Spiritual Wholeness
“Experiencing God Day by Day” by Blackaby
You see, the problem many Christians struggle with today is that they want the crown but not the thorns, they want the faith but not the cross, they want the blessings but not the suffering, and they want the baptism but not the transformation! The problem is, many are unwilling to put down their old life, their old habits, their old ways, and their sinful desires, but still want to reap the spiritual rewards that come with following Christ. It doesn’t work like that!! The problem is many have become comfortable with their life of sin in a culture that promotes it!! However, just as Jesus asked the crippled man then, Jesus is asking you today, “do you want to be healed?” Of course, all of us want to be healed, what kind of question is that you may ask…. Well, the problem is, many of us desire to be healed but don’t want the conditions attached to finding spiritual wholeness. That’s why Jesus asked the question because believe it or not, many don’t want to be healed. They want to remain in their old life of sin!
Notice in John 5:14, when Jesus found the same man He healed in the temple He says, “See, you are well again, stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” You see, Christ had to first demonstrate his power by healing the man, but then He proceeds to warn him afterwards to stop sinning before something worse happens. Why? Because Jesus is more concerned about the inward heart over one’s physical ailment!! Christ performs the miracle to ultimately get at the root of the man’s heart! That’s how important the heart and the soul of his people are to him! Consider for a moment Matthew 5:29 where Jesus exhorts his disciples, “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body (knowing it will be restored in eternity) than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.” In other words, Jesus is commanding his people to throw away whatever sin, whatever temptation, whatever influence, whatever doctrine, whatever tradition, whatever that’s in your past, whatever bad habits, and whatever friends and family that stands in the way from finding your spiritual wholeness! He is calling his people to respond according to His Gospel! Christ has already performed many miracles in your life, and now He wants your heart, He wants your obedience, and He wants your conversion! The time to stop playing “house” with your relationship with God is now! The time to stop saying you’re a Christian and to start living as Christ commands us to live, holy as our Father is Holy in heaven is now before something worse happen to you! If you want to find your spiritual wholeness, start by repenting, confessing your sins, denying yourself, and picking up your cross and following Jesus wholeheartedly so you can find your spiritual wholeness and rest for your souls!
Remember this quote of the day: To follow Christ requires a radical change in every area of your life: physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally!
Stay born-again my friends!!