Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Living Worthy of the Gift

This morning I was reading in Galations 2:16-21. It talks about how we don't receive God's approval by anything other than believing in His Son, Jesus Christ. It isn't about following the law or the rules, or living according to a set of standards set for us. It's about the grace He has given us freely through the sacrifice of His Son.
Alot of times, I think we stop there and say, whew- good thing He doesn't expect me to live by these rules, because I just can't do it.
Don't get me wrong, I am thankful for His grace, because I know I can't live by these rules every day too. However, we conveniently leave out what follows the grace part. In vs. 17, it says "If we, the same people who are searching for God's approval in Christ, are still sinners, does that mean that Christ encourages us to sin? That's unthinkable!" then in vs.19-20 "When I tried to obey the law's standards, those laws killed me. As a result, I live in a relationship with God. I have been crucified with Christ. I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live I live by believing in God's Son, who loved me and took the punishment for my sins."
Because He lives in us from the time we believe in Him and accept His gift of salvation, we aren't doing anything on our own anymore. Of course, we can't obey the rules or live by the law on our own. We are nothing but sinners. But we have the secret: He lives in us now. So if we are still struggling with sins in our lives, it is because we are stifling the one that lives in us. We are silencing His voice. We aren't accepting the help that He is offering us to get us out of situations we shouldn't be in. We have been given a gift. A life-saving gift. And yet we still live like we are dying.
It would be like a heart-transplant patient. Before transplant, they can't do anything. They are usually bed-ridden and have difficulty doing any kind of care for themselves. But after they get a new heart and the transplant is successful, their life is changed. They can do things they never dreamed of doing. But what if they still lived like they used to? Staying in the bed all the time. Still having other people care for them. What would have been the point of the transplant?
We do the same thing. We have been given the gift of salvation. We have been given the secret to living a life that looks like Christ's. Yet we still live exactly the same.

Ephesians 4:1 tells us ".... I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received."
What would our lives look like if we lived a life worthy of the gift that we have received?

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