Christian Living

Reaching the Summit of Our Walk

by Thomas Kirkpatrick
03/14/19
Free to Share
Author requests article critique

  Message Writer
  Hire Writer

Tweet

"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." (Ephesians 2:1-10)

When Jesus our Lord and Savior came into the world He set the standard that we all should strive to live by. It is the standard from the beginning that we should live in Divine Righteousness, but man fell into the temptations of sin. Prior to that man had no knowledge of evil but after taking the forbidden fruit evil has permeated man’s thought process. As a result, the world has become fractured by man’s sin until the Lord returns to rule from His throne.

Jesus set the standard that men could see and know the holy life. He set the standard by His Word and by His good work. Jesus set the standard by His obedience to the will of the Father. The standard is simple to be seen, to be heard, but impossible for man to achieve. "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)

God in His love and mercy for His creation, man, shows His common grace upon all men and to those who will follow He extends His Saving Grace. Let us focus then on verses 8 & 9 for a moment. "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

It is God’s favor towards us who will pick up our cross and follow Him that we are saved by His grace. It is His gift to us and freely given. Given because He loves us and has a perfect plan for our life to accomplish His good work. We all have labored through our lives for the wants and needs to live in this world. We have labored for our loved ones and we have labored for ourselves. We have joyfully and sometimes not so joyfully labored for the desires we have in our heart for the things of this world. When we come to the Judgment Seat of Christ the work that we have done in this world will be tested by the fire of His holiness. As Paul tells us in his letter to the Corinthians. "Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward." (1 Corinthians 3:12-14)

Notice the progression of the materials that will be tested by fire. Gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, and straw. Gold, Silver, and stone will withstand the test of fire, it will be refined by the fire and will be purified. Wood, hay, and straw will quickly be consumed by the fire and will not survive. Are we building our lives on the foundation of gold, silver, and stone, the work that God has given us to do in the power of the Holy Spirit for His glory? If so it will survive the test and produce a reward. Or, are we building on the foundation of wood, hay, and straw, that which is for our own glory. If we are it will not survive and there will be no reward.

We were created for a purpose and the next verse, verse 10 tells us that purpose. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10) We were saved by grace to perform the good work that we were created to do. The good work that was prepared beforehand just for us to do. Since I am standing at God’s pulpit I will have to be honest by saying that I have fallen way short of God’s glory in doing the good work He created me to do. Far from perfect, the standard set for me to enter the Kingdom of God. It is not that I do not try at times, it is not that I do not want to be obedient, and it is not because Satan hinders my walk. For me, it is a question of faith.

Let us look further into verse 8. "For by grace you have been saved through faith." We are not saved by our weak faith but by God’s Grace through our weak faith. Do you believe you have been saved by God’s grace? Why? Because of your faith in His Word. That’s the first small step in a life of walking in the path that He has beforehand prepared for us. That is our purpose to be the instruments of performing the good work for His Kingdom. Faith is the conduit in which the grace of God flows into our life. Our faith will enlarge as we allow more of His grace to flow through. If we believe that God has saved us based on our faith in His Word then we should easily believe this. "And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9) We can because He will. It is God’s will for us to do the good work that He has prepared for us. We weren’t born yesterday to live in His service tomorrow. We were born before the beginning to live in His service today.

The problem for me is the same problem I had when my dad told me to cut the grass. He bought the lawnmower, he bought the gas and oil, and he bought the lawn for me to cut. My dad provided everything just as God has prepared everything for me to do His good work. The problem is I didn’t cut the grass as my dad told me, and when God tells me to do things I do not do it either. I do what so many people do I quenched the Spirit that dwells within. Paul clearly tells us not to do that. "Do not quench the Spirit." (1 Thessalonians 5:19) When we quench the Spirit He may find another willing servant and we suffer the loss. When we continue to quench the Spirit we may put the fire of holiness out.

Jesus promised His disciples, you and me, on the eve of His crucifixion that the Holy Spirit would come and be with us always. He is our counselor, our guide, and we are to be led by His prompting. "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come." (John 16:13)

If our weak faith was enough to save us through God’s grace, then our faith will be enlarged by obedience to the quiet voice of His Spirit given to us. "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17) If our faith grows from hearing the Word of God, then we will grow into instruments of God’s power to change the world that we live in. We will be beacons of His light in the darkness of this world.

All through the first chapter of Genesis God conceived in His Spirit and spoke creation into being. If we would “pick up our cross and follow Him,” then “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:13) It is not just for our reward, it is not just for the reward of our neighbor, it is that we can bring glory to our Lord and Savior that we may be glorified with Him. "The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him." (Romans 8:16-17)

This world is and shall remain fractured because of man’s sin. Because of my sin and your sin. Trials and tribulations will plaque us all till the Day of the Lord but we need not ever fear for in obedience to His will we are His children, heirs of the Kingdom of God. In His time here Jesus laid the footprints that we are to follow, a path to overcome the world and its trials. He knew the way to overcome and if we obey His Word we shall overcome. "These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) We are conduits of His grace through faith that we shall reach the summit of our walk with Him. We are conduits of His grace that the world can see His glory.

Thomas N Kirkpatrick

First Baptist Church of Durant, September 4, 2017