Think Again About Jesus

When we first become Christians, we don't know much about God. We receive revelation that Jesus is our saviour and that God is real. We repent and believe in Jesus's atoning blood, and we become new creations:

2 Corinthians 5v17
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

We receive the Holy Spirit, we find that we have a relationship with God, and we begin a journey.

That journey takes us into the heart of God. We get to know Him personally. We find out what God likes, and what He hates. Every day, we choose whether to please Him or displease Him. We understand more about His love for us, and we grow to love Him more. As I quoted Andrew Murray two weeks ago as saying:

It is only the full and perfect knowledge of what Christ is and does for us that can bring us to a full and perfect Christian life.

The knowledge of Christ Jesus that we need for conversion does not suffice for growth, for progress, for sanctification, for maturity.

In order to grow as Christians, we need to study and meditate on the person of Jesus Christ.

The real test of our love for God is our obedience. Jesus said:

John 14v23-24
Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

John 15v9-10
"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.

Our obedience is a consequence of our love for God. It is legitimate for preachers to say "If you love God, then obey Him" but I want to say something else as well:

The quality of your obedience to God is a measure of the quality of your love for God

Dear brother or sister in Christ, let me urge you to consider the quality of your Christian life. Are you maturing as you should? Are you more obedient than you were? If you're not satisfied with your answers to these questions then don't settle for just feeling bad about it. Do something about it. And the first thing to do is:

Think again about Jesus

Re-read the Bible. Meditate on your Saviour. Rediscover the power, love, patience, authority, kindness, goodness... of Jesus Christ, our great High Priest. And you will be inspired to keep going, and keep growing, and you will glorify God with your life.