THINK TOGETHER
Have you ever had to work on something with a partner? (a group project)
READ TOGETHER
Becoming more and more like Jesus is a partnership. What are some things that you do with a partner? Well, growing up in Jesus is also something we do with our partner – God himself!
Now make no mistakes about it, God is the one that is changing us. God is the one who took away our sins, and forgave us, and lives inside of us, and is making us more like Jesus throughout our entire life. Truly without God we can do nothing. Without God no one could ever be good.
But God also asks us to do our part in becoming like Jesus. Here’s what the Apostle Paul says to the Roman Christians. What does he say is our part?
Romans 8:13. if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Paul says that our part is to “put to death the [bad] deeds of the body.” In other words, we need to try to stop sinning. We need to kill the sin that wants to come out of us and hurt others. We need to take being mean very seriously because it is unloving. We need to stop being selfish and greedy. We need to not fight, and not whine, and not yell at our parents, and not tell lies.
We need to be good instead of bad.
But isn’t trusting God and knowing he loves us way more important than being good? Isn’t that what this blog is all about every day? Yes.
But someone who knows that God loves them, and knows that God is good and trustworthy, and knows that sin no longer controls them, and knows that they are forgiven forever, and knows that they have Jesus with them all the time, that person will want to kill the sin that wants to come out. That person, a true Christian, will feel bad when they sin, or are mean, or selfish. That person will choose to be good not bad. Not to make God happy with us – he’s already happy with us because of Jesus. But because God is happy with us we should want to make others happy too. And you can’t make others happy when you’re selfish, mean, and grouchy all the time. You can’t truly live when you’re not living with Jesus.
Because of Jesus sin doesn’t control us anymore.
With Jesus we can stop sinning.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
A Christmas Carol is a great story/movie for illustrating a change of heart that leads to a change of behavior. Here’s the ending of the Disney version:
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus,
With you I don’t have to be selfish. With you I can love the way you love me. Help me to choose to live the way you live.
Amen.
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