NO STANDING STILL

There is no standing still; we are either growing closer to Christ or slipping away.


Are you growing closer to Christ? Is your intimacy with Christ more vibrant than ever before? How can you tell? Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to better assess where you are at spiritually.


FOUR OBJECTIVES
FIRST OBJECTIVE: Determine your Eternal Focus Intensity


Question to Ask Yourself: Am I increasingly focused on the heavenly, eternal prize in Christ?


"I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us." - Philippians 3:12-14 (NLT)


SECOND OBJECTIVE: Determine the degree that I am progressively fulfilling the Great Commandments.


Question to Ask Yourself: Am I living like Jesus did, and loving people with the love of Christ?


"But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did." - 1 John 2:5-6 (NIV)


THIRD OBJECTIVE: Determine if I am progressively implementing all that Christ has taught me?


Question to Ask Yourself: Am I actually doing all I know to do, that the Bible teaches me to do?


"But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it." - James 1:22-25 (NLT)


FOURTH OBJECTIVE: Determine the degree of Great Commission Productivity


Question to Ask Yourself: Am I increasingly effective and productive in following Christ in fulfilling the Great Commission?


"For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." - 2 Peter 1:5-8 (NIV)


CONCLUSION
Asking ourselves these questions can help us see if we are progressing or slipping back in our intimacy with Christ.


Your aspiring servant, Daniel M. 
December 4, 2023
POSTSCRIPT: Dear friends, if this daily, transparent “Conversations with Christ” blesses you, please go to www.SOLIDpastors.org, where you will find these posted, and a repository of all, in English and Spanish. If you ever want to chat, you can reach me at [email protected]. May Christ bless you richly as you have your own intimate, daily conversations with Christ.