, I would actually like to move into this house (1 Corinthians 6:19), and where I am, there is no room for death and ruin (1 Corinthians 15:55).”
“Where would I go if you move into this house?”
“Why would you want to go?”
You sit quietly for a long time. Your father always said you got what you deserved, and he never helped with your house or your health. Your landlord pretended to be your friend while guiding you down a road to death. Your friends had trashed your house, then had taken their dead selves to their dead parties on dead-end streets.
You look around at the shambles all around you. You remember the landlord’s harsh, condemning voice (Revelation 12:10). You feel the dead weight of your sins, failures and inadequacies on your back (Isaiah 43:24).
You’ve never known anyone who seemed to care about you and your life. This man is kind (Romans 2:4). He’s generous (2 Corinthians 8:9). He offers a new start. He offers a new identity. Basically, He offers to make all things new (Revelations 21:5).
Finally you whisper, “I have no future. I have no hope. Everyone offers me death. There is nowhere else to go. You are the only one who has ever offered me life (John 6:68). So…yes. Let’s do this. I and my house are yours.”
The Man stands up, lifts my dead self off my back, and places it onto his. “Well done. You have asked for resurrection, and I will give it. I will get the deed to your house, and when I return, I will show you what life is supposed to look like (Hebrews 2:14-18).”
You watch him until he is out of sight. It takes a while. He stops and knocks at every house. You wonder what he is going to do with all the dead he takes upon himself as he walks through the town. Then you rest. (Matthew 11:28)
When you awake at dawn three days later, you know everything has
changed.
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CHAPTER TWO ENDNOTES
Christ sets us free from that dead weight that’s been killing us. Why? Because He can, and he loves us. We just need to ask. Then we are set free from that body of death. Here’s how Paul explains it in Romans 6 (beginning in verse 2).
"We died to our old sinful lives, so how can we continue living with sin? Did you forget that all of us became part of Christ when we were baptized? We shared his death in our baptism. When we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and shared his death. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the wonderful power of the Father, we also can live a new life… We know that our old life died with Christ on the cross so that our sinful selves would have no power over us and we would not be slaves to sin…
CHAPTER THREE: ReOrientation
You have a hard time believing the changes. No more debt. No more creditors knocking at your door – or at least, when they do, this man takes care of them. Now the rain stays outdoors and the plumbing stays in the pipes. Your front door actually latches. The floors seem to be some strange new normal –maybe that’s what people mean by level? It’s…amazing (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This Man – you’ve started calling him the ReBuilder - has a bigger plan than you realized. He isn’t going to just uncondemn the house and sweep up the garbage. He is planning to turn your shack into a mansion. When he first told you, you said, “Awesome! Go right ahead!”
But the ReBuilder smiled and said, “Not without you. It’s our house. We work together. I’m going to completely remake the foundation(Matthew 7:24-27), and I am taking the lead on the rebuilding so you don’t work in vain (Psalm 127:1), but you need to give yourself to this project” (Romans 12:1).
The first thing you do is take an honest assessment of the mess that your house has become. You forgot how many rooms you had added, locked rooms haunted by the ghosts of the other Dead Yous that you didn’t even realize were there.
The oldest one was the ghost of Abused You, sealed away, thinking it would stay behind that door but knowing (honestly) that it crept out all the time and hovered over every relationship you had. Then there was the room of the No Longer Innocent You, the room where love began to fade and shame began to grow; the room where Addicted You lost control.
Then there’s the room where Greedy You first learned to trample on others; the room where Angry You still punched holes in the wall and watched the fear grow in the eyes of others; the room of Mouthy You, where you first learned that words can manipulate, control, and wound – and you liked it.
It’s an embarrassing tour. The Rebuilder doesn’t seemed shocked. He keeps an arm around your shoulders as you walk; he lifts your chin up when your shame overwhelms you (Psalm 3:3). When you are done he says, “Has anyone ever killed a fatted calf for you?” (Luke 15:11-32)
“What? That’s…um, no. A fat calf? They once grilled a chicken – poorly, I might add, but they tried. Does a plump chicken and potato salad count?”
He smiles. “Not the same thing. It’s time to throw a celebration party for you.”
