Our Competence Is From God
Are we beginning to commend ourselves
again? Surely we do not need, as some do, letters of
recommendation to you or from you, do we? You yourselves are our letter,
written on our hearts, to be known and ready by all; and you show that you are
a letter of Christ, prepared by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of
the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
Such is the confidence that we have
through Christ toward God. Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim
anything is coming from us; our competence is from God, who has made us
competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of letter but of spirit; for
the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
Those who have the law of God written
on their hearts love the Lord with all their mind, soul, and strength. They
demonstrate this love to the world by showing honor to their parents,
faithfulness in their marriage, and integrity in their work. They respect human
life and treat all men and women with dignity and honor. They don’t speak evil
of anyone, no matter how much evil has been done to them, and they want nothing
more. These are the outward signs that God’s law is alive, written on our
hearts by the Spirit of our living God.
We have to stand as monuments to the
grace of God. We have to stand tall. The world is watching us. God’s laws,
engraved on our hearts can never be removed from the public arena.
Our Daily
Bread –