So often a time we celebrate easter as a habitual tradition and get caught up in the glamour of it. But have you ever stopped to think and reflect on the profound significance of Jesus’ death in our lives? Do you understand the message of the cross? Can you comprehend what it truly means for the son of God to be born of a man, live a challenging life and still suffer the punishment worthy of criminals? As christians, we need to be thankful and appreciate the ultimate sacrifice Jesus paid for us. Coming to church can quickly become a routine Sunday pass-time, if we forget the reason we attend church. Jesus died for us at the cross so that we can have the opportunity enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Be sure not to waste such an opportunity always remembering that on judgement day, Jesus will stand as witness that we have lived a life worthy to be His own. In the current series of teaching we have been embarking on, we have already established that in order to live a life worthy of Christ, we must make God our priority. We have explored the story of Joshua and the Israelites and how pledging your loyalty to God, forsaking all else including our idols, is vital in our worship. However one cannot achieve this without understanding the principle of value. There is a statement a world renowned athlete once said which is can be applicable to us. He said that there are two very important days in ones life. Firstly, the day of your birth and secondly the day you realise your purpose. In order to become who God has created you to be, you need to realise and understand the specific purpose God has bestowed upon your life. According to Exodus 19:5, we know that through obedience we not only have a chance to live a life as His chosen here on earth, but also inherit the Kingdom Of God as true heirs. Simply knowing how to do something is different from having the ability to actively apply that knowledge. This ultimately affects how we behave. As such, understanding the value of God in our lives is very important because it will determine our later actions. By definition, value means the importance or the worth that something has. The perception that we have of something determines how we value it in our lives, and ultimately affects how we act towards it. If you value something, you will naturally pay more attention it than something that you do not value. Therefore, nothing you do in the presence of God will go in vain. In today’s scripture, Deuteronomy 6:4-9, God states his supremacy and disapproval of anything that rivals Him. The value of God is priceless, so you cannot put a price on it. The verse specifies that you need to love God with everything that you have, any strength you can master within yourself is the full amount you need to put towards loving Him, giving your whole self. God is, and should be, number one in your life. The word of God is the counsel of God. It is so easy to fall prey to not loving God with all our heart and apportion subpar attention in comparison to what we should be giving. This is why, in the scripture, we see how God specifically outlined how His instruction was to be received and taught from generation to generation as an everlasting ordinance. People are inevitably born into sin. This goes all the way back to the time of Adam and Eve. Their children Cain and Abel, (and all generations that followed), were born into a condemned world because of their sin. However, God has provided a way to redeem us from sin through the baptism of water and spirit. Jesus teaches of this rebirth in John 3:3. You see to be able to understand God more and subsequently be able to value Him, you must not only turn from your sin physically, but begin to operate in the spiritual realm as well. God is spirit, so whatever He says, we need to be in the realm of the spirit to be able to fully understand. In John 1:12-13, we learn that we were born as humans. Baptism by water is the process of dying together with Christ and rising again with Him, enabling us to be born of God. As a result, we end up moving from the natural realm, to the people who are now born of God. However being born of the spirit, does not mean that we will mature overnight. Rather, we need to learn to be able to grow in Him in the same way a child is nurtured and taught. Just like a child learns from their environment, we too must find a model to inspire and shape us. There is no greater model other than Jesus Christ Himself. When we remove the barrier that is our human thinking, we will be able to understand what God requires of us and give Him the value He truly deserves. Let us know that there is a deeper level that God wants us to reach through the renewal of our mind daily so that we do not conform to the patterns of this world (Romans 12:2). Aspiring to reach this level will encourage our mindset to shift and evolve as we begin to value the things of God in a manner acceptable to Him. In today’s society, understanding our limitations will enable us to overcome them as we seek to fulfil our purpose in Christ. If we do not strive to overcome our human nature, we will forever be governed by it. Jesus revealed Himself to Saul on the road to Damascus in such a profound way, Saul completely became a new being. He was transformed from being a persecutor of believers to what he himself proclaimed as a slave to the gospel. God became so valuable to him, he dedicated the rest of his life fearlessly preaching the word of God. (Acts 9:1-30). Saul fulfilled his purpose because he knew the value of Christ. In the same way, let us allow God to reveal himself to us in such a way will too are completely transformed. Remember that it is important to put value in the things of God so that you can invest your time in it. Why? Because the bibles outlines that where your treasure is, that is where your heart is (Luke 12:34). This means that your actions will reflect if God is valuable to you or not. Never forget that God is the one that gives you the breath to be alive, therefore He needs that acknowledgment from you. Without health, you cannot do anything that you may set out to do. Put God first and let the word of God have authority in your life.