What motivates you to live for Christ? Is it His love? Fear of consequences? Desire for reward? Are you motivated by anything? In this chapter believers are getting discouraged with how long it is taking Jesus to return. Their lives are not going great, so they are wondering if Jesus will ever return and take them home. In fact, they are beginning to question "if" Jesus will actually do what He said.
Peter assures them that Jesus is coming back and encourages them to live as though it will be today! When we get discouraged by God's timing we often tend toward not living for HIm. Many decide to willfully ignore God's clear encouragement in their lives. I don't want to be like that! I am praying that we will be the kind of people who serve Jesus period.
It is always best to do what Jesus would have us do. It is never easy. It is alway worth it.
Live strong today.
In light of these things, what kind of people ought we to be?
ReplyDeleteThese three words jump out at me: KIND, OUGHT, and BE.
We are to be a certain type or KIND of people. There are any number of ways to identify yourself these days: Packers fan, White, Male, Doctor, Father, Amercian, etc...
Peter calls us to a identification with Jesus first and foremost.
We OUGHT to do these things. It is the right response. In light of all of this, we ought. Because God has shown His love for us in Jesus, the right response is to love Him in return. It's only right to receive a gift in gratitude. Especially considering the gift in this case is Christ.
We should BE something. Being something means doing something. Apple trees produce apples. If you make oranges and tell me you're an apple tree, one of us is wrong and it's not me :)