Hosanna Restoration Church

Scripture tells us so much about the Life that is in Christ Jesus and yet I wonder how much of it we understand. We know that God said, “I set before you the way of life and death; choose life.” The fact is that we all want life. Even those who take their own lives do it because they cannot find life. However I think that we lose sight of the fact that Jesus said it was more blessed to give than to receive and that would also apply to life. I believe we are all guilty of wanting more life than we are willing to give and yet giving life is what gives us life.

Recently I heard someone speak about choosing Jesus or Barabbas. The people took life from Jesus and gave life to Barabbas. Jesus breathes life into us by the Holy Spirit and when we choose to breath that same life into others lives, we are choosing Jesus. On the other hand, when we choose not to live by His love and His Word, we take life and make death with it. We join the enemy in stealing and killing and destroying. With their mouths, the crowd condemned Jesus. With our mouths we either confess life or death. With our Words we speak trust in God or with our words we speak trust in what the enemy can do to us. We speak faith or fear. We speak life or death. We have the choice of bringing life and light into the world around us, or darkness and death.

It was God’s great love for us that gave us life and it is still that love that sustains our lives. If we can just get that love moving in us it will help us to overcome our own selfishness. Selfishness is after all a product of fear. It comes from fear that we will not have enough. That is why we need perfect love. It casts out fear. The perfect love of God trusts that God will take care of us. When we have no fear, we help others to have life. For instance, if you are on an airplane and the ride gets a bit rough, the pilot usually comes on and lets you know that he has things under control and it will be all right soon. That confidence helps to ease your fears. However, if that pilot came on and was more scared than you are it would have a terrible effect. In the same way, when we are confident of the Lord’s love and have faith in His word, then we walk the walk of life that is in Christ Jesus.

If Jesus is the source of our life, then we have life to give to others. In fact His love compels us to prefer Him over everything else. Our desire is that He be glorified no matter what the cost, because we know that He can and will supply all our needs according to His riches in glory. We just need to know His love more so that we will have the fullness of His life to give. Ask yourself this question. “Do I give life where ever I go, or do I take it? Are people refreshed when I leave, or are they relieved?” Did I represent the interests of Jesus, or of myself? Choose life and pass it on.