“Chin up.”
“Shoulders back.”
“Tilt to the right, just a little bit.”
“No, that’s too far, now back to the left.”
As a kid, family photographs were always a difficult experience for me. I couldn’t get the right posture. There was something uniquely frustrating about photos. Unlike any other time, it meant being on my best behavior, and then some. It felt like I had to be someone I was not.
Your posture is communicating something, passively
Posture means something. One’s posture tells us something about who we are, what we stand for, and what we fear. We hold our heads high and rejoice in victory. We slouch and slump in defeat. In a passive sense, posture says something, without actually saying anything.
Your posture is telling a story, actively
Posture can be passive. Posturing is active. Sometimes it’s very active, and downright sinful. You might not be saying a word, but you may be speaking a message by your posture. Not the posture of your body, but the posture of your heart.
We appear to have it all together.
We act like we have no fears.
We cheat to appear more intelligent.
We portray courage when our hearts are cowardly.
We politic to get into the highest position.
We lie to protect our true motives.
Just like a kid in family photos, we pretend like we’re someone we’re not. On the outside we’re on our best behavior for the camera, but on the inside we’re sinful and wicked.
What is your posture?
Romans 14:10 tells us that our posture dramatically changes because of Jesus.
For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”
Don’t miss that. It’s important to see that every person’s posture will change. We move from standing, to kneeling, to praising—all because of seeing Jesus. Ultimately, the posture of a Christian is determined by the direction of one’s heart toward Jesus.
The grace of Jesus allows you to walk in confidence before Christ, making your posture one of worship. You don’t have to pretend to be someone you’re not. Instead you are changed into who Jesus made you to be. It’s not a momentary family portrait, where your posture stays good for a moment but then slouches again. It’s a lifelong changing of your posture before Jesus.
What is your posture today? Are you standing tall in pride and arrogance? Or are you on your knees in meekness and humility? Are you faced away from him in rebellion? Or are you faced toward him in repentance?
