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Whosoever will may come. Whoever desires to, is invited to come to Jesus. These are great invitations, Jesus says that few will respond to his invitation.
We’ve sung the song “Just As I Am” many times. Though it is often sung at revival meetings, it seems like it is applicable to all of a Christians life. From conversion to wherever we are in our spiritual journey towards greater Christlikeness.
We start our Christian life without any merit. We have no plea, no case that we can make on our own. We have no chance before a holy God except for two things. First, that Christs blood was shed for me, and second, that Christ calls us to come to Him!
1 John tells us that if we believe we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and forgive us. When we falter and stumble and fall… even after we have come to Christ. When we fall we must repent… and we need to come to Him as we are, messy, dirty, not so pretty and needing to be cleaned up… and He is there.
There is a power there for all of the sons of Christ. We are still hearing the shepherds call and we must respond… Hebrews says that when we hear the call, we must not harden our hearts. Sometimes it is conviction, sometimes it is direction, sometimes it is insights and a call to draw nearer to him, but we are still hearing that call.
There are other calls in scripture, John 15 calls us to abide in Christ, just like a branch on a grape vine is connected and abides in the main trunk of the plant.
Say yes to the call of God, commit yourself to the new man. Instead of unforgiveness forgiveness. Instead of covetousness contentment. Instead of impurity purity.
Sometimes we are also called to suffer. 1 Peter 2 tells us that we are called to follow in the steps of Christ, even when we enter into sufferring.
Mark 1:17 – We are called to join Jesus and the Spirit in calling others.
Sometime we will hear the last call. 1 Thessalonians 4:17 – when we answer that call we will forever be with the Lord. We will have arrived, we will be praising Him forever.
References mentioned – John 7:37, Revelation 21:17, Acts 2, 1 John 1, Hebrews 4:14, Hebrews 3:1-15, John 15, Mathew 11, 1 Peter, Mark 1:17, 1 Thessalonians 4:17