Do you remember when your sins were first forgiven, and you were born anew? Can you recall how wonderful and how free you felt? Do you remember the newness of your life at that moment, and how glorious and how overwhelmed with peace and amazement you were? Well, guess what, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. You should be feeling those same things today.
Many get off track sometimes after they become Christians. Some become stagnated and tied down in learning doctrine and proper church etiquette. Others are influenced by older Christians who have lost their first love. I remember overhearing an elderly lady telling another lady that I was only excited about Christ because I was a newborn, and that I would settle down soon. That hit me like a ton of bricks, and I begged God not to let it happen.
As the Scripture says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever,” Hebrews 13:8. We, too, should be the same every new morning we arise. If Jesus hasn’t changed, why would our love and desire for Him change? It should be a joy to deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him each day we awake. Only in denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Him, can we have fellowship with Him; a fellowship that is too wonderful to be imagined.
What a joy it is to walk with Jesus; how wonderful to follow His guidance and taste the delicacies of God, which He shares with the broken and the humble. What a blessing it is to partake of everything pertaining to life and godliness that God has granted to us through the knowledge of Himself; things which lead to His precious and magnificent promises, in order that we might partake of His divine nature, and escape the corruption that is in the world by lust.
What an honor it is to have been called by the living God into His kingdom; how fortunate we are; how very fortunate we are. Think about it — we were wallowing in sin, and, out of the blue, the Holy Spirit convicts us, and invites us to partake of the glorious gift of God, His only begotten Son, His wonderful Son, who is the same yesterday and today and forever. Oh, my goodness, we are the most fortunate people on the planet. And did I mention we will also inherit eternal life?
If anything has taken the pleasure and excitement of walking with Jesus out of your heart, put an end to it now. Whatever it is, it is not worth it. Regardless of what bothers us, we are in the hands of God, and He will provide and care for us in one way or another. We need not worry, we belong to Him. Put your faith and trust in Him; He will not forsake you. I say this not only by faith but by experience after experience as well. He most certainly is faithful.
Jon David Banks, God’s most unworthy servant
jondavidbanks.com 