For the previous installment, click the link below. 

Slow Cooker Faith, part 7: A pleasing aroma

One of the things you’ll often experience in the “on fire” for Jesus realm is that Christ is held up as a moral example more than a Savior.

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t ask ourselves the WWJD? question. I am saying it’s secondary to the WDJD? question: What Did Jesus Do?

You see, Jesus didn’t come to earth because He needed us. He came because we need Him. And He’s not up in heaven wringing His hands, hoping that we will be His hands and feet.

Jesus didn’t come as Superman to make us His Justice League. He came because we were dead in our trespasses and sins, but God, who is rich in mercy, has made us alive in Him (Ephesians 2:1-5).

What I mean is, He didn’t come to make us heroes … or fanboys.

Yes, as we grow and mature we want to become more like Him. Because sustained fellowship with Christ does that to us. But a sustainable faith is realistic. The Christian life is a long slog, with all the ordinary boring stuff of life. You’re fumbling around trying to be like Jesus, but you’re also changing diapers, paying bills, and chopping vegetables.

In the slow cooker of faith, before Jesus is your example, He is your Savior. He is your Refuge. He is your Everything.

That’s what St. Paul was getting at in 1 Corinthians 1:30-31:

It is from him [God the Father] that you are in Christ Jesus, who became wisdom from God for us — our righteousness, sanctification, and redemption — in order that, as it is written: Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.

CSB

When it says that Jesus is wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, it doesn’t mean that He’s merely our example of wisdom or righteousness or holiness.

Just like He is our redemption because we can’t redeem ourselves; God has made Him our wisdom—for we are fools. God has covered us in Christ’s righteousness, for we are unrighteous. God has made us holy before God forever (Hebrews 10:14) by the sanctifying blood of His cross—because we are not holy.

Yes, we follow Christ, but we follow Him like unsteady, pigeon-toed toddlers.

A slow cooker faith is one that’s sustainable for a lifetime. And the only way to not burn out is to recognize every day that Christ is sufficient for you, as your redemption, your wisdom, your righteousness, and your holiness. You’re simmering in His goodness.