Test Yourselves

"Examine yourselves: are you acting according to faith? Test yourselves, can you assert that Christ Jesus is in you? If not, you have failed the test." - 2nd Corinthians 13:5-6

Socrates once said that the unexamined life is not worth living and he was correct. If we don't examine our lives and how we're doing, we have no way of seeing if we're progressing or backtracking. This is especially true for our journey with God. Paul is extremely firm in his letter to the Corinthians and he tells them bluntly that if they examine themselves and realize that they can't say that Jesus lives in them, they fail!

But how do we know if Jesus is living in us? How do we know if we're passing or failing? I think the simplest way of knowing is to watch what we say. It is said that the mouth speaks what's in the heart… so let's watch ourselves. What are we saying to people? About people? What attitudes and tones do we have in our speech? What are the words we're using? Do our words build people up or tear them down? Another way to know is how much we're relying on God. Do you trust Him? If you don't, then you fail the test because how can Jesus live in you if you don't trust Him enough to give Him space in your life?

I know we all have so many things going on, and many important things to worry about, but this is about the health of our souls! We have to examine ourselves every day to see how we're doing. The goal is to grow stronger and not fall back. The goal is to be more like Jesus and not so much like the ugly parts of ourselves. This is too important to not pay attention to… so test yourselves… are you living according to faith? If not, you have failed the test.

Today's Prayer:
Lord Jesus, unless I am grounded in You I can't progress. My soul withers away when I do things on my own and think I can be without You. Sin starts to fester in me and I lose sight of the love You put in my heart. Help me to be more like You. In Your Name we pray, amen.