We all like gifts. Colorful, wrapped objects of affection to be opened and enjoyed … even loved. I’d bet most people could name only a few gifts they got that led to vastly extended periods of joy and happiness. If someone gets a gift like that from someone, chances are they feel obliged to reciprocate in kind at some future date; however, that distorts the meaning of a gift which, by definition, is something voluntarily transferred by one person to another without compensation. Eventually, that gift tends to break, become outdated, or is simply forgotten. Gifts, much like life, offer fleeting moments of happiness and joy, to be enjoyed and remembered for a time, but then fade into memory after they’ve been packed, given, or thrown away.
God has a gift for you unlike any gift you could receive by human hands. It will endure forever, never be taken back, and cannot be reciprocated. The joy it produces only increases into eternity. This gift is the one of salvation, through which your sins are forgiven by trusting in what God’s son, Jesus Christ, has done for you. His Son substituted himself for you on the cross, taking your sins onto himself and imparting His righteousness onto you. Jesus then overcame death through His resurrection, and those who trust in Him are risen with Him to eternal life. This is eternal life after death my friends, not something trivial like a new pair of shoes. Don’t squander this opportunity by thinking it’s a gift you don’t need at this very moment. Never think you are a “good enough” person to not need it; in fact, accepting this gift means you can throw away the “good” measuring stick you may be measuring yourself by and be assured that you won’t ever need to worry about it again because it’s foolish to equate your standard with God’s standard.
Assuming you have earnestly accepted this gift and have asked Jesus to be your substitute on the cross, acknowledging and accepting the Gospel (1 Corinthians 15), you are a Christian. You are now justified in God’s eyes; the journey of sanctification, or living according to God’s design and purpose, starts and becomes a life-long process. The ten commandments are a guide here, whereas the commandments of loving God and loving others are the most important. God isn’t grading you on a curve here — you have already been forgiven of your sins — past, present, and future — because you were reconciled unto Him (2 Corinthians 5:19), but the Christian needs to know what God expects in a code of conduct towards others whether they are a Christian or not. We were made to love, support, respect, etc. one another in this life and the next. We will all fail at it countless times, but the struggle to get minutely closer to this goal each day / week / month is what is important. The receiving of, and subsequently inner consultation with, the Holy Spirit helps act as your compass and guide. We need to continually ask the Holy Spirit to lead us, to guide us, to help us do the things God wants us to do. Some say the Holy Spirit is the most unappreciated part of the Holy Trinity — I can see where this may be true. After being a Christian for many years, I myself still struggle to discern what the Holy Spirit guides me to do. Something I can say with almost certainty: The Holy Spirit lets me know when I’ve allowed sin to drive myself “off the rails” and grieve it. Oh yes…our old sin nature (of the body, not the spirit) still dogs us all and makes our struggle towards sanctification that much more difficult (Romans 7).
What does God really want from us Christians while we live out our lives? Of course, the Bible is a valuable resource here, especially the New Testament. Additionally, God wants you to be in communion with other Christians as we need each other to grow in faith and practice. Finding a church and attending regularly is strongly recommended, although the practicing of “religion” is a dangerous subject. There are so many denominations out there that put their own spin on what it means to live a life pleasing to God. I’ve seen where various denominations seem to distort the message that God wants us to have, whether it be for people to hold power over other people, or to espouse some weird or irrelevant interpretation of the Bible. Religion is scary — just turn on the news and see the scandals and swindling happening. I’m sure this angers and/or saddens God as people become dismayed, skeptical, cynical, etc. of the real message He is trying to get across. Whenever people are involved, sin can corrupt the message, and this message can even look credible as Satan masquerades himself in place of God in order to lead anyone astray, especially those who are supposed to be ambassadors of God. This is where the Holy Spirit can help you discern what is right, but you must also educate yourself, which is part of the journey of sanctification. We are fortunate to live in an age where information is easily obtainable, but not always discernable. First and foremost, God wants you to know you are loved and for you to let others know they are too and second, we are all His creation and to put anyone lower or higher than yourself is not what God wants. Even though I myself sometimes fail at espousing these virtues in my interaction with people as I can be a lousy Christian at times (as any of us can be because we’re all imperfect), I look for these points, as well as a message consistent with what the Bible teaches, as criteria to know if it has a good chance of coming from God.
Some points to leave you with. First, all the Bible is God inspired and true, although people can and do have different interpretations. Second, with respect to biblical periods, we are in the “Church Age” and, while its important to read all of the Bible, Paul is our Apostle and the books Romans through Philemon directly address our gift of salvation; additionally, the four Gospels are also important although they address God’s chosen people (the Jews) and the coming Kingdom of God (this Kingdom gospel was delayed with the death of Jesus and will resume once the Church Age has concluded). Third, what you do in this life to love, help, and respect others is more important to God than the obtaining of wealth, status, power, etc. Fourth, thinking science and the Bible cannot coexist or support each other is uninformed and flawed thinking — there are many brilliant/notable scientists that believe in a creator. Fifth, Christianity does not equate nor side with any political party or thinking. Sixth, as hinted to above, its not about what denomination you might identify with — its about connecting with God and others in Biblical truth and love. Lastly, this world is temporary and life is short — wisely invest your effort and opinions accordingly. God has foretold what the end of the world looks like and it’s not pretty for any nation or country.
I pray you will ask for and receive this gift today! God Bless…
