Then I moved on in my walk, before I left UK, I prayed, that I wished to grow deeper in my walk with Him, I would say He granted it a year after I landed, I don't know but I've always had a draw towards God even when I was small. I joined a church that taught about grace, it was wonderful! I never heard anything about grace before this, I knew of it's existence to some extent but never knew the word for it, i learned about prophecy, which He so graciously provides through the Holy Spirit, about the Holy Spirit and the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit... It was all good and I was glad, on a personal level during that time I also learned about love, Christ's love in us, Our Father's love displayed through Christ, and how important it is, that it becomes the greatest among Faith and Hope... Love binds things together, it's not weak of fluffy, actually it will come hard on people who are doing wrong in order to save them from a greater pain and to direct us back on the same path, it's not boastful, there in love, there is not a single bit of pride involved, it's all servitude to the Most High, it takes you to a humbleness, a humiliation if you would like to call it that, there's nothing to boast about, when it's all about God and Him using you as a vessel to serve others, it is slow to anger, now this doesn't mean it's slow to discipline what I have learned was it's very patient with people, understanding their situations, and encouraging their growth in the right direction, but as mentioned it's not weak, nor is it slow to correct, but when some one is on the path to becoming more like Christ, it's patient enough to see you through it. I could talk so much about love, it's an on going experience and sometimes you don't walk in it, but love itself, who is God will correct you.
Grace is much more than a covering, its the power to do God's amazing work, the power to live our God's plans for you, the power to obey! and Christ has never said you don't have to obey anything I say, just do what you want and some how or another you'll get there. He always called for obedience(I'm not going to qoute anything here, you can read it yourself, the great commission verse after the famous 19.. revelations, Corinthians, Christ's walk itself was an obedience and if we are called to be more like Christ, how can we live in sin and live in Christ at the same time?).
Now I'm not saying you can earn your salvation, there's no way to earn it, God paid for it, through Christ, as a free gift, but I am saying a new life in Christ requires a death to our old life in Sin, Sin has no more power, though we know we struggle in this life between flesh and spirit, but we also know what the scriptures say about this, walking in flesh - destruction, walking in spirit - life. But that transformation happens, and should continue to happen as you accept Christ and become more and more like Him.
I challenge each of you who reads this, and is a brother and sister, to go through the gospel, year after year it's something new and refreshing, old and reminding for me, God doesn't contradict Himself, what He says in the word will ALWAYS, I say again ALWAYS overrule, supersede anything preached on the pulpit yesterday, today, and tomorrow. You will find that the Christian walk is more than just preaching the gospel, more than just grace and having your sins forgiven, it's in fact, what I see it as, and what the scriptures say, and new life in Christ. Where the old has gone and the new has come. Not where the old has stayed and the new covers it like a carpet hiding rubbish. :)
Blessings! Keep the good fight of Faith, as we continue to walk with Christ, ain't going to be all rainbows and butterflies but His Grace through Faith will enable you to go through it all!
-Chris