Perspectives

1 Corinthians1:4-9 … 4) I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5)For in him you have been enriched in every way—in all your speaking and in all your knowledge—6)because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. 7) Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. 8) He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9) God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.

All of us from time to time will be faced with a problem that just will not go away. These sorts of things just do not sit well with us; it just does not make us feel all that good.  When we are faced with bad things in life we have to be very careful that we do not sink down into depression and become miserable. Sometimes we grapple with tough situations with a book of … to do this and to do that; with laws and legalism. We want to try our own way first, in our own spiritual power; after all we have the smarts, and we call this in the spirit of human justice. But there is a better way. We must learn to grapple with the tough side of life as one who has the Holy Spirit living within our heart: Because we have the very presence of the Holy Spirit within us; that means that you and I should be able to rise above all the noise and clatter of this world.

Let us for a moment look at other people as though they have out-and-out dedicated their lives to Christ. They have set themselves apart for His service and for all humanity. They have been made holy by the Spirit of God when they accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. To be a Christian is to be one for whom Christ has died and to know it. Therefore, Christ’s sacrifice on the cross makes us part of God’s family. Imagine what this world would be like if you and I would look at others beyond our own little circle and remembered that they to belong with Christ. Jesus after all is Lord of all humanity, all peoples everywhere. True he is our Lord. We also know that God loves each one of us as though there was only one of us to love.

There is one more thought: Life with a faith in Jesus Christ feels like a partnership. However, it is really more than just a feel good partnership … it is a partnership; Christ and us. What a privilege we have because we can come to him any time night or day and actually interact with him in prayer. We can talk to him as though we are talking to each other. But it is more then just a conversation. It is more than just chit-chatting. It is communion with his Spirit and our spirit. Thereby, we receive confirmation in our heart that we truly belong with him. We are born again and we know we are Christians. We are clothed not in our own merits but in the merits of Christ so that none will be able to accuse us on that judgement day.

This is the month we celebrate “Thanksgiving.” We must never forget all the wonderful gifts that God has given us; especially eternal life when we accepted Christ into our heart. He has enriched our lives. He helps us as we teach others about him. But really he does more than that. He opens our minds so that we can better understand Biblical truths, Biblical truths that only the Holy Spirit can make known to us. Christ through the Holy Spirit has made available to us a full measure of his grace and blessing. Every spiritual gift is available to us. We have been given the power to find those gifts, and to use them to do God’s will during our stay here on earth. He guarantees that we will be counted free from all sin and guilt on the day of judgement. What God promises he will do … He always does just what he says. He is the One who invited us into this wonderful partnership, this wonderful relationship with His Son Jesus Christ.

Would you pray this prayer with me … “Lord Jesus, come into my heart. Forgive my sins. I want my life to change. My thoughts and my attitude need to change. I do not have the peace in my heart that I yearn for. I really want that peace, joy and happiness that will fulfill my hearts desire. Please let the Holy Spirit help me be the kind of Christian that will honour Your Name.” Amen