Focus

June 12, 2019

Focus

But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.

He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.

1 Corinthians 15:20

Read: 1 Corinthians 15: 12-34

I wrote today’s meditation on the day I received the news that a dear friend had died. The passage above is a good bookend with the passage I chose when I shared the news of my friend with others within my church:

As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.

2 Timothy 4:6-8

These passages remind me how important it is for me to keep focused on the foundation of my faith. Our culture tempts me to believe that if I do the right things in the right way then I will be successful. With that thinking, when things are not going as well as I had hoped, it can be quite depressing, which is as it should be if I am putting my faith in me doing the right things the right way. Today’s scripture reminds me that as a Christian, my faith rest on one fact and one fact alone: the resurrection of Jesus.

If Jesus has not been resurrected there is no hope for today, much less for an eternal future with God the Father. Because Jesus has been resurrected from the dead, it is very important that I do the right things the right way. However, the purpose of my service changes from seeking to be successful to being faithful to God. My Father has promised me that because Jesus has been raised from the dead, I most definitely have a hope for today and for the future. Because Jesus has been resurrected, I can serve God, trusting that He is working all things together to accomplish His will.

My Takeaway: I choose to go through life trusting that God my Father, who resurrected Jesus, knows my name and has saved me from sin and death. All my faith rests in one basket: the resurrection of Jesus.

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.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

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, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.