Those Who Are Wise Will Shine!
Understanding the Work of God in Your Redemption
by
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Introduction
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified, Romans 8:28-30.
For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
2 Corinthians 2:15
I once heard a pastor state, “there are three types of Christians:
• Those who are “new” Christians
• Those who are “pew” Christians
• Those who are “I haven’t got a clue” Christians
As humorous as that may be, there is a lot of truth in it. New Christians are asking, “What’s next? Where do I go from here?” They simply need direction, encouragement, and discipleship. Pew Christians are just comfortable. They attend church on Sunday, possibly even take in a Sunday school class, thank the pastor after the sermon, and race off to lunch. The following week they start all over again. Then there is the “I haven’t got a clue” Christians. This group consists of those who claim that Scripture is too difficult to understand. They cannot get past the “begets” of Matthew and wonder why God put them there in the first place. Like the pew Christian, they’re satisfied with the Sunday sermon, when they can make it. Their lives could be characterized as suffering from “no growth syndrome.” There actually is a fourth type, the “endued” Christian. This Christian knows the value of spending time in God’s Word. He knows how to live in the redemptive power that accompanies salvation and he seeks God each day for direction. God is well pleased with his attitude and faith toward Him and He empowers him accordingly. He sees each new day as a new opportunity to serve the Lord. No matter what the day holds, he is always attentive… listening for the still small voice of God. He lives to be in His will. He may not be wealthy or own a lot of “stuff” but he has the one thing we all want: peace with God.
Every Believer Is at a Different Stage of Spiritual Development
Ringing loud and clear in Scripture are the following truths: God’s people are God’s work and all of us are at varying stages of spiritual development. Recognizing those elementary truths will develop greater clarity in us toward how we view our fellow Christians. However, what we do with that knowledge, what directions we take, will depend upon what we believe about the Lord. If we believe that He is the Lord God Almighty and His will is to empower every believer, then as we relate to him or her we will seek His face in heartfelt prayer and ask Him to work toward enabling us to follow His direction. Instead of ignoring or tearing another down, we will use our spiritual resources to build one another up. We will ask what we can do to take part in our spiritual sibling’s spiritual welfare. When He speaks to us, we will listen and we will gather with our brothers and sisters and pray for the Lord’s confirmation on what we think He is telling us. Then with faith, we will act accordingly. On the other hand, if we do not have a healthy reverence for the Word of God and are not particularly concerned about another’s walk with Him then we will find ourselves in a ministry of compromise and a standoffish attitude will begin to envelop our lives. Souls will never be empowered through the ministry of a church body that lives in compromise and refuses to be faithful to the call of God.
Nevertheless, take heart, the Lord does not leave us without direction. He has given us His Word to help us and others mature. In fact, when we look at the scripture passages quoted at the beginning of the chapter, two points of instruction immediately spring up from the page: First, in accordance with God’s will, we are predestined by Him to be conformed to the image of Christ and secondly, we are to God the fragrance of Christ. Both of these texts speak of our underlying redemption and its profound relationship to our Lord’s will and purpose. They tell us that our redemption through Christ is an ongoing purposeful experience—that God’s desire is for us to become “conformed to the image of Christ” and that in every situation we emit the “fragrance of Christ.” God truly desires to have an intimate relationship with all believers. Part of that intimacy is molding us into the person He saved us to be. If we set our hearts to that end while seeking God’s face, again, He will provide the instruction needed to bring spiritual growth into our church families. To watch Him work is amazing!
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About the Book
Taken from Daniel 12:3, "Those Who Are Wise Will Shine" uncovers God's awesome power at work in the lives of those He chose to bear His message of Redemption, from Adam to Christ. The lives of these faithful brightly shined forth with His presence in the face of a world full of darkness. They knew He spoke to them, called them, and in turn, they were constrained to follow Him. There is no better way to shine for the Lord than to know with determined faith, who He really is and that where He leads, you will faithfully follow! These ancient pioneers of faith displayed just that!
This work seeks to take the readers back to the basics of Redemption and Sanctification though the unfolding of the "Redemptive Thread" that links the blood lineage of our ancient forefathers to the rise of our Messiah, Jesus Christ. It ends with the joyous events still to come at His Second Advent. From creation to the cross, redemption and sanctification are certainly defined as two of the zealous desires of the Lord. The overall central theme of the Holy Scripture is redemption. Humanity is fallen, separated from God, and in dire need of reconciliation. The Lord’s perfect gift of redemption reconciles the breach. His work in us is what follows. Immediately He begins that work, and it will never be complete until we see Him face-to-face!! He calls us to be holy and set apart for His service. Never underestimate the value He has placed on you as a vessel chosen with purpose to be His emissary shining His light into this dark world. It is God’s foundational will for each of us to emanate the fragrance of Christ in all He calls us to be.
Today, Christians in most places are still in need of the milk of the word. They lead a very shallow and powerless Christian life. It is one of the reasons the church is so lifeless in many places. It is not enough to know of the elementary principles of Christianity, we must also understand their meaning in terms of God's continual work in us. We must take them to heart. This volume seeks to lay a foundation of trusting God by understanding how God worked in the lives of past saints to make sure His message of redemption went unhindered so it could be ours today. Millions in the past millennia have gone beyond the superficial and with God's help, stood firmly and boldly on His side! A proper understanding of Redemption will only lead you to rejoice with “joy unspeakable” as you stand in unrestricted service to God. He has liberated us to fulfill our redemptive purpose. He truly has set us free!
Hebrews 13:9b teaches us, “For it is good that the heart be established by grace...” The word established comes from βέβαιος which means to be firm or secure, literally propped up, as in a stick holding up a tent. If our heart is truly established by the true teaching of Grace, which comes from the nature of the Father, then when we fall, we still stand. Rejoice in Him…For Redemption provides just that!
About the Author
Michael L. Henderson is currently a Software Engineering consultant. He has been professionally published online and in a technical journals several times. He formerly pastored churches in three states and was a recipient of the Baptist Sunday School Board Smaller Church Pastor of the Year. Michael has a four-year technical degree and attended Southwest Baptist University and Ozark Christian College where he studied theology. Michael, his wife Brenna, and their two daughters reside in Chatham Illinois. He enjoys speaking, writing, teaching, woodworking, and Bible study.