~Charles Spurgeon~
I sent out a random email this week to a few friends of mine. It wasn't intended to be a revelation or some kind of a eye opener, just a reminder of the hope which I have realized as Christ Jesus in me. Well, immediately one of my friends responded with a cheerful note thanking me for the reminder of this truth. Now, this friend of mine knows the truth of Christ in us, for he has been among us in our discussions. However, like myself, I realized that sometimes we all need that reminder of who we really are. For me it came after a few weeks of being among some pretty negative coworkers. Now, usually I'm able to keep myself centered on who I am in Christ, but there are times when the drumbeat of negativity can overwhelm us. There was a time when I would all too often worry myself sick when such times would come. Eventually I got tired of running on that hamster wheel of worry and fret and looked for a better way. I mean, this wasn't how God had intended for us to live was it? Yet more than a few christians continue to worry and toil for the cause thinking that God is somehow seperated from them, putting them through their trials. I was there among them, I get it. However, if we are assured that Christ Jesus is within us, what reason do we have to worry? The apostle Paul, in Galations, tells us that we can rest assured that Christ lives on through us {Galations 2:20}. This is the hope which I have found. Hope in Jesus, hope in a life lived with Him and not seperated from Him. For whatever it is that is worrying or troubling me today, I walk through that valley with Christ by my side. This is the hope I have found. What is it that will trouble me if I live my life as Christ? Would Jesus Himself fret over job stress? Would Christ run that wheel of anxiety, or would He rest assured that He was walking in the Father? Afer all, wasn't it the prayer of Jesus before His crucifiction that we would be one with the Father as He was? {John 17:22} This has never been a life lived apart from Jesus, but with Him.
“I pray not only for these, but also for those who will trust in me because of their word, 21 that they may all be one. Just as you, Father, are united with me and I with you, I pray that they may be united with us, so that the world may believe that you sent me. 22 The glory which you have given to me, I have given to them; so that they may be one, just as we are one—23 I united with them and you with me, so that they may be completely one, and the world thus realize that you sent me, and that you have loved them just as you have loved me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am; so that they may see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 Righteous Father, the world has not known you, but I have known you, and these people have known that you sent me. 26 I made your name known to them, and I will continue to make it known; so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I myself may be united with them.”
John (Yochanan) 17: 20 - 26
The Complete Jewish Bible
The traditional christian teaching has failed us. Traditionally we have been taught to believe that as Gods children we were seperated from Him, continually striving to uphold a unreachable standard so that we might be at rest in His presence. Again, this leads to running that wheel of anxiety in many cases. For those who have yet to grasp the revelation of Christ Jesus in us, everyday life can be a struggle of running to catch up with Jesus. When in reality, He has always been there with us from the begining. Our Lords intent was never to leave us alone, but in union with Him. This was the purpose of Christs journey to the cross all along. As He has assured us, "I will not leave you as orphans" {John 14:18}. The journey of Christ was never intended to leave us seperated from Him. Were this to be true, then our union with the Father would simply be a dream and never a reality. Our union in Christ will never leave us on the outside looking in as Jesus simply looks down upon us from heaven ready to cast judgement on our bad behaviors. That is the hamster wheel of false teaching. Who among us is righteous enough to enjoy a union with the Father without the finished work of Jesus? I could never raise my hand to that question. Yet, through Christ Jesus I am able to shout from the rooftops that I am one with the Father! When I look in the mirror, I see the face of Christ smiling back at me. When I walk through the dark valley, it is Christ Jesus who walks with me. All that I do, I do as Him. All that I experience, I experience as Jesus. This is the Hope which I have found.
~Scott~
No comments:
Post a Comment