‘If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we
have to remember that all efforts of worth and excellence are difficult. The
Christian life is gloriously difficult, but its difficulty does not make us
faint and cave in—it stirs us up to overcome.
Do we appreciate the miraculous salvation of Jesus Christ enough to be
our utmost for His highest—our best for His glory?[…] God’s grace produces men
and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not pampered, spoiled
weaklings. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the worthy and
excellent life of a disciple of Jesus in the realities of life. And it is
always necessary for us to make an effort to live a life of worth and
excellence.’ CHAMBERS
When Jesus said come to me all you that are weary
and heavy laden and I will give you rest.
He did not say that if you believe in Me, your life will be easy .. you
won’t face hardships … following me will be a stroll in the park. The Christian life is filled with challenges
.. mountains to climb … Following Jesus is not easy .. the Disciples followed
Him, changed the world .. and were killed … Can you accept persecution as part
of your new life or do you think something has gone wrong if you are persecuted,
if people don’t like you because of your faith?
Jesus said “Blessed are you when men
hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as
evil, For the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For
indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to
the prophets.” (Luke 6:22-23 NKJV)
"If
the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were
of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the
world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. (John 15:18-19 NKJV)
When some people meet difficulty, they withdraw
until they no longer feel the resistance.
Maybe they are silent about their faith, or maybe they compromise their
beliefs to be accepted by their culture or friends. That resistance is the
tension between a fallen world and a risen Lord.
‘Rise up O men of God, have done with lesser
things. Give heart and soul and mind and
strength to serve the king of kings. Rise up the Lord is calling. Rise up, this is the day, Rise up O men of
faith. Lift high the cross of Christ! Tread where his feet have trod; as
brothers of the Son of Man, rise up, O men of God!’
Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)
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