More people may want to know about how you became a Christian than you think.
How do we give satisfying answers to those who say that the Christian life is dull and boring, or restrictive and limiting? In other words, how do we share the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a way that is relevant and meaningful to those who may be inquiring?
Our answers may depend on the reality of our experience of the risen and living Jesus. How were you ‘born again’? Can you share your testimony of Christ in a way that speaks to the investigator?
How did these staunch disciples of the early Church of Jesus Christ act, behave, and speak? This is where we have to get to know our Bible, the Word of God. People want facts and not shallow feelings.
At times they were ashamed of their infidelity, and perhaps bewildered. Think of the two men on the road to Emmaus, Ananias in Damascus, Peter before going to the home of the Roman centurion, Cornelius.
Here is a reality that we may wish or choose to avoid.
In Deuteronomy chapter 33 verse 29, we read: “Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord?” That verse talks about Israel, but it also has a lot to say to the disciples of Jesus Christ, King of the Jews, King of kings, and Lord of lords.
The Christian life is more difficult than any other, and we may not always want to share that reality with those who are investigating. Jesus told his men that from the beginning, if someone wants to come after me, to deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.
It is more than signing your name, accepting a creed, going to a building once in a while and praying once in a while or having someone else pray for you.
And very few people have understood the crucial meaning and importance of the local Church: if you lived in Corinth, you didn’t worship in Athens!
It’s getting harder in the western world, harder than 30 or 40 years ago, I know that’s true. People have lost their jobs, or been ignored for promotion, or ostracized by neighbors and families, and in various other lands, imprisoned and martyred.
Oh, it is possible to take a large bouquet of flowery language – and a lot of good-sounding phrases – and camouflage the cross.
We should never sentimentalize the Christian faith, or make the name of Jesus sweet or sick.
In Luke Chapter 11, verses 27 and 28, we read about a woman in great need. Do you remember that day when a woman cried out to Jesus: “Blessed is the mother who gave birth to you and raised you. Jesus answered: Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and do it”?
The true Christian life is not easy, smooth, or sentimental.
And when it comes to morality, Jesus is the most challenging, and when it comes to duty, Jesus commands us to go the second mile.
If any young man wants an easy passage through life, then he would be better off closing the New Testament, and yet sometimes the difficulty and challenge of the task can be its most magnetic appeal.
For adventure and life to stretch you out, this is where it can be found.
Jesus can put ‘temper’ in a person’s life, and Jesus continues to put ‘temper’ in a person’s life, along with forgiveness, mercy, love and power.
This life in Christ is a holy life. There is no need to go to Jerusalem or anywhere else (although there is nothing wrong with that) to live a holy life. Go to God. Be filled with the Holy Spirit and continue to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Holy – means set apart to God – separated from sin – inner health – and fullness in Christ, and from Christ – disciplined and balanced – with an integrated personality.
Today we hear a lot about the “balance of life”: Jesus Christ is the perfect one to correct any imbalance.
Only Jesus Christ can deal with the deep internal conflicts and discords that make people want to wreak havoc and destruction. Isn’t this the moral side of being holy?
Jesus is the Great Physician and only he can produce this kind of vital health.
He gives you a goal as he calls you and gives that life the power so that you can fulfill that goal.
It is a combination of Seeking God’s kingdom first – and – I can do all things through the One who strengthens me.
That troubled man whose name was Legion certainly knew the truth of this, as he was released, clothed and in his right mind.
This life in Christ also gives you HOPE, as it deals with what worries you, and that darkness, and that sin, and that wondering what life is all about, and challenge any lies with the truth.
“Who is like you, people saved by the Lord?”
We have seen how Jesus bequeathed his peace to his disciples.
He gives you peace, but also forgiveness for sin, forgiveness for the past and hope for the future, mercy, grace, healing, strength, my Spirit, love, joy, peace and balance, and the ability to be holy in sight. of God.
“Who is like you, people saved by the Lord?”
“Loving God, help me to be real. Keep me filled with the Holy Spirit. Keep me from acting in any way that may sadden the Holy Spirit. When life is challenging, protect and guide me. As I read the Bible every day, feed me and feed me. so that my faith may be strong. Holy Father, I pray in the Name of Jesus. Amen “