1 Corinthians 2:2
"For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified."
To resolve is to "find a solution to a problem."
For those of us who strive to live a life that is worthwhile, impactful, or meaningful, we face various problems and concerns.
As we lie in the stillness of the night, after the noise and distractions have ceased, we are faced with a life that we know has not met the standard.
God has placed eternity in the hearts of all men, and when we view our lives through this lens, it becomes impossible for us to justify our behavior.
With days spent mindlessly pursuing entertainment, failure to treat others the way we would like to be treated, and squandered opportunities to extend love to those around us, comes conviction as we lie in the silence.
While we may be temporarily motivated in these moments of reflection, showing some semblance of repetenance through a multitude of tears, real change does not occur, as evident by our behavior the next day.
Though sanctification is a process, and though we are being renewed day by day, are we not more than overcomers through Jesus?
We are told that, because the same power that raised Christ from the dead into life lives in us, we are under no obligation to sin.
Though we shed tears and though we wish to be better, we are not able to say it is some condition or circumstance outside of our control that causes us to fall short of what we know to be right. The problem lies solely in our "resolve."
We face a problem, such as someone cutting us off on the way to work, and we resolve to get revenge.
We feel an emptiness and a longing, and we resolve to fill that void with material things or earthly pleasures.
We encounter people who are difficult to love, and we resolve to protect our peace rather than experience the discomfort and vulnerability that comes with love.
whereas once we were slaves to sin and were unable to respond to life in a Christ-minded way, we have now been given a sound mind.
Do not be deceived! If you are not living up to the standard which is Jesus, as a born-again believer, indwelled with The Holy Spirit, it is not a problem relating to your capability, rather it is a problem related to your willingness.
You need not ask God for the capability to love, serve, and forgive... He has given you the fullest measure of capability that you will have throughout all eternity, for He has given you The Holy Spirit, and no believer has ever received a degree of The Holy Spirit, for He is a person who can not be divided. No, when He endwelled you, He made you fully capable.
You can shed tears until your eyes run dry... You can beg and plead until your lungs give out... You can tear your clothes and wear burlap and throw ashes on your head, and you will not receive an ounce more of the capability to live the way that God has commanded you.
How then can we escape the endless cycle of a life void of the wonder-working power of God? Must we wait until we are removed from this earth and these bodies? Perhaps the world is too far gone. Perhaps the trials and tribulations we face are different now. Maybe those days of our youth, when we felt the call to make a difference in the kingdom of God and to go out into the world bringing with us a holy flame that leads to revival, are behind us.
There is a song that says:
Give me that old-time religion,
It's good enough for me.
It was good for Paul and Silas
It's good enough for me.
There is a method to escape this cycle.
There is a way of living that will wake you up before your alarm, that will change the way you drive and work and eat and pray.
It isn't new. It's the same old way that Paul and the others took.
"For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified."
It's Jesus!
It's the blood!
If someone cuts you off on the road...look at the cross! Where they cut off our Lord, and He forgave them.
If you feel empty... look at the cross! Where the curtain of the temple was torn, and you gained access to the Holy of Holies.
If someone is difficult to love... look at the cross! Where Christ gave even His shed blood for you when you were at your most vile and in your most unlovable state.
Cling to the cross and don't let it go! Look at it and ponder it in everything you do! Don't go any further than it because there is no further. There is nothing else worth knowing. There is nothing else that will give you life. There is nothing else that will satisfy. There is no other work to be done. There is no other method in which to praise.
There is no other prayer to pray than "Thank you for the cross."