Sunday, April 2
Christian-in-the-making
Scripture: Deuteronomy 29-30, Romans 5
Deuteronomy 30:19–20 Today I invoke heaven and earth as a witness against you that I have set life and death, blessing and curse, before you. Therefore choose life so that you and your descendants may live! 20 I also call on you to love the Lord your God, to obey him and be loyal to him, for he gives you life and enables you to live continually in the land the Lord promised to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”
Observation
As Moses wraps up his second giving of the law, he sets out the choices—life or death, blessing or curse—and calls on Israel to choose life. How do they do that? By choosing to love God, obey Him and be loyal to Him. It is an every day choice. Today, I choose life. Today I choose to love God and obey Him and be loyal to Him.
Application
Today, I choose to follow Jesus. I choose to love, obey and be faithful. I choose life to the full. I choose Jesus.
I’m reading The Resilient Life by Gordon Macdonald. He tells the story of a desert father who was asked if he was a Christian. “I am not one yet, but I’ve seen them.” This humble saint was saying that he was becoming a Christian, that is, he was choosing every day to follow Jesus and be formed in His image. He was a work in progress. The operative word in his statement is “yet.”
I’m also reading A Song of Ascents by E. Stanley Jones. Jones, one of the great Christian missionaries, leaders, speakers and authors of the 20th century, describes himself at age 83 as a “Christian-in-the-making.” He says that he is “becoming a Christian.” Always becoming, not arrived. (See Philippians 3:12-15)
Both of these remind me that following Jesus is not an event but a lifestyle, not a destination, but a journey. We choose each day to follow Jesus. It’s not a static life, but a dynamic, changing life as we keep becoming more like the One we love.
Prayer: Lord, I love You. Today, I choose Jesus. I choose to love You, follow, listen and obey. I am a work in progress, Lord. I invite You today to do Your work in me and make me more like You.