As I was reading the book "The Jesus Letters" by David Ravenhill this morning, a particular thing he said jumped out at me: Beware of the man you can't imitate.
It quickly hit me how convicting that statement as well as the preceding paragraph was. He was writing about the apostle Paul, and how great of an apostle he was in the faith. Paul was able to say in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ."
My good buddy Tom would ask, if someone followed you around for a day, week, month... would they be closer to Jesus by the end of it? If they followed you into your home, your workplace, your quiet places when you are alone, would they be lead closer to Jesus?
Beware of the man [person] you can't imitate.
The reality is we are leading people. Friends, relatives, children, spouses, co-workers... The question is, where are we leading them?
Could you and I say today, imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ?
Showing posts with label Christ. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christ. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Monday, December 26, 2011
48 Hour Christmas
Christmas Day was a great opportunity to see old friends and family. We started the day worshiping God and celebrating the birth of our Savior with our former church family in Albion, NY. It was great to see old friends and familiar faces. We then continued packing for our return trip to Kentucky, then enjoyed festivities at my parents and desert with my wife's extended family. All in all, a great day with family and friends.
If it had been a normal day, we probably would have concluded the day with some more packing to leave in the morning and then some hanging out. However, we decided to give it a shot to drive through the night. So at around 10:45pm Christmas night, we left Albion, NY and headed for KY.
Needless to say, My wife and I are pretty wiped at the moment, as we took turns making the drive. The bed is sounding awfully good except for the semi-nauseous feeling I have from packing down Mountain Dew, Doritos, Reese's and Sour Patch Kids in an attempt to keep myself awake during the late our of the night. I am in definite need of a body purge (no more junk food!). So was it a good idea to drive through the night? Not so sure, but either way, we are back home.
I am hoping to post some more pics from our 10 day adventure here in the near future, so check back soon.
Hope your Christmas Day was filled with peace and joy in Christ, and great memories with those you love (and hopefully more sleep than what we got!)
If it had been a normal day, we probably would have concluded the day with some more packing to leave in the morning and then some hanging out. However, we decided to give it a shot to drive through the night. So at around 10:45pm Christmas night, we left Albion, NY and headed for KY.
Needless to say, My wife and I are pretty wiped at the moment, as we took turns making the drive. The bed is sounding awfully good except for the semi-nauseous feeling I have from packing down Mountain Dew, Doritos, Reese's and Sour Patch Kids in an attempt to keep myself awake during the late our of the night. I am in definite need of a body purge (no more junk food!). So was it a good idea to drive through the night? Not so sure, but either way, we are back home.
I am hoping to post some more pics from our 10 day adventure here in the near future, so check back soon.
Hope your Christmas Day was filled with peace and joy in Christ, and great memories with those you love (and hopefully more sleep than what we got!)
Monday, December 12, 2011
About Christ
It's time to get on my soapbox... Ah-hem....
Christ is central. Christ is King. All things were created through Him and for Him. As King, His commands are to be followed. His commands have benefits for life. Yet, in discussing the benefits of following Gods commands, we must not forget that they are just that - commands.
For instance, one might discuss the benefits of forgiving those who have hurt you. That you can better your life through forgiveness, and live in greater freedom as a result. Your forgiveness prevents you from being all you can be, you know.
While all this is true, we must be careful regarding the message we are believing, and relaying to others.
Forgiveness is more than just a self help, better my life, positive way of living. It is a godly way to live. It is the way to live that follows in Jesus footsteps, and it is the only thing that makes sense knowing how much He has forgiven us of. And, forgiveness is a command.
There are definite benefits to many of the commands of Christ... forgiveness over bitterness, giving over receiving, love over hate, joy over depression, faith over fear... All of these have great byproducts to the Christian life. But without Christ, they are just positive mental attitudes. Just attributes to add value to your life. It is Christ that brings depth and meaning to these virtues. It is for Christ and because of Christ that we forgive, love, have joy, etc. And, it is through the power of the Holy Spirit in a born again believer that enables us to truly walk all these things out in a heavenly way.
Without Christ, these things are little more than a humanistic path to a better life. A life that is all about me still. But when it's all about Christ, these virtues are commands, and flow naturally from the new life we have in Him.
So let's take heed and be careful today to keep Christ at the center of all his commands and benefits. If we don't, we flirt with the danger of becoming a church and a people that is little more than a social club, instead of the Bride of Christ.
Unfortunately, it seems to me that many have adopted this social club, better myself gospel that keeps me, and not Christ, at the center of my world.
I will step down from the soapbox, for now...
Christ is central. Christ is King. All things were created through Him and for Him. As King, His commands are to be followed. His commands have benefits for life. Yet, in discussing the benefits of following Gods commands, we must not forget that they are just that - commands.
For instance, one might discuss the benefits of forgiving those who have hurt you. That you can better your life through forgiveness, and live in greater freedom as a result. Your forgiveness prevents you from being all you can be, you know.
While all this is true, we must be careful regarding the message we are believing, and relaying to others.
Forgiveness is more than just a self help, better my life, positive way of living. It is a godly way to live. It is the way to live that follows in Jesus footsteps, and it is the only thing that makes sense knowing how much He has forgiven us of. And, forgiveness is a command.
There are definite benefits to many of the commands of Christ... forgiveness over bitterness, giving over receiving, love over hate, joy over depression, faith over fear... All of these have great byproducts to the Christian life. But without Christ, they are just positive mental attitudes. Just attributes to add value to your life. It is Christ that brings depth and meaning to these virtues. It is for Christ and because of Christ that we forgive, love, have joy, etc. And, it is through the power of the Holy Spirit in a born again believer that enables us to truly walk all these things out in a heavenly way.
Without Christ, these things are little more than a humanistic path to a better life. A life that is all about me still. But when it's all about Christ, these virtues are commands, and flow naturally from the new life we have in Him.
So let's take heed and be careful today to keep Christ at the center of all his commands and benefits. If we don't, we flirt with the danger of becoming a church and a people that is little more than a social club, instead of the Bride of Christ.
Unfortunately, it seems to me that many have adopted this social club, better myself gospel that keeps me, and not Christ, at the center of my world.
I will step down from the soapbox, for now...
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