Will I ever fully grasp what it means to be a Christ follower? Being a Christ follower has so little (maybe nothing) to do with me, but everything to do with Christ. In fact knowing Christ is what gives me life and godliness – EVERYTHING pertaining to life and godliness. Here is what Peter had to say about this to the early church:
2 Peter 1:1-4
“Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ to those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
Knowing Jesus multiplies grace and peace in our lives.
Knowing Jesus gives us all things that pertain to life and godliness.
Knowing Jesus gives us exceedingly great and precious promises.
Through the promises we have escaped the corruption that is in the world and having escaped the corruption have the ability to partake in the divine nature.
And He called us to this knowing!!! Not much about me in that passage. He called me, He multiplies grace and peace, He gives life and godliness, His divine nature provides the escape from the corruption of the world.
So what do you do when you want to know someone? You spend time with him/her and you ask questions about his/her life and sometimes you just sit quietly with him/her. Psalm 46:10 puts it this way, “Be still, and know that I am God…” The context for this Psalm is destruction, desolation and war. To read the entire Psalm click here.
Jesus said it this way as recorded by John, ” Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:4-5
Abiding is the “work”. It is when I am abiding that I will bear fruit, much fruit!
My mom says it this way, “Be a human being not a human doing.”
The conclusion I come to today and will have to remind myself of every day (maybe every moment of every day) is exactly what Paul told the Galations , ” I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.” Galations 2:20.
To the faithful brethren in Colosse he said, “I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
And how do we follow Christ in this way? Be transformed, be still and know God, be a branch – abide in Jesus the vine, be a human “being”. As John the Baptist said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” “Being ” is a sacrifice…my rights, my resources, my relationships, my religiosity, my reputation, everything I believe in I surrender…all of it has to be laid down for the sake of following Christ in a manner that is worthy of His calling on our lives.
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
Romans 12:1-2
Go and BE!
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