The righteous will live by faith

I always hesitate to call myself a Christian. The first followers of Jesus were coming from religious backgrounds and pagan practices. They were later referred to as “the way”, but Jesus himself didn’t give any names to anything. So why should we?

Being a follower of Jesus is about being freed by God’s love, a love that we are blessed with through God’s grace. Paul himself a religious man converted to believer describes the fruit of this spirit perfectly:

love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Galatians 5:22-23

When Jesus came, there was already an ongoing situation with religion and religious people that was not surprising back then – and it isn’t surprising now.

If we come off as stiff, judgmental, hypocritical and legalist, that might still make us Christians, but certainly doesn’t make us Jesus followers. Christian world leaders using their religion to justify violence and discrimination is just one of many red flags rightfully attached to Christianity. 

Our attitude toward others ultimately depends on how much of a ‘fight’ we put up with the worst in ourselves. In other words, the evil that inhabits us is always there, but if we choose to live under God’s grace and not under the law or religion, we will make it – because the righteous will live by faith.

We are not in control of our lives, but there is One who is

We are not in control of our lives.

That’s a truth that will drive nearly everyone out there crazy. But this crazy is good because it defies the deadly systems of this world. This is the crazy of surrendering to the peace that trusting the One who is in control of our lives gives.

There isn’t a single plan that we can make that will happen without God allowing it. But don’t think of it as control in the worldly sense. Rather it is guidance from the one who is not constrained by spacetime and thus already knows the outcome for every step we take.

God is the only one who can guide us in the right direction.

Often times, what seems good to us would not do us good in the long term – he knows that and does not allow it. And then what might not seem good to us at a first glance ends up bringing the greatest good in our lives in the long term.

Being all good and expressing himself as love in our lives, God works all things for our good when we love him and put him first.

There is no reason to wrestle for control of our incontrollable lives. An eternal and divinely powerful wisdom is already operating in us and making a way.

And Jesus, who is God incarnated, advocates for us in our shortcomings. He understands us, because he is exactly who we are meant to be. We just need to follow him as he leads the way.

Enter into grace and stand in it

B.C. (before Christ) and A.C. (after Christ) quite literally define diametrically opposed periods in my life. As I celebrated my “earthly” birthday on May 23rd, I could not help but notice how hard it is to look at time the same way as most others do.

Yes, I know I am celebrating a birth date. But at the same time, the “age” that actually impacts my life started counting from my conversion, on January 5th 2014.

So what should I say to people, that I am 6 years old? Perhaps I could, except my conversion aged me by making me far more mature, spiritually. So, in a way, I actually feel closer to 60.

Since I entered into grace and chose to stand in it, I have found myself routinely challenging the categories and systems of this world. Age is but one of them.

Most importantly, as I stand in grace, I know that I will never fit in anywhere in this world. But instead of feeling defeated by that realization, I am driven by a compelling sense of belonging.

And I am infused by the unconditional love that explains the meaning of my life, where I came from and where I am going.

So where do I belong? Where I am eternally loved.