God never ceases to amaze me! Whether it be by the reminder of His love and grace in a message or the beautiful sunrise in the morning, I continually am amazed at who He is and by the fact that He loves me! One thing I have recently come to realize is that the more I learn God and draw nearer to Him the more sinful I become. I started to wonder why I was becoming more of a sinner when it dawned on me that it wasn't that I was becoming a worse sinner so to speak but rather more sensitive to my sinful heart. Proverbs 4:23 says, "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." I often thought that verse was in regards to guarding my heart from things of this world but what it is actually referring to is guarding our hearts from ourselves! Lets face it...we are sinners in desperate need of a Savior. Apart from His strength and grace everything we would do would be of no value and not glorifying or edifying. I have been reminded of how I need to pray Psalm 139:23 which says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts." We need to seek purification from the Lord from our deepest sins that He might be honored. Will it be easy? Of course not, but it will be worth it as we continue on this race.
Studying about his attributes whether it be His sovereignty or His justice increases my view of Him and decreases my view of myself. I have never realized how prideful I am and how high I think of myself. What a blow to my ego God has given me as He has begun to really cut away the callousness of my numbness to sin and began to refine me in the fire. Although I know that sanctification and refining are a lifelong process I am excited to watch God work and more importantly to be used by our indescribable God! That He would use me for His purposes amazes me beyond comprehension. What a great God we serve.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Surrender
I recently stumbled across a song by a female Christian band and was humbled and convicted by the power of the lyrics. The lyrics explained the command we have from Christ to surrender ALL daily to Christ (including all your hopes, dreams, fears etc.) and to trust that in doing so He has your best interest and His glory in store. Being a sinner who is so easily mislead and deceived by the desires and passions of my own heart I am constantly reminded at how often I fail in this area of surrender. I desperately cling to my own fantasies of how my life should and might pan out and in doing so create burdens that I bear as those things are not fulfilled in how I would expect. Although God is sovereign and will do what He wishes I don't always believe that.
I can encourage others about how faithful the Lord is and remind them of His goodness and His promises, but I fail to believe and TRUST in those very things myself. Desperate for change and encouraged by a fellow believer I found practical steps to take in order to tangibly erase my false expectations. I wrote a list down of every dream, false expectation, plan, and goal that "I" wanted for my life and then I ripped it up and threw it away and fell to my knees expressing my only desire which is to pursue and magnify the Lord. Although I know that this struggle is going to continue in my life because of the battle that wages war within, I am confident that as I run hard after Christ these other things will pale in comparison.
I love reading the stories in the Old Testament about God and the Israelites. Although Jeremiah 29 is not written specifically to us, I am confident that because God's character doesn't change the same God who was faithful to give the Jews a future and a hope will do the same for those who He has chosen today.
I know that many, especially girls struggle with having "Dreams" which are really fantasies based on false expectations we gain from the world about how our lives should pan out one day. May your motivation to run the race surpass those desires and even cause them to fade away completely as you seek to magnify Him. God wants to use us as tools for we are His workmanship created to do good works.(Ephesians 2)
"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. " -1 Corinthians 9:24
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." -Hebrews 12:1
Here are some of the lyrics to the song "Surrender" by Barlow Girl
My hands hold safly to my dreams
Clutching tightly not one has fallen
So many years I've shaped each one
Reflecting my heart showing who I am
Now you're asking me to show
What I'm holding oh so tightly
Can't open my hands can't let go
Does it matter?
Should I show you?
Can't you let me go?
Surrender, surrender you whisper gently
You say I will be free
I know but can't you see?
My dreams are me. My dreams are me
You say you have a plan for me
And that you want the best for my life
Told me the world had yet to see
What you can do with one
That's committed to Your calling
I know of course what I should do
That I can't hold these dreams forever
If I give them now to You
Will You take them away forever?
Or can I dream again?
I can encourage others about how faithful the Lord is and remind them of His goodness and His promises, but I fail to believe and TRUST in those very things myself. Desperate for change and encouraged by a fellow believer I found practical steps to take in order to tangibly erase my false expectations. I wrote a list down of every dream, false expectation, plan, and goal that "I" wanted for my life and then I ripped it up and threw it away and fell to my knees expressing my only desire which is to pursue and magnify the Lord. Although I know that this struggle is going to continue in my life because of the battle that wages war within, I am confident that as I run hard after Christ these other things will pale in comparison.
