Everyday Christian Living: Respond
Ephesians 2:8
“For by grace you have been saved through faith…”
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them” (Ephesians 2:8 - 10).
There is nothing easy about Christian living.
Now don’t misunderstand that statement. I do not mean it is treacherous nor do I mean it isn’t worth it; I simply mean that there is nothing easy about the Christian life. In fact, if you think about it, Paul’s letters deal with the challenges of Christian living for us as individuals as well as for churches.
Having said that, there is no other life I would rather live. Following Jesus comes with its challenges. Living out the Christ life every day is no easy task, but I cannot imagine living any other way than following Jesus as my Lord and Savior.
Over the last few weeks we have discussed several important Biblical principles for living every day for Christ.
Reflect on God’s goodness
Rejoice in God’s coming
Receive God’s blessings
Rest in God’s sovereignty
Repent of our personal sin
Rely on the Holy Spirit
Rest the enemy, the devil
Run from fleshly lust
Renew our mind in God’s Word
Remember Jesus as an example of endurance
Do you remember the old hymn, Trust and Obey? The hymn was written in the 1800s yet still today serves as an amazing song of encouragement for believers. Just consider the first verse and the chorus of the hymn.
When we walk with the Lord
In the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way;
While we do His good will,
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.Trust and obey,
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.
The hymn reminds us of a basic principle of Christian living - we are to trust Christ without wavering and to obey all that He gives to us. Christian living is found in trusting and then faithfully walking in obedience.
One of our roles as Christ followers is to respond in faithful obedience to the ways God leads us.
Salvation is fully an act of the grace of Jesus Christ. We respond to that grace in faith. But that is not the end; in fact that is only the beginning. What comes next is a life of faithful obedience. We go to work for Jesus, and let’s be clear, we work from our faith not for our faith!
Our faith was never meant to be lived as spectators and observers. The Bible teaches us that our faith is to be lived out by responding to the Holy Spirit in faithful obedience. Our response to a loving, sacrificing Savior should be complete obedience. We are to respond in sincere obedience to the Holy Spirit of God.
When we are saved there are some things that change. For example, we are moved from being enemies of God to friends of God. We are moved from being ignorant to being disciples or learners. When we are saved we are moved from being isolated in our lives to being in a fellowship with other believers. And when we are saved we become servants in God’s kingdom. Once we lived for ourselves but now we live as servants in God’s kingdom. The best response to God’s amazing grace is loving, faithful obedience to God’s Word and God’s Spirit.
Some time ago a friend and mentor challenged me to realize that God is working in me and that He is also working through me. Now here is the interesting part. Regardless of His work in or through me, I am to respond in obedience.
Romans 2:10 reminds us that we are His “workmanship,” “created for good works.”
Questions for Consideration
Is there anything God has shown you where you have not yet responded with a clear, “Yes, Lord”?
Has God’s Holy Spirit prompted you to say “no” to a pet sin or habit and you have yet responded with “Yes, Lord”?
Has God led you to share your faith with a friend, a neighbor, or work associate and you have yet to respond with “Yes, Lord”?
Take a few minutes to listen to the hymn Trust and Obey; it will encourage you to faithfully respond to the Holy Spirit today!