Christ my past, present, and future

Unknown-2As a Christ follower, I am not defined by my past failures. Nor am I defined by my present projects. My hope is not in my future accomplishments. The good news of the gospel—the greatest possible story of the world—is that I am part of something much bigger than myself. Christianity is true, and so I find the source of all truth in Christ. Christianity is good, and so I find the source of all goodness in Christ. Christianity is beautiful, and so my heart is filled with joy as I become captivated by the glory of Christ.

There is much to enjoy about the gospel. I could search it for all of eternity and it would never cease to amaze and delight me. For at the center of the gospel we find Jesus. He is behind me. He is with me. He goes before me. As Michael Reeves puts it:

“We children of God, then, are like seeds in the Firstfruit, and gleefully find ourselves entirely—past, present and future—compassed about by Christ:

Past:   Having died with him, we can look no further back into our past than him. Christ, not failure, is our history.

Present: United to him, we now share his glad life and standing before the Father. Filled with his Spirit, we are made ever more like him.

Future: The judge of all the earth is our faithful Savior; when he appears we will be with him, we will be like him and we will be co-heirs with him.”[1]

God offers us forgiveness of sins, eternity, wholeness, and more. But what he primarily offers us is himself. No other religion compares. No other religion satisfies. No other claim to the mantle of truth can even come close to the gospel offer of Jesus.

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)

May we stand in this grace as we see and savor Jesus.

 

[1] Michael Reeves, Rejoicing in Christ (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), 119.

5 Responses to Christ my past, present, and future

  1. Pingback: Christ My Past, Present, And Future | A disciple's study

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