Sunrise: Applying Christ
I started out this day like any other day with prayer. But this morning felt different, I saw the world a little different than I did the day before. Yesterday was certainly not like today. And I think it’s because I walked my sons to the bus stop this morning. Some would say; how can that change how you see the world? I guess it wouldn’t if your view, vision or perspective is shallow. By default everyone’s vision is shallow, being born sinners has that affect on you. As I’m writing this the question Jesus Christ presented to His disciples comes to mind…
Matthew 16:13-20 Peter‘s Confession of Christ
13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”
14They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15″But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
16Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ,[b] the Son of the living God.”
17Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter,[c] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades[d] will not overcome it.[e] 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be[f] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[g] loosed in heaven.” 20Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.
Luke 9:18-20
18Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say I am?”
19They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, that one of the prophets of long ago has come back to life.”
20″But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “The Christ[a] of God.”
So what does this have to do with the bus stop and Peter’s confession? Let me begin at the beginning of the week, which was the start of the school year. On the first day of school I decided to meet my new 3rd grader at school to wish him well. When I arrived at the school I was shocked to find a long line of parents bringing their children to school. In their infinite wisdom, they elected to not let them ride the bus which led to other problems later… The parents where there in line taking pictures as well as videos gushing all over their kids. The age group of the kids was a pretty even mixture but by the reaction of the parents you could assume that every last kids was starting school for the first time. With a shallow view of what was presented, one can assume so many things but one idea would immediately surface. The idea would be that all of these kids come from loving, caring homes with good discipline. But once the parents are gone and the kids are left alone what is it that you see? This brings me to this morning…
I saw kids that didn’t respect adults nor did they value their own safety as they continued to play in the street after my warnings. I heard fowl language from children that would be to young to even comprehend the meanings behind the words they were using. I also saw a disrespect for each other as kids decided that a game of spitting on each other would be fun. I then thought back to the first day of school and examined what I saw then and now the product of the perceived “loving and caring” homes. As for Peter’s confession, noticed that Jesus asked his disciples in private who the “world” said that his is. He examined them away from the influence of others and the pressures to appear a certain way to others. He the followed that question with how did they see him. Do you think that if the disciples answers would have been different? Would they have been honest? We have two mornings, with the same sunrise but the light is applied differently. Have you ever driven a route that is routine for you? But on one morning the sun shines at different angle and things look new or not like before. But we can only see it if God opens it up to us through the conduit of the Holy Spirit just like with Peter. If you just go by the crowds, if I was to just go by the first day of school I would assume a good year for all kids involved. If I was to press the parents that day, more than half would say that they were of the faith. Our neighborhood is quite and peaceful, you would assume that the LORD is present. But in private and away from the influence, the sunrises and Christ is applied via the Holy Spirit and you see in a new light. So, how do these kids see their parents and teachers? How do they view adults? How do they see their selves? How do they see each other? If the truth is in them it would be the same no matter where they are or who is around. It depends on how Christ is applied to their lives. It depends on how those who are applying Christ to them see Christ. Just like it is God who rises the sun, it is God who applies the Holy Spirit on the hearts of people which will give them light to see the truth just like with Peter. Like I already said, by default our vision is shallow because of sin… Truth applied to your life will produce truth in every area of your life and it can’t be hidden. The Gospel Truth shines like the sun, it is bright and it stands out. No one notices a dusty bulb and the contains of a room is hidden but once the light is unimpeded by influences the room is filled. Our shady view of the Son of Man and our lack luster application of Christ in every area produces a faulty presentation that isn’t consistent.
Ultimately the question is this… If the God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob is your Father and He has applied Christ to your life, how to you reflect Him when you think He is not watching? Are we keeping it real?
God bless you & may the Holy Spirit lead you
Rev. W. R. Martin Jr.
visit me at: https://anointedplace.wordpress.com
follow me at: http://twitter.com/refreshinDsaint
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Anointed Place Ministries 
I like the way that you put it. A lot of times a lot of people act a certain way when they are at church, but when they are at school they are totally different persons. And that shows truly if they actually have a relationship with God or not.
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