Read: 2
Corinthians 5:10-17
For the love of Christ constraineth us… 2 Corinthians 5:14
Wouldn’t it
be nice if, instead of eating to stay alive, we could eat just for the pleasure
of eating when it was convenient for us? Wouldn’t it be great if you never had
to take a shower to stay clean; we could just shower when we felt like enjoying
it. I think it would be wonderful if we only had to sleep when we had the time
or when we felt like experiencing the satisfying feeling of sleep rather than
wasting all that time just because we get tired. Unfortunately, as convenient as it would be
to not have to take time out of our day to do those things, there is no way
around them. We must eat, we must shower, and we must sleep. We are compelled
by our human nature to do those things.
Sadly, many Christians only want to act
like a Christian when it is convenient for them. When they go to church, they
carry their Bibles and dress in their good clothes. When they are around their
Christian friends, they say the right things, and, occasionally, may even talk
about the things of God. Put them in the world, however, and they become a
completely different person. No longer will they dress right, talk right, or
act right because it is no longer convenient. Maybe the people in the world
will laugh at them and make fun of them; maybe they will be shunned; or maybe
they will not earn accolades among their peers, and that is a hardship they are
not willing to handle.
In 2 Corinthians 5, the apostle Paul
reminds us that we are compelled to be Christians all the time. Just as we
cannot only eat or sleep when it is convenient for us, we cannot only be
Christians when it is convenient either. There are few people who were crazy
enough to reject food or sleep until it killed them, yet many Christians
constantly reject Christ and their Christianity until their spiritual lives
wither away to nothing. Can you walk, run, laugh, and play when you have no
physical strength from lack of food or sleep? Of course not; and how can you
expect to fight the battles against Satan with no spiritual strength?
There are times when it would be helpful
to not have to take time to eat or sleep, but every time we do, we are
benefitted by it. The same is true of our being Christians. Sometimes we are
disadvantaged (in a worldly perspective) because we took a stand for Christ.
But just like eating is part of our physical nature, acting like a Christian
all the time is part of our spiritual nature. And each time we do, the gain far
outweighs any loss.
Quote of the day: “You gained attention but lost respect.”
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