The Sunday News
Itai Chapunza
Christianity is Christ
2 Timothy 2 vs 7 to 8
Hebrews 12 vs 1
1st Corinthians 9 vs 24 to 27
For most churches in January, we start the year in prayer. The simple logic is, dedicate the year to the Lord so that it may be well with us. I mean we pray for our food, it is only fitting that we pray for the year. Because this is a custom, we become numb to the whole purpose of us being Christians.
It becomes about the blessings God has for us and how we want this year to be. The whole point of our faith is not so that we can have the best things in life. It is about Christ. The blessings are just part of the package.
2 Timothy 2:7-9
7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this. Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained.
Hebrews 12:1-3
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
1 Corinthians 9: 24-25
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.
The scriptures we have just gone through all point towards a few common things. The first is that we are part of God’s eternal plans for us. They also speak of what should consume our energy on earth and they say labouring for Christ. In our different spaces of influence, in our different industries our mandate is Christ. This creates in us a drive that is beyond world understanding. If God has put you in a restaurant set up to speak to ten thousand people about Christ, the guarantee He gives you is that you will not be fired until this is done. Thus Christ Himself becomes your job security.
Observe the passion of Paul. It drove him to extremes. One time the man wrote a book while in a boat in the sea, in the middle of a serious storm. This showed the level of faith in the work that God was doing. He knew he would be alive for people to read the book. His faith in Christ backed his work and nothing seemed impossible.
He knew no matter what happened on that day, he would be alive when the storm passed because his mission was not yet complete. While all this was happening, the crew was in full panic mode and were tossing things into the sea to reduce weight of the boat.
Simple example of two people, in the exact same situation yet reacting differently to it because of the purpose of their lives. Paul refused be defined by his workspace. If currently everyone is buying cars from Asia and Europe, you find you are not really swayed by it because God gives you timeframes of things. You know the stage at which you are supposed to be driving, you know the stage to get married, you know the timing of your life. Make Jesus the mandate of your life and your attitude will change.
Paul can be defined as a man who stuck strictly on the syllabus of what God wanted for him after his salvation. Simple life, straight to the point, with order and clarity. Nothing was a distraction from Christianity because his work was Christianity.
There is what is called Babylonian spirit. This is a spirit of the culture. The culture of the world which says, I work eight-hour shifts, I have no time for ministry work. What you don’t know is that your work is your ministry. You cannot be a spectator in the house of God.
Always remember Christ did not die for you because it was fun to wake up from the dead. But he did so because there is an ultimate plan that God has for your life. Find out what that is and you will have peace that no science can explain. Jesus loves you.
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