Wednesday February 15, 2017
“The Awakening”
17 “But when he came to himself, he said,
‘How many of my father’s hired servants have bread enough and to spare, and I
perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, 19 and I am no longer
worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.” ’ – Luke 15:17-19
8 And when He has come, He will convict the
world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do
not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see
Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. – John 16:8-11
Conviction of Sin (ongo‘i tautea ‘i he angahala)
Have you
ever been roused from a deep sleep? That state where everything is lost to you.
We have an expression in Tongan, “hange
ha ‘akau kuo tu’usi mei he tefito” (like a tree cut from its roots). When
shaken to be awoken and accompanied with a call, we slowly come to. It is as if
we have travelled to a distant land and we are gradually coming back to reality.
We have been
dealing with the concept of God’s call to salvation, which we understand as “effectual call”. But as we are
learning these important doctrines, it is easy to make the assumption that they
happen “Instantly.” But in Biblical teachings and in our experience, this can
happen over a period of time. This inward spiritual process of God’s call can
be looked at as an “awakening.”
In the story
of the Prodigal Son, the young man “came to himself” (Luke 15:17) and returned
to his father; responding to echoes of his father’s call in his subconscious.
Paul was confronted by the sovereignty of God by speaking to him through his
Word and piercing his heart with the Law (Romans 7:6-13). He experienced the conviction of sin.
We ought to give much more attention to this
aspect of spiritual experience than we do. It is intimately related to the
character of the whole of our Christian lives. Its neglect has left the quality
of Christian living of our day relatively poorer, for grace often grows
strongest where conviction of sin is pierced deepest. This was the perspective
of Jesus: those who are most conscious of what has been forgiven are those most
likely to love much (Luke 7:36 – 50). But those who are most conscious of forgiveness
are invariably those who have been most acutely convicted of their sin.
Challenge:
Praise God
for His gift of “conviction of sin.” This is one thing that confirms you are a
child of God. If there is no conviction of sin, then I would seriously evaluate
whether of not you are of the faith.
Memory Verse:
But of Him
you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness
and sanctification and redemption— 1
Corinthians 1:30
He ‘oku mei
He‘ene ‘Afio ho‘omou tu‘u ni pea ‘ia Kalaisi Sīsū: ‘a ia kuo fokotu‘u mei he
‘Otua, ko hotau poto‘anga, ko hotau fakatonuhia mo fakamā‘oni‘oni‘anga, pea mo
hotau huhu‘i – 1 Kolinito 1:30
Bible Reading Plan: (52 weeks; 5 days a week)
Week
7 – Leviticus 1-3; Psalm 27; Hebrews 2
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