Where The Holy Journey Leads

-


Scripture

2Pet. 3:11   Since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, what sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness,

Observation

Recognizing the temporal nature of this life the readers are exhorted to focus on that which is important — “leading lives of holiness and godliness.” Reading before and after this text we realize that focusing too much on the creation account or the return of Christ is not the intention of the life of a believer. Instead we are to be united in holy relationship with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, participating in godliness resulting in a life of holiness. Wesley encourages us to become persons engaged in “holy conversation — with men. And godliness — Toward your Creator.”

This scripture leads us to a type of challenge — questioning whether we might be prepared for the amazing scenes that God has prepared for us, should they actually burst in on us in this lifetime. There is something more for which we are living than that which we can see with our human eye. This becomes increasingly visible as we lead lives of holiness.

Application

We are called to join those who have gone before us on the highway of holiness. The road has a destination — Jesus Christ! Our focus, day in and day out is to be on him — our beloved who is awaiting us.

In the early years of Christianity there were enormous distractions. The secular or pagan world was full of its own religious imagery and was constantly pressuring the beliefs of those new Christ followers. Christians were an oddity who found themselves being persecuted for their faith. The secular world loved lengthy arguments and debates. Often these were held simply for the benefit of entertainment and so in the middle of it all were these simple Christ-followers, living in a new kingdom that the world could not see.

We are citizens of that same kingdom but the secularization of our world is also pressuring us to come out and join the arguments and debates. All these things will dissolve away! The charge in this scripture was not just for those believers 2000 years ago, but to us today. Keep the main thing the main thing! We are to be people who are genuinely transformed by our participation in the holy relationship found in God. We are to become travelers on the holy journey who are no longer distracted by the things of this world. The holy journey will lead us to a simple manger where we will discover a loving and humble Savior, reaching out to a dying world in holy love.

Prayer
Lord, please continue to lead me on this journey today.  Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more