Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. John 14:12
“To trust [Christ] means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in saying you trusted a person if you would not take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him. But trying in a new way, a less worried way. Not doing these things in order to be saved, but because He has begun to save you already. Not hoping to get to Heaven as a reward for your actions, but inevitably wanting to act in a certain way because a first faint gleam of Heaven is already inside you.”
C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity (1952 edition scanned in 2002) 73.
Happy Christmas.
On many evenings from Thanksgiving to Christmas we watch Christmas movies in our home. A common theme that surfaces in the movies goes something like this: fewer people act as though they believe so the Christmas spirit is fading.
Then, as the movies continue, when people start believing, magical things start happening. A new story unfolds. People experience joy they never imagined. Watchers feel good and determine to watch the movie annually.
Where am I going with this? As I stated a few days ago, weariness and worry are leading hindrances to generous living, giving, serving, and loving. So, what’s my Christmas counsel today?
Enjoy a restful celebration of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. When it’s over, let’s all get off the couch and go do the works that Jesus did. When we do, as He has promised, even greater things will happen through us.
But we have to believe and act on those beliefs.
As Lewis reminds us (in what may be the best book written in the last century), we do these things in a less worried way because we can trust Jesus. And we don’t do them to be saved, but because He has begun to save us already.
And in so doing, that “faint gleam of heaven” that is already inside us shines. Like in the movies, this brings joy to all those around us. But it’s not a Hollywood production. It’s the real deal.
Whoever believes in Jesus will do the works Jesus did. Will you?