I love reading the stories in the Old Testament about God and the Israelites. Although Jeremiah 29 is not written specifically to us, I am confident that because God's character doesn't change the same God who was faithful to give the Jews a future and a hope will do the same for those who He has chosen today.
I know that many, especially girls struggle with having "Dreams" which are really fantasies based on false expectations we gain from the world about how our lives should pan out one day. May your motivation to run the race surpass those desires and even cause them to fade away completely as you seek to magnify Him. God wants to use us as tools for we are His workmanship created to do good works.(Ephesians 2)
"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. " -1 Corinthians 9:24
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." -Hebrews 12:1
Here are some of the lyrics to the song "Surrender" by Barlow Girl
My hands hold safly to my dreams
Clutching tightly not one has fallen
So many years I've shaped each one
Reflecting my heart showing who I am
Now you're asking me to show
What I'm holding oh so tightly
Can't open my hands can't let go
Does it matter?
Should I show you?
Can't you let me go?
Surrender, surrender you whisper gently
You say I will be free
I know but can't you see?
My dreams are me. My dreams are me
You say you have a plan for me
And that you want the best for my life
Told me the world had yet to see
What you can do with one
That's committed to Your calling
I know of course what I should do
That I can't hold these dreams forever
If I give them now to You
Will You take them away forever?
Or can I dream again?
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
PUT ON WISDOM
Today in chapel Pastor Roger Horning brought a very insightful and eye opening message to the students here about wisdom. We often pray for wisdom as Christians desiring that God reveal to us some lofty purpose or something that we are supposed to fulfill as if we have no part, but in reality wisdom is much more than a prayer request and must be pursued in daily life.
Solomon, the wisest man in the Bible aside from Jesus Christ gives us a powerful real-life example and some great tips so that we might understand how to gain wisdom too.
Proverbs 1:7 says, The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Why is it that wisdom is something that is lacking in the body of believers today? Because foolishness is part of our flesh-nature and is much easier to succumb to in daily life. However there is no excuse and we must strive for wisdom.
We can derive three practical principles about gaining wisdom from Solomon's life:
1. Recognize what wisdom is and pursue it!
2. Embrace personal correction
3. Keep in mind the consequences that come from a wise or foolish life.
In 1 Kings 3 the Lord visits Solomon in the night and asks him what he wants and Solomon asks for wisdom...the ability to discern right from wrong. Solomon however although he might receive that and he did, would have to pursue that and act it out in everyday life...something as we know he failed to do as he suffered many repercussions of his foolish living.
In 1 Kings 11:4 we read, As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.
Solomon's consuming passion and desire had wandered from the Lord to things of this world. Solomon failed to apply what he knew about wisdom. Solomon pursued earthly happiness yet as we know and read in Ecclesiastes it was all vanity...worthless!
1. RECOGNIZE WISDOM AND PURSUE IT
-Wisdom is knowing and fearing God
-The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
-Having a relationship with God that leads to fear and worship of Him
-Wisdom is righteousness, truth
-Be committed to obeying God in the small things
-Wisdom is doing the right thing (Proverbs 27:7)
-You have to LIVE out God's Word, like Christ did
2. EMBRACE CORRECTION
-If your attitude toward correction is defensive and unwilling you must check your heart, your attitute toward this says a whole lot about your character
-Proverbs 9:8
-The way you respond to authority says a lot about your character
-The way you respond to wise counsel does too
-Fools hate instruction...are you a fool? Christians do foolish things but cannot be fools
3. CONSIDER THE CONSEQUENCES
-Proverbs 8:18-21 reminds us of the blessings wisdom brings
-Wisdom is worth far far more than material or earthly blessings
-Wisdom is God's blessing bestowed to you!
What do fools do?
-They are mocked by God
-They are destroyed by their consequences
-They destroy others
-They prey on others
Do you have foolishness in your heart that you need to deal with? Be Honest with yourself as 2 Corinthians 13:5 reminds us "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?" We should be dealing with our foolish fleshly hearts and putting on wisdom...don't reject the discipline of the Lord.
Solomon, the wisest man in the Bible aside from Jesus Christ gives us a powerful real-life example and some great tips so that we might understand how to gain wisdom too.
Proverbs 1:7 says, The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Why is it that wisdom is something that is lacking in the body of believers today? Because foolishness is part of our flesh-nature and is much easier to succumb to in daily life. However there is no excuse and we must strive for wisdom.
