Faith and works
are opposites. We prove our faith by our works, but we cannot work to build up
our faith (James 2:17). Exercising our faith brings us
patience, until patience does her work of perfection in us (James 1:3-4).
Everything in the spiritual life begins and ends with Christ. He authors as
well as completes our faith, because He took our shame and conquered sin death.
Now He sits in His rightful place on His throne at the right hand of God (Hebrews 12:2).
We always view
the Beatitudes as attributes that Jesus requires of us in order for us to
inherit His blessings. We look discouragingly at the long inventory, and
abandon any hope of ever reaching such holy heights in spirituality. However,
Christ in us turns the remarks of His message into a declaration of His work in
our life, rather than an itemized list of accomplishments to which we should
aspire (Matthew 5:1-12). Look at the Beatitudes from God’s
perspective rather than from ours.
As long as we
live in pride, the eyes of our understanding are glazed over by our arrogance (Ephesians 1:18).
We cannot understand God’s Word. Only when Christ reveals to us how poor in
spirit we actually are, do we have any hope of inheriting the Kingdom of God.
Realizing our depravity, we call on Christ to save us. We mourn our
hopelessness and He comforts us with His salvation. Only by admitting our
sinful state of corruption may we inherit the earth.
We live our life
sanctified by His Spirit, hungering and thirsting after more and more
righteousness until He satisfies our longing and fills our famished soul (Psalm
107:9). God shows us His mercy, as we are merciful to fellow sinners, and
forgives us as we forgive others (Acts 17:11). When we submit to God, He
guarantees that we will see Him, because He cleanses our heart from sin. Due to
the work of Christ in our life, the Lord of peace allows His children to act as
blessed peacemakers.
Even if we are
persecuted for the sake of righteousness, Christ in us bears the pain and gives
us the inheritance of His Kingdom as our own. Faith connects us to the reality
of God’s Spirit, and His Spirit assures us of His faithfulness. We live by
faith in the Son of God, because He loves us and gave Himself as a ransom for
our sins (Ephesians 5:2). The Kingdom of Heaven is not
about the carnal pursuits of eating and drinking, but about seeking His
Spirit’s righteousness, peace and joy (Romans
14:17).
Prayer:
Father God, if our identity is wrapped up in our
performance, we are slaves to society. We work our self into a frenzy to
acquire success and this world’s goods. We work like slaves to secure a
retirement that may never come. We run on a treadmill that leads to an endless
road of hectic activity. As authentic Born Again Christians, You place Your
boundless fullness in our human spirit. We ask You to use our body, soul and
spirit for Your glory.
Thought for the
Day:
It is time to stop taking God’s love for granted (Romans
5:8), and to start loving others with eternal, sacrificial love rather than
only through impatient tolerance (John 13:34).