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What Jesus wants of you: A lifestyle of faith
Mike Fletcher
Jesus wants people to accept and believe in him on their own: By fully choosing to believe with their minds and then living a lifestyle of evangelism.
During his earthly ministry as described in the gospels, He rejected those crowds in Jerusalem who had jumped on the miracle bandwagon because he saw their hearts. He saw how shallow their faith was.
What is your faith like? Are you only along for the experience? For the emotional sensations? Let‘s face it, it FEELS GOOD to be around other Christians. It’s exciting to see answered prayer. A good preacher can make you laugh and cry and feel GOOD. Praise music can push all sorts of emotional buttons. Being in a Bible class provides a warm camaraderie. Fellowship meets our social needs.
None of these things or experiences are necessarily wrong. But these things ARE NOT faith, either.
Jesus demands a real, deep-rooted faith. A rational faith based not on emotion and sensation but reasoned and disciplined conviction.
Jesus is not an entertainer. He is our Lord and Savior.
He wants us, as his mother told the servants at the wedding where he perfomed his first miracle of turning water into wine as described in the second chapter of John, to do as he says.
Like he had the servants do with water with those clay pots, He wants to fill us to the brim with his spirit. He wants to transform us into new creations. He wants us to be cleansed of our sins, our inadequacies.
But just as the servants had to pick up those waterpots and lug them to the well, draw the water, and then carry them back to the wedding, we have a responsibility, too. We have to give ourselves to him.
How about you? How do you respond to Christ's commands to you? How much do you give to your church? What do you hold back from Christ? I don't mean just money. Writing checks is often the easy part. I mean how much OF YOU do you hold back. The church isn't just the ministers, the pastor. It's all of us.
How much time do you give to God in prayer? Did you pray today, make time for him today?
And what about the other people in our life? How much time do you give your wife? When Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding it illustrates how much Jesus approves of marriage. This first miracle underscores that by showing us that Jesus sanctified marriage.
What do you hold back from your marriage? Do you work on your marriage as hard as you do your career? For those of you who are single, what about those closest to you? Do you give of yourself. Or do you hold back.
God demands our best, in all we do, including and ESPECIALLY in our interpersonal relationships.
Mike Fletcher is the publisher of the Online Christian Shopper, which offers llifestyle evangelism resources like Christian T-Shirts, Christian clothing and Christian jewelry. |