Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh. (Romans 8:1-3, NIV)
It is not uncommon to play in golf games where your group allows a mulligan off the first tee. For the majority of us, it is a good thing that that is where it’s offered because it is the one shot in the round where we need it the most.
Let’s face it, how we get off the first tee can be an indicator for the rest of the round. We are excited to get the round going, we all want to impress the others in our group, it is often the only time the entire day where people outside your foursome are watching, and all our hopes and dreams for our best round ever are still perfectly intact—so there is a lot of pressure that comes with that first tee shot. But if we know in advance that a mulligan is available, we often relax and hit a good shot the first time.
Ultimately, our short-range vision fails to accept the incredible gift of the “infinite mulligan” from the God who views us through a lens of perfect love, mercy, and eternal grace.Much like the pressure we as golfers feel on the first tee to hit the perfect shot, we often put an expectation upon ourselves to live perfectly to earn God’s favor. Deep down we know that living perfectly is not possible, but since our finite minds naturally think in linear and sequential fashion, we convince ourselves that in this “cause-and-effect” world only we have control of the outcome despite the promises we have in the Bible. Ultimately, our short-range vision fails to accept the incredible gift of the “infinite mulligan” from the God who views us through a lens of perfect love, mercy, and eternal grace.
In his time on earth, Jesus seemed to have more confrontation and disgust with the pious religious leaders than he did the everyday “sinners.” Jesus recognized that the leaders’ trust was wholly in themselves. The self-righteous stamp they placed on their ability to follow their laws rather than placing their humble trust in God became their stumbling stone. Since they refused to accept Jesus’ message of his Father’s love and grace, I can only imagine the amount of pressure they constantly felt trying to live perfectly according to all their laws. Because of the pressure they put on themselves, there is no way they could offer grace, or a mulligan, to anybody else.
My great hope is that each one of us will recognize that all of life comes as a gracious gift from our heavenly Father and not because of anything we do to earn it. I hope as well that we will place our identity and hope in Christ and his infinite mulligan, rather than ourselves, and live with the freedom that he desires for us. It is that freedom without condemnation, as Paul wrote to the Romans—as well as the extension of a mulligan to others—that will be so attractive to others.
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Josh Nelson
Originally published January 13, 2011
Copyright 2011 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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