Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Hanging on until Heaven?

One of the great lies perpetuated by Satan, I think, is that when Jesus saves us we just have to hang on until heaven.  It won't ever get better.  There's not much we can do.  No need to expect too much.  Just hang on until heaven.

It's certainly not the only lie, but it's a big one, in my pastoral opinion.

And it is a lie.

There is no need to hang on until heaven.  Jesus put His Spirit within us and promises to transform us.  He gives us His Word by which our minds are renewed and transformation comes.  He roots us in a church where people of various shapes, sizes, and stories rub against us in a way that helps us become something we're not.  And He give us a life-shaping purpose.

All of those strike at the heart of Satan's strategies and schemes.

Christ's Spirit within us gifts us and calls us to holiness, as He is holy.

Christ's Word reveals Reality - the way things really are - to us instead of the concocted and cockamamie faux world the Enemy wants us to believe.

Christ's Church reminds us that we're never alone and that isolation is demonic.

Christ's Purpose for us helps us impact the world with "love and good works" (Heb. 10.24-25).

In other words, we are called to be transformed by Jesus and then participate in His renovation project of the world.  That's us.  That's our role.  And that doesn't sound a bit like "hanging on until heaven."

But that's just me thinking thoughts...

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