Grace Makes Life Enjoyable

One of the best things we can do is to learn to appreciate the present circumstances of our lives. When we do, we avoid the deadly trap of always waiting and hoping for the time when everything will be perfect. Perfect doesn’t exist on this earth, and we will never see perfection until Heaven. Accepting our life doesn’t mean we don’t strive for improvement. Doing the best we can is part of who we are as committed believers of Christ. However, when we hold onto unrealistic expectations for ourselves and others, we contribute to our own sadness. Paul encouraged us to think like this: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Col. 3:23-24). So often, our dream of perfection is about more money and more things. Paul warned us about this: “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (1 Tim. 6:17). God wants us to enjoy our life, with him, with our family and friends and be grateful for what he has given us.

Our need for grace is great. We need grace from God and from others, and we need to show grace to God. In Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian was shown a room full of dust. A damsel came into the room and began sweeping. She stirred up so much dust that Christian began to choke. Then she fetched a pail of water, sprinkled the floor, and swept. Now there was very little dust. The interpreter who was explaining the meaning told him sweeping without the water was the work of the law. It does not do the job, and it is painful in its effort. The springled water was the work of grace. Likewise, when we expect perfection out of our children, our spouses, we choke the life out of them. When, however, we give them grace, we see them flourish.

Job said this world is full of trouble and we cannot avoid it, “Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward” (Job 5:7). We can, however, face that trouble with grace, which makes our life so very different.

Paul viewed his trouble of being a Roman prisoner with grace: “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear” (Philippians 1:12-14). What a difference grace makes!

Good Advice

Good advice is hard to come by. In fact, people pay high prices for expert advice. There are financial, legal, medical, psychological, and exercise specialists. However, often the common-sense advice we need for daily living is even harder to find. One man named John wrote letters in the New Testament filled with good, common-sense advice. He was one of Jesus’ disciples, and he was in his 90s when he wrote these letters. Here are some basic guidelines for living e gave us.

Don’t Let Sin Trap You: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin” (1 John 2:1). We are to learn to beware of sin because it is a trap. We can find ourselves trapped before we even know it, so John says, aware of sin, especially sexual traps. Pornography is a trap that has ruined the lives of many men today.

Walk With Jesus: “…But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense — Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (1 John 2:1). This means everyday communion and engagement with Jesus, not just on Sundays.

Remember You Have an Advocate: “….But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense — Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). There is a good chance we will mess up, but John says Jesus will intercede for you, and you can and will be forgiven if you come in repentance.

You are a Child of God! Live Like it!: “….The man who says, ‘I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him…This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did” (1 John 2:3-6). Living out the faith in everyday life is our greatest challenge. I like to call it authenticity.

Our Respect for God Translates into Our Obedience: “But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him” (1 John 2:5). Obeying Jesus’ words and living like him show our deepest respect for Christ. It means we honor him as our Lord!

Jesus is Your Hero:  “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6). There is no better hero than Jesus; no one is more worthy to imitate than the one who died for us.

There you have it—six basic rules that will literally make a difference in our lives.  When we really understand how dangerous sin is, we will stay away from it.  That means we will remove ourselves from the temptation the way Joseph did when he ran from Potiphar’s wife.  John advises us to take the scriptures literally.