In our lives we are put through all sorts of trials that are designed to transform us into the likeness of God's son, Jesus. As part of our Christian walk we are expected to keep trying to attain Jesus' qualities, which are perfect examples of what God wants to see in us also.
Unfortunately, it is impossible for anyone to live up to the same standard that Jesus set: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3 verse 23). So you could imagine that when we attempt to live a perfect life, we are sometimes going to trip up along the way.
Thankfully God is understanding of our human nature, always being patient with us when we do fall short of his expectations. It is written, "For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law," (Romans 3 verse 28) because if our justification was to be purely based on upholding the law presented by Moses, then we would all be subject to condemnation.
Hence we claim that following Jesus is the only path we can and must follow if we are to attain salvation. And for those that are always trying to walk along this path and serving God, we have this comfort: "How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!"(Hebrews 9 verse 14)
By sending his son to die on the cross for us, God reveals the extent of his faithfulness in seeing us through to the end of our Christian walk. Consequently, when we remember our shortcomings, we should take comfort in the fact that all our sins have already been paid for and that we have been justified through our faith in Jesus.
God pays more attention to our progress in our transformation into the likeness of Jesus than we can comprehend. We are told: "He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight."(Ephesians 1 verse 4)
We know that God's plans for us, no matter what they may be, can't be foiled. As a result, we should trust that since God planned it out before our existence that we will be united with him at the end: nothing can get in the way of us attaining our salvation.
Getting discouraged when we fail in following God's commands can prove to be a difficult obstacle to overcome. But as long as we keep trying to repent and obey His commands, we should take comfort in that since all of our wrongdoings have been paid for in full through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, God will always prove faithful in forgiving us and seeing us through to the end of our Christian walk.
Tim Robertson is from Sydney and is studying engineering at UNSW
Tim Robertson's previous articles may be found at www.pressserviceinternational.org/tim-robertson.html