Christ a Crutch?

I have heard people refer to Christianity disparagingly as a "crutch" for those too weak to deal with life's problems.  They understate their case from a position of ignorance.  Christ is not a "crutch" to enable a person to limp through life:  Christ IS life.  Whether your crutches are made of wood or aluminum, they are objects useful only for a living person.  Crutches have no value for the dead.  Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Those who sneer at the idea of trusting in Christ for atonement and salvation through faith as weakness have not considered their own sin and mortality according to God's standard of perfection.  Those who God makes to soar on eagle's wings have no need of crutches anyway!  Instead of propping people up with positive thinking and mental manipulation, God infuses strength into His people because He dwells within them in the person of the Holy Spirit.

What a relationship is available to every person who will repent and trust in Christ!  Not only does the Holy Spirit dwell within him, but we can take shelter in the Creator of all things.  Psalm 91:1-2 reads, "He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. ² I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust."  This passage is a picture of how God overshadows and protects His people.  Some people treat God as if He is a divine temporary bomb shelter to hide in until the threat of a storm passes.  Even some God-fearing Christians treat God more like a dank basement to hide in when things become difficult.  The problem is, when the perceived danger is over they peek out of their hiding place and again become confident in themselves.  They venture away from fellowship with God and do their own thing until the next storm darkens their lives.

Continuing this analogy, people retreat into hurricane or bomb shelters, not because of the luxurious accommodations, but for the preservation of their lives.  I came to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith because my sin condemned me to hell for eternity:  only through Jesus Christ could salvation for my soul be found.  But Jesus is not some musty old bomb shelter to frequent in times of great need, but a real person who desires for me to abide in Him always.  We are not to seek Christ or abide in Him for the purpose of receiving some arbitrary blessing from Him, but for the sake of knowing Christ Himself.  We take shelter in Jesus Christ our Saviour because He loves us and we love Him.  The joy of the LORD is our strength.  Every morning we rise with Jesus, we walk with Jesus through our day He has made, and we lay down to rest with Him in our hearts and minds.  Thoughts of God and His Word should be more precious to us than our daily food, for our life is hid with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).

Jesus says in John 15:4-5:  "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. ⁵ I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."  Like a branch must abide in the vine for life and fruitfulness, so Christians must abide in Jesus Christ.  People who treat God like a divine bomb shelter are not only without their source of strength but their source of life when they choose to forsake communion with God.  I suppose it is possible to try to use God as a "crutch," but unless God is invited into the heart it will not profit.  These are the folks who say, "I've tried Christianity but it didn't work for me."  Too true:  Christianity cannot work for you if Christ is not permitted to work WITHIN you due to your willful disobedience, rebellion, and pride!  Once we are born again through the power of the Holy Spirit, the power of God which raised Christ from the dead keeps us pure and Holy.  Communion with God never again need be severed, and we can joyfully eternally abide in Christ!

Psalm 91:14-16 reads, "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. ¹⁵ He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. ¹⁶ With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My salvation."  This is a promise no bomb shelter could possibly grant!  Praise God we serve a Living God who has set His love upon us and is a Deliverer.  God hears our prayers and answers us.  He is with us in trouble and will deliver and honor His own.  If your beating heart and every drop of blood in your body is your crutch, than Christ is mine.  I am in Christ by God's grace, and I have found true life in Him.  Jesus has not only prolonged my life, but given me eternal life.  He will have you too if you will abide in Him!