Dear COA Family,
Thank God for all of the 34 members who are getting confirmed this Sunday! We pray that our brothers and sisters will continue to be empowered by the Holy Spirit to serve God and his purposes daily for the rest of their lives!
This brings us to the realisation and reminder of the part that we have to play in our salvation.
Over the past weeks, we have focused on the wonder and power of God’s grace which works in our lives apart from our works. The apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Ephesians that we have been saved by grace through faith, and that is not of our doing at all – it is God’s gift to us (Eph 2:9). We must never lose sight of God’s precious work in our lives.
Yet the same apostle also wrote to Timothy, which is my focus for today:
“Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” (1 Tim 6:12).
The terms that Paul uses suggest an active role for all Christians in order to obtain our salvation. We have to fight and take hold of the eternal life that has been given graciously to us by God. We cannot remain passive or be lackadaisical about our faith.
This reminds me of a man pursuing the woman of his dreams. She may already have a liking for him, but she has many suitors as well. This is because she is very beautiful and has many good qualities. As a result, many other men are vying for her affections. For this man to win her heart, he cannot be passive. He needs to actively fight against all competition and use all possible means to woo her. He has to be willing to lay down his comforts and even pride. He needs to be active.
In the same way, the gospel of Christ is the best news ever for us. We need to receive it with all of our heart and live it out in our lives. We need to give it the highest priority in our hearts and treasure it. That is the only worthy response to God’s greatest act of love and self-giving for us.
Am I making this up? No, I don’t believe I am. I am using godly imagination to convey God’s message.
In Matthew’s gospel, Matthew recounts Jesus’ parable about God’s kingdom: it is like a merchant who, on finding a pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it (Matt 13:45-46). This man, like the man who is pursuing the woman of his dreams, was willing to be active and make strong sacrifices to obtain that which he desired.
This day, as we witness our brothers and sisters getting confirmed in the faith, let us like them also be reminded and encouraged to strive hard and take full possession of our faith through the help of the Holy Spirit, so that we may live out a most fruitful life for God’s kingdom!
God bless,
Revd Ian