Friday, July 5, 2013

Legalism, Evangelism, Sanctification, and Esau - Friday Night Musings

A few random musings that have struck my mind lately....

ONE:  For every Christian, there are other Christians who they consider legalists and who they consider "liberal" (accepting of sin).  But here's the thing - if there are so many other brothers and sisters more legalistic and more liberal than each of us, what makes us so sure that we ourselves have found the perfect balance?  Let us not be quite so hasty to judge.  See 1 Corinthians 8-10.

TWO:  I heard something really impactful from Francis Chan on his video series that accompanies his book Crazy Love the other day: What we in America call "sanctification" [the post-salvation process of becoming more like Christ] is a prerequisite in other countries [i.e. they give up their families, their livelihood, and their safety the instant they proclaim themselves a believer].  Think about that in regard to your own life for a bit today....

THREE:  I had a really cool opportunity to share a bit of God's love with a coworker last week, and it got me thinking about witnessing in general.  And what came to mind was this: If witnessing to a specific person or in a specific place carries a greater risk, that is all the more reason to do so - because a place so dark as to have that risk needs Christ's light badly.

FOUR:  I noticed something in Genesis that hasn't really stuck out to me before.  You remember the story of Jacob and Esau?  (It spans Genesis 27-36.)  Well, Jacob robs his brother of pretty much everything (everything which, from man's perspective, is rightfully Esau's), flees, then returns almost two decades letter.  Esau not only welcomes him back with open arms ... but in Genesis 36:1-8, we find that when their flocks and families get too large for them to both share their homeland, Esau is the one who volunteers to move.  That level of acceptance of God's sovereignty and His blessing of another person is just so amazing to me.  Let us all strive to have that same character strength.

I'll have another Matthew study up Saturday or Sunday. :-)

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