A Beautiful Exchange
Put on your new nature. Colossians 3:10 NLT.
We shouldn’t make the mistake of thinking that the Christian life is negative in a way that suggests we must give up everything we enjoy. While the Bible tells us what we shouldn’t do, as in the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20), in order to live life to the fullest and in obedience to God, the Bible also tells us what to do, as in the beautiful message Jesus preached known as the Beatitudes (Matthew 5). The same Jesus that said, “Go and sin no more” (John 8:11) is the same Jesus that said to His followers: I want you to be full of joy (John 15:11). God wants to give us that same quality of life. When God takes away a sinful habit, He replaces it with a better way of living. When He takes away gossip or cursing, He replaces it with words of love and encouragement. God doesn’t just want to remove the bad things in our lives; He wants to replace them with His goodness, to remake us from within. Those who imagine that the Christian life is negative and cheerless and dull, they are gravely mistaken. God never removes something from our lives without replacing it with something far better. Obey Him and heed what the Bible says: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). This is what gives us the strength to live a joyful life.
Graham, Billy. Truth for Each Day : Daily Devotions to Renew Your Mind and Inspire Your Soul (a 365-Day Devotional), Thomas Nelson Incorporated, 2023. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/liberty/detail.action?docID=30516542.
Created from liberty on 2025-11-03 16:37:24.