Pressing Pause

In a world that constantly tells us to work harder, do more, and prove our worth, it is easy to approach the Christian life as though God’s love depends on how well we perform. As we continue our study of the Sermon on the Mount, we have encountered Jesus’ challenging call to live with humility, purity, mercy, and love—even toward those who hurt us. But what do we do when we sincerely want to follow Jesus and repeatedly fall short? In Galatians 2:20, Paul reminds us that the Christian life is not about trying harder in our own strength, but about dying to self and trusting Christ to live His life through us. Our acceptance rests not on our performance, but on the finished work of Jesus, and our power to live faithfully comes from Him. Sometimes, we need to press pause, stop striving to prove ourselves, and remember that the key to living for Christ is learning to depend on Christ who lives in us.