All tagged grace
We have been purchased with the very blood of Jesus, and have come to know Him. We have been baptized in water, and then again in the Holy Spirit as it was poured over, and into, us... borne on the sweet breath of Christ Himself. Yet still we can find the allure of sin to be too great. How can this possibly be?
The gift of salvation through God's grace and our belief in Jesus Christ is totally of God, and has nothing to do with our earning it... but does that relieve us of all personal responsibility?
We fail in some manner almost every day. Yet, it is so hard for us not to judge the actions of those around us, and by doing so, if it were not for the Atonement of Christ, we ourselves would be lost. Seeing, and turning our noses up at sinners is just too natural for us.
As I thought about the point of my morning devotional reading by E.M. Bounds, I looked back on my own life as a Christian and could easily see the point he was making regarding action. His point was that working, and moving about, doesn’t insure that a person is advancing and becoming more devoted to their faith in God and Jesus.
My thoughts this morning are on purity. What does it mean to be pure of heart, and how is it possible to reach this state of righteousness? By becoming pure we know that we will see God, so let's explore this subject.
This morning let's consider the abandonment of things and people for Jesus. Is it a requirement of salvation, and if not, why do we abandon at all? So let's look at the things we give up along the way of faith and why we do so.
Who are we that God would care for us, and love us so? Given how small and insignificant we are in comparison to our Lord, the creator of all things, what is it that he sees in us? Are we simply a creation that He has taken a liking to, or is there more to us, and a deeper origin of His love? Does He love us just because He can’t do otherwise? No, looking at the detail in His creation it is hard to fathom that He does anything without great purpose and forethought… so why? This is a great mystery, and a question David asked long ago in Psalm 8; a question that we continue to ask ourselves today.
As believers in Jesus Christ we are the children of God, and as such He loves us. As His children He has taken upon Himself the responsibility for our upbringing, and maintaining our wellbeing. This responsibility extends beyond simply clothing, feeding, and housing us… it includes our spiritual education, and discipline as well. God disciplines us to teach, and train us, which is different than punishing us which comes as a form of retribution. Discipline is administered to those we love, while punishment is put upon those who have harmed, or acted against us in some way. As believers we are disciplined by God our Father.
As Christians we all believe that Jesus, the Son of God, was born, lived, suffered, died, was resurrected, and ascended into Heaven. We all trust that by believing in Him that these things will happen, and are happening, to us as well, but we are often uncertain about why, how, or what comes next. We think about the joy, the peace, the rest, the singing, and all of the other things going on in Heaven, but more than all else there is one thing that awaits us… we will be seated there at the right hand of God with Jesus. You see, all of this has been done, and is being done by God… by His mercy, but moreover by His grace, and because He loves us.
We are under grace, and this opens to us an unmerited access to life everlasting through Jesus Christ. Jesus allows for the forgiveness of sin in us, not because we warrant it, but because of God’s mercy, and amazing grace. The more we have sinned, the greater God’s grace grows, so that through it we are forgiven. But, we are a people who are inclined to take advantage of any opportunity to advance ourselves, even when that opportunity presents itself in greed and selfishness. In this way, if we are not careful, we will look at God’s gift of grace as an opportunity to sin without lasting consequence. Paul warns us against this in his letter to the Romans, but do we pay attention to his warning in our lives today?
If we believe in Jesus we have life, but we can’t just believe that He was a man that once lived, or a mighty prophet; no, we must acknowledge Him as the Son of God. If we believe in this way then we have life, eternal life, but what kind of life is it that we are seeking to live forever? People in the world around us choose to live their lives in all kinds of ways; some being extremely happy, while others are sad. Some people are quiet while their neighbors are loud and outgoing, and there are those who are industrious while their brethren are sedentary. So if we are to live forever, what kind of life do we want to live; more than that, what kind of life does God want us to live? God wants us to live as His Son Jesus Christ lives. We are to abandon who we are at the moment we first believe, and become transformed; to become measure, by measure, like Christ Himself. We are to accept the gift of salvation that God has prepared for us.
Are there days in which we are able to make it from sunrise to sunset without a sinful thought, or uttering a single word that would be displeasing to God? Are we sure? While driving to work, or along any busy highway, don’t we find it almost impossible to resist becoming irritated with someone, or muttering something we wouldn’t say out loud but are willing to mumble under our breath? How about a thought that pops into our mind, and embarrasses us? Do you ever find ourselves thinking “I am glad I didn’t say that out loud”? We might be able to stop ourselves from verbalizing the thoughts that boil up from within our hearts, but although we haven’t said them, and they might not hurt someone else, they still poison us, and God knows our hearts.
What is enough for us? When we pray and ask God to provide things for us, what is it that we ask for, and how much of it does it take to satisfy us? More than that, at what point does God feel He has given us enough to satisfy His will, and purpose?
As a Christian our past can most certainly haunt us, and be a thorn in our side. People who have witnessed the actions of our old selves might never believe it possible for us to have changed, and to have been transformed by Christ into a new creation. So how do we live out lives of faith when everywhere we go there is such denial of His presence in us? We do exactly as Paul did… we remain focused on Jesus, and repeat over and over again the words Paul was given by the Lord, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Our salvation has nothing to do with the world’s perception of us… we are saved by Faith, and the grace of God alone.
We are meant to humble ourselves before God even in those times of our greatest strength, but why? The world tells us that we do so because even when we are mighty He is stronger yet, when we are hungry He feeds us, when our lips are parched He brings forth water from the rocks, and when our enemies are preparing to destroy us He defends us, but In truth we do so because He loves us so perfectly. Although we love Him with all our being, He loves us more. God doesn’t demand that we approach Him on our knees, we do this out of our desire to yield ourselves entirely to Him. So, are we humbling ourselves before our Lord God, His children, and even those who are old and weak, or are we waiting to be humbled for our arrogance, and selfishness, before we do so?