Day 26

Becoming a Christian is knowing we cannot live life as we are intended to. We need the presence of God.

‘Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”’ (Acts 2:38)

On a flight from Europe I sat beside a Muslim gentleman. After a while we were talking about Islam and Christianity and how they compared. He was concerned that Christianity was broken into so many denominations because we could not agree on what to believe. Then he concluded, ‘In the final analysis, whatever you believe it’s how you behave that’s the important thing, isn’t it?’

I said I was sure there was some truth in that but what was it that equipped us to behave anyway? Our ability to behave in a Christlike manner is not possible without experiencing the new life that empowers us. ‘What’s this new life,’ he asked. I told him it was the Holy Spirit of God. We are created so that His presence in our humanity is indispensable to living as we are meant to live. He told me Islam was empowered by the certainty of belief, that when you truly believe in God you are motivated to live the right way. In other words, it is driven by the power of believing something outside of yourself. Christianity goes beyond that: on the basis of what we believe to be true of God and about Christ and our relationship to Him, we become indwelt by the life of God Himself, which becomes the only explanation for our lives.

Thank You, Lord, for the new life that is mine in Christ Jesus, enabling me to live as You intended!