A fair amount of trouble in the Christian life may be squashed if Christians reminded themselves of the immensity of God. Science has illustrated that the universe is incredibly massive, and Christians hold to the truth that God is the Creator of this entire universe--from the galaxies to the subatomic particles, He is the Creator and Sustainer of All. No Christian would disagree with this, God as Creator is a foundational doctrine--you do not call yourself a Christian and disbelief that the Trinitarian God created the heavens and the earth. Yet calling oneself a Christian and becoming impatient with a well-meaning friend is common. Calling oneself a Christian and becoming stressed about trivial matters is also common. As is calling oneself a Christian and looking at God's instructions as a burden.
The third of these issues is one in which I share a significant amount of guilt. I am terrific at becoming frustrated with the burden of God's instructions. This is all very silly--as if I would be much better at life if I listened to my emotions and desires. But it is with the emotions and desires that things get difficult. Paul informs us in Galatians 5 that the Spirit (God) and the flesh (the sinful nature within us all) are contrary to each other, which means there are going to be times they are at war. Paul attests to this elsewhere when he writes, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15). He goes on to explain that he wants to do good but his sinful nature compels him otherwise. He does not like it but there is something in him that is screaming: "I want to rebel against God!". This defies all logic. If God really created the heavens and the earth, does He not know best how to navigate the heavens and the earth? If I am playing a video game, I want the game's programmer sitting right beside me, or at least emailing me an instructional manual. Luckily, God has.
You see, He hasn't left us on our own. The Bible specially reveals God's character, deeds, and will for our lives--He wants us to obey. He gave Moses and the Israelites the Ten Commandments--they are still extant for us to heed. Jesus came in the flesh, demonstrated a life of obedience, and taught. A good place to start with His teachings would be The Sermon on the Mount. Reading from these passages and applying them is terrific, but the truth is that many of us already know what we need to do, we simply do not do it. It may be a struggle to do so, but we need to learn from Paul. Paul did not consider sin something to simply be accepted, but considered it something to be fought against. Likewise, we need to realize that God's laws are a blessing and sin is the enemy. God's love language is obedience, and one of the Christian's tasks is getting serious about it.
The third of these issues is one in which I share a significant amount of guilt. I am terrific at becoming frustrated with the burden of God's instructions. This is all very silly--as if I would be much better at life if I listened to my emotions and desires. But it is with the emotions and desires that things get difficult. Paul informs us in Galatians 5 that the Spirit (God) and the flesh (the sinful nature within us all) are contrary to each other, which means there are going to be times they are at war. Paul attests to this elsewhere when he writes, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." (Romans 7:15). He goes on to explain that he wants to do good but his sinful nature compels him otherwise. He does not like it but there is something in him that is screaming: "I want to rebel against God!". This defies all logic. If God really created the heavens and the earth, does He not know best how to navigate the heavens and the earth? If I am playing a video game, I want the game's programmer sitting right beside me, or at least emailing me an instructional manual. Luckily, God has.
You see, He hasn't left us on our own. The Bible specially reveals God's character, deeds, and will for our lives--He wants us to obey. He gave Moses and the Israelites the Ten Commandments--they are still extant for us to heed. Jesus came in the flesh, demonstrated a life of obedience, and taught. A good place to start with His teachings would be The Sermon on the Mount. Reading from these passages and applying them is terrific, but the truth is that many of us already know what we need to do, we simply do not do it. It may be a struggle to do so, but we need to learn from Paul. Paul did not consider sin something to simply be accepted, but considered it something to be fought against. Likewise, we need to realize that God's laws are a blessing and sin is the enemy. God's love language is obedience, and one of the Christian's tasks is getting serious about it.
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