Exhibiting the Gifts of the Spirit When Under Trial

Matthew 5:48

You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

When Jesus spoke to His disciples, He knew full well that they were incapable of being perfect.  He was asking them to consider the manner in which they represented Him.  He wanted their behavior to distinguish them from others in the world around them.  He wanted them to be living examples of the good character of the representatives of His kingdom.

We are most comfortable in life when we are around people we like.  We also feel comfortable when we are asked to do things that we know that we are capable of doing successfully.  In these times of ease, our personality and our capabilities often shine and our performance appears to be nearly perfect, at least from a secular standpoint.  While this type of behavior is certainly good, it generally will not separate us from the secular crowd.  We are likely to rely on our own strengths, resulting in us just blending into society without reflecting the presence and character of the One who dwells within us.

On the other hand, when we are challenged by our circumstances and we purposely follow the perfect example of Jesus and draw on Him for our strength, our behavior as His representatives will draw the others to Our Savior.   When we seek and allow the fruits of the Holy Spirit to flow through us, the world around us will see us modeling the life of Our Savior and be drawn to Him.

Jesus commands us to make it our duty to desire to press forward in grace and holiness, so that we may conform ourselves to His example under even the most difficult circumstances.  He desires for us to be perfect like the Father.  

Let us lean on the Son of God as our model and submit to His indwelling Spirit in our lives.  Let us strive for the perfection that He is calling us to.  Let us draw the world to Our Savior as they see us modeling Jesus Christ in our daily lives regardless of our circumstances.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing Your Son, Jesus, to be our perfect model for life.  We thank You for providing the Holy Spirit to guide us to follow Jesus' example.  We rejoice in knowing that our obedience will result in the gifts of the Holy Spirit being poured out on the world around us.  We pray that we may exhibit unusual grace, gentleness, faithfulness, loving kindness, patience, self-control and goodness as we are being taxed by our situations.  May You receive all the praise and glory, Lord.  We ask all these things in the name of the perfect Son of the Most High God, Jesus Christ.