We can derive three practical principles about gaining wisdom from Solomon's life:
1. Recognize what wisdom is and pursue it!
2. Embrace personal correction
3. Keep in mind the consequences that come from a wise or foolish life.
In 1 Kings 3 the Lord visits Solomon in the night and asks him what he wants and Solomon asks for wisdom...the ability to discern right from wrong. Solomon however although he might receive that and he did, would have to pursue that and act it out in everyday life...something as we know he failed to do as he suffered many repercussions of his foolish living.
In 1 Kings 11:4 we read, As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.
Solomon's consuming passion and desire had wandered from the Lord to things of this world. Solomon failed to apply what he knew about wisdom. Solomon pursued earthly happiness yet as we know and read in Ecclesiastes it was all vanity...worthless!
1. RECOGNIZE WISDOM AND PURSUE IT
-Wisdom is knowing and fearing God
-The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
-Having a relationship with God that leads to fear and worship of Him
-Wisdom is righteousness, truth
-Be committed to obeying God in the small things
-Wisdom is doing the right thing (Proverbs 27:7)
-You have to LIVE out God's Word, like Christ did
2. EMBRACE CORRECTION
-If your attitude toward correction is defensive and unwilling you must check your heart, your attitute toward this says a whole lot about your character
-Proverbs 9:8
-The way you respond to authority says a lot about your character
-The way you respond to wise counsel does too
-Fools hate instruction...are you a fool? Christians do foolish things but cannot be fools
3. CONSIDER THE CONSEQUENCES
-Proverbs 8:18-21 reminds us of the blessings wisdom brings
-Wisdom is worth far far more than material or earthly blessings
-Wisdom is God's blessing bestowed to you!
What do fools do?
-They are mocked by God
-They are destroyed by their consequences
-They destroy others
-They prey on others
Do you have foolishness in your heart that you need to deal with? Be Honest with yourself as 2 Corinthians 13:5 reminds us "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?" We should be dealing with our foolish fleshly hearts and putting on wisdom...don't reject the discipline of the Lord.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
What Do You Worship?
Today at True North Billy Blakey brought us a powerful message on idols and helped refocus our minds on the goal!
Ezekiel 14:1-11Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me. 2 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 3 "Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I let them inquire of me at all? 4 Therefore speak to them and tell them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: When any Israelite sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet, I the LORD will answer him myself in keeping with his great idolatry. 5 I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.'
- 6 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: -Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!
7 " 'When any Israelite or any alien living in Israel separates himself from me and sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet to inquire of me, I the LORD will answer him myself. 8 I will set my face against that man and make him an example and a byword. I will cut him off from my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
9 " 'And if the prophet is enticed to utter a prophecy, I the LORD have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel. 10 They will bear their guilt—the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him. 11 Then the people of Israel will no longer stray from me, nor will they defile themselves anymore with all their sins. They will be my people, and I will be their God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
1. What is idolatry?
2. Are there idols in our life?
3. What do we need to do about it?
1. Idolatry happens in the heart (v 2,4)
-the heart is what drives you
-you are ALWAYS worshiping something
-whatever you worship rules you
-Romans 1:18-25
-An idol of the heart is anything that rules you other than God
2. Idolatry affects your life in deceitful ways (v 2,3,4)
-Jeremiah 17:9- The heart is deceitful above all
-Your heart can BLIND you
-Idolatry has the tendency to consume your life
-you can be deceived into using spiritual things to serve your idols
3. God actively opposes idolatry and calls you to repent (v 6,8)
-the only issue God wants to discuss with an idolater is his idolatry
-repentance is a radical change of heart that results in a radical change in the direction of your life
4. You need to have a God exchange in your heart (v 11)
-You need to turn away from your idols and turn to God!
5. God wants to be YOUR God (v 11)
-He is God, but wants that ruling place in your heart
-It is what you were created for (Isaiah 43:7)
-It is what He sent His Son for (1 Peter 3:18, Romans 3:23--we all fall short)
-Whatever you love you praise!
-He satisfies! (Psalm 37:4, Psalm 16:11)
-We think idols make us happy, but they are emptiness
-He will make you happy in Him! :)
So ask yourself...
Are there idols in my heart?
What do I need to do about it?
Ezekiel 14:1-11Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me. 2 Then the word of the LORD came to me: 3 "Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I let them inquire of me at all? 4 Therefore speak to them and tell them, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: When any Israelite sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet, I the LORD will answer him myself in keeping with his great idolatry. 5 I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.'
- 6 "Therefore say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: -Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!
