Christ is gloriously beautiful and to be desired, the only hope of our hungering soul to be satisfied and filled with fullness of joy and love. All the desires for counterfeit joys crumble below our desire for Him. Recently, my life has taken a sudden and sharp turn in direction. Since July I have known that God’s plan was for me to move to Missouri and foolish me, I thought we had two years to calmly plan that move. God had a different plan and has been orchestrating everything in the background for the past 1.8 years to establish the exact timing of that move. Now the plan is December. I say all that as I look around me preparing to move, realizing that all this stuff is so unimportant compared to what is real and true in my life. What do I need besides Him? As a Speaker, I desire more time to spread the Gospel of Christ. My passion is to do just that. I am downsizing my life for that purpose. One of my sons is already there in Missouri and the other will be moving as well within two years, so my family will be near and my life will align as it should God first and family second. Still my great desire remains to tell the world of the good news of Christ by my life and by proclaiming His Marvelous Grace to crowds of thousands and to audiences of one; because, as Paul proclaimed so do I.
Romans 1: (AMP)
"16 For I am not ashamed of the Gospel (good news) of Christ, for it is God’s power working unto salvation [for deliverance from eternal death] to everyone who believes with a personal trust and a confident surrender and firm reliance, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,
17 For in the Gospel a righteousness which God ascribes is revealed, both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]. As it is written, The man who through faith is just and upright shall live and shall live by faith."
Romans 3: (AMP)"21 But now the righteousness of God has been revealed independently and altogether apart from the Law, although actually it is attested by the Law and the Prophets,
22 Namely, the righteousness of God which comes by believing with personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ (the Messiah). [And it is meant] for all who believe. For there is no distinction,
23 Since all have sinned and are falling short of the honor and glory[b]which God bestows and receives.
24 [All] are justified and made upright and in right standing with God, freely and gratuitously by His grace (His unmerited favor and mercy), through the redemption which is [provided] in Christ Jesus,
25 Whom God put forward [[c]before the eyes of all] as a mercy seat and propitiation by His blood [the cleansing and life-giving sacrifice of atonement and reconciliation, to be received] through faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in His divine forbearance He had passed over and ignored former sins without punishment.
26 It was to demonstrate and prove at the present time ([d]in the now season) that He Himself is righteous and that He justifies and accepts as righteous him who has [true] faith in Jesus."
What are the beauties of the Gospel of Christ that would cause me to lay aside everything to follow Him wherever and whenever He says Go?
Beauty # 1: The power of God unto Salvation. Christ is our only way of being redeemed and restored to a right relationship with God.
Beauty #2: Faith. It is by faith that we accept Christ as our Savior; yet, even that faith He provides as we seek Him. Then that faith is multiplied. " both springing from faith and leading to faith [disclosed through the way of faith that arouses to more faith]."
Beauty #3: Righteousness imparted. I exchange my rags of unrighteousness for a princely robe of unrighteousness as Christ wraps His cloak around me–declaring me a righteous Saint because of all He did for me and though I so undeserving.
Beauty #4: God’s Unmerited Love Toward Me. God reached down from heaven and chose me; not because of anything I did to deserve it, not because He saw anything special within me. He chose me, He wooed me, He called me, and He adopted me as His child–joint heir with Christ. The child in the corner who thought them self unlovable. The one who struggled with disbelief and constantly needed to be reminded that I belong. The one who would daily look into heaven and say, "Do you really love me?"
Do you know the Beauties of Christ? Has the eyes of your heart ever been opened to recognize the treasure that is found only in Christ? Do you seek Him with all your heart or are you still searching for fool’s gold? Are you tired of chasing after joys that leave you brokenhearted and hopeless? Have you reached that point of grace where you lay aside everything to seek, savor and follow after Christ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9u-DNSIL1lw&list=PL28AF40FE2C72B7BF
"Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible,
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)