06/26/2019
By believing in God, and having knowledge of Him, God gives us life and godliness, but what do we do with them? Do we practice our faith to its fullest, or do we attempt to wear it around our neck like a trophy; something we take pride in having achieved? Scripture tells us that we should be more than just the recipients of God’s grace, but to partake of it, and escape the corruption of the world.
“His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”
2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV
When I was a young man I knew a fellow who was a physical specimen on the football field. He had been blessed with athletic ability that was extraordinary, but rather than exercise that God given talent, he simply ran just a little faster than those around him, kicked the ball a tiny bit further, and barely escaped during an opportunity to score. As a result, he graduated from high school and went on to attend a college that only had intramural football teams, where he eventually dropped out. Some of us succumb to the temptation to be this way in our faith... just good enough, just believing enough... but where does that leave us?
“And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”
Matthew 22:37-38 ESV
Jesus was quoting the great first commandment and as we read it we realize that in every way God wants our “ALL” We were not commanded to just love God, but to love Him with ALL of ourselves... whether it was our heart, soul, or mind, and in other scripture it includes our strength...
“And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment.”
Matthew 22:37-38 ESV
In my early years of faith I simply claimed to be a Christian. I attended church, knew the Bible stories, believed in Jesus, and yet if you were to see me at work, or elsewhere in my life, you would not guess me to be a Christian; you would not recognize the presence of Christ in me. Does this sound familiar? I was neither hot nor cold in my faith, and didn’t realize that Jesus had spoken specifically about me when He said...
“"'I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.”
Revelation 3:15-17 ESV
I would claim Christianity, and print it in the blanks on all the forms I filled out, but I simply professed this belief... I didn’t live it fully, I didn’t love God with “ALL” of my being. In this pitiful state I wavered back and forth between wanting to be righteous, and desiring the sinful things of the world. I didn’t realize that I was exactly the person Jesus was referring to... I was standing naked. Thankfully, that changed, and I finally realized who I really was, and the direction I was heading in. It suddenly dawned on me that unless I wanted to be spit onto the ground that something needed to change, and the very next verse in Revelation 3 spoke to me:
“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.”
Revelation 3:18 ESV
At that moment the burning hot need to love God with my “ALL” entered into my faith. It allowed me to be recognized by others of faith even when I was far away. I was reminded of the prodigal Son, and that his father saw him coming a long way off. What made this possible... was it his posture, his gait, the way he wore his hair?
“And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.”
Luke 15:20 ESV
I was in an airport, and the Holy Spirit drew me to Pastor Habte Adane who pastor’s an Ethiopian language church and is a missionary. We had never met before, but as we flew home from Washington D.C. we became acquainted through our testimonies, prayer, and in blessing one another. When we landed at our destination and were about to go our separate ways he said something profound to me... “When we first met we didn’t know each other, but our spirits knew one another.” I ask you now... will Jesus know your spirit when you come face to face with Him? Will your spirit recognize Him coming from far off on the horizon?
Loving God with your “ALL” doesn’t mean you won’t be tempted by the world, nor does it mean that you won’t face trials, or undergo suffering, but it does mean that you won’t face those hardships and challenges alone. It does mean that that your spirit will be recognized by those around you, and that when Jesus savors you in His mouth He will find you hot where you should be hot and nourishing, and cold when he needs refreshment.
Are you hot or cold as your faith dictates, or are you in need of a spiritual awakening? Look at yourself today and ask if you just wear your faith as a badge, or have the calling, but never exercised it. Ask yourself if others can see Jesus in your spiritual walk just as you have seen His presence in the distant walk of others.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for your Son Jesus Christ who teaches me what it means to love you with my “ALL!” Thank you Father for the burning desire to love you with every ounce of my being, for worthy are you Lord, and worth is your Son Jesus. I pray Holy Father that Jesus will recognize me as I travel the road home, and will find no reason to spit me lukewarm from His mouth. I love you Merciful Father, and yearn for that moment when I hear “Good and faithful son” come from your lips, and I long for the embrace of Christ as I walk the final steps home. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God who loves me completely, and whom I love with all I am. Great is your mercy, and grace, towards me who was yet a sinner when you reached out for me. I praise your name Almighty Lord, and I place you far above all that I am, and beyond everything I know. I worship you in the stillness of the morning, by day in the raucousness and din of the sinful world that surrounds me, and in the quiet of the night when you give me peace and rest. All glory is yours Heavenly Father as I draw nearer to thee.
https://youtu.be/fDDQsh_UycU
Rich Forbes