7 " 'When any Israelite or any alien living in Israel separates himself from me and sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face and then goes to a prophet to inquire of me, I the LORD will answer him myself. 8 I will set my face against that man and make him an example and a byword. I will cut him off from my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
9 " 'And if the prophet is enticed to utter a prophecy, I the LORD have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel. 10 They will bear their guilt—the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him. 11 Then the people of Israel will no longer stray from me, nor will they defile themselves anymore with all their sins. They will be my people, and I will be their God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
1. What is idolatry?
2. Are there idols in our life?
3. What do we need to do about it?
1. Idolatry happens in the heart (v 2,4)
-the heart is what drives you
-you are ALWAYS worshiping something
-whatever you worship rules you
-Romans 1:18-25
-An idol of the heart is anything that rules you other than God
2. Idolatry affects your life in deceitful ways (v 2,3,4)
-Jeremiah 17:9- The heart is deceitful above all
-Your heart can BLIND you
-Idolatry has the tendency to consume your life
-you can be deceived into using spiritual things to serve your idols
3. God actively opposes idolatry and calls you to repent (v 6,8)
-the only issue God wants to discuss with an idolater is his idolatry
-repentance is a radical change of heart that results in a radical change in the direction of your life
4. You need to have a God exchange in your heart (v 11)
-You need to turn away from your idols and turn to God!
5. God wants to be YOUR God (v 11)
-He is God, but wants that ruling place in your heart
-It is what you were created for (Isaiah 43:7)
-It is what He sent His Son for (1 Peter 3:18, Romans 3:23--we all fall short)
-Whatever you love you praise!
-He satisfies! (Psalm 37:4, Psalm 16:11)
-We think idols make us happy, but they are emptiness
-He will make you happy in Him! :)
So ask yourself...
Are there idols in my heart?
What do I need to do about it?
Monday, November 05, 2007
How To Dress For Spiritual Success!
Today in chapel Pastor Tom Patton from Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, CA preached a powerful message on a vital transformation in Christianity often known as the 'put on and put off' sermon. Looking at Ephesians 4:17-24 we were encouraged and exhorted to live lives sold out for our Creator.
EPHESIANS 4:17-24
So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
20You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Paul exhorts the Christian to put off the old man and the old ways of life, those in the sinful depraved life and put on Christ and those things that come with the life set apart for Him. God has saved us and we therefore are to be DIFFERENT then the world, we shouldn't be going with the flow of the culture but against the grain.
2 Corinthians 5:17 explains that we are NEW creations in Christ. That means that there needs to be a radical transformation in the life of those that claim to be followers of Christ.
If you think about it, the way that you dress sends a message to the world and to those that you come into contact with whether you want to believe it or not. You send out a message and whether you intend to do that or it is done subconsciously it is sent out. Now if the material things you wear send out a message how much more do the spiritual things?
Does the "spiritual image" you put out contradict who you are?? So how then can we dress for spiritual success.
1. Put off your decaying clothes (v 22)
-if you have learned Jesus Christ then take your dirty laundry off and get rid of it...the sinful former ways
-have a dress code for eternal life
-you will then be miraculously transformed by Christ
-you should no longer be wearing your heathen hand-me-downs that was your old self, your old manner of life
-everything else that you pursue apart form Christ is worthless and empty
-when we continue in our former ways our ignorance becomes endemic and our hearts become hard and calloused
-"no man becomes a wretched sinner all at once..." -William Barkley
-Romans 1:32
2. Psych up the Divine Mind (v 23)
-"gear yourself up"
-you need to understand what you have to do with your mind
-this will be a continual and ongoing process until heaven
-renew your attitudes and your minds daily by the grace of God
-think right, fill it up with right thoughts
-Philippians 4, 2 Corinthians 3:16-18
3. Put on Designer Clothing (v 24)
-new self is created by God, THE CREATOR, in righteousness, in holiness and in truth
-walk in purity and be who you really are---made renewed in Christ's likeness RIGHTEOUS before the Creator in His clothing!
Don't let the old nature lie to you telling you that sin is unavoidable therefore don't try to fight it off or that the truth of God doesn't apply to you!
May you by the grace and power of God be dressed for spiritual success!!!!
EPHESIANS 4:17-24
So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
20You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Paul exhorts the Christian to put off the old man and the old ways of life, those in the sinful depraved life and put on Christ and those things that come with the life set apart for Him. God has saved us and we therefore are to be DIFFERENT then the world, we shouldn't be going with the flow of the culture but against the grain.
2 Corinthians 5:17 explains that we are NEW creations in Christ. That means that there needs to be a radical transformation in the life of those that claim to be followers of Christ.
