Romans 5:17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!
As Christians, we believe in God the Father, Jesus His Son, and the Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and was raised on the third day.
This is the foundation of our faith. As a young Christian, I understood that if I believed this, I would go to Heaven. This is very important! But there is much more to being a Christian. We are also called to Reign in Life!
I recall hearing a powerful message from one of our Church Directors, Myo Scholum, about “Reigning in Life” – Myo shared two essential truths:
Believe in God’s generosity
This life comes through understanding our true position in Christ. Christianity is about having an intimate relationship with God – the Creator of the whole universe. It is not about religious rules and processes. It’s a heartfelt relationship. A belief of our sonship – this is our true position in Christ.
The Bible (Romans 8) says we are adopted as God’s Children. As a child of God, have a heartfelt belief that God loves you intimately and individually. Knowing that you are personally loved and valued naturally leads to believing that God wants to be generous towards you.
Jesus said, “I came to give you life and life more abundantly”. Paul says, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in Christ Jesus”.
When you believe in God’s generosity, that’s when you can receive it.
Receive God’s generosity
In life when someone gives you a gift or buys you a meal – what do you do? You receive it and say thank you!
King David said it like this:
You prepared a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. (Psalm 23:5)
A prepared table means “sit down and eat”. An overflowing cup means generosity is overflowing.
And this is what Jesus has done for you – He went to the cross and prepared a way for us to receive the fullness of God’s generosity. It's important to base your faith upon what Jesus has done for you and not what you can do for yourself.
When you are conscious of what Jesus has done, you will go to Praise and Thanksgiving. When you are focused on what you have done for yourself, you go to pride and self-help or worry and anxiety when things go bad.
Right now, take a moment to stop. Be thankful and praise God for what He has given you through His Son. Whatever season you are going through, be thankful, praise Him because the best is yet to come!