What if we find ourselves, as most of us do, already among the affluent? Then we need to be honest about the difficulties and dangers that face us, and we need to do whatever it takes to compensate for the disadvantage of our possessions.
There aren’t many Christians who wouldn’t say that God is their most valuable treasure. But where is the evidence of that? The real location of our treasure is most easily discovered by looking at where we invest most of our energy and enthusiasm.
God’s patience is great, but it is not open-ended. Sooner or later, our opportunity for repentance will be interrupted. This is not a matter of “if” — it is only a matter of “when.” We are encouraged, therefore, to seek God while He may be found.
What if we don’t see our need for God? If our hearts tell us that our desire is less than it should be, what can we do? We can begin by “desiring to desire” God. We can at least make the choice to lay down our rebellion against Him.
If we find ourselves failing consistently to obey God and to enjoy the good things that come from obedience, then it’s time to stop trimming the leaves of the tree and strike at the taproot of the problem: our lack of love for God and other people.
In assessing our character, all anyone ever needs to know is the answer to this question: how deep is our love for our Creator? When that question has been answered accurately, the very root of our personal being will have been discovered.
We must not only desire to know the truth; we must actually intend to obey it. If we’re honestly looking for information that will help us improve our own obedience, then we have God’s assurance that we’ll get the information we need.
We can improve our ability to discern the Lord’s will, and if we’re at all serious about seeking God, then we’ll surely set that as a high priority. Indeed, the only higher priority would be improving our doing of the Lord’s will after we discern it!
“Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,'” Jesus asked, “and do not do the things which I say?” There is more to Christianity than simply listing it as our religious preference. Jesus Christ is not really our Lord if we don’t do the things He says.
Neglect is responsible for some of the most awful suffering in the human race. The damage that is done by simply failing to act may grow so slowly that we don’t see it increasing, but in the end, the cumulative effect is devastating.