“What? This- (you point at the hallway with so many Dead You rooms – this deserves a celebration?”
“No, not that. But you were lost; now you are found (Luke 15:11-31). This deserves a celebration. Something barbecued or maybe even deep fried, and with an onion blossom of some sort. And we’re going shopping. The living do not wear the clothes of the dead (Romans 13:14). Maybe you’ll even get some snakeskin boots.”
You don’t argue. No one had ever celebrated you before.
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CHAPTER THREE ENDNOTES
Sanctification happens as the Holy Spirit works through Spirit-driven obedience as an act of worship.
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” (Romans 12:1)
But a living sacrifice wants to get off the altar sometimes. That old body of death is hanging around.
“On the one hand, I serve the law of God in my mind; but on the other hand, the carnal side of me follows the law of sin.” (Romans 7:25)
This is an image for the process of sanctification. Initially, we are set apart (“made holy”) when we are justified by Christ. It changes our identity. We are no longer spiritually dead, enslaved to sin. Now we are alive and renewed. In an ongoing manner, the justified person who submits to God's will is becoming conformed to the image of Christ. Colossians 3:1-12 gives a great description of how the process takes place:
“Since you were raised from the dead with Christ, aim at what is in heaven, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Think about the things in heaven, not the things on earth. Your old sinful self has died, and your new life is kept with Christ in God. Christ is your life, and when he comes again, you will share in his glory.
So put all evil things out of your life: sexual sinning, doing evil, letting evil thoughts control you, wanting things that are evil, and greed. This is really serving a false god. These things make God angry. In your past, evil life you also did these things. But now also put these things out of your life: anger, bad temper, doing or saying things to hurt others, and using evil words when you talk. Do not lie to each other. You have left your old sinful life and the things you did before. You have begun to live the new life, in which you are being made new and are becoming like the One who made you.
This new life brings you the true knowledge of God. In the new life there is no difference between Greeks and Jews, those who are circumcised and those who are not circumcised, or people who are foreigners, or Scythians. There is no difference between slaves and free people. But Christ is in all believers, and Christ is all that is important.
God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So you should always clothe yourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.”
See this tension? Though we are freely justified, fitting the mold of goodness doesn’t come naturally. God will continue to do a work in us through the Holy Spirit, but we invest sweat equity too. We see this tension other places in the Bible as well.
· God works in us for his good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).
· God helps us bear good fruit (John 15:4).
· God equips Christians to do his will (Hebrews13:21).
At the same time the Bible also states:
· We must work out their salvation (Philippians 2:12).
· We work to supplement our faith with virtue and good works (2Peter 1:5-7).
· We commit to abounding in the work of the Lord (1Corinthians 15:58).
CHAPTER Four: ReBuilding
As you work, the ReBuilder gives you all the tools you need – which is a good thing, because it turns our your tool set is part of the problem. He gives you his personally drawn blueprint, a fund to draw from for building materials, expert advice and help, etc. Since he’s the architect, designer, builder and inspector, He is available every day – leading, guiding, protecting, correcting (Romans 8:14).
But you have to set your alarm, get out of bed, put on the tool belt, pick up the lumber, swing a hammer, get splinters, and break and rebuild a few things. You are going to invest some sweat equity into this house (1 Corinthians 9:27).
Some days are better than others. You notice other houses in the neighborhood that are also being transformed by this ReBuilder. As you visit their project and they stop by yours, you build friendships as you listen to each other’s stories and admire the work of the Rebuilder. It is strange to be surrounded by…how would you describe this new feeling?... Hope. That’s it. Hope (Colossians 1:27).
But you find it’s also easy to be jealous of other houses that look nicer – or to be proud as you compare yours to the ones the look less advanced. The ReBuilder picks up on this and just shakes his head.
“Focus. Eyes on me. You and I are building your house (Philippians 2:12). You don’t know what kind of house they had before or where we are at in the rebuilding process. Let’s get your own house in order. I’ll worry about the others.”
You get hurt; you get tired; you misread the blueprint and put some walls at the wrong place and tear down others that should have been left alone; you shoot yourself with the nail gun more than once. You learn the importance of safety glasses and noise cancelling headphones, because it turns out guarding your eyes and ears is a thing that matters.
