The Discovered Life

25 Mar

When God creates a species, he gives it the desire and ability to do what he intended it to do. Now, here’s another important consideration. Christians are a “new creature” – a “new species”…

True freedom comes from choosing actions that are consistent with your nature. Embracing this perspective opens our eyes to the beauty of God’s commands. God knows our true nature and desires for us to discover it. So each command is a challenge to discover abilities yet untapped. He often commands things that are beyond human potential. For instance, he says, “Love your enemies.” I have enough trouble loving my friends, even my spiritual family. If this command is something I must fulfill on my own to gain God’s blessing and pleasure, I’m in deep trouble. But along with this command I’m given the love to accomplish it. And I’ve discovered an aspect of eternal life I hadn’t known before.

You might remember the man with the withered hand who was confronted by Jesus. “Stretch out your hand,” demanded Jesus (Mk 3:5). What a cruel thing to say to a man who obviously couldn’t use his hand. The man could have argued, “Please ask me to do something I am able to do. Capitalize on my strengths and overlook my liabilities. I can do many things for you if you will but let me perform. Why, look at my walking. There’s nothing wrong with my feet. I can talk for you; there is nothing wrong with my mouth.”

But Jesus wasn’t interested in what the man could do for him. He wanted to do something for the man. He wanted the man to experience a new kind of life… eternal life. But that kind of life can only be experienced by faith. It is no different when he commands us to do the impossible. He is trying to help us discover that we have a quality of life greater than we can imagine. Difficulties take on a different value when seen from the perspective of eternal life. Since our Father knows what he has placed within us and we do not, he is constantly leading us into situations where our real capabilities are revealed…

Life is a discovery! Every command of God is intended to release us from the bondage of who we aren’t into the wonderful world of who we were meant to be.

Dudley Hall