Tuesday, July 25, 2023

What does it mean to be a “good” Christian? Some of us who have grown up in the church may believe that Christianity is a long set of rules to follow to earn and maintain God’s favor. Others may think it’s necessary to do good deeds, go to church every Sunday, and read our Bibles every night to earn God’s favor.

These are all good things in and of themselves; however, they miss the mark. There is only one way to experience God’s favor—through the gift of salvation given to us by Jesus Christ when we place our faith in him. God sent his only son to our world so that we could form a personal relationship with him and experience full union with the Lord. We do not have to worry about being “good enough” to approach God. Jesus gave his life to pay the debt of our sins in full, allowing us to experience the Kingdom of God and be adopted as God’s children. We can directly approach God because he made us worthy.

Pastor Andy mentioned last weekend that it’s not appropriate to just say, “Jesus was a good man” or “a wise, moral teacher.” Yes, he was both of those things, but he is so much more. Jesus is the fullness of God—both fully God and fully human.

Colossians 2:9-10
⁹ For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. ¹⁰ So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

There is nothing we alone can do to earn God’s favor. Our union with Christ is only possible because of God’s amazing grace, Jesus’ perfect sacrifice, and our faith in God’s truth. We must truly believe with our whole hearts that Jesus came to free us from our sins and to allow us an eternal relationship with the Father. Christ is the basis of our faith, and we must build our foundation upon him to fully experience true spiritual freedom.

Let us rejoice in the fact that God is so gracious that he gave his life for us so that we may live in union with him forevermore.

Questions:
What does it mean to experience union with Jesus Christ?

What does it mean that Jesus was fully God and fully human?

Next Steps:
Consider the next step of baptism to publicly declare your death to sin and new life in Christ.

Read Colossians 2 and reflect on Paul’s teachings to the early church.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thanks for sending your Son to earth so that we may experience union with him. Help us remember that because of Christ’s sacrifice, we can directly approach you and form a personal relationship with you. We praise you for your endless mercy and grace. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Series Theme Verse:

Colossians 1:23
But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it.