Good morning my friends. May the peace, joy and love of our Lord be the fuel of your day. It is great to be alive and serving the one true God who loved us enough to die for us and then not give up on us when we rejected him but instead chased after us. Isn't he great? We are looking at 2 Corinthians 7 today.
Last night was our Tuesday night prayer meeting. I am very thankful for this prayer meeting and for those people who have been faithful to it for years. Last June something tremendous happened as the Spirit came in and changed so many things. However, last night there were only three of us there. I am convinced that the Spirit arranged for everyone else not to be there so the three of us could have the conversation and to pray with each other as we did. It was a truly an anointed moment.
Out conversation covered many things but it was all contained in the idea of passion for Jesus Christ. This naturally included a passion for those who have never met him. The young man shared with us several of the people who are on his heart. One person in particular struggles with thoughts of homosexuality and believes this is a block to meeting Jesus. The young man expressed his frustration at the message that Christians are putting out there; that a person must be perfect before meeting Jesus. They seem to forget that:
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
How many of us who came to know Jesus came in our perfection? How many of us after meeting Jesus instantly became perfect and avoided sin? Yet, with a huge sense of self-righteousness many find it to be their mission to condemn sin in sinners? Why? Sin is as natural to the lost as breathing and they don't even see it. What reveals sin to them is not words that condemn but the perfect love of Jesus who died for them as they are; who loves them as they are. It is not words that transform us but the awesome power of God's love.
That person with thoughts of homosexuality does not need to change to meet Jesus. It is after experiencing that perfect love that he will desire to change to please the one who loves him so perfectly. Is it not true that when you fall in love you want to be the best person you can be? It is the same with Jesus, only we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to throw off the old and to put on the new. Now read the passage for this morning:
Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. (2 Corinthians 7:1)
The more we know Jesus the more in love we become the more we want to change, to become our very best. This is the truth that we should carry with us so we would not condemn the lost but instead lay down our life for them to experience the love of Jesus.
Ask yourself, are you still in love with him? Is his love still transforming you? Is this love purifying you from everything that contaminates body and spirit? Is holiness being perfected in you out of reverence for God? Where is your passion for Jesus and the lost? Ask the Holy Spirit to relight the flame. He is moving through the Church. Don't be left out.
Come Holy Spirit, manifest yourself through us.
1 comment:
The topic of your blog today is quite interesting! I have recently made contact with my closest cousin before I got married...distance and my being married made it difficult to keep that contact. She is one of my two cousins who have since grown up to become homosexuals. Both were victims of sexual abuse....but the point is that the Lord has been speaking to me greatly about her since I got back in contact with her again 4 weeks ago. She is still my cousin and still the same wonderful character I loved in her before....so now I have the opportunity to love her past her sin enough to be that example of Christ to her. Actually, the Lord even lead me to start translating my status in French the other night so I can start witnessing to her through FB as well (although I have been away and not written anything other than good night yet)! I too pray she will fall in love with Him and the change will just end up being a product of her new found love in Jesus!
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