Archives For redemption

Change is possible

June 26, 2012

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV)

It is good to reflect upon what I have to be thankful for in Christ. This is where the very essence of all I have in life comes from and is the only unchanging thing in my life. As I travel along the convoluted path from cradle to grave everything will change, yet we like to convince ourselves that all we work and strive for will last and have ongoing significance.

No, we are like a vapour which blows away in the morning sun, a flower which blooms for only a few short days. The body I was born with has grown and changed dramatically, unfortunately it will continue to do so – by this stage of my life the change is generally degenerative! My mind and emotions have similarly grown and changed, there is no good reason to expect these to remain static either.

Yet some things remain stubbornly resistant to change; my sinfulness abides through all the ups and downs of life. If anything it becomes more problematic the longer I live. This is the very problem that Jesus has solved. In Christ I have redemption and sin is cancelled. The inclination to sin remains powerful but it’s ultimate power over me is broken. Now I have a choice, there is the option to live for God in Christ.

Related to this topic:

Image: iStock

In Eucharisteo , , ,
permalink

The Gift of gifts

October 12, 2010

Sometimes I am reminded of the one Gift that makes hope possible. The gift that takes a life destroyed by sin and redeems it. Such a life can be made new, lifted out of the mire and set upon a firm foundation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17,  Psalm 40:2,  2 Timothy 2:19). In this is hope; not in instant answers, magical changes or miraculously altered circumstances, but in Your life in me within the reality that I now find myself. This is hard – to hope in Christ within an imperfect, sin-distorted life. It seems so much easier to seek an ‘instant fix’, to look for avenues of escape. Being renewed in very small increments hurts, especially when it demands of me to work out my salvation. With trembling and groaning I step into each day, facing many failings, growing pains and hardness of heart.

I am writing to you, little children,
because your sins are forgiven for his name’s sake.
I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I am writing to you, young men,
because you have overcome the evil one.
I write to you, children,
because you know the Father.
I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.
I write to you, young men,
because you are strong,
and the word of God abides in you,
and you have overcome the evil one.
(1 John 2:12-14 ESV)

Gifts I have noticed this week (# 65):
  • Redemption purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ.
  • (There have been others, but I want to emphasize this, the Gift of gifts)
  • See my entire list
In Eucharisteo ,
permalink