"I have told you all this so that you may find peace in me.
In the world you will have hardship, but be courageous: I have conquered the world. "
- The Lord Jesus Christ in John 16:33
Being a Christian is not an easy lifestyle. It is even the worst lifestyle if we will use the standards of the world. And yet it is the one which offers the best returns among many other lifestyles because it promises not only temporary benefits but eternal rewards.
The Christian is merely a pilgrim on this earth. This world is not his destination. He is merely a passerby. His ultimate goal is union with God for all eternity in His heavenly kingdom. The life and teachings of the Lord attests to this fact. He Himself lived about 33 years only on earth and most of His existence was lived as a simple carpenter. He did not even leave behind any furniture which could be considered as work of art which could have commanded billions of euros in an auction due to the dignity of the maker. Just imagine how many mouths could have been fed by that amount?
But the Lord God's, standards and purposes are very different from human understanding of life and existence. We are not here on this planet to have a great life and then be dead and even forgotten. We are meant for greater things - not in the sense of glorified personalities - but in the sense of being Saints of the Most High. Our lives on earth are supposed to be lived in accordance with the will of God: to be fully consecrated to Him and become instruments of other people's salvation that all of God's children would someday be united with Him in His heavenly Kingdom.
And the Christian cannot fulfill this if he would go after the enticements of the world. For the world is continually at war with God. While God calls man to lift up his spirit up to worship Him, the world brings the same spirit down either by satiating man's body with material things or by burdening it with worldly concerns. Being corporeal, man is constantly magnetized by the allurements of worldly comforts: power, fame and fortune. The same things which the Serpent has tempted Eve with in Eden and what the Devil tried to offer to the Lord in the desert.
But in the long history of salvation God has shown that He did not favor mere human and worldly qualities as bases for choosing people He would send as leaders, prophets and messengers. Moses was not a good speaker and yet He was sent by God to speak in His behalf against the Pharaoh and was even given the task of being the Lawgiver of Israel. David was a mere youth when He was led by God to kill the giant Goliath only with his slingshot and small stones. Jeremiah was only 20 years old when he became God's prophet: a mere child by that time's standard hence not a credible bearer of an important message.
And all of them went through various hardships and sufferings just to be able to fulfill the Lord's will. Moses has to contend with a disobedient and rebellious people. David had to live among his enemies to escape the wrath of a fellow Israelite. Jeremiah had to experience various threats and maltreatment. And yet they still followed what God wanted them to do because they believed in His promises and they were rewarded by God at the proper time.
The Lord tells us to be brave, to stay strong and be courageous. Like Him and the many servants of God who came before Him we, God's new people and friends, would undergo various sufferings even in the hands of those who claim to be God's people and Lord's friends too. But let us not fail to hold to what He has promised us, that He will abide with us until the end of time and if we endure we shall be able to receive the crown of glory and share in our Master's glory for all eternity.
He has conquered the world not as a mighty warrior but as the Lamb of God. We shall also rise victorious if we follow in His footsteps with the courage that He provides us.
A blessed pilgrimage to all of us!
The Christian is merely a pilgrim on this earth. This world is not his destination. He is merely a passerby. His ultimate goal is union with God for all eternity in His heavenly kingdom. The life and teachings of the Lord attests to this fact. He Himself lived about 33 years only on earth and most of His existence was lived as a simple carpenter. He did not even leave behind any furniture which could be considered as work of art which could have commanded billions of euros in an auction due to the dignity of the maker. Just imagine how many mouths could have been fed by that amount?
But the Lord God's, standards and purposes are very different from human understanding of life and existence. We are not here on this planet to have a great life and then be dead and even forgotten. We are meant for greater things - not in the sense of glorified personalities - but in the sense of being Saints of the Most High. Our lives on earth are supposed to be lived in accordance with the will of God: to be fully consecrated to Him and become instruments of other people's salvation that all of God's children would someday be united with Him in His heavenly Kingdom.
And the Christian cannot fulfill this if he would go after the enticements of the world. For the world is continually at war with God. While God calls man to lift up his spirit up to worship Him, the world brings the same spirit down either by satiating man's body with material things or by burdening it with worldly concerns. Being corporeal, man is constantly magnetized by the allurements of worldly comforts: power, fame and fortune. The same things which the Serpent has tempted Eve with in Eden and what the Devil tried to offer to the Lord in the desert.
But in the long history of salvation God has shown that He did not favor mere human and worldly qualities as bases for choosing people He would send as leaders, prophets and messengers. Moses was not a good speaker and yet He was sent by God to speak in His behalf against the Pharaoh and was even given the task of being the Lawgiver of Israel. David was a mere youth when He was led by God to kill the giant Goliath only with his slingshot and small stones. Jeremiah was only 20 years old when he became God's prophet: a mere child by that time's standard hence not a credible bearer of an important message.
And all of them went through various hardships and sufferings just to be able to fulfill the Lord's will. Moses has to contend with a disobedient and rebellious people. David had to live among his enemies to escape the wrath of a fellow Israelite. Jeremiah had to experience various threats and maltreatment. And yet they still followed what God wanted them to do because they believed in His promises and they were rewarded by God at the proper time.
The Lord tells us to be brave, to stay strong and be courageous. Like Him and the many servants of God who came before Him we, God's new people and friends, would undergo various sufferings even in the hands of those who claim to be God's people and Lord's friends too. But let us not fail to hold to what He has promised us, that He will abide with us until the end of time and if we endure we shall be able to receive the crown of glory and share in our Master's glory for all eternity.
He has conquered the world not as a mighty warrior but as the Lamb of God. We shall also rise victorious if we follow in His footsteps with the courage that He provides us.
A blessed pilgrimage to all of us!
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