You question the ReBuilder’s blueprint when it shows that he plans to remodel a part of your old house that you wanted to keep. You argue when He shows you something that is not up to code. He makes you move that foundation off the sand and onto a rock (Matthew 7:24-27), and that is some exhausting work. You never realized how much you had built on a poor foundation.
You occasionally find that your creepy old landlord has slithered off the sidewalk and is crouching outside your door (Genesis 4:7), wondering if he can hang out for a while. “Take a break,” he hisses. “Don’t take life so seriously.” Some days you actually invite him in and you hang out.
It’s sometimes fun for a while (Hebrews 11:25), but it never ends well. You feel worn down again, almost as if your dead self was back, hand on your shoulder, whispering emptiness and loneliness into your ear. Your landlord always ends up roaring through your house, punching holes in the drywall, unfastening pipes, taking a jackhammer to the foundations - basically trying to demolish everything. (1 Peter 5:8)
But the Rebuilder helps you resist, and the old landlord has to leave (James 4:7). More than once the ReBuilder has picked that sneaky ghost of your Dead Self up by the collar and thrown him out on the street. You apologize to the ReBuilder when this happens.
He hugs you and reorients you. He doesn't yell (1 John 1:9). His forgiveness is just another one of the gift you don’t deserve (Ephesians 1:7). But that doesn’t mean you don’t spend days –even weeks - cleaning up the mess you created.
You pick up all the stuff you can, and the Rebuilder gets the places you can’t reach and corrects the damage beyond your ability. He helps you make a plan to resist and avoid this situation the next time (Ephesians 4:27; 2 Corinthians 2:11).
There are some days you wonder why the ReBuilder even puts up with you, but he never leaves you on your own. He remains true to his word. He holds you to the code but patiently helps you when you miss the mark. He teaches you how not to shoot anyone, including yourself, with the nail gun.
You know you are in this together, that he is for you, that he will restore you and help you even when you are at your weakest (Psalm 51:10-12). So every day you rise and build, and you find increasing satisfaction in the affirmation of the ReBuilder and the pleasure of a job well done (Nehemiah 2:17-18; Matthew 25:23).
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CHAPTER FOUR ENDNOTES
"We died to our old sinful lives, so how can we continue living with sin? Did you forget that all of us became part of Christ when we were baptized? We shared his death in our baptism. When we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and shared his death. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the wonderful power of the Father, we also can live a new life… We know that our old life died with Christ on the cross so that our sinful selves would have no power over us and we would not be slaves to sin... “ (Romans 6:2 and following)
Baptize meant to "put into" or "immerse" so that the thing baptized takes on the properties of the thing into which it was baptized. Garments were "baptized" in dye so that the garments took on the color of the dye. Cucumbers were “baptized” so that they became pickles. Christians absorb the righteousness that comes from Jesus’ death and resurrection. But part of devotion is making a choice about to whom you will offer yourself.
“Surely you know that when you give yourselves like slaves to obey someone, then you are really slaves of that person. The person you obey is your master. You can follow sin, which brings spiritual death, or you can obey God, which makes you right with him. In the past you were slaves to sin—sin controlled you. But thank God, you fully imitated the pattern of our teaching. You were made free from sin, and now you are slaves to goodness.” (Romans 6:16-18)
This “pattern of our teaching” refers to melted metal cast into a mold and conforming to the impression that is sunk or cut in the mold. They used to pour themselves into sin, and they conformed to its pattern. Now they are choosing to pour themselves into the truth about Christ, and they conformed to it. They looked like goodness.
If we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him…You should see yourselves as being dead to the power of sin and alive with God through Christ Jesus. So, do not let sin control your life here on earth so that you do what your sinful self wants to do. Do not offer the parts of your body to serve sin, as things to be used in doing evil. Instead, offer yourselves to God as people who have died and now live. Offer the parts of your body to God to be used in doing good. Sin will not be your master, because you are not under law but under God’s grace. (Romans 6:1-8; 11-14)
“To live” in something was to be wholly given to it. An ancient writer, Aelian, wrote: “The Tapyrians are such lovers of wine, that they live in wine; and the principal part of their life is devoted to it.” Not only do we soak up righteousness (which is a passive word of transformation), we can be wholeheartedly devoted (an active verb).
