And so it is. My first blog for 2024.
I completed my ‘Read The Bible In A Year’ Challenge in 2023. WOW, upon wow.
There is a hollow in my life if I don’t bury myself into God’s Word in the morning. It is indescribable how I seem to come alive as I sit under the guidance of The Holy Spirit in The Presence of God through His Word.
A stillness comes upon me as God opens up Himself to me.
This morning, 2 January 2024, with loadshedding in South Africa disturbing my morning ritual of coffee, I get stuck into the sweetness of God’s Word. Without fail, God shows up as ONLY HE can.
Matthew 5 vs 19 (b), hits hard, “But, whoever DOES them AND TEACHES them will be called the greatest in the Kingdom.”
Reading that it strikes me that Jesus is teaching about leading by example and not just mere lip-service. Obviously, none of us can be perfect enough to be 100% righteous, so we need Jesus who was, and is, to help us out.
THE QUESTION GOD PUTS FORWARD IS, “Do you love Me enough to want Me, My Son, My Holy Spirit, My Righteousness?”
As I ponder this powerful teaching from Jesus in Matthew 5, God’s Holy Spirit draws my attention to the perfect example of loving God found in Mark 14 vs 36.
Jesus is, again leading by example, being THE WAY, for us to learn from. Jesus is demonstrating obedience to God by APPLYING God’s Instructions for us to understand that our doing God’s Word is critically important.
QUESTION, “Can we accept God’s Answer when He says that His Will for us doesn’t include some of the things we will?”
DO WE LOVE GOD ENOUGH TO ACCEPT HIS NO?
Are we really in love with Jesus, come what may, we know that God uses all things to the good of those who LOVE HIM and are called unto HIS PURPOSE? (Romans 8 vs 28).
I know that in my walk with Jesus, there are multitudes of things that God has needed to change in me. I had terrible inferiority complex, identity issues, rejection issues, codependency issues, fear of suffering, and a ton of avoidance issues. All these created a “god”-of-my-understanding which wasn’t really God at all. Over the 20 years of being a Believer God has systemically helped me to fall in love (as best as I could in each moment) towards loving Him more because His Way is ALWAYS right, working for my benefit. Christianity hasn’t been a bed of hallelujah-roses. It has been a slog to unlearn my humanism, and trust God to want to learn to obey Him.
‘Enduring Word’, explaining Matthew 5 makes a profound statement in which we can measure whether we truly are in a love relationship with God.
Before, I met Jesus, I didn’t know what self-control was, or loving myself. As Jesus has taught me I have gotten to a place where I understand why the Paul says, Phillipians 3 vs 12, ”Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.“
We, can take for granted God’s Love for us by not making the effort to try do things God’s Way.
Christianity is not about the hallelujah said on queue, or the growth of our personal gain, but in the deepening of humility that draws deeper into God upon realising the depth of our corruption. Christianity is about becoming so desperate for God’s Love to change us that we desire to please Him because there is no satisfaction other than God who bestows peace beyond understanding, joy that bursts out of us, love for others that despite ridicule all we want is for them to know Jesus, a craving to be as close to God as possible, and a deep desire to obey Him because He is always right.
As we truly fall in love with God as Jesus says, John 14 vs 15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” God will work out of us the indoctrination of the world that shaped our opinions of self and others, and replace them with, Phillipians 4 vs 8, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
May the Beautiful Blessings of God fill your 2024, as we jointly strive to learn to be better, do better, and reach better for Jesus to save.
AMEN.
#Hayibo 