Perspective is everything. I know this because I’ve been told and because I’ve experienced it firsthand. The lenses through which we see ourselves and the world around us impact what we believe about ourselves and the world. For instance, if I wake up tomorrow and it’s raining out, I stub my toe on the way to the shower, get soaked from a car flying through a massive puddle as I walk to the gym, and lose my keys in that tiny crevasse in between the driver’s seat and the middle console as I’m getting out of my car, I might (aka – will absolutely) have a greater tendency to think that the universe is out to get me. And with that nagging suspicion in my mind, the remainder of my day I will look for evidences of this to be true. Every subsequent email reply from a co-worker that doesn’t contain an emoji will appear to be cold and condescending. I have put on a very particular lens and I’m seeing everything as if it fits its particular hue.
I know you know what I’m talking about. It’s uncomfortable to acknowledge though, isn’t it? We don’t want to believe that we are subject to the controlling effect of lenses...especially the ones we don’t consciously choose for ourselves. There certainly is a lot of psychology here that I’m not qualified to get into nor do we have the time, but I think it’s interesting to contemplate the power of perspective in our walk with the Lord, which is why I bring it up at all!
The new song we are going to sing together this week is called “Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me.” It’s a long title, I know. It’s a wordy song with a repetitive melody...and yet, it tugs on a part of my subconscious that needs space to come forth.
The song has four choruses, three of which propose a truth about us because of Christ that is beyond comprehension and totally undeserved, but that we can often begin to believe is a result of our own “goodness” or accomplishments.
Verse 1 says, “I can sing, ‘All is mine,’ yet not I, but through Christ in me.”
Verse 2 says, “And I shall overcome, yet not I, but through Christ in me.”
Verse 3 says, “I can sing, ‘I am free,’ yet not I, but through Christ in me.”
How many times do I fall into the temptation to believe that I have earned God’s favor and blessings through my good behavior and holiness? How many times have I attributed deliverance from and resistance of sin to my own willpower? Oh, Spirit help me; many, many times.
This song reminds me that I need a perspective shift. The more I think about me, the more I will see everything through the lens of self. I did a good job. I accomplished x,y,z. I am strong enough, good enough, humble enough, kind enough, and on and on and on. The more I see through this lens, the more I believe it’s all about me.
The gospel says “No, thank you” to the lens of self-centeredness and gives us another one to try on. This gospel lens says “Yet not I, but through Christ in me.”
And that’s why we’re singing this song. I pray it leads you to take off your own version of the “me” lens and replace it with the pure and true lens of Christ.
Lyrics
What gift of grace is Jesus my redeemer
There is no more for heaven now to give
He is my joy, my righteousness, and freedom
My steadfast love, my deep and boundless peace
To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus
For my life is wholly bound to His
Oh how strange and divine, I can sing, "All is mine"
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
The night is dark but I am not forsaken
For by my side, the Saviour He will stay
I labor on in weakness and rejoicing
For in my need, His power is displayed
To this I hold, my Shepherd will defend me
Through the deepest valley He will lead
Oh the night has been won, and I shall overcome
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
No fate I dread, I know I am forgiven
The future sure, the price it has been paid
For Jesus bled and suffered for my pardon
And He was raised to overthrow the grave
To this I hold, my sin has been defeated
Jesus now and ever is my plea
Oh the chains are released, I can sing, "I am free"
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
With every breath I long to follow Jesus
For He has said that He will bring me home
And day by day I know He will renew me
Until I stand with joy before the throne
To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus
All the glory evermore to Him
When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
Yet not I, but through Christ in me
