Friends in Christ Message for July 20, 2002

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Friends in Christ Weekly Message
July 20, 2002

So don't you see that we don't owe this old do-it-yourself life one red cent. There's nothing in it for us, nothing at all. The best thing to do is give it a decent burial and get on with your new life. God's Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go!
This resurrection life you received from God is not a timid, grave-tending life. It's adventurously expectant, greeting God with a childlike "What's next, Papa?" God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children.
Romans 8:12-16 (Message*)

If we truly believe in God and the power of the resurrection, how does this change our lives? The apostle Paul makes clear that it doesn't just change our future prospects, but it changes our whole approach to living our lives now.

The world tells us to do it ourselves - to be successful through our own power. Paul tells us to bury this kind of life! It holds nothing at all for us as children of God.

The world may view the new life we receive from God as dependency; leaning on a crutch. But when we step out into this new life, we find that indeed God does touch our spirits and confirm who we really are, as Paul says. This new life is adventurously expectant. We find ourselves called into things we would not have chosen by ourselves - adventures that we would not have hazarded had we not been confident that God was with us every step of the way. This gives life rich meaning that is far more rewarding than the material and ego rewards of the world's way.

Dear friends, eagerly accept the new life God offers in Christ Jesus. Bury the way the world tells you to live your life. Be who you really are, a child of God.

Bill Samuel

* The Message version © by Eugene H. Peterson.