The Kind of Effort It Takes to Live the Christian Life

For this very reason, make every effort…

2 Peter 1:5

Get this picture in your mind: An old Volkswagen Beetle sitting next to a Boeing 747 aeroplane. Now, imagine the Volkswagen pulling the 747! Believe it or not, a Volkswagen can actually do this. But what the power of a Volkswagen could never do is make the 747 actually fly!

You cannot live the Christian life apart from the power of the Holy Spirit. The New Testament talks about people who have the appearance of godliness, but they deny its power (2 Tim. 3:5). That’s like the Volkswagen pulling the plane. It takes great effort, but it’s ultimately futile. It will never fly! Jesus said, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

There is a kind of effort that is completely futile, but there is also a kind of effort that is wonderfully fruitful, and that is what Peter is talking about here: “For this very reason…”—in the light of the gospel—because you participate in the divine nature and Christ has released you from Satan’s chains, you are in a position to act.

If these things are true of you, if you are in Christ, then use the power that you have been given. Fire up those great engines… and fly!

Are you using the power you’ve been given? Or does your Christian life sometimes feel like a Volkswagen pulling a 747?It takes great effort, but it is ultimately futile.