December 30, 2013

Gathering the fruit of righteousness...

Hosea 10:12

Sow to yourselves in righteousness;
Gather in the fruit of life;
Light for yourselves the light of knowledge;
Seek the Lord till the fruits of righteousness come upon you.

Personal Challenge...

Works...such a virulent subject to talk about in many church circles. Because of the works of Christ we have our claim to eternity. Through His works, and His alone, we are saved from spiritual death. But it is expected of us, that once we are brought into His royal family, to perform good works for Him. We are commanded to feed the hungry, provide shelter for the homeless, clothe the poor, take care of the widows and the orphans, and do so many more acts of charity. But more importantly we are commanded to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, spirit, and body, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. All of this comes down to works. Not works to win God's favor, but works because God has already poured His favor out upon us. What so often gets in our way of doing this is the sin in our lives. I love how this verse shows us actions that we can take to protect ourselves from sin and to build up our ability to live righteous lives. We are to plant seeds of righteousness purposely in our lives, gather in the fruit of life that we have had planted in our lives by the Holy Spirit (love, joy, peace, etc.), continually light up our lives with the light of knowledge that is found in God's word, the teachings and traditions of our church, and practices of living God-centered lives. If we do all of this (works) while seeking the Lord we will see His fruits of righteousness growing in our lives. Glory be to God!