How do you live like a Christian? No, let me ask it like this rather….how do you do the right thing every day? I’m actually not sure how to ask this question to be totally honest, but I do know the kind of man I want to be. I want to be a God-honouring man. The kind that loves his wife and son and serves the people around him and makes them see that they have value. So do I do that? No, I don’t always get it right. I feel condemned and I’m unhappy with myself and I go to bed looking forward to tomorrow when God’s mercy is fresh and new so I can start again, hoping that TODAY I’ll get it right. But I’m fooling myself. Paul says in Romans 7 from verse 18 that even though he wanted to do the right things, he couldn’t. Let’s not forget that he was human as we are, even if he had it all figured out in the theology department. So he struggled just like I’m struggling and you’ll be a big fat liar if you deny that you struggle too sometimes.
So how do we live out our salvation with fear and trembling? (Phil 2:12) A good friend reminded me that my spirit is taken care of; it is free thanks to the Cross. The problem is that my sinful nature remains an ever present foe, just like Paul mentioned in Romans 7. It has become my daily struggle, to submit to Christ and to rely on His guidance daily…no hang on…every minute. I know the man that I want to be and I can’t do it alone. Praise God for His fresh mercies and His grace, but I’m still going to make every effort to please God with everything I do. Not to strive to receive the blessing, but to live FROM the blessing.
He gave it all for me, and I’ll live in a way that constantly says ‘thank you’! Will I get it wrong? Sometimes, but that’s not really the point; I’ve already made peace with the fact that I’m not perfect.