All in Christian
Just as by the disobedience of Adam all men were made sinners, and through Christ, one man’s obedience, the many were made righteous, so it is that by our singular lives we can each have an impact on all of creation. Some of us are tempted to believe that we are insignificant when in fact our one life’s force can ripple through all that comes after us, and quite often we don’t even realize it.
Even if our faith should fade away from us, and we find that our prayers are less fervent, or we turn away from our daily walks with our Father, He might scatter us, but will never abandon us. Even in a decrepit state such as this He makes a way home for those who are lost, but we must search after Him like Jesus seeks the one lost sheep. If we look for Him with all our heart and soul we will find that our Lord God never hides from us and waits faithfully for our return.
When we are in trouble do we call on God to save us out of desperation, or do we ask for His help so that through His provision, and salvation, we might glorify Him? God’s rescue is not done solely for our benefit, but also to reveal His majesty. When we give to those in need how does it make us feel? The goodness and warmth we experience is only a reflection of what God feels when He answers us in our times of need.
To be with God, and Jesus Christ, we must be changed. Laying aside, for a moment, the spiritual transformation we have been undergoing throughout our lives of faith, we are meant to be changed physically as well. This bodily change will not be a lifelong process, but occur in an instant, in a moment, and take place when Jesus returns to claim us. Are we prepared for that instant of indestructible foreverness?
Do we proclaim the mystery of the gospel of Jesus to those who would hear? Do we ask those around us to pray for us so that we will have the right words to speak when we do? We wear the armor of God, and the last article described by Paul is the sword, which is prayer in the spirit, but do we ask others to wield that sword for us so that we will receive the words to speak, and do we swing it into action for other disciples as well?
We might be suffering physically right now in this time of pandemic, but even as our bodies are being wracked, and caused to feel great pain, God is using our bodily trials to bring about great spiritual growth in us. In this time of intense suffering, and while Satan attempts to destroy our hope, our souls are calling out to God for deliverance. Can you feel a renewal of faith welling up within you?
Are we of one heart and mind concerning Jesus, or do we argue about his teaching, and what He commands us to do in His gospel? As we look about the Christian world today do we see a robust house... a nation of believers who speaks with one voice, and worships in accord with one another? Or, do we see a house divided... set against itself, and that twists God’s Word to make its own points seem true?
Are we growing more Intense, and diligent, in our faith with each passing day, or do we approach it like children who become tired with the same toys over time? When we allow ourselves to simply go through the motions of faith, and to lose sight of the immediacy of it, then we can’t possibly experience the fullness of God’s joy, or feel the love that radiates from Calvary. Do we rise each morning in wonder, that is, do we lift our faces towards the heavens thinking that we are a day closer to the coming of Jesus?
God diligently keeps His eye upon us, but our worldly life can often distract us from looking to Him as we should. There is not a second in the day when we turn towards Him that His eyes aren’t watching us. Furthermore, He is not merely looking at us, but there is a loving interest and intensity to His gaze that makes us want to please Him more. So what are we doing to deserve those moments when we notice His eyes, and our hearts fill to overflowing, not with the love we have for Him, but that He Has for us. Have we earned the lessons He teaches us, or the love He has towards us? What is it that He sees in us as we are led towards eternity with Him that links us so completely?
If you were taking a walk, and a voice suddenly told you to “cry out“, what would you say? Would you pick some arbitrary exclamation, and shout it, or perhaps tremble, and ask, “Who is this?”, or, “Lord, what would you have me cry out?”. Some believers feel that it is always presumptuous to ask questions of Jesus, or God, but as we read scripture we find that if we ask, and do so in the proper way, it doesn’t bother either of them at all. God wants us to understand what He would have us do, and to ask Him questions until we do; Jesus feels the same.
We live in a sin-filled world, and in such a place as this God sent His precious Son Jesus to redeem us; to save the lost souls that we are. Into the very dwelling place of sin, evil, corruption, and death, He sent His child, a baby, His gift of life. His love was manifest in grace for you and me, and His perfect Son was made imperfect on the cross, being given over to sinners, taking on our sin, and sacrificing Himself, so that we might have life everlasting through Him. So, how are we receiving God’s love, His grace, and such a gift as this... His Son?
When Satan comes against us in the world he looks for the chinks in our armor, but our defenses are complete in the perfect protection of God. Our fear of the dark one comes because we don’t understand the war being waged. We think that victory or defeat depends on the earthly wounds we sustain in mortal battles, and we assign might to others by what occurs in the here and now. Yet, though our bodies, loves, and possessions might suffer, and though we be pierced while upon our crosses, these wounds are of little consequence because the war is not over our physical selves, but for the disposition of our souls.
We are not meant to be frightened by death, nor to dread its coming. We know that what awaits us when we arrive in our heavenly home will far exceed anything we can imagine, and that our peace and joy there will be unquenchable. So knowing this, do we take heart in the thought that it is ours to die? Do we long to be forever in the presence of God and sitting with Jesus? Does this thought drive us on towards the perfection of our faith, and a love of God that allows us to serve Him fearlessly in this our mortal life?
Do we believe ourselves to be self-made men and women? Do we look around and see all of the affluence that surrounds us, and stare in the mirror; smiling at our own reflection? When we find that we want for nothing, and have become smug in what we have done, it is in our self-righteousness that we are truly lost. What the world has to offer is fleeting, and satisfies us for a day, and yet we can become addicted to its allure, and lose sight of God, Jesus Christ, and the satisfaction they give that is eternal.