For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! (Romans 15:10, NIV)
If you are not a Tour player but love the game, golf will always present you with a difficult question: How do I reconcile spending so much time on the golf course when life’s demands are so broad?
Certainly we know that Paul wrote to Timothy of the value of physical training. It’s not up there with spiritual discipline, but keeping your body in shape has a measure of worth—and golf provides exercise and relaxation.
We know as well that evangelism calls for crossover, being “all things to all people” in order that we might win some to the faith. So building friendships on the golf course allows us to open conversations about our faith in Jesus and see others join us in the walk with him.
But if your spouse doesn’t play, or your children have other interests, even these “good reasons” may not justify the amount of time you’d really like to spend out there. You have to ask some big questions and make personal sacrifices in order to strike an appropriate balance in your life.
Big questions also come into play when we recognize the distance our sin has placed between us and God. Our sin, simply and frankly, separates us from him. In fact, if you are familiar with the old Four Spiritual Laws tract, you may have a picture in your head of the chasm that is formed when we live our lives apart from God. Sin erodes the connection between us.
When we begin to look at Jesus, then, we want to know one thing: Can we reconcile the difference between a holy God and unholy us?
The answer is no.
Does this surprise you? If it does, you may have missed the operative word in the question above. It is we. Can we reconcile the difference? No, we cannot.
So we must look elsewhere for our hope. Is there anyone who can bridge this gap, who can bring us back to God? And the answer is that Jesus can. Or, maybe more accurately in view of Romans 15:10, Jesus has. His death on the cross has made the one way for God’s enemies to be saved and reconciled.
We cannot reconcile the difference between us and God, but we can seize upon the reconciliation that has been made. We can cling to the hope we have in Jesus. We can be seen as children of God by the Father who is God when we say to him, “What your Son has done for me—I want that! It is my only hope to live with you!”
—
Jeff Hopper
February 5, 2014
Copyright 2014 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.