I Peter 1: 17: And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:
18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,
21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.
Quite often we find ourselves wandering through life without really thinking too much. We have our jobs to do, maybe kids to take care of and taxi around, bills to pay. We plan for how we will get our next promotion, saving up for our retirement, how to send our kids to college, what car we want next, what phone plan we need to have, and so many other things that clutter our mind. We call on God occasionally, when the kids are sick, when we get behind on our bills, etc…
While we are doing all of this running around and planning and worrying and working, how often do we look to God for direction? For instruction? For guidance? Do we really revere God the way that he should be revered? Or is He just an afterthought, someone to turn to when we get into problems?
I must admit, I am guilty of this more often than I should be. I get to working and carrying on about the business of living and forget to include the most important person, the one who made my life possible. It seems rather silly, for lack of a better word, that we should forget about the one who created our life and knew us before we were even born. For me, that might persist for a few days before I catch myself, but for some, years can pass by without them acknowledging the one who created them. I’ve let pass vast amounts of time myself that could have been better used in honoring the Father.
We have to understand and remember that we were bought with a price, a high price at that. The Father sent His son to the world to give his life and shed his blood for us. Jesus laid down His life so that through Him we might have life. He took our place so that we could take His place. He took our punishment so that we could have His reward. We who believe that ought to take that much more seriously than we do. We are no longer our own. We belong to Jesus and Jesus presents us to the Father, covered in His righteousness that He traded for our sinfulness.
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Our greatest witness is how we live our lives. When we recognize and revere what it is the God has done for us through his son Jesus, we ought to live our lives accordingly. When we do, we become living witnesses of God, showing in word and deed that we indeed believe in what we say we believe in. We learn how to live our lives pleasingly before him through the study of His word and in prayer, acknowledging Him as preeminent in our lives, and submitting our will in favor of His will. We have to want to. We have to desire to.
Mathew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
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