What's your reach like?

Christians are not asked to keep the Old Testament law, but are encouraged to live out the kindness and generosity that has been given to them in Jesus Christ. In Matthew 25 Jesus Christ describes this kind of love as and extension of loving Him. Do you reach out with the love of Christ, or do you reach out for sin with the envy and lust of Adam?

Does your Thanksgiving give you away?

Christians rightly set aside a time to be grateful for all that we have (Phil 4:6). During this time, we might examine what things we consider blessings and how they impact our lives. Do the things you are most grateful for represent good gifts from God, or are they our secret idols?

Can you trust him now?

As Christians, we believe that Christ gave the ultimate sacrifice for us in the past and will deliver us from the final judgement in the future. However, we tend to trust him less to care for us in our present circumstances (Romans 5).  Can look past your current situation, to the future and to the past to find faith to trust your savior in the present? 

How long will you believe?

It may seem counter-intuitive to think of an old testament patriarch when considering the topic of faith, but Paul uses Abraham to demonstrate the power of faith in God (Rom 4:19-25). The promise God made to Abraham might seem incredible enough, but consider that the promise was given 20 years before it was kept. Abraham believed God for over 20 years, how long can you believe God?

Jump if you can

Christians often refer to "having faith in Jesus," or "salvation is by faith alone," but what does that really mean? Biblical faith includes not just knowing the story of Jesus, or even believing the stories to be true. Biblical faith goes one step further and actually trusts Christ and His sacrifice to be our righteousness, instead of trusting our good works as the key to God's heart. Rom 4.
NOTE: For a better summary of the 3 Components of Faith - see "3 Components of Faith – C.H. Spurgeon" on Hills Bible Church website.

Sin Tax - Rom 4

The crux of Christianity is that we are not able to pay the debt of sin that we incur against God. But God, in His love for us, paid the debt for us. We might want to ask why God needed payment, but that misses the point. By showing us our inadequacies, God reveals His greatness, His love and He focuses our attention on Him instead of ourselves. How could you benefit from focusing on God?

In the Same Pot

Christianity is based on the idea that no one is better than anyone else. In Romans 3, Paul declares both religious and non-religious people are in the same condition. Everyone does wrong and everyone needs the hope of salvation from the consequences of our sins. Are you able to let go of your pride and ask God to forgive your wrong-doing based on His sacrifice through Jesus Christ?