May 29, 2012
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as he chose us before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him” Ephesians 1:3-4 New American Standard
There really are two worlds. One world is measured and defined by your terms .. your efforts .. and your energies. The other world is defined by the life that Christ fills with His life. One world is chosen .. living daily in the reality that God the Father is in control and has my best interest at heart. The other world is choosing … living daily having to decide what makes life worth living. Christ stepped right into the center of your world and made words like “holy” and “blameless” look normal against the backdrop of self-centeredness and blaming. He showed you that “holy” can walk right up to broken and rejected people and inject living hope where there is only despair and shame. He showed you that “blameless” isn’t about choosing only the healthy or like-minded .. but choosing to see lives restored by God’s redeeming love. A chosen life doesn’t alienate .. it attracts lives longing for love .. for wholeness .. for forgiveness .. and for a new life that is unashamedly born again. God isn’t surprised when you wrestle or resist between the life He offers in Christ and the life you want Christ to bless. He knows because He faced it everyday heading to the cross. He could have made holy and blameless a goal or an unattainable standard. Instead .. He made it normal in every life where He has moved in and is making a home. The life He wants to make normal in you … only takes a moment.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you…” 1 Peter 1:3-4 New American Standard
Ken Chester: Grace-Gripped is sent M-F to Unfading Followers of Jesus and friends of Priority One (ken@priorityone.org)
