Keeping The Right Stuff on The Right Side of OBTW

Posted on December 18, 2015 by America's Keswick in Freedom Fighters

What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. ~Aiden Wilson Tozer

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His purpose, which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Him, things in heaven and things on earth. In Him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory. ~Paul, The Least of The Apostles, in Ephesians 1

Oh beloved, it is true. We are more than willing to see what the Bible would have us to do. We know that we should act in Love towards each other. We know we should not lie. We know all of the things to be done.

And then, though, we add on a pitiful tagline: “Oh, by the way. This is impossible to do without G_d’s help!”

It is as though we try to frontload the Gospel with its outworkings. We look at the doing, as though it were the being of our Christianity. But in even thinking this way, we miss the point of the Gospel.

The good news is different.

The good news is that the Good News is not about us. And so, when we read it properly, we read it the way it was written to be read.

Can we see it? Look at the passage. It is all about Him.

His Blessing

His Choosing

Him making us holy and blameless

His predestining us for adoption

His will

His redeeming us

His blood

His grace

His lavish giving of all of this

His unifying us to Himself

His inheritance given to us

His purpose

His glory

His Spirit in whom we are sealed

His praise

So, are you feeling like you cannot “do” your Christian walk right? Perhaps it is because you are missing what it is to be a follower of Christ altogether. There is nothing we need to “do” to be a Christian. There is, however, a big OBTW to remember: It is not about you. It is all about Him.

However, once we do see this, everything changes, and the actions we begin to take do begin to line up with what Scripture would have our lives look like. But this is now possible because doing impossible is not about getting a little help from “The Man upstairs.”

No, now our life is lived out in real love and right action because there is no “me” alone any more. I am in Him. And that makes all the difference. Tonight is your night beloved. Time to remember who the Gospel is about.

Written by Makala Doulos, Colony of Mercy Graduate and teacher at Tianjin International School

The Daily Bible Reading: Josh. 22-24, Luke 18:24-43

Think About This: “The Christ within who is our hope of glory is not a matter of theological debate or philosophical speculation. He is not a hobby, a part-time project, a good theme for a book, or a last resort when all human effort fails. He is our life, the most real fact about us. He is the power and wisdom of God dwelling within us.” ~Brennan Manning

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him ~Psalm 18:30