There is a fallacy in the Christian life that salvation ends when you have accepted Christ as your Savior and your sins are forgiven. Not so. That’s just the beginning of lifelong discipleship under the tutelage of Christ. We have to keep on. Kingdom life is not just about being forgiven and going to heaven. Kingdom life is about living with Christ in the here and now. Then we won’t have to cram for the finals.

Jesus invites us to follow him, not just believe that what he says is true. At the end of chapter 7 in the Gospel of Matthew he says that whoever hears his words and does them is like the person who builds his house on a solid foundation. Nothing in this world can shake that house.

The book of James says that faith without works is dead. Faith and life go together with Christ. He is not just our Savior. He is our teacher, our boss, our friend; and he calls us to make every day of our life a day that is lived with him, for better or worse. On the good days we celebrate. On the bad days we can still say, “I believe.”