–Kenneth Pratt (Return to Willow Falls)
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”
–2 Corinthians 3:18 (NKJV)
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Life is Living! Have you got that through your noggin yet? Living for Christ is when everything we do is done for His glory, and when that is the case we live life abundantly. If you are living your life for Jesus, how do people then see you? My Sunday School teacher presented a great class last Sunday on 2 Corinthians, chapter 3. I would encourage you to read the complete chapter to get the thoughts in context, but I want to zoom in on a couple of verses this morning.
“[No] you yourselves are our letter of recommendation (our credentials), written in your hearts, to be known (perceived, recognized) and read by everybody. You show and make obvious that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, not written with ink but with [the] Spirit of [the] living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”
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Life is Living! Have you got that through your noggin yet? Living for Christ is when everything we do is done for His glory, and when that is the case we live life abundantly. If you are living your life for Jesus, how do people then see you? My Sunday School teacher presented a great class last Sunday on 2 Corinthians, chapter 3. I would encourage you to read the complete chapter to get the thoughts in context, but I want to zoom in on a couple of verses this morning.
“[No] you yourselves are our letter of recommendation (our credentials), written in your hearts, to be known (perceived, recognized) and read by everybody. You show and make obvious that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, not written with ink but with [the] Spirit of [the] living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”
–2 Corinthians 3:2-3 (Amplified)
How do you read me? How do others read you? We are letters to be read by those who are in the church and those who are in the world. This letter, as the Amplified states, are your credentials. It states you are who you say you are. In my files I have several credentials stating something about who I am. Some of them are from the military, others are in the realm of education. There is one–a birth certificate–that states when I was born, where I was born, who my parents were, and my gender.
For a minute I want you to think of a letter and its components. There is a greeting, a salutation, and that begins to set the tone of the letter. Paul in this letter to the Corinthians states that he is an apostle in his greeting then adds, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:2, NKJV). Then you go into the content, the body of the letter.
First of all watch your grammar. A comma out of place, the use of a wrong word can totally change the meaning of the letter. Take a look at yourself. How are you presenting yourself to the world? Is there something out of place that gives those who see you a different perspective from what you meant? I know first impressions can often be wrong, but they are important. They leave an impression, note the term, and that might be the only one they receive from you. I recall during inspections when I was in the military that if a person’s boots were not shined to the desired perfection that consequences would follow. Boots not shined, the rest of you would also show defects, and that was the first place the sergeant would look.
Second, we must be sure our spelling is correct. If not, there might be the wrong message given. Dot your “I’s”, cross your “Ts”, in other words do things right, remember, you are doing it for the Lord. Someone said, “The most valuable gift you can give another is a good example.” Annie and I have uncovered a few scams that have come our way simply because words were misspelled–not very professional. The seemingly small things count, they are important!
For want of a nail, the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe, the horse was lost.
For want of a horse, the rider was lost.
For want of a rider, the battle was lost.
For want of a battle, the kingdom was lost.
And all for want of a nail!
More and more it seems like the little things are not important. That is a dangerous misconception for people are reading you. A curse word slips from your mouth and that person begins to think…hmm, is that Christlike?
Third, don’t scribble! Work on your penmanship! Be clear, not only in your message (of your life) but also in the clarity of it. Very few schools now teach penmanship, cursive is not taught, how then can a person’s work then be legible? Work on the actual writing of your letter. That is something you do and it must be practiced. Can people read my life? Let the Holy Spirit begin His work by writing on your heart. He is always clear in what He says; He is always legible in what He writes.
You are an epistle! A living letter! Your life will be read and made known by all men. The term, “known” means “manifestly declared.” You, in your everyday walk, your words and actions, even your thoughts and attitudes are a letter to be read by those around you. Let them be so that those who are reading you will see the message of Jesus Christ.