Dear Friends
Am I the type of person with whom I would want to spend eternity? If I am honest with myself, I have to admit that there are times I wouldn’t even want to spend a weekend with me, let alone eternity. Yet, I read 2 Corinthians 5:17 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here.” I wonder when that new creation is going to take over. In Romans I read, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2) Where do I go for mind renewal?
A related question has been rattling around in my head: If someone dragged me into court and accused me of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict me? This question prompts me to become a fruit inspector – “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.“ (Galatians 5:22-23) Does my life reflect God’s love, peace, patience, and gentleness? What about self-control? Even when I’m caught in traffic on the 405?
Mind renewal? Fruitfulness? Praise God, it’s not up to me. The Apostle Paul put it this way, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ…in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” (Ephesians 3-7)
As God’s children, we all are a work in progress.
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)
Are we the type of people with whom we’d want to spend eternity? Would we be found guilty if someone accused us of being a Christian? Are we progressing? All good questions. 2 Peter 1:3-8 offers hope:
“By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-8)
In our journey of faith, we need to be gentle with ourselves and remember to “be confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6)
Verse for the week: John: 13:35: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
They Will Know We Are Christians is a hymn inspired by John 13:35, written by a Catholic priest, Peter Scholtes. (Listen at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zoENAD7OCiI)
Blessings, Your friends in Christ
Because He Loves Us Press 