salt-shaker.blog

^“The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.  Rev 22:17

Here we have a wonderful picture of God’s gracious heart for the thirsty soul. We heard this in ministry we consider the grace of God. The invitation is inclusive, not just for a few ‘righteous’ ones who make the cut, conforming to a certain level of propriety or goodness. The only requirement is thirst. So many people are thirsting but unaware that God is the water they seek. We stand together with the Spirit of God as the bride and offer the very water of life – and for free! It is the reason we preach the Gospel, the power of God to salvation. The ministry reminded us that unless we constantly remember that our standing before God is through grace alone, we are in danger of becoming modern day Pharisees. Familiarity and lifestyle tend towards performance based thinking that overshadows a love relationship with our Savior.

Jesus went about doing good and preaching the kingdom. This is what we refer to as ‘Gospel hospitality’. Having that hospitable heart takes effort and intention. We also hear in ministry“…Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.” Luke 9:23-26 We cannot just smugly sit back, satisfied that we have our ticket to heaven. We must decidedly take up our cross every day and follow His ways – not to earn righteousness but to walk in step with our Savior. Interestingly it is here that He mentions unashamed witness. Apparently this does not come automatically, although assuredly it is easier for the extroverts among us. We learn to let our hearts be moved like Jesus’ was and choose to let our lives be laid down to speak to or serve others for the glory of God and the advancement of His kingdom.

race us, Lord to set You so clearly before our minds that we will leap for joy if someone asks why we trust You! Direct our steps in such a way that our care and service of those around us will win opportunity to share the great news about Jesus. May Your will be done in our lives as it is in heaven so that we bring glory and honor to Your name. Amen!