I am prideful. I am a gossip; overly opinionated. I fail others everyday. I look to things and not to Him. I am disrespectful and not always submissive. Yet, He loves me.
"But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with me even the worst of sinners. Then others will realize that they too can believe in Him and receive eternal life." 1 Timothy 1:16
1 Timothy 1:16 is typically not the verse that is presented when someone is coming to salvation. However, I feel this verse encompasses everything we believe. I am reading a book that touched on salvation. The author discusses how the church (if I may be so bold) has, in a way, missed the boat on salvation. No where in the Bible do we read the sinners prayer. There is also no verbiage in the good Book about accepting Jesus into our hearts. While I believe these tools help those who do not know Jesus and give them an opportunity to come to Him, I think our salvation is so much more than words we say. Salvation, to me, is living a life altered.
An altered life is not a perfected life (thank the good Lord). A life altered is one filled with mercy and grace not excuses and justifications. It is the ability to look at the reflection and asking God to reveal to you the things that are not of Him. It's sitting in a sermon and applying the message to ourselves instead of thinking about all the people who needed to hear that message. It's loving Him more than this life desiring heavenly and not worldly things. It's reflecting Jesus without saying a word.
Living a life altered for Him is a difficult task in this fallen world. Often times we are too busy trying to do as well as the next guy that we don't see the beauty of how God wants to use us. We are so convinced in our own knowledge we miss the Lecturer. I am trying too hard to understand Him than to know Him. I am more concerned with my feeble sketches of God than I am with God Himself. Living an altered life is not about asking Jesus into our hearts or repeating the sinners prayer. It has everything to do with the sacrifice.
"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God." Ephesians 2:8 (NTL)
Love & Blessings,
Meg
"But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with me even the worst of sinners. Then others will realize that they too can believe in Him and receive eternal life." 1 Timothy 1:16
1 Timothy 1:16 is typically not the verse that is presented when someone is coming to salvation. However, I feel this verse encompasses everything we believe. I am reading a book that touched on salvation. The author discusses how the church (if I may be so bold) has, in a way, missed the boat on salvation. No where in the Bible do we read the sinners prayer. There is also no verbiage in the good Book about accepting Jesus into our hearts. While I believe these tools help those who do not know Jesus and give them an opportunity to come to Him, I think our salvation is so much more than words we say. Salvation, to me, is living a life altered.
An altered life is not a perfected life (thank the good Lord). A life altered is one filled with mercy and grace not excuses and justifications. It is the ability to look at the reflection and asking God to reveal to you the things that are not of Him. It's sitting in a sermon and applying the message to ourselves instead of thinking about all the people who needed to hear that message. It's loving Him more than this life desiring heavenly and not worldly things. It's reflecting Jesus without saying a word.
Living a life altered for Him is a difficult task in this fallen world. Often times we are too busy trying to do as well as the next guy that we don't see the beauty of how God wants to use us. We are so convinced in our own knowledge we miss the Lecturer. I am trying too hard to understand Him than to know Him. I am more concerned with my feeble sketches of God than I am with God Himself. Living an altered life is not about asking Jesus into our hearts or repeating the sinners prayer. It has everything to do with the sacrifice.
"God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God." Ephesians 2:8 (NTL)
Love & Blessings,
Meg
Comments