Take the Plunge!

~ Patricia K Hall

FullSizeRender To take a plunge into something that surrounds or covers you is by definition, “to be immersed”. Understanding this concept has made it easier for me to understand the gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus. As a former director of operations for a non-profit organization, I knew that systems were key to successful operation of the business and if a system was in place long enough it would run productively. The implementation of a system required thoughtfulness, time, and patience. Before the new habits are formed, when things get busy, or panic sets in, there may be a temptation to revert back to the old system, but that will just bring confusion and chaos. To have a successful system you must have confidence in the system and a plan for implementation.  To change over to a new system three basic things are required: The awareness that the old system isn’t working, a decision to change, and the willingness to dive all the way in- immerse yourself.

In the book of Romans (6-8), Paul is showing us two operating systems. The system of death is inherently ours at birth. Because sin entered the world with Adam and Eve, we are plunged into sin the moment we enter the world. We don’t understand the operating system of death and to one degree or another, we find a pseudo freedom in life until we are aware of The Law of God. When we encounter The Law, in such a holy way, we become awake to the fact that because of our sin, we are immersed in death. This system of death is a relentless operating machine that is highly productive. The wages for our housed sin (sinful propensities within us- even if we are not aware of its presence) is death. The more we try to work to follow The Law, the more sin flourishes, the more we are aware of it, and we become productively sinful beyond measure.

But….

The Law is holy, just, and good. The purpose of the Law is to show us that we need to change systems! The system of life operates solely because of the work Jesus Christ did on our behalf through His death on the cross, burial, and resurrection. He took our place in the system of death and paid our wages for us. This work is given to us as a free gift and releases us from the system of death. Acceptance of His gift results in placing us with Him in the system of life – eternal life. His gift is only accepted through trust in Him and His finished work. Trust in Him through grace plunges us into the Person of Christ and we live immersed-surrounded-covered in and by Him. The system of life is the most powerful operating system because it is powered by His Spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us to implement the system in our life by moving our mind into truth (Truth about who He is and truth about who we are in Christ). Through our various life experiences we learn to agree with God about the work that Jesus Christ already accomplished on our behalf. The Spirit works in us, in God’s perfect time, with thoughtfulness and patience. Before we know it- we realize that we are walking in new life with Jesus – His system of life is operating productively in us! The gift of eternal life is not only for when we die, but today. You see, He came to give life, and give it abundantly-NOW AND FOREVER. Make the decision to Live in Life! Take the plunge!

“The wages of sin is death; but the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23

27 thoughts on “Take the Plunge!”

  1. I think most of the time there are attempts made to dodge Romans 6:23. But, it’s a fact. We cannot pick and choose pieces to love. We either go full in with faith trusting God’s sovereignty Grace or not. He is faithful. Thank you Patricia for sharing the truth.💞

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  2. I love the visual when I think about plunging into Him— being immersed, covered and surrounded!
    That is a place of freedom 🙂 Thanks for sharing this great word— refreshing!!!

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    1. Thank you for the encouragement Wally! It’s funny you mentioned about us sticking our toes in. I’ve pictured before people standing on the edge of the water doing just that and the ones in the water saying, “You can trust Him! Just jump in!”

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  7. Thanks for the encouragement. We need His strength to stick by those who slip and to prevent our own decline. The world is full of temptations. We need to take the plunge in second chances. Change can feel scary but is good when thoughtfully accomplished and blessed by God. Please feel free to spread the word about my new adult novel tipping students off to grooming. The protagonist, Grace in What If I Go? slips but has faith and forgiveness enough to pick herself up after sexual exploitation trauma.
    Writing this fiction came from painful research but was to empower young women to make better choices. Help me raise awareness if you can.
    See myBook.to/pollyjwhite
    Bless you, Polly

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  10. Pingback: “Take the Plunge!” 6/05/2017 Written by Patricia K. Hall for “Delighted in Jesus” | God's group

  11. Patricia…excellent post articulated from the interesting modern viewpoint of operations and systems.

    Can I add one interesting biblical wrinkle?

    The “system” of the cross of Christ shows up way back at the beginning of Genesis when…as Abraham leaves the city of Haran and is walking to the Promised Land of Canaan…with each step he takes God is displacing whatever normative life Abraham would otherwise have lived (the old system of self-sovereignty) with a new life-script Abraham would never have dreamed up in his wildest imagination (a new system based on God-sovereignty).

    We see this same pattern throughout every narrative story of faith in the Bible…and the unconventional system that God inserts into these life-scripts is the cross of Christ (Lk. 22:42)…not our way…but God’s way…having goals and outcomes that are beyond human reach to solve.

    This new system of the cross is so far outside of human contemplation and literary invention that it validates the divine origin of the journey of faith concept within the Bible.

    Food for thought to work into your very insightful post.

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    1. Hi Barton, Thank you for the further insight into the eternal system of the Cross of Christ- and the faith that He gives us…yes, lots of food for thought! I welcome your addition. What is interesting to me is your use of the word “script” and “scripts.” I feel this is a God wink as He’s been showing me this exact word as it pertains to the script He has written over our life vs. the scripts that the world (along with our own flawed thinking) influences our daily habits. Blessings, Patricia

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  12. Awesome, truly AWESOME analogy!!! This is practical preaching/teaching at its best!! Thanks Sister Hall for such a wonderful analogy and beautifully practical perspective. Going to share it myself!! Thanks and God bless greatly and richly in Christ Jesus!! — Pastor Roland

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