More Than Just Heaven
By Ana Blackwell
“For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” -2 Cor 5:21. What a wonderful reminder. The righteousness we have is not due to our works, but rather thanks to the work Jesus did at the cross. Whether one is a prominent church leader, a humble mom raising her children in the ways of the Lord, or a newly converted drug addict, they have one thing in common. All were gifted a robe of righteousness when they became children of God. The past is no longer counted against those who have put their trust in the Lord. The debt has been paid in full by the blood of the Lamb. Shame and fear of the past are not part of their inheritance.
Great! All my sins are forgiven. What else? Hold on tight, I’m just getting started. The Word of God says you are a new creation.
“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” - Ephesians 2:10
Not only do you receive a clean slate, you become a brand-new man or woman which means the future is bright. When you and I lived in darkness, we had no idea we were trapped by chains and sin because there was no light to reveal to us our predicament. Once Holy Spirit shone the light of the Gospel in our lives, we gained sight and saw for the first time. We finally understood we were never meant to be slaves to the flesh and the devil.
God created us to live in freedom in order to fulfil the plans He designed while we were still in the womb. First, we are called to carry this gift of liberty we once received to any who are tired of oppression. Holy Spirit wants for all to be saved, but not all will want to become children of God. Regardless, my job is to share with anyone who will listen.
Moreover, the good works mentioned in Ephesians are designed with you specifically in mind because of your unique set of skills and experience. Are you loud, smart, friendly, soft spoken, or a hands-on kind of person? God can use every personality type. Also, taking it a step further, what kind of people are you drawn to? If orphans tug at your heartstrings, it is because God placed that compassion inside you along with a strategy to reach those individuals.
Pay attention to the one or two groups of people that stand out to you most. That is Holy Spirit trying to direct you in a particular direction. Then, what skills do you have? If you can code and design software, then do it for those people you are most drawn to. Create a change and impact lives. Perhaps you like music or art. Again, talent plus compassion equals a divine plan. Think outside the box. Putting on concerts to raise money for cancer patients. Or, simply sharing beautiful art with someone in order to make them feel loved. The possibilities are endless and you will touch lives when you allow God to give you heavenly strategy for your earthly skills.
One more thing. The rule of thumb is this: love the Lord your God and your neighbor as yourself. If you can remember this, then you will realize how fulfilled your life will be when you work in order to serve others rather than yourself. Even psychologist agree that people who volunteer are happier overall. I believe it is because when we don’t have enough time to think about ourselves, then we forget to focus on all the different ways life is unfair and difficult towards us.
Thirdly, we have to talk about being born of the Spirit. Not only are your past sins forgotten, not only are you a new creation, but do you know what kind of creature you are? One will act according to their nature. Therefore, a lion will act as a lion, a snake as a snake, and a dove as a dove. In the same way, a child of God will behave like the Father.
Apostol Peter talks about the divine nature we now have. We don’t act holy and righteous because we work hard. We are controlled by love because we have a new spirit-man, which is why the Holy Spirit is able to be joined to our spirit. It is a great mystery to be new on the inside and a temple of the Spirit of the Almighty. Never the less, all things are possible with God, and it is how He designed it. Check out what it means to be a son and daughter of the Living God.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a Godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, Godliness; and to Godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ -2 Peter 1:3-8.
God has equipped us with everything we need. So, when He says “be holy as I am holy”, it is because it is possible. Above we find out that being a new creation means we have a divine nature, but in order to partake in God’s promises and be effective, we do have to do one thing. We must remember to keep our eyes on Jesus. The more time we spend in His presence, the more we will look like our Father. The idea is to be so spiritual that my earthly self begins to have the qualities listed by Peter, such as goodness, knowledge, self-control, godliness, mutual affection, and so on. A truly spiritual person will be effective in their works, and the love of God will radiate from them like a sun bursting through the clouds.
So, remember, your sins are forgiven, you are a new creation, and you are of a divine nature which means you love fiercely and you are an impactful individual. Jesus calls us friends and it is time to start embracing that. Lastly, remember that the more you love the Father and spend time with Him, the more you will realize all the blessings you have in Him. This will make you effective everywhere you go, and no devil or circumstance will be able to distract you from your purpose.
