How do you and I show the world we are people who give their hearts to God and not imposters who only give him lip service? How do we point people to Jesus with our lives so we can reach hearts that desperately need Jesus’ love, peace, and forgiveness? Here are five ways to do so:
- Obey God above everything and everyone, including yourself. As Christ followers, we are bound to the teachings, beliefs, and behaviors of Christ alone, just as Jesus bound himself to the will of his heavenly Father: “I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work” (John 14:10). In pure obedience, Jesus put everything aside—his glory, his power, even his own life—for us and our salvation. In light of his sacrifice, we are given the opportunity to reflect our Lord’s obedience as we live for him.
- Confess your brokenness before God. You and I are no better than anyone else. We’ve been sinners from the time our mothers conceived us (Psalm 51:5). Satan wants us to believe all people have some form of goodness dwelling within them, that just a little more work on our end can finish the salvation Jesus started. No matter how hard we try, our efforts to repair our relationship with God are inadequate: “I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Romans 7:18). We must confess our sins and surrender ourselves with all our deficiencies to God. This is scary unless we trust that “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). God delights to show mercy to you and me so he can restore us once again to be who we were always meant to be—his beloved children.
- Accept how utterly dependent you are on God for salvation. As Christ followers, we cling to God with every fiber of our being. Our lives depend on him. Just as newborns cannot live separate from the care of their mother, we cannot have eternal life apart from Christ: “When you were dead in your sins … God made you alive with Christ” (Colossians 2:13). Without Christ, we rot away spiritually, searching a mortal world for an immortal satisfaction that will never come. True satisfaction can only be found in Jesus. Even when we forget this, God continues to pursue us and satisfies our souls with his Spirit: “The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life” (John 6:63). Don’t look for ways to make it up to God. You can’t. Instead, trust his promise of forgiveness and run back to the Lamb of God, who by his blood has washed your sin-stained garments to be as pure as white snow (Isaiah 1:18).
- Study God’s Word intentionally and faithfully. Make meeting with God a habitual priority. Constantly set aside the busyness of life to redirect your focus on God through worship and prayer. The modern world worships hurriedness and undermines the importance of going slow, especially when it comes to what God has to say. Some only seek Scripture when it benefits them, while others treat Jesus’ sacrifice as an excuse to continue indulging in sinful lifestyles. Do not be fooled! All are in danger of the devil’s snare. Satan is always on the prowl, looking for ways to devour us and seeking every opportunity to choke out our faith (1 Peter 5:8). It is not enough to let God fill in the cracks of our lives. Defend yourself from a world that seeks to destroy you. Be assured routinely that Christ has saved you from eternal damnation! Praise him for winning the ultimate victory over Satan, and equip yourself with his promises as you continue to battle sin day after day.
- Serve others without expecting anything in return. Be a servant. A servant doesn’t expect his master to repay him for the service he was assigned to do. If we seek to be served more than to serve, we forget that Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, took on the very nature of a servant and humbled himself to become obedient even to death (Philippians 2:8)! The God of the universe humbled himself for the benefit of sinners who could never repay him: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). Contrary to this world’s narrative, servanthood is one of our greatest honors. After all, humility and willing servitude are how Jesus procured our salvation. Delight in your service to the Lord, for he has delighted to serve you.
Lord, you have blessed us with your name, the name at which every knee in heaven and on earth must bow. May we live according to our namesake and serve as genuine reflections of your love for this world. Amen.
