Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Is Jesus your Reason or your Excuse?

Romans 6:15
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

Many times I have been counseling with someone only to have them say, "yes but God will forgive me".  And I think that, that was the same problem that Paul was dealing with in his letter to the Romans.  Do we knowingly sin because we know that we will be forgiven?  
I think that can be the excuse for people actively engaged in an activity that they know is wrong.  But on the other hand I think most Christians, if asked the question would say "No".   As least I would hope that they would say no.  But question I want to propose to you today is, "What is sin?"   

I believe that sin is anything that falls short of God's best for you.  Now there are some sins that are sin for everyone, and the Bible is very specific about those sins.  But some sins, may not be sins for everyone.  What is sin for me, may not be sin for you.  The sin comes when we are not living and doing what God has called us to do.  Look at Jonah, God called him to go to Nineveh, but instead Jonah decided to go a different way.  Not everyone was called to go to Nineveh, so not going to Nineveh would not be sin for everyone.  But Jonah was called and decided to run away from God's calling on his life and that was sin.

So what happens when God calls us?  Do we go immediately and do what God is calling us to do, or do we run away in the other direction?  Or maybe we don't run away, but we stay in the same place.  

God tells us that he has plans for our lives, plans that give us hope.  He has direction for us.  He has goals for us.  But how many of us, consult him when writing goals?  How many really seek him first or do we start out on our plans and directions and then ask God to bless it.  

Or are we so concern about knowing every last detail, that we never even get started?  Are we living our purpose?  

Jesus knew his purpose, and he lived that purpose to the end of his life on earth.  He was not distracted by everyday life, but was focused on what needed to be done.  Everything he did, was getting him to his ultimate purpose.  And he got to that purpose at exactly the right time.

Where do we fall in the spectrum of living our purpose?  Are we going the right direction?  Are we going the right speed?  Are we standing still?  or Are we running away from God's best for our lives?

Is Jesus our reason or our excuse?  Jesus tells us to follow him.  To watch him, to learn from him.  If we do that we see the Jesus was our perfect example or how to live our purpose.  Don't let the "love and mercy" of God, excuse you from being exactly who he made you to be.

If you are not sure what your purpose is, there are ways to discover your purpose.  
1. Know that your purpose will always align up with God's Word.  God is not going to call you to be or do anything that is against his word or commandments.
2. God gives each of us gifts and talents, so what had God already given you?  Now this may or may not be the ultimate determination, because sometimes God calls us out of our comfort zone in order to grow us into who he wants us to be.  Think of Moses, speaking was not a gift, he would probably of thought he had.  
3.  What is your passion, what concerns, ideas, thoughts keep you up at night?  What are you drawn to?   Now I'm not talking about what worries keep you up at night, but what concerns make you wish you could do something, change something, donate something, invent something?
4.  If there was no money involved what would you want to do?

Sometimes sitting down and just writing, using the questions above will lead you to where God wants you.  But we must also listen.  What is that nagging thought that just won't go away?  Maybe God is trying to tell you something.  Listen to other people, sometimes, if we are paying attention, you will get confirmation from others.  
God doesn't want his plans to allude us, he wants us to pursue them.  So if we ask and we listen he will tell us.  He won't tell us everything, so don't wait around for every last detail, but he will tell you enough to get started today, and then each day he will reveal more.


 

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