QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION ~
Jeremiah 15:15-21 When have you experienced a time of desolation like Jeremiah [vs 17 &18]?
Psalm 26:1-8 In your life, when have you felt that God is testing your heart and your mind?
Matthew 16:21-28 In this passage, Jesus tells his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” What "cross‟ is this asking you to pick up?
MY REFLECTIONS
ReplyDeleteRecently, when once having been convicted (and shown) by the law, of my sinfulness, (while by no means were they any more or less than that which is common to man) and not being able to "fully" trust Christ for the forgiveness of sin. I went about trying to do better. It would seem I had become either like a Jew, or as one of certain other "Christian" sects. As one who is under the law, thinking my works will speak for me and justify me before the Lord (yes I've been reading Luther)... Praying hard, reading scripture endlessly, visiting shut-ins, doing good deeds, giving money to others etc. While these are all things one should do, none of it earned me any justification or offered me very much peace. On the contrary, I was always falling short and being condemned by the law all the more. It wasn't until I absolutely took God at His Word. That I am, both, saved by Grace and that the Lord Jesus was crucified to take away my sins, all of them, even, the most horrendous of them all, that being I did not trust in His sufficiency of Grace and went about trying to earn it!
The fear of sinning, the fear of God Himself, the fear of eternal damnation(separation from God forever) and the fear of death were very strong at this time.That is the effect that believing I was under the law had on me, a life of fear for not trusting in the Lords' sufficiency! I felt the Lord was a cruel judge, I was wrong, it was I that was the cruel judge! Gal. 2-21..."I do not frustrate the Grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."
I know God Loves us, He knows us through and through, better than we know ourselves. After-all, He is the one who created us. He may allow us to be tested from time to time, not to show Him our medal, but for the strengthening of our own hearts and minds with patience and faith. To help prepare us for service.
In Matt. 16:21-28 it was the time before Christ had done His redeeming work on the Cross for us. He was stating to His disciples what they must do if they so chose to follow Him there. Through the Cross, Christ defeated sin, satan and death. As the law does not beget Righteousness, any more than our deeds do faith. Let us not go into bondage again, Christ has liberated us from that. Without Christs' work on the cross we would not be able to enter into the Joy of the Lord. His yolk truly is light. It would be then I believe "to Love our neighbors as ourselves" as Christ first Loved us who were sinners. We therefore strive and make our best efforts towards showing Charity towards others. We must though guard against compromising our doctrine/article of Faith(Christ alone being Righteousness) in an effort to "keep the peace". Our deeds, efforts, or displaying of Love can no more lead to our Salvation than satan himself can, for while we are living in the flesh we can by no means accomplish these to perfection. We are to "crucify" our flesh.
Matthew 16:21-28
ReplyDeleteJesus ended up on the cross because his radical vision of life and his message irritated the Roman hierarchy. I believe my cross, as a Christian and a follower of Jesus, must lie in sacrificial living beyond myself which calls me to die and be raised again in a life that is lived for the sake of all others: family, friends, neighbours, foreigners, and yes, even enemies.