Vital signs- Tuesday, September 26th, 2023

Onward in Grace

“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” (Phillipians 1:6).

It is striking that this verse has very little to do with us, and is instead such an incredible depiction of what Christ has done for our battered souls. We long for Him, but do the very things we don’t want to do and strive for the very things that can’t fill us. But Christ has not left us to ourselves. We are His masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10), created and seen, and He tends to us with tenderness. Such a love is this, that our Savior, the very one who has rescued us in grace, continues the work in our hearts and minds to draw us closer to Himself. This gives us consolation in the now and hope for the future, in anticipation of the work that will be completed as we wrestle with the now and the not yet. Christ is with us now. Christ is working through us now. Christ is sufficient for us now, but our complete sanctification is not yet. The battle between sinful self and the wholeness we long for is not over yet.

May an understanding of the struggle between these two realities bring about a gentleness in our interactions with one another as we spur each other on to faith and good works. May this gentleness extend to our own selves as we struggle through the now, often tired and uninspired. The work Christ is doing in us is not over yet. May our assurance in Christ be found as we turn our gaze away from ourselves and toward His glorious face.

What struggles in your own life is God still working to redeem? Do you trust that He will complete the work in you? How does being Christ’s masterpiece make you feel? Who in our own lives can we treat with more gentleness and encouragement as they journey through the “now” while awaiting for the “not yet?”

Jesus we believe; oh help our unbelief. Arrest our gaze on you; we are so distracted by many other things, often seeking out that which makes us hollow and unfulfilled. Draw us to you. May every fiber of our being trust that you will never leave us nor forsake us, and that you will finish the work that you have begun in us. Thank you for your faithfulness in the face of our faithlessness. May we love as you love. Amen.

Team Wade loves you and is praying for you ❤️👊