God's a smart God. He knew when He created us that in order to get us to do what he likes, he'd have to somehow involve our desires. Have you discovered by now that the fear of punishment is a pretty ineffective motivator to live holy? I bet if you've been saved for any length of time, you've said to the Lord at least once, "Lord, turn your head, you don't wanna see this. I'll be right back." Well, I know I have. I've done that fully aware of the consequences. And even though I was convicted afterwards, I knew how eager He'd be to forgive me. According to the bible, true holiness comes from another, unexpected source altogether. Romans 2: 4 says:
"Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?" - NKJV
In other words, "Do you lightly esteem or take for granted God's abundant goodness? You do this because you don't understand its true power: it's the cure to your sin." God’s goodness comes first, then comes the repentance or change of heart leading to outward change. Phenomenal isn’t it?
1 John 4:19 says:
"We love him, because he first loved us." - KJV
In other words, we love God according to our knowledge and belief of his love for us. God loved the world so much that he gave his Son so we could experience an eternity of victory. But, not everyone loves Him back. Why is that? It's because they haven't "known and believed the love that God has toward them"(v. 14)
What is his love? What is his goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering? Is it just about being thankful for air in our lungs, or legs to walkon or a roof over our heads? And how do we make our belief in His goodness real enough to deal with our outward behavior? Well, that's why I created this blog, to explore these questions. I don't have a theological degree and don't pretend to have the corner on bible teaching. These are simply some things the Lord has shown me that have changed my life forever. I am in awestruck wonder of God's grace.
More soon. Comments are always welcome...
