The AustinStone strives to be a Gospel-CenteredChurch. If you have been around the church for anyperiod of time you have heard the gospel mentioned. You've probably heard that the gospel shouldnot only be how one becomes a follower of Christ, but should be the foundationand power for the rest of our lives. Paul says of the gospel, "It is the power of God for salvation to allwho believe....." This begs the question,how? How do we as followers of Christkeep the gospel foundational to our lives? How do we make all our actions gospel-motivated? How does the gospel enable us to fight sin?
These areall questions I have wrestled with over the past few years. For me the foundational question I must askmyself is, what is my identity? What is the thing in my life that I find worthin? I often find my identity and worthin so many things other than Jesus, but over the past few years I do feel likeI have had some victory in this area. The Biblical truth of adoption has helped a great deal in applying thegospel to my life everyday. Paul says inGalatians, "And becauseyou are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba!Father!' So you are no longer a slave,but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
Think about this verse. Itsays, "...no longer a slave, BUT a son, and if a son, then an heir..." I so often live as a slave to God and not ason of God. Instead of resting in theFather's love, I try to gain His favor by living up to his standards (which areusually my created standards). Life isoften like a treadmill, with me trying to be a "good Christian" so God orothers will approve of me, but those are things a slave does and not a son. Because I am so prone to wander, day after dayI MUST continually dwell on the gospel and my identity as a child of God, or inthe words of Martin Luther I must, "beat it (the gospel) into my headcontinually." I do not need to obeyGod's commands to gain acceptance. I amalready accepted as His child! That'swhy I should want to obey!
So my question for you is, what do you find your identity in? When you wake up in the morning do you seeyourself as a child of God or a slave to God? Dwell on this idea of adoption day after day, and I guarantee you willbegin to experience more joy as you follow Jesus.