If you think about it, the way that you dress sends a message to the world and to those that you come into contact with whether you want to believe it or not. You send out a message and whether you intend to do that or it is done subconsciously it is sent out. Now if the material things you wear send out a message how much more do the spiritual things?
Does the "spiritual image" you put out contradict who you are?? So how then can we dress for spiritual success.
1. Put off your decaying clothes (v 22)
-if you have learned Jesus Christ then take your dirty laundry off and get rid of it...the sinful former ways
-have a dress code for eternal life
-you will then be miraculously transformed by Christ
-you should no longer be wearing your heathen hand-me-downs that was your old self, your old manner of life
-everything else that you pursue apart form Christ is worthless and empty
-when we continue in our former ways our ignorance becomes endemic and our hearts become hard and calloused
-"no man becomes a wretched sinner all at once..." -William Barkley
-Romans 1:32
2. Psych up the Divine Mind (v 23)
-"gear yourself up"
-you need to understand what you have to do with your mind
-this will be a continual and ongoing process until heaven
-renew your attitudes and your minds daily by the grace of God
-think right, fill it up with right thoughts
-Philippians 4, 2 Corinthians 3:16-18
3. Put on Designer Clothing (v 24)
-new self is created by God, THE CREATOR, in righteousness, in holiness and in truth
-walk in purity and be who you really are---made renewed in Christ's likeness RIGHTEOUS before the Creator in His clothing!
Don't let the old nature lie to you telling you that sin is unavoidable therefore don't try to fight it off or that the truth of God doesn't apply to you!
May you by the grace and power of God be dressed for spiritual success!!!!
Thursday, November 01, 2007
A "Reformation Day" Charge
Tonight at Bible Study we celebrated Reformation Day. In 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the doors of a church in Germany which is the document that ultimately gave birth to Protestantism. It is interesting to note that on the same day the world celebrates the most pagan holiday, Halloween, hundreds of years ago a reformation for the church of Christ and the furthering of the Gospel was taking place.
We have heard the names Martin Luther, John Calvin, and so on and quite often miss the priceless examples and legacies these men and women of the Lord provide. These people took their salvation and the Gospel for what it was worth...EVERYTHING. Romans 8 is a key passage in understanding our salvation...here in verses 1-11, we get a glimpse of Paul's "spurring":
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,[a] who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
When God called us to repentance and faith through His Son He became LORD of our lives and commanded us to die to the flesh, to our fallen nature and to live a life that was radically different from what had been. A life that lives the Gospel out day by day. A life that lives on earth to praise and glorify its Creator. A life that is marked by suffering for the name of Christ, by selfless love for others, by humble servitude, and praise and thankfulness for what they've been blessed with. We have the opportunity to live out our faith in a fallen world and we must take it...why else are we here other than to proclaim His Gospel and further the kingdom. Let's get our job done!
Let us learn from our heroes of the faith in the past, those from the time period when reform meant heavy persecution yet much glory to God. Let us take the advice of those who radically changed the world for the cause of Christ and the Gospel. Lets stop focusing on ourselves and on the Gospel.
""This is the mystery of the riches of divine grace for sinners, for by a wonderful exchange our sins are now not ours but Christ's, and Christ's righteousness is not Christ's, but ours." -Martin Luther
We have heard the names Martin Luther, John Calvin, and so on and quite often miss the priceless examples and legacies these men and women of the Lord provide. These people took their salvation and the Gospel for what it was worth...EVERYTHING. Romans 8 is a key passage in understanding our salvation...here in verses 1-11, we get a glimpse of Paul's "spurring":
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,[a] who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
When God called us to repentance and faith through His Son He became LORD of our lives and commanded us to die to the flesh, to our fallen nature and to live a life that was radically different from what had been. A life that lives the Gospel out day by day. A life that lives on earth to praise and glorify its Creator. A life that is marked by suffering for the name of Christ, by selfless love for others, by humble servitude, and praise and thankfulness for what they've been blessed with. We have the opportunity to live out our faith in a fallen world and we must take it...why else are we here other than to proclaim His Gospel and further the kingdom. Let's get our job done!
Let us learn from our heroes of the faith in the past, those from the time period when reform meant heavy persecution yet much glory to God. Let us take the advice of those who radically changed the world for the cause of Christ and the Gospel. Lets stop focusing on ourselves and on the Gospel.
""This is the mystery of the riches of divine grace for sinners, for by a wonderful exchange our sins are now not ours but Christ's, and Christ's righteousness is not Christ's, but ours." -Martin Luther
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
