The Word of the Lord is Sweet
by Pastor Steph
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"Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will fo ryou, which is good and pleasing and perfect."
Romans 12:2
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How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions? We are one week into 2021 and I’m on shaky ground. Sandy’s donuts. Sammy’s pizza. Silver Lining Creamery. You get the idea. I justified the ice-cream because it was infused with blackberries (fruit is good for you), and we were going to go across the street to the new ice rink(exercise), but we didn’t actually skate. The moral of the story is, nothing changes if nothing changes. I entered the New Year exactly the same as I left the old. Change in habits requires more than a wish of words strung together to make a resolution. Change happens when the words we speak are enfleshed by action and that takes more than simply turning the calendar page.
All of us struggle with changing our habits. The apostle Paul writes, “I do not do what I want to do instead I do the thing I hate.” He’s talking about transformation. The spiritual transformation Paul seeks is to exchange his past hurts, habits, and hang-ups for a freedom he knows to be found in Christ alone.
Christ Jesus is God’s word made flesh. He is the word that does something. He didn’t just resolve to forgive your sins, he died on a cross so that you could receive eternal forgiveness. He didn’t just say it was a good idea to feed the hungry, he fed the hungry, and clothed the naked, and healed the sick. He did what he said and he says what he does. His words have life. They do something and that changes everything!
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This year I don’t want my resolutions to be wishful words strung together. The thought of it stresses me out and then I want to eat more ice-cream. Instead, I want to get on the ice and skate. I want to do something that matters and put flesh on my words. I want to be the change I seek in both word and in deed. I want to live, and love, and lead like Jesus, and that means with my whole life I resolve “that it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” We don’t have to wait for the turn of a new calendar year for this to be our aim. As followers of Jesus, we have the opportunity daily to return to his promise and get fleshy with his word, following his example to do and to be love for one another.
Here’s to a double scoop of lavender-infused blackberry ice-cream, because as the Psalmist reminds us, “The Word of the Lord is sweet!” Amen.
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