Why Christify One's Life?

A question one may ask, after reading the first post, is just that: "Why?"

"Why try to see all of life as it relates to Jesus Christ?"

Let me attempt to lay some groundwork and give a relatively concise answer over the next few posts:

First of all, one will never even attempt such a thing if it is "foolishness to them." The Scriptures tell us:

The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (ESV)

Some English versions render the word the ESV translates "folly" as "foolishness". To the natural person, that is the person who has not been "born again" (a phrase that comes from John 3:3 - more on that in a moment), the things of the Spirit of God, that is to say spiritual matters such as the one I am presenting, are foolishness... folly (senseless, silly, etc.).

Let me spend a moment differentiating between the "natural man" and what we might call the "spiritual man" (or woman, or child - let's not exclude anyone).

The state of "the natural man", again the one who would find this foolish to begin with, is the state into which all of us are born. Jesus said it this way:

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
John 3:6 (ESV)

The first birth, the fleshly birth, the birth every human being alive has experienced produces just that: a fleshly (natural) person. That isn't to say they don't have a soul/spirit. It's just that from birth that spirit is dead (see Ephesians 2:1, 5; 4:18). And so, this natural person, with a "dead" spirit (much could be said on that but it would make this post considerably longer than it's intention) finds spiritually matters "foolish".

Let me put it this way, if at this point you have either: (a) stopped reading and thought "this guy's a kook"; or (b) kept reading but still thought something like "this is ridiculous" then there is a good chance you fit into this category - physically alive but spiritually dead.

The point is, unless one is "born again" (John 3:3-8; 1 Peter 1:3, 23) they will never - I repeat never - see the need to "Christify one's life."

So, how does one get born again? Well, we'll save that for the next post but suffice it to say for now that while it is something you desperately need, it is also something that you are absolutely incapable of initiating or controlling.

Hmm... sounds like someOne's going to have to intervene...

In Christ,
Matt