1 Peter 2:1–3 ‘Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.’ (v1)
God invites us to join in collaborating with grace. Many are taught that grace means, ‘God’s riches at Christ’s expense’.
The treasury of heaven opened to us through Jesus’ Passion. Christ becomes our foundational principle upon which we build our life, always engaging in collaboration where we discover the best and worst of ourselves.
Grace invites us to resist the bad and choose the good, or God. Collaborate literally means to work with. There is someone we work alongside, in this case God, and it requires personal effort.
Here Paul places his emphasis on the heavy lifting required of us in pursuit of holiness. The word holy is hard to define outside its historical Christian meaning of ‘consecrated’ or ‘set apart’.
However, it’s related to the concept of health and wholeness. God’s intention is that through life we are to emerge into the very best expression of ourselves.
That expression is imprinted within us, our spiritual DNA if you like, and ours is the responsibility to collaborate with God in realising our wholeness – physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual.
These four elements determine our character and our outward impact in the world. During the Seder meal at Passover, the Jews drink four cups of wine, the first celebrates coming out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, the second from the yoke of slavery, the third promises redemption, and the fourth becoming one with God (Ex. 6:6–7).
Like the Israelites, our journey demands we collaborate with God to find our fullest expression of freedom in Christ.
A Prayer To Make:
‘Lord, help me to learn the art of collaboration so that I might become the fullest expression of Your life on earth. Amen.’
An Action To Take:
How often do you pray to God to change aspects of your character and behaviour but fail to invest time, energy, and sacrifice in collaborating with God to make this a reality? Good health begins with taking personal responsibility for how we live.
Scripture To Consider:
Exod. 6:8–12; Isa. 58:1–5; Col. 3:1–17; 1 Thess. 4:1–12
