Once we give our lives to God, then we have to work on being a disciple. But how do you do that? This devotion looks at what we do to give our lives to God.
Nuggets
- Being a disciple of Christ is a way of life.
- It is about our relationship with God.
- Nowhere in the do’s and don’ts does it address when we mess up – our relationship with God does address that.
- We make the decision to turn our lives over to the Sovereign God, but we have to turn.
- Mercy and pardon only come after returning to the Lord.
To read devotions in the Should We Seek God? series, click the appropriate button below.
Okay, we made the decision. We admitted our sins, believed on His Son Jesus as Redeemer, and confessed God as Sovereign Lord.
Now what? Let’s take a look.
Let's Put It into Context
“let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts … (Isa. 55: 7 RSV)
There is more to becoming a disciple of Christ than just giving up the bad things. We have to adopt the good things.
We need to repent. Remember, repentance is not just feeling sorry for doing the bad things but also making the commitment to changing ourselves so that we do the good things — and are the type of person God wants us to be.
Yes, it is hard to change long-ingrained habits. We also will have to change some of our opinions. It can be done, but it takes work.
This is how we go from being sinful to being holy. How can we be holy if we keep on sinning?
No, we won’t be perfect until we reach the pearly gates. But I see this especially meaning the on-purpose sins. That is where we choose to keep on sinning, or we choose to commit the sin in front of us.
Wouldn’t we be lying if we said, “Lord, we want to be like you,” and then not make the necessary changes to make that happen? And we expect God to be good with that?
Being a disciple of Christ is a way of life. It is the conscious choice to root out everything within us that doesn’t line up with the character of God. It is a change of lifestyle.
How do we know God’s character? One place He tells us is in His Word. He also reveals Himself to us as we pray to Him.
Searching for and Seeking God
Hearing His Word (Rom. 10: 17 NLT).
Reading His Word (Rev. 1: 3 ESV).
Praying to Him (Heb. 4: 16 ESV).
Studying His Word (Ac. 17: 11 NLT).
Meditating on His Word (Ps. 1: 1-2).
Memorizing His Word (Ps. 119: 11 NLT).
To read Has God Provided Everything We Need?, click the button below.
Three-Pronged Plan of Salvation
“… let him return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isa. 55: 7 RSV)
It is about our relationship with God. Yes, relationships ebb and flow. They have their ups and downs.
No, it isn’t about doing the do’s and not doing the don’ts. We are going to do and not do the opposite of that to which God calls us.
Nowhere in the do’s and don’ts does it address when we mess up. Our relationship with God does address that. He will forgive us — when we ask.
Let’s look at it this way. Doesn’t this show us the three-pronged plan of salvation?
“let the wicked forsake his way … (Isa. 55: 7 RSV)
We make the decision to turn our lives over to the Sovereign God, but we have to turn. Our ways are opposite His ways (Isa. 55: 8-9).
What is God’s way? “Jesus told him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (Jn. 14: 6 CSB).
The way is narrow. “Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it” (Mt. 7: 13-14 CSB).
We all were going the wrong way, so we have to make the conscious choice to accept God and turn around. “We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the LORD has punished him for the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53: 6 CSB).
We ABCD, and God regenerates us. Regeneration is the change in us that God brings about when we go from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive. God changes us the moment that He forgives us.
The ABCDs of Salvation
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to
live the way in which God has called us
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
“… and the unrighteous man his thoughts … (Isa. 55: 7 RSV)
God changed us from spiritually dead to spiritually alive, but we now have a lot of work to do. We have to work out our salvation.
The Disciple’s Job Description
Complete Job Description
Individual Description
Job Duty #2
Work Out Our Salvation (Philippians 2: 12)
Now, we have to bring ourselves in line with how God wants us to live. We have to figure out what being a disciple of Christ really means.
“… let him return to the Lord …” (Isa. 55: 7 RSV)
We’ll have to keep working on us until God calls us home. One day, we will hit the pearly gates and live with Him forever. We’ll be back to Adam and Eve status pre-bite.
Receiving Mercy and Pardon
But look at the order. Mercy and pardon only come after returning to the Lord. “… let him return … that he may have mercy … and … pardon” (Isa. 55: 7 RSV).
Return = mercy and pardon.
No return = no mercy and no pardon.
Taylor made an interesting observation. Jesus didn’t come and wage this great battle against sin. He didn’t defeat it and smash it up into a bazillion pieces so it would just disintegrate and go away.
Jesus took all our sins upon himself. “He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed” (I Pet. 2: 24 NLT).
That is why we still struggle with sin. Jesus conquered the consequences of sin, but sin is still alive and well. He will conquer sin — and smash it up into a bazillion pieces so it will disintegrate and go away — someday in the future.
Making the Connections
Mercy and pardon isn’t the only things we get when we admit our sins, believe on Jesus as Redeemer, confess God as Sovereign Lord, and demonstrate that commitment by following our job description. We become children and heirs of God.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
We talked about being unified in Christ and there by each other. We receive our inheritance (i.e., the Holy Spirit, eternal life, and the kingdom). God has His plans for our lives.
God promises us a new heart. “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart” (Ezek. 36: 26 NLT).
Ooo. Think about David being a man after God’s own heart (Ac. 13: 22).
We have God’s heart in us. We just have to make sure it is following God.
That doesn’t take into account all of the other says God is going to bless us. “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires” (II Pet. 1: 3-4 NIV).
How Do We Apply This?
One thing we — and non-believers — have to realize is we can’t do this on our own. We will have many setbacks when we try. We are working out our salvation, and we can only do that because of God’s unfailing mercy.
In order to control our thoughts, we have to bury ourselves in God’s Word. “For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires” (Heb. 4: 12 NLT).
Something just popped in my head, so I am going to process while I type. Work with me on this.
“… call upon him while he is near” (Isa. 55: 6 RSV). What if this has a slightly different meaning after we make our profession of faith?
Oh, no. I am not saying God leaves us. “Be strong and courageous; don’t be terrified or afraid of them. For it is the Lord your God who goes with you; He will not leave you or forsake you” (Deut. 31: 6 HCSB). We know that isn’t the case.
What I am talking about is us working God’s plan. “For I know the plans I have for you’ — this is the Lord’s declaration — ‘plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29: 11 HCSB).
I have so many things that God has to work through to get me to be holy. We can’t work on everything at once. That would be overwhelming and discouraging.
So, God knows what we have to work on when. He’s got the overall strategic plan.
What if the “… while he is near” (Isa. 55: 6 RSV) also means that I have to be working on the operational plan for this time period?
We talked in the last devotion that we need to bury ourselves in God’s Word. That is one way we find God and He communicates with us.
Some of the bloggers that belong to the two groups I do have some resources available to help us keep on track with reading the Bible. I have not purchased them but want to let you know these are available.
Related Links
(NOTE: Both offer the same resource.)
Note: I am not an affiliate of any of these products. I don’t receive any commission if you purchase any of these.
Once we turn our lives over to God, we have to figure out what that means. We do that by spending time with Him.
Gracious Heavenly Father. Thank You for forgiving us of our sins. Help us to draw closer and closer to You as we seek You in Your Word. Mold us until we truly are in Your image. We wait for the day we are truly changed to be like You. Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
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What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
If you have not signed up for the email daily or weekly providing the link to the devotions and the newsletter, do so below.
If God has used this devotion to speak with you, consider sharing it on social media.
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