Following Christ faithfully

I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord’s people. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me. Colossians 1:25-29

When we claim that we are followers of Christ as His disciples, it means that we have relinquished the claim that our life belongs to us and is at our disposal. This is contrary to what the Scripture advocates as to what constitutes true discipleship. True discipleship is acquainting our life to the One we love most. This is why the Apostle Paul from the text indicated to his readers that he will exert all his efforts and energy to persuade Christians to not settle into mediocrity but to pursue growing into maturity in their faith and in their relationship with Christ. God will not be satisfied to see Christians not fully dedicating themselves to Him. His desire is for believers yielding to His Spirit. For this will produce Christian virtues described as fruit of the Spirit in their life (see Galatians 5:22-23). These virtues are what characterized the life of Christ. It is not just engaging in religious activities that will make one become like Christ. Christian activities are important expression of our relationship with Christ but they could not be used as the measurement of Christlikeness. So, when God directs you to someone that you can help grow in their faith, don’t just encourage them to take part in spiritual activities, but demonstrate to them what Christlikeness looks like through your walk with Christ. Let them see in you that Christ is indeed your hope for glory. So, do not deny that you are a follower of Christ by living your life contrary to His calling. “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38). Let us proclaim who Christ is in our life by our words and our deeds.

Blessings,

Noel De Guzman

www.my-wbc,com