My Pondering
Yes indeed. Obedience, good works, is the opposite side of the coin of faith. It’s critical not just a mild suggestion as Jesus emphatically stated, ‘If you love me you will obey my commandments.’ This obedience isn’t some natural thing we add to our routing rather is much more and better than that; it’s supernatural!
Not only are we believers to put God before men, we are also to put God foremost before self (the old man, the corrupt flesh) and certainly the devil, who duped Eve & Adam. He is quite deceptive and often disguised as something attractive and lusty to aforementioned flesh trapping us with an intimate personal weakness with one or more of the following:
- Lust of our eyes (sex outside of marriage & other inappropriate sexual behaviors)
- Pride of our ego
- Lure of ill-gotten money
- Addiction to power & control over others
- Escapement of realty (often recreational drugs)
- Other defiant, deviant sinful acts
As we followers of Jesus fully commit our new self, our will, disciplining unto Christ we ought to specifically and intentional practice these 6 spiritual disciplines:
- Prayer – unto the Father, in Spirit, by the name of Jesus (A.C.T.S.)
- Bible – study & memorizing His Word
- Meditation – of God in His wide & deep world
- Worship – unto God corporately & privately in both spirit & truth
- Service – giving sacrificial & graciously of our time, talent & treasure to other people
- Fasting – from food & pleasures
Those are essential components of a healthy religion for they should be performed ‘religiously’. Yes, I used the ‘R’ word. The word religion gets a bad wrap from plenty of people. It’s simply our interpretation and implementation of these principles into our life. Maybe that’s why people are so down on it?
With that said, let’s not neglect the relationship element of our Christian life which stems from responding to God in loving faith. We should love because God loved us and still does love us first. In that love, we abide, have faith and trust. In this foremost love, we have access to God 24/7 and that’s the relationship component. It’s a godly mindset, attitude and state of being to and from our core essence.
The bottom line is we need BOTH a loving dynamic Relationship with Jesus Christ and fervently engage in Religious spiritual disciplines to excel as a Christian.
If these words I wrote mean something, you have a helpful thought or you are interested in seeking a relationship with Jesus, I would love to hear from you so don’t hesitate to leave me a comment or message here. – Kirk
Pondering Life : Pursuing God 