“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1 (ESV)
The first crucial step in becoming a peacemaker is to make peace with God. Until you are in a right relationship with God, your horizontal influence for the kingdom of God will not be fruitful. God took the initiative to provide for the salvation of your soul. Your sin debt was paid in full by the atoning work of Jesus on the cross. Jesus took the full wrath of God for your sin. Jesus took your place. As a result of His work of redemption, you are justified through faith. It is “just-if-I’d” never sinned! When God sees you, He sees you through the shed blood of Jesus.
Have your responded to God’s redemptive act by placing your faith in Jesus alone for your salvation? That divine transaction changes your forever. Once you have made peace with God, you become a new creation. You are filled with the Holy Spirit and adopted into God’s forever family. Your salvation is sealed by the Holy Spirit. Your security is not based on your human effort, but on God’s redeeming grace. No one can snatch you out of the Father’s hand.
Now that you are in a right relationship with God, walk in the peace God provides. When that peace is threatened through compromise, confess your sin and purge your life of anything that hinders your love relationship with God. Maintain peace with God by living a life of instant obedience. The convicting work of the Holy Spirit will alert you when something enters your life that does not honor God. Confess sin immediately and allow the Holy Spirit to take full possession of your life. Will others see God’s peace in your life today?
Drawing Near,
Stephen Trammell
Lead Pastor
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