Astonished!

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John…they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13

By whom are you astonished and who is astonished by you?  What does this look like in the life of a Christian?  Peter was a tax collector whose focus was on money, and John was a fisherman whose focus was on the ministry of another man, John the Baptist.  It was only when these men turned and followed Jesus that they began to be transformed.  It was when fellowship and intimacy were experienced that the character of Christ began taking over their inward condition.  Their choice of dying daily to themselves begun the slow resurrecting work to live in Christ.

When we turn our gaze to Jesus something in our hearts begin to stir.  Our lifetime of focus on worldly things no longer satisfy us,  command us and no longer master over us.  It takes time to die to ourselves and be resurrected with Christ.  It takes time for the outer self to catch up with the inner work but this process works.  Day by day, laying down our agenda, timing, dreams and expectations, is the process of dying to ourselves.  ‘But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ.   What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.  I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him.’ Phil 3:7-9.

For every death in our inner self produces resurrected living in Him.  Like Peter and John, when we choose to ‘be with Jesus’ our lives will reflect Him instead of our own.  ‘Since, then, you have been raised with Christ…your life is now hidden with Christ in God…But now you must rid yourselves of all such things...anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language…since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed…Christ is all and is in all.’ Col 3:1,8, 10, 11.

…and all will be astonished!