1 Peter 1.2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
Each individual Christian is complete in Christ. The atonement of Christ provides a full pardon for all sin forever, blessed be His Holy Name. Paul wrote to the people of God at Colosse, and ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power. That is our position in Christ. Perfect. Complete. But practically speaking, that is not our condition on this earth.
Each person in Christ is now a temple of The Spirit of God that is under construction. The bible tells us that it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure. Amazing! The Almighty, Living God is working in my life and in your life right now! Did you know that The Holy Ghost Construction Company has a work order for your life today beloved? In that work order, He uses imperfect people and various kinds of circumstances as His “conform him into the image of Christ tools.” Sometimes the people He uses are kind and benevolent. Other times? Not so nice. So does God mess with our heads when we have one kind of a day in mind and He allows people and circumstances to “throw us for a loop” or “get under our skin?” No.
You see dear ones, if my prayer and sincere desire is to be more like Jesus, by sending those people and allowing those circumstances to happen, He is helping me to grow in Christ.
It is unfortunate that we must get to the end of our rope before we realize how much we need the grace and power of God in our lives. Truth be told beloved, Ray Viola has no grace, no patience, and no unselfish thoughts or motives in my flesh. Without Christ I can do nothing. Except mess things up, misrepresent Christ and murmur and complain. The answer to my tale of woes? Remember that in Christ I am forgiven. But also remember that in Christ I am under construction. Step back this morning and pay close attention to heaven’s work order for your growth. Instead of a hard hat and hard heart, put on the helmet of salvation and with a sincere and willing hear, yield to His sovereign purposes.
