Spiritually Fit

I have to admit that before one of our worship services begins I often sneak a peek over at the Crunch Fitness lot to see how the number of cars in that lot compares to ours. Years ago, Judy Frazier, one of our Beautiful Savior family members who is now in heaven, suggested that we put a big sign on the south wall of our gym that faces the fitness place with the words of 1 Timothy 4:8 in big letters: "Physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."

For the next few weeks, we'll hear sections from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5 through 7). In all honesty, when reading through it, one is tempted to look at much of what Jesus teaches as lofty goals which are unattainable for the average Christian. But if one looks at it in that way, it would be very easy to not work at attaining those goals of godliness.

Now, one must be clear the God the Holy Spirit is the one who does the work of sanctification which makes us more and more like Christ. So if God does the work of molding and shaping us, it is necessary that we put ourselves in places where the Holy Spirit has promised to work. Specifically, it is through the Word of God and the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper where the Lord would be present among His people and bring them His gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation. Through the Word, the Holy Spirit either affirms that we are indeed following our Lord and walking in His ways or leads us to see that we're wandering away from Him and works in us the desire to change.

Are you happy with your godliness, or is there room for improvement? Quite frankly, the better spiritual shape you are in, the better you are able to endure the challenges and tests of life and resist the evil one, all the while keeping your eyes on the prize: being with our Lord in heaven.