Your Life, a Radiant Beacon of Joy and Peace to a Troubled World!
Last week we examined God’s provision for His children in giving us His Holy Spirit to live in us forever. We saw that the world was waiting for God to reveal His glory though those who have been adopted into His family. Now we will look at the methods God is using to bring that about.
God does in fact have a perfect plan for your life, a plan that includes a life of joy and rejoicing in Him; a life that serves as a model of love and joy to a world that is suffering. I think you would agree with me that a life like that would be a life worth living; this is the kind of life the Lord wants for you and all of His children!
This kind of life is not an impossible dream, a life reserved for the very few who have been chosen by God for a perfect life; the fact of the matter is this life should be the normal Christian life and the good news is this life is possible for you. God has most assuredly gone above and beyond all that should be expected to make this possible; even to the point of coming into you and making your sin cursed body His home on earth!
We should focus our minds on that thought and let the enormous reality of what God has done for us permeate our thinking! When is the last time you praised and thanked God for making you a part of the body of Christ as well as a temple of God, the Holy Spirit?
You Have God as a Prayer Partner!
In a further demonstration of His loving concern for you as His child, the Holy Spirit has not only joined you by baptism into the body of Christ, the church, made your sin cursed body His home on earth, but also diligently prays for you to God, the Father. In verses 26-27 we read:
“26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”
When is the last time you thanked the Father for His gift to you of the Holy Spirit as a prayer partner; have you ever thanked the Father for this gift? God, the Holy Spirit praying for you personally; don’t you think that’s a pretty big thing? Don’t be an ungrateful child!
What do you Know about Your Circumstances?
As an online missionary for Global Media Outreach I spend many hours every day working with people all over the world. The vast majority of the correspondence I get focuses on complaints about circumstances; people are unhappy, even miserable because of their circumstances. I do get a few letters from Christians who seem to be happy with their circumstances but far fewer from Christians who are thankful to the Lord for their circumstances.
Does the Bible have a message for Christians concerning circumstances? I think we can all agree it does; in many places. A few that immediately come to my mind are:
7 For we live by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7
11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. Philippians 4:11
17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” Romans 1:17
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1
I’m sure each of you could add to that short list but let us turn our attention to the next section in Romans 8 where it is written in verses 28-30:
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
Do you believe those verses; do you really believe that God is working all things in your life for good? If you believe God then what is there to complain about? Notice those verses do not say that everything will be good, only that those things are working together for good. No one would say Christ’s crucifixion was good, but it did produce salvation for all who believe; the cross was agonizing pain for the Lord but it resulted in the salvation of many.
Next time we will consider the consequences of all God has done.
davidbowerkingwood 
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