Saturday, January 21, 2006
1 Peter 1:17-19 And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
APPRECIATE THE HIGH COST
The costly price of our redemption is the precious blood of the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. This is the only thing precious enough to atone for our sins. Certainly there is nothing we can do or give that could redeem us.
But now that we know the costly price of our redemption, shall we live dangerously, recklessly, foolishly, purposely sinning, satisfying our sinful lusts, breaking all the rules, because our sins have been paid for? The apostle Peter in our text tells us that the knowledge of our redemption and the high price that it cost God should lead us in a different direction. Our redemption should not lead us to sin, but away from sin. Since Christ has set us free from our sinful way of life, why should we return to it? Appreciating the high cost of our redemption, we should, as Peter says, "conduct ourselves throughout the time of our stay here in fear." Yes, fear! We do not want to lose by our foolishness something that cost Christ His life in our place.
We talk to God in prayer. He is our Father. But remember, He is our holy Father, and He "without partiality judges according to each one's work." God does not automatically exclude us from His judgment because we are Lutherans or members of a Christian family, or members of an orthodox Christian congregation. Each one of us is judged, and therefore each one of us should be on guard, lest we count Jesus' sacrifice as worthless and return to sin and fall from grace. Let us always remember the price Christ paid to save us, and conduct our lives in all seriousness as redeemed Christians, eternally grateful to our Savior for the gift of His precious blood. Only in Christ and through Christ can we survive God's judgment; let us hang on to Him for life, for our eternal life depends on Him, our Savior.
