At the outset of this BLOG, I shared that I once told my wife that if this is all there is to Christianity, then I wanted out. Both of us were disappointed. I am sure we did not know why, but we knew that what we were hearing and experiencing was ringing hollow. We were Ignorant and disappointed, not really understanding what we were seeking, but the Lord was working in our lives.
My wife and I were saved but going nowhere – unsatisfied, standing still, stagnant – waiting for the end of our lives and/or the return of the Lord and then everything would change for us. At least, I think that is what we had been taught or that is what we thought we heard. We had not been told that there was a life to live for Christ here before going to heaven. We thought heaven was the goal; we did not understand that the Lord had a plan for our lives now. Yes, there is a hope laid up for us in heaven, and it will be glorious in the presence of the Lord; but the Lord has work he desires to do in us before we get to heaven.
The Lord wants to reveal the Father and himself to us here.
There is a walk of faith.
There are works the Lord want to do through us.
There is a process of discipleship that conforms us to the image of Christ.
All of this and much more is on the other side of the cross.
It is interesting to reflect now where the Lord began his process of working in our lives. It was the same place where He began with His disciples after His resurrection. In the upper room, just hours prior to his crucifixion (John 13-17), Jesus had spent time with his disciples, teaching them, encouraging them and reflecting upon his departure. Jesus spoke and taught a lot about the Holy Spirit, the promise of the Father, the third person of the Trinity.
Then, after his resurrection, the Lord instructed his disciples to wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:1-8, 2:1-4). Why? It was to enable them in their walk of faith following him; to empower them to do the works that he wanted to accomplish through them; and to conform them to his image.
Let me suggest that are three elements that the Lord uses to accomplish this work:
The first is the Word of God.
The second is the person of the Holy Spirit.
The third is the Cross.
We knew next to nothing about the Holy Spirit, neither his person, nor his work; and this is where the Lord began with us. Guess what happened when we were introduced to the third person of the Trinity?
The Lord orchestrated our steps and soon, we each had a personal encounter with the Holy Spirit.
These encounters enabled us to move forward in our walk with the Lord. No longer were we standing still, stagnant, and unmotivated.
Like Abraham, we didn’t know where we were headed, but we did know that we were now different, and the difference was not of our doing.
It was the Lord working in our lives. Now, we had an anticipation and a sense of purpose.
The Lord had told his disciples in the upper room that when the Holy Spirit came, “…the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26, ESV)
This is precisely what began to take place.
We began receiving in-depth teaching of the Word of God.
That teaching has continued to this day. Beginning with the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, our spiritual growth was being energized, and we began to see and understand a whole new reason for continuing in Christianity.
The work of the cross, its understanding, and its importance would come later.
Jesus told his disciples, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” (John 14:21 ESV)
Let us feed daily upon God’s Word. Ask the Lord to give you your daily bread (Matthew 6:11). Jesus said in John 6:35(ESV), “I am the Bread of Life…” His Word is spiritual food for your daily walk with Him.
Question: Are you stagnant in your walk with the Lord?
Ask Him to revitalize your walk by His Spirit in His Word.
To be continued….
Living Words of Encouragement 