THE RELIABILITY OF CHRIST

November 09, 2022

THE RELIABILITY OF CHRIST


The disciples went out and came to the city, and found it just as He had told them. (Mark 14:16

Everything in your life is determined by what you believe about Christ. Who you become, what you will know, what you will accomplish—even where you spend eternity—is driven by your faith, or lack of faith, in Him.

No one should believe in one who fails to live up to their word. If you think someone is untrustworthy, it would be foolish to trust them. This is why all of Christianity depends upon the reliability of Christ.

ONE MORE REASON TO BELIEVE

The early disciples had left everything to follow Jesus. Everything about Him engendered faith. Every word He said, decision He made, and teaching He delivered gave them more and more reasons to follow Him with no reservation.

As He neared the end of His short earthly life, He sent a few of His followers into Jerusalem to prepare for the Passover meal. He gave them detailed instructions, telling them they would find a man with a water jar. They were to follow him into a house.

“And wherever he enters, say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is My guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?” And he himself will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; prepare for us there.” (Mark 14:14-15)

They had learned by now to trust this One who turned water into wine and raised the dead. They followed His directions implicitly and immediately.

The disciples went out and came to the city, and found it just as He had told them; and they prepared the Passover. (Mark 14:16, emphasis mine)

Everything was “just as they had told them,” and it always is. Upon this reliability stands all of creation and all of human history. He speaks, and it happens. He commands, and it is true. If there were ever a single incident where a prophecy was unfulfilled or a promise undelivered, our opportunity for faith would cease. We trust Him because He is utterly trustworthy.

This was true of Christ as He lived as a man on earth because He walked in perfect sync with the Father. Everything He said and did was God-initiated. Christ’s words were the Father’s words, His steps, the Father’s steps, and His actions driven by Divine direction. For all eternity, the Father, Son, and Spirit moved as one because they were (and are) one.

You can trust Jesus. If He promises You eternal life, He will give it as you believe. Life and life abundantly are ahead. All the promises of an eternal heaven (and hell) will be just like He said.

The great tragedy will be those who distance themselves from Jesus, foolishly doubting His word. Those who fail to believe in this life will forever abhor their pride. But those who humbly follow will find everything just as He said.

 





Also in Graceful Truth

REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 15)
REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 15)

March 15, 2023

This is the heart of revival, both personal and corporate. Revival intimates two things have occurred: a drifting and a return. We have wandered from Christ. Our hearts have become cold and lifeless. To be revived is to be brought back to that which is life itself. It’s not a return to a program or a discipline. It is to fall in love with Jesus all over again. It is a repentance unto Him.

Continue Reading

REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 14)
REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 14)

March 10, 2023

Is prayer a nice thing to do? Something we resort to when we are in a serious situation? A word to describe one of the disciplines of the Christian life? Secondary, but not really all that essential? Something we do as a segue between songs on a Sunday morning? Or is it the essence? The foundation? The fragrance that is to pervade everything for the serious follower of Jesus? The ultimate pathway to communion with God and the source of life and power for all we are and do?

Continue Reading

REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 13)
REFLECTIONS ON SPIRITUAL AWAKENING (Part 13)

March 09, 2023

Why should we pray fervently for the blessing of a nationwide or worldwide spiritual awakening? Why should we unite (as Jonathan Edwards said) in “explicit agreement and visible union among God’s people in extraordinary prayer for a revival of religion and the advancement of Christ’s kingdom on earth?” Why should we seek to cooperate together and not tear apart the beginnings of His awakening in our nation?

Continue Reading