Today's "thought" comes
to you from a small, concise, easily readable book called, "A Gospel
Primer for Christians - Learning to See the Glories of God's Love."
It was written by Milton Vincent, using a
commendable bare minimum of words! He covers some hefty Gospel truths
with an economy of words. If you are short of time, and would like to
cover many important Gospel truths, and how to apply them to life, this is the
book for you. Today I share two selections that spoke to me as I read through
them. 1.) A Heart for the Poor and 2.) Chosen
for Prayer. Enjoy.
A Heart for the Poor
"Like
nothing else could ever do, the gospel instills in me a heart for the downcast,
the poverty-stricken, and those in need of physical mercies, especially when
such persons are of the household of faith. When I see persons who are
materially poor, I instantly feel a kinship with them, for they are physically
what I was spiritually when my heart was closed to Christ.
Perhaps
some of them are in their condition because of sin, but so was I. Perhaps
they are unkind when I try to help them; but I, too, have been spiteful to God
when He has sought to help me. Perhaps they are thankless and even abuse the
kindness I show them, but how many times have I been thankless and used what
God has given me to serve selfish ends? Perhaps a poverty-stricken person
will be blessed and changed as a result of some kindness I show him. If
so, God be praised for His grace through me. But if the person walks away
unchanged by my kindness, then I still rejoice over the opportunity to love as
God loves. Perhaps the person will repent in time; but for now, my heart is
chastened and made wiser by the tangible depiction of what I myself have done
to God on numerous occasions.
The
gospel reminds me daily of the spiritual poverty into which I was born and also
of the staggering generosity of Christ toward me. Such reminders instill in me
both a felt connection to the poor and a desire to show them the same
generosity that has been lavished on me. When ministering to the poor with
these motivations, I not only preach the gospel to them through word and deed,
but I reenact the gospel to my own benefit as well."
Chosen for Prayer
"When
God chose me in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4), He did
not merely chose me to be "holy and blameless in Him." He chose
me to be "before Him in love" (see Eph. 1:4 NKJV). To be sure, I am
always in God's presence on earth, and in heaven I will be in His presence more
fully than ever. But it could also be said that in this life I am especially
"before Him in love" when I come before Him in prayer and worship
(Ps. 100:2 / Ps. 68:4 / I John 5:14).
Therefore
I can infer that prayer is not simply something I am allowed to do as a
Christian, prayer is actually one of the great purposes for which God chose to
save me. Christ Himself confirms this fact when He makes the following
statement to His disciples: "I chose you... that whatever you ask of the
Father in my name He may give it to you" (John 15:16). As I come into
God's presence to behold Him, worship Him, or make request of Him, I am
arriving at the pinnacle of God's saving purposes for me. God is
radically committed to my life of prayer. He shed the blood of His Son so that
I might be cleansed and rendered fit to stand before Him in love. He also
permitted the brutal rending of His Son so that I might now have a way into the
Holy Place through the torn flesh of Jesus.
"Draw
near" He says in Hebrews 4. "Draw near" He says in Hebrews
10. "Pray without ceasing" he urges elsewhere. How can I not feel the
infinite sincerity of these invitations, especially when considering the
painful lengths that God endured so that I might enter into His presence in
prayer? Indeed, the gospel itself serves as the sweetest of invitations
to pray; and preaching it to myself each day nurtures within me a mighty
impulse to come "before [God] in love" and do the praying I was
elected to do."
May
his words be an encouragement to contemplate and then apply the Gospel to the
way we live. Not just in private times of prayer, but in the way we
relate to others in every sphere of life. In helping the poor, in the way we do
business, in the way we treat our spouses and children, friends and co-workers,
fellow believers and non-believers. If we are Christian, and thus saved
by the sheer mercy of God, we have experienced His grace. But
oftentimes we as believers forget that our experience of His grace obligates us
to show that same kind of grace to others (Matthew 21:18-35). If we've received
grace, but do not in turn show it to others, have we not stifled one of God's
primary intended purposes in giving it to us? "Love others as I have loved you," says Jesus. Can
we do that if we are not seeking to exhibit grace in all we do and to all we
meet?
In
the Service of the Gospel, Pastor Jeff
