In our work life we all have resumes or CVs that we try to construct so as to give a realistic picture of ourselves as possible. Okay, I know that some of them are a little embellished to make us look better than we are but ours should be the truth without distortions. I feel this scripture is the unembellished resume of every Christian who is walking by faith.
Consider this list of "qualifications".
- "in great endurance;
- in troubles, hardships and distresses;
- in beatings, imprisonments and riots;
- in hard work,
- sleepless nights and hunger;
- in purity,
- understanding, patience and kindness;
- in the Holy Spirit and in sincere love;
- in truthful speech and
- in the power of God;
- with weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left
- through glory and dishonour,
- bad report and good report;
- genuine, yet regarded as impostors;
- known, yet regarded as unknown;
- dying, and yet we live on;
- beaten, and yet not killed;
- sorrowful, yet always rejoicing;
- poor, yet making many rich;
- having nothing, and yet possessing everything.”
Wow, that's a lot of reality packed into a few verses. You have to read it through again to get a better grip on this "warts and all" view of life in Christ.
This walk of faith seems to have more down sides than up sides. Well, maybe not, when you consider the big up side is Jesus and eternal life. However we have go tot learn that our walk with Jesus has some serious challenges. Our resume looks a little "spotty" from a human point of view but from where God is sitting this is the life He planned for us. It's a life lived just like the life Jesus lived.
