Daily Delight
“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” -2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)
Have you ever read Genesis and thought, ‘Eve, seriously?!’ Or heard a sermon on the parable of the sower and tuned out since you know how it ends and you’ve been here in church for years so ‘it doesn’t apply to you’? Or perhaps regard yourself as a ‘good Christian’ because ‘I serve in church, I do my One Year Bible reading every day, I write for an online Christian magazine and I’m bold about my faith on social media.’ Sometimes, I catch myself in these bouts of self-righteousness. But many times, I don’t.
I forget that Jesus had to die so horribly because I sin so horribly. I forget that I will never fully appreciate the extreme anguish Jesus felt that night in Gethsemane where His sweat became like drops of blood and when He pleaded with the Father to take His cup of suffering from Him. I forget that if not for Jesus, I would burn against the unfathomable thunder of God’s righteous anger. I forget that it’s less about my own obedience and more about the obedience of the Son. I forget that it’s not about me and all about Him.
In this way, the Christian life is both the easiest and hardest thing. It’s easy because it is about God’s work in Christ through the Spirit in our lives and we literally don’t have to do anything. But it’s hard because we have to intentionally choose to die to ourselves and yield to a child-like receiving of Him.
So invite God’s Spirit to lead you in being willing to be made willing each morning. Ask Him to guide you in your experience of His Word. Call on Him to remind you of His great truths - that even in your self-righteousness, you are covered in His righteousness; that your greatest successes or biggest failures cannot take you closer or further from Him; that Jesus died a terrible death but rose again in glorious light so that you may be loved and accepted by our righteous God completely and fully.
{photo: @elissagram}
About the Author
Rebecca Wong≫ ≫ Raised in a non-Christian family in Singapore, Rebecca encountered the boundless love and saving grace of Jesus Christ at university in London. While it has not always been easy to remain faithful, God has been unwavering and relentless in His pursuit of her.
An aspiring lawyer-in-training, Rebecca believes in the power of words, especially those fueled by the Word of God. When she's not reading and writing for work, she enjoys being outdoors, from scuba-diving around Southeast Asia to taking long walks around reservoirs while contemplating the Psalms with her boyfriend.
Over the next few months, Rebecca hopes to grow in sensitivity to the Lord's Spirit so as to serve the Daughter of Delight community through ways in which He intends.