Allow It

Allow It:

Personal piety (holiness) is something that we use as a substitute for the authentic LORDship of Christ in our lives. The idea of striving to be good enough in God’s eyes apart from complete and total immersion in His authority/will, obedience, power, and presence is the deepest contempt we can have for God.

John the Baptist had people literally “flocking” to him at the Jordan to be baptized (Matt 3:5), then when Jesus came “to be baptized by him” (3:13) - not for repentance but one of experiential obedience - we read, “John tried to stop Him…” (3:14).

In our sin-state we consider things through a skewed, twisted, tainted, and distorted lens. It seems good to act as John did in trying to stop Jesus as we feign humility saying, “I am unfit to take off His sandals,” but Jesus says “Allow it for now, because this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness” (3:15).

Jesus’ baptism wasn’t one of repentance, but rather one of experiential obedience. God allowing Himself to be immersed 100% in human form, in the brokenness of the world we wrecked through our autonomy, in order to not merely repair our relationship with our Creator - but to REDEEM it and make it PERFECT.

We, like John the Baptist, often feign humility and thus hinder obedience to the VERY THING Jesus needs to do in our lives because we try to stop Him. Jesus says, “Allow it.”

Until you baptize Jesus in your life… until you take Him into your Jordan… put your hands on Him… take Him under the water and realize that the REALITY of who He is - His very LIFE in your life is in your hands…  Until He rises as Sovereign…  until the heavens suddenly open, the Spirit comes down like a dove, and the voice of the Father proclaims Him as Son in your life…  then you, like John the Baptist, are feigning obedience, faking humility, fabricating relationship and authenticity by trying to stop Him.

Jesus says, “Allow it… this is the way for us to fulfill all righteousness.”

Will you?

Blessings,

-Kevin