Or are you like Christ in that you are a suffering servant? Has Jesus brought you true transformation, not sinless perfection but a freedom from the ‘habit’ of sinning, where you are no longer a slave to your sin? If so, Hallelujah! If you have been freed from your sin, then you know you are no longer headed for Hell, but you can live with hope for things eternal. You now live for God’s glory, understanding that He did not create any of us for our glory, but that we would be grateful for the gifts and talents that He entrusts with us. And now you live a life seeking to use your gifts to bring glory to the name of Jesus Christ! Be encouraged, as you walk on your pilgrimage, to remember the others who have gone before you and suffered in the same way. Preach the gospel, in and out of season.
If there is one area of our faith that Satan will constantly tempt us to sin, it is in the area of allowing ourselves to become carnal in our daily activities. So much so that, if we give in, we will eventually forget the glorious wonders that God has revealed to us in our own lives on an intimate basis. What a tragic sin is that. To think in His mercy, the God of all creation has revealed Himself to us, and we return to our vomit and begin living a self driven life of comfort again, as though He does not exist; lest we forget.
In fact, it doesn’t stop there either. As you obediently journey with Christ you will probably find the deeper the LORD brings you into His conviction and transformation, sceptics will begin to arise with discouraging ‘insights’. Do you discourage brothers when you see them being radically transformed? Does your lack of obedience bring about conviction which you in turn use as discouragement for those, around you, who are being obedient in the LORD? Be careful.
The LORD performed many miracles through Moses, before the Israelites, but each time they faced difficulties they grumbled and they either gave up or wanted to give up on being obedient. It’s easy to look back and criticize their disobedient nature, and ignore our own, but how many times do we too want to return to our personal Egypt?
Walking that narrow path of obedience in Christ, as you obediently seek His Kingdom first in your life, you will probably encounter resistance from those around you; but take courage in the LORD and press on. Perhaps those around you have even accused you of losing your mind? Praise God! If Jesus could face such an injustice, who then are we to believe we should be exempt from similar scoffing?
The temptation to forget the power and sovereignty of God, in our sin nature, could be no more apparent then when Mary, the woman God chose to bear His Son, who being a virgin not only knew the immaculate nature of her pregnancy with Jesus but was visited by an angel of the LORD telling her who Jesus was to become, seemed to forget the miracles she had seen before His birth and then tried to interrupt Jesus from His ministry some 30 years later. As seen in Mark 3, Mary joined with her other sons to attempt to bring Jesus out of God’s will, and into their own as they accused Him of losing His mind. As they called Him out of the house He was situated in, teaching and preaching, Jesus ever obedient to the will of His Father, rejected His earthly mother and brothers in favour of those willing to keep the will of God.
So the standard was set; it was just one of the ways God revealed to us through Christ how we need to live. Jesus Christ isn’t a part of an already wonderful life you might live. Jesus Christ is life itself; He is risen so that we might live too and escape Hell that we so rightly deserve. He created us, we owe Him everything; yet we can give Him nothing. We must yield to His majesty and worship His greatness, for His justice and mercy abounds. Obedience is all we can do to express our love for Him. The Holy Spirit lives in those that believe, and if the Holy Spirit has convicted you of a sin in your life, it doesn’t matter if you’re the only believer on the planet that knows such a thing to be sin... if God says so, it is sin!
Whether you or I understand any of this is of little consequence; we were not created to receive glory for our efforts and accomplishments. Pride says a man needs to be recognized for what he does. God says a man ought to be grateful and in awe of what He has done, continues to do, and promises to bring in Christ’s return. God created man for God’s glory. We will revere His holiness when we consider His mercy and love to save such wretched creatures, as us, from our pathetic filth and sin. And in reverence we will love Him; for He is mighty and awesome!
Blessings in Christ.
