Genesis 47:1–27
Hebrews 4:14–5:10
Psalms 5 and 7
Christians are sometimes surprised to discover how much effort it takes to live a mission shaped life. Maybe we thought the initial decision to follow Jesus would be the hardest part, and from there on out, everything would come naturally. But most of us have picked up so many ingrained habits and attitudes from our surrounding culture that it takes hard work to learn to follow Jesus, even if some changes come quickly and easily.
According to Hebrews, even Jesus himself had to learn obedience. It seems strange to think the Son of God would have to learn to obey, but he had never before lived in a human body or in a fallen world. He had to learn obedience the same way we do—by making decisions and following through on them. With each decision to embrace the kingdom and his calling, he reinforced the habit of obedience. Jesus can identify with the pressures and temptations we face, because he faced them to, and in every case, he chose to proclaim the kingdom rather than deny it.
Living a mission shaped life is about becoming the kind of person who is a good fit for the kingdom of God. We do this by learning obedience—by making a thousand and one little decisions to follow Jesus rather than deny him, so that obedience eventually becomes a part of who we are, rather than only something we strive to become. There is no getting around it—this is hard work, but by God’s grace and through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can become people who fit best in God’s new creation.
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