Beautiful Life

He was dressed in his military uniform, neatly pressed, carefully presented. But, there was a big problem; I was looking at a corpse! Oh, I could see from his features who he was. Yet, there was no sparkle of laughter, no warmth of relationship. His spirit was gone, leaving a shell. The appearance was intact but the essence of the man himself was missing. The vibrant, fun-loving guy described by the friends was nowhere in sight inside that coffin! The life that made him beautiful was gone!

Disciple, are you ALIVE in Christ?
Is the Holy Spirit active in you, making your life a thing of beauty?

There are those who claim to be “Christian” who are not. They are dressed in religious habits, neatly prepared with Biblical theology, and carefully presented with morality, but dead none-the-less! Their lives are missing the essence of being truly Christian.  One night, a very moral man, a religious leader, came to Jesus. Nicodemus knew that something was missing in his sought after relationship with God. He was among those still dead. Jesus told him, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life." (John 3:5-6, NLT) Let me paraphrase Jesus’ words: Your Daddy and Momma gave you one kind of life, but the Spirit of God will give you real and lasting life. You can have a life that is made beautiful, not of your own doing, by God’s Spirit living in you. You need not go through some esoteric ritual, join some mind-bending cult, or go on a vision quest in some far-away land to find this life. Jesus said that “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." (John 14:23, NIV)

He is invited to come through faith in Christ Jesus. He remains as we respond to His prompting, deal with our sinfulness, and breathe His breath in worship and prayer. Where the Spirit lives, there is an attractive, nearly indescribable, but very real, quality of life. Are you alive?

Here’s a word from the Word. It’s one of my favorite passages, rich in promise. Take time to digest it, accept what the Lord says, and let the beautiful life begin.
"Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.


Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.


So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children." (Romans 8:10-16, NLT)

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Heavenly Dad, (Abba!) I love You and
thank you for the gift of life.
Breathe Your holy breath in me.

Make my words and actions beautiful for Your own glory.
As Your life pulses through this mortal body
in that mysterious way of which Jesus spoke,
may I catch sight of Heaven and Hope!

Come, Holy Spirit!
Produce the evidence of Your Life in me:
The abundant fruit spoken of by the Word:
"love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." (Galatians 5:22-23, NLT)

As You live in me, cause me to
love, laugh, and make Your Presence
known in the world,
one truly ‘born of the Spirit.’
Amen.