Welcome!
Today: Enjoying the fellowship of God and others
Passage: Rom 12
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.
13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. (Col 3, NIV)- emphasis added
When the peace of Christ rules our heart, we are not only blessed, but we become a blessing. We don’t need to go after blessing anymore!
We like to call ourselves “God’s chosen, dearly beloved, and so on”
If that is true, God’s nature must also be found in us (2 Peter 1:4)
In the epistles, we constantly see the usage “put on”, “clothe yourself with”, etc. What does that really mean?
We have to take our own effort, to put them on. Christ will help
When our hearts are ruled by Christ, we need to put on certain things
In certain jobs, you need to wear uniform
You are educated and trained for that job. Your mind knows that
(It is dangerous when someone who is not trained/certified for that job puts on that uniform.That is what is happening today. Many who have “no connection” with Christ are putting on certain “masks”, which decieves many!)
We see many people who call themselves “committed” to God, yet having no compassion or kindness; that is a problem!
“The higher the spirituality, the lower the compassion and kindness?”
If that is the case, something is wrong somewhere.
God is a God of relationships, not rituals
One of the major reasons God created man, is to have fellowship
God wants us to have fellowship, with Him and among ourselves.
Otherwise, we could very well sit at home and pray to God even on a Sunday.
God used to come regularly to visit Adam and Eve and spend time with them
Jesus could have lived in his own in an “Bungalow”, apart from everybody
He did not live in an exclusive place, nor made him “look different” from his disciples. He identified with them
When unity and fellowship becomes a priority, we put on the “uniform” of Christ. “I” comes down as “He” takes over. All credit goes to Him!
God bless your day!
BG
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for your sacrifical love. I thought I could make it on my own, while always came to me. Now I know, how much I need you, and that without you I cannot make it. Thanks for being there for me. Amen.
“When Christ becomes our best friend, “selfishness” becomes our worst enemy”