CHAPTER FIVE: ReBuilt and Alive
It’s not all work. A lot of the time you just spend time with each other. He fishes with you on still waters. You shoot hoops at the YMCA and join friends at Buffalo Wild Wings for March Madness and go to Jonny Lang concerts. Being around him restores your soul (Psalm 23) even while your callouses thicken. You realize that you are absorbing his ideas, his language, his priorities, his way of living life abundantly (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Others join your circle. Some bring their dead; some have already been set free (Mark 2:13-17). Some still live in shacks; others are working with the ReBuilder on mansions.
The Rebuilder welcomes them all. He didn’t come to condemn the dead to their bare, cold shacks. He came to save them and rebuild their lives (John 3:17). You invite even more to hang out with you (1 John 3:10). Some do; some don’t. You never stop inviting.
And slowly but surely, your house is becoming the kind of mansion that showcases the glorious power of the Rebuilder (Philippians 1:6). You find that you easily congratulate others whose houses are flourishing, and you compassionately help neighbors who are struggling.
The blueprint makes more sense than it used to. You look forward to your alarm clock. The old landlord still comes around, but more than ever you see through his lies (John 8:44). Your Dead selves that once haunted you so closely stay on the sidewalk, and you notice their numbers have been dwindling.
You notice a neighbor starting to work on his house by himself. He looks miserable. He is constantly having to redo things that don’t work; he has changed foundations twice, and that didn’t help his mood or his progress. He’s mentioned before that he had noticed the changes in your house, so you swing by occasionally to talk about his project.
He’s not interested in your advice, so you help him bail water out of his flooded basement and bide your time.You take him some water one blistering day (Mark 9:41) and see that he finally has a blueprint. “Oh,” you say, “Did you meet the ReBuilder?”
“No,” says your neighbor. “Why would he want to help with my house? It’s horrible. I found this fixer-upper idea from some well-known landlord online – he’s all over Twitter - and I added my own modifications. I think I can fix my house enough so the ReBuilder will notice. Once I make it good enough, I’ll be ready for him. When I meet him, I’d rather start with him being impressed than thinking I am some loser in need of help with everything.” He pauses. “No offense.”
“None taken,” I say. “But I have to tell you that this isn’t Field of Dreams.”
“My favorite movie!” he interjected.
“I figured. But this isn’t, ‘If you build it, he will come.’ It doesn't work that way. Stop trying to do it yourself (Isaiah 64:6). Unless the Rebuilder builds it and shares his tools, your labor is useless (Psalm 127:1). It’s making you angry and annoying your neighbors, and the next big storm is going to put you back at square one (Matthew 7:24-27).”
“Nah,” he said. “I’ve got this. You’ll see.” He returns to his works. His Dead Self turns and smirks at you as you walk away and hands your neighbor some bottled water from Sulfur Springs, motto: “Thirst. Again.” (John 4:14)
You find that, the longer you work with the ReBuilder, more than a few note how you are continuing to become like Him (Ephesians 5:1). You are humbled and encouraged. Your friends used to comment on the eerie similarity between you and your former landlord (John 8:44; 1 John 3:10).This is much better.
“But,” they say, “what’s with all the ongoing work? You told us this was a gift, but it’s starting to look like a life-long project.”
“Oh, it is, and it’s fantastic! Working side by side with the ReBuilder is part of the gift (1 Corinthians 1:9). I don't deserve to be his apprentice. Who am I to swing a hammer on this house? Who am I to cut expensive trim, and build a strong chimney? I brought nothing to this project, but he gives me everything I need to build great things (Colossians 3:1-12) on the foundation he has set.
“He has given me far above what I could ask or think (Ephesians 3:20). I just want to know Him and understand what kind of person gives grace to the failures and life to the dead (Philippians 3:10). I just want to be near him and be like him and be part of the work he is doing in the world.
And in that process, all these things (here you wave your hand to show His house, His tools, the work of His hands, the campfire where He sat with his friends) have been added unto me” (Matthew 6:33). This, my friends, is what happens when obedience responds to grace. This is life (John 10:10; Romans 8:12-14).”
