Finish, Then, Thy New Creation

August 17, 2015

Finish, Then, Thy New Creation

The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world;

the world is peripheral to the church.

Ephesians 1:22 (MSG)

Far too often the followers of Christ shrink back at the notion that they are a saint. Even though Protestants don’t agree with the Roman Catholic tradition of bestowing the title, Saint, on only a chosen few, nevertheless, they tend to think that it is rare indeed when a Christian can be referred to as a saint. Against this backdrop is the stunning theological truth that to be a Christian is to have been sanctified by the blood of Jesus. You can’t be a Christian without first being sanctified; you can’t be a Christian unless you are a saint. Hence it is precious to God when His saints die because the last obstacle to His children being fully present with Him has been removed: “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints” (Psalm 116:15 KJV).

Perhaps it was this theological truth that led the French poet, Leon Bloy, to write, “The only real sadness in life is not to be a saint.” Bloy’s words are doubled-edged. First, there is the sadness for those who never embrace for themselves the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Secondly, there is the sadness of those who, although they have tasted the grace of God, never allow God’s grace to fully transform them. These sad ones look at Saint Paul’s remarkable description of being in the fullness of God as the romantic musings of a mystic that never can be the experience of the masses: “Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him” (2 Corinthians 3:18 MSG).

How can we take steps to change our mindset; how can we more fully embrace our truest identity as the saints of God? One way is to begin to fully embrace the words of Saint Paul to his friends in Ephesus: “The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church” (Ephesians 1:22 MSG). When you begin to see yourself living at the center of God’s will for your life, your view of yourself and your environment will change.

Finish, then, thy new creation;

pure and spotless let us be.

Let us see thy great salvation

perfectly restored in thee;

changed from glory into glory,

till in heaven we take our place,

till we cast our crowns before thee,

lost in wonder, love, and praise.

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

Charles Wesley

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

·        Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

·        The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

·        Meditations on The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ has been released as an e-book on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.