All in Salvation
Are you working hard to do all of those things that Jesus spoke of during His Sermon on the Mount? If so, how is that working out for you? Are you going at it alone, or are you leaning on Jesus for your success? Sometimes we get tripped up by His simplest sounding instruction, but most certainly we will fail if we struggle by ourselves.
Do you worry about the salvation of your family members? Are you a believer who doesn't trust that their household is faithful? Well, take heart, your belief has saved them all. By your faith and your example you are bringing the Word of the Lord into your home and family.
How do you pray when you're broken? What do you pray for when you have nothing left, and your life is a shambles? How do you lift your spirit high enough that you can face God with your desires? We are often embarrassed when we have totally failed in life; we cover ourselves in leaves and hide as Adam and Eve did. Is that really what we should do? Is our faith that shallow? Has our God given us up to our despair?
Do you have an inkling of worthiness? Do you feel that you are owed forgiveness or that in some way you deserve to receive Jesus? If so then you are not prepared for His coming or the arrival of the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist knew what it felt to be unworthy.
Are you experiencing hardship in your life right now? Is there a problem at work, a health issue, the loss of a loved one? There are so many issues that plague us in life, and being a Christian doesn't exempt us from them... but it does help us through them.
Are you holding back from opening up to God until you have perfected yourself? Are you waiting for the time when you have become perfectly pure in thought before you seek to have a relationship with Jesus? If so you will never know them. They understand what and who you are, and yet they love you despite of it, let God begin the process of reshaping you.
Do we follow Jesus for the reward of eternal life? Do we serve Him for the blessings He bestows on us? Is our fear of God because we might be judged and thrown in a pit of fire? If our answer to any of these questions is yes, then our faith is an illusion, and His love for us far less than undeserved.
Where do we look for wisdom? How about righteousness, sanctification, and redemption? Do we find them in church or bible study? Do we seek them out while plodding along a pilgrimage path in some far off country? The answer is that we find them in one place only... Jesus Christ.
When I came to Jesus it was in full submission to Him, but have I served Him over all else in my life? Have I been the servant He expected me to be, or has my commitment to Him become a convenience on my part? These are my thoughts this morning, and they convict me.
I am thinking back to the moment I confessed Jesus as my savior, and the events that brought me to that place. I am considering the strength of the gospel that I heard and comparing it to all the preaching I have heard since then. What made the message strike home with me? What have I heard since?