In Philippians 1:6 I read, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” (NLT)
It takes years for a person to grow to adulthood. It takes a full season for fruit to mature and ripen. Physical growth and maturity take time.
The same is true for spiritual growth. The development of a Christlike character can’t be rushed. The fruit of the Spirit, much like physical fruit, only develops with plenty of time.
During the process of spiritual growth, God slowly uncovers parts of my life that need to change in order to be more like His Son Jesus.
Think of your life before Christ. He may have allowed you to experience problems. Life’s difficulties helped him get my attention and allowed me to see a life was built on a faulty foundation. (And, actually, it’s that faulty foundation that caused many of the problems in the first place.)
Jesus wants me to surrender all of my life to him. He doesn’t want just a small portion of who I am. He wants access to all of me.
It’s like this: When I open the door of my life to Jesus, he comes in. Imagine I invite him into my house. In the living room, I tell him, “This is your home now, and I want to live here the way you want me to live.”
In the kitchen, you say, “You’re just like family. In fact, really, I’m now part of your family, and I’m so grateful for all you provide.” And so it goes, until you get to a closed door. Jesus wants to go in, but you say, “No, that part of my life is closed to you. I don’t want you going in there.”
When I invited Jesus into my life, did I give him complete access? Have I resisted his efforts to help me mature because I insist on keeping some things behind closed doors? Jesus doesn’t want me to limit how or where he works in my life. Otherwise, I’m limiting how much I can mature.
Jesus wants me to give him all of myself.
I may think I’ve surrendered all of my life to Jesus, but the truth is I’m still hanging on to some parts of my life. The good news is that Jesus isn’t upset with me. He simply wants to work with me to help me uncover areas that I still need to surrender to him.
It’s a long process, and some days it will feel like a struggle or even a battle. But the good news is that the outcome is certain. God has promised that he, “who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (Philippians 1:6 NLT).
In summary, God, who began the good work in me, will continue it until it is finished (which is the day when Christ returns). Physical growth and maturity take time. The same is true for spiritual growth. The development of a Christlike character can’t be rushed, It only develops with plenty of time. During the process, God will slowly uncover parts of my life that need to change in order to be more like His Son. Jesus wants me to surrender all of my life to him. He doesn’t want just a small portion, he wants access to all of me. When I invited Jesus into my life, did I give him complete access? Have I resisted his efforts to help me mature because I insist on keeping some things behind closed doors? Jesus wants me to give him all of myself. I may think I’ve surrendered all of my life, but I’m still hanging on to some parts. Jesus isn’t upset about this, He simply wants to work with me to help me uncover areas that I still need to surrender to him. It’s a long process, and some days it will feel like a struggle, but the good news is that the outcome is certain. God has promised that he, who began the good work, will continue it until it is finished.
God who began a good work in me will continue throughout my lifetime. It will only be finished when I meet him face to face. God's work for all of us began when Christ died on the cross in our place. His work within me began when I first believed. Now I have the Holy Spirit living in me, enabling me to be more like Christ every day. When God starts a project, he completes it. So when I'm discouraged I only need to remember that God won't give up on me. He promises to finish the work he began. When I feel incomplete, unfinished, or distressed by my shortcomings, I can remember God's promise and provision. Don't allow my present condition rob me of the joy of knowing Christ or keep me from growing closer to him.
Father, thank you for Your Word and Jesus as my savior and example. You want me and I need you in my life. Please give me Your strength for today and remind me in little ways that I can always believe in, have faith in and can trust you in everything. This includes being the authority for my life, the source of my self-worth and my hope for the future. You have my best interests in mind. So I ask you to help me to embrace the way you’ve made me; my gifting and passions. Help me to serve and fulfill the mission you have in mind for me.
Father, help me to surrender all of my to Jesus. Allow your Holy Spirit to assist me in becoming more like Christ every day. You are faithful and I know that I can count on you.
Today, I ask you for wisdom and guidance for my day, my work, my leadership, my interactions with others, doing well and making a difference in my new job. I pray all these things through you Son Jesus’ name, Amen.
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