BIBLE PASSAGE:
It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus,
who has become for us wisdom from God – that is,
our righteousness, holiness and redemption.
(1 Corinthians 1:30)
MEDITATION:
It’s probably true that everyone would like to have wisdom,
righteousness, holiness, and the promise of redemption.
We need wisdom to cope with the challenges of life and for
making right decisions.
We need righteousness to help us choose the right things (that
are good for us and others), instead of the wrong things (which
can cause us harm and negatively impact our interactions with
others).
We need holiness so we can grow closer to the Lord, and ‘feel’
His presence in our lives; we also need it so we can point others
to Him. The more righteous we become through God’s efforts to
sanctify us, the more we will be able to fellowship with the Lord.
Whether we knew it at the time or not, when we committed our lives
to following Jesus, that was when our sanctification began. It may
be a confusing word with a lot of syllables, but it means we enter
a transformation process designed to mold us into a likeness of Jesus.
Throughout the rest of our lives, we can expect (and even anticipate)
God to continue transforming us. Of course, we will never be totally
like Jesus, but our sanctification will culminate when we are with
Him at the end of our earthly journey. We might want to think of
it as a type of earthly conditioning to prepare us for heaven.
Others need to know that our faith is real, and we are ‘sold out’
to the Lord. Holiness gives us the ability to assure others that
we love the Lord, and He is a highly important part of our lives.
We need redemption because we have a desire to spend eternity
with the Lord in a world without tragedies, sicknesses, pains,
stresses, dangers, heartbreaks, and disappointments that we
have experienced in the world we are currently living in.
Have you ever thought about how people can be changed by
‘people’ just as much as they are changed by ‘ideas’. An idea
can influence others to change, but so can one person with a
strong personality.
Another person’s influence can be a good thing if the person is focused
on creating a close relationship with the Lord, but that’s not usually the
case, is it? Most of the time those with strong personalities are focused
on what pleases them, instead of what pleases the Lord. That’s why we
should never put our faith and trust in another individual; our allegiance
should always be to Jesus Christ.
How are others inspired by Christianity? The power of Christianity
is not found in ethics or manmade rules. Its power is not found in
ideas, theologies or philosophies. The secret of Christianity is found
in a person, and that person is Jesus Christ!
The efforts of man have uncovered other philosophical, ethical and
scientific systems, but they have not found another Jesus Christ. He
cannot be matched by anyone throughout history. He is the One we
look to for wisdom, righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Why?
Because He is the author of all of those and they identify who He is.
ACTION:
Are you missing wisdom, righteousness, holiness, or the promise of
redemption in your own life? Why not go to the One who can provide
those missing pieces? Jesus Christ is the One we need to invite into
our lives and we need to spend time getting to know Him better. In
Jesus, we will discover the valuable qualities that cannot be found
in anything our world has to offer.
Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for the promise of redemption,
righteousness, holiness and wisdom. I know that all these
qualities are important and need to be a part of my life. Help
me to make Jesus a greater part of my life, and teach me how
to develop a close fellowship with Him. I know that when my
relationship with Him is strong, I will have all I need. Thank
You, Jesus for what You have already done for me and I look
forward to how You will change me as I step into each new
day. I look forward to spending an eternity with You in heaven.”
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