THE PURGING OF SELF
I send you greetings in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who is the Lord and Master of all things. I believe that all Christians hold that to be true, and yet so many have taken a distant perspective of what it means with regard to self.
The world has taught us to place self above all other things; protecting that which we hold dear to our own desires. The view will work only a small way into the life that we are called to live for although we are called to love ourselves that love must also be extended to those around us within the body of Christ the church as well. In fact when it comes to the distinction between another's needs and our own needs there should be no difference. When we see a need within the body of Christ we should take action to meet that need in what ever way we can. While not everyone is gifted with a servants heart we can still put into action others who are wired in that way to help find answers.
When we purge self we are actually taking those things out of the way that help us to love so completely that we can consider others needs to be as important as our own needs are.
When we do that we also have to discern the difference between want and need just as we do in our own life. Some times that is not a very easy task because many do not know the difference in those two things. It is very easy to talk ones self into a want becoming a need and the temptation of that is always strong in the flesh. Many times it takes a greater love for self than normal to say no to what we want so badly. Our Heavenly Father's love for us is perfect enough to do that for us as well.
When it comes to self we are always looking for a way to fill that need, but would we ever consider making sure someone else's need is filled before our own? It is that kind of love that God looks for in purging self. Many of can talk a good talk, but when it comes to living that talk out we fall short. The simple application of loving God with all of our heart and then our neighbor as we love ourselves is at the center of purging self. The first church understood this because they were forced to depend on each other in life. We have gotten far away from that perspective in our society, but it does not mean we can drop the need for it in our churches. These are but a few of the things that we rarely hear taught in most churches today, but it is my personal prayer that we get back to the proper placement of ownership for all that we are and all that we have. We are stewards of what God has given us to use in this life...are we good stewards or are we self centered as those who continued to ignore God in the parables of the vineyard? It is a question that only we can really answer. God is the one who has made us to be all that we can be, and it is self that limits us in spiritual growth so that we can seemingly control who we are. It is just another reason to cut those ties that bind us to this world and this life so that we can sore with Jesus Christ our Lord. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
The world has taught us to place self above all other things; protecting that which we hold dear to our own desires. The view will work only a small way into the life that we are called to live for although we are called to love ourselves that love must also be extended to those around us within the body of Christ the church as well. In fact when it comes to the distinction between another's needs and our own needs there should be no difference. When we see a need within the body of Christ we should take action to meet that need in what ever way we can. While not everyone is gifted with a servants heart we can still put into action others who are wired in that way to help find answers.
When we purge self we are actually taking those things out of the way that help us to love so completely that we can consider others needs to be as important as our own needs are.
When we do that we also have to discern the difference between want and need just as we do in our own life. Some times that is not a very easy task because many do not know the difference in those two things. It is very easy to talk ones self into a want becoming a need and the temptation of that is always strong in the flesh. Many times it takes a greater love for self than normal to say no to what we want so badly. Our Heavenly Father's love for us is perfect enough to do that for us as well.
When it comes to self we are always looking for a way to fill that need, but would we ever consider making sure someone else's need is filled before our own? It is that kind of love that God looks for in purging self. Many of can talk a good talk, but when it comes to living that talk out we fall short. The simple application of loving God with all of our heart and then our neighbor as we love ourselves is at the center of purging self. The first church understood this because they were forced to depend on each other in life. We have gotten far away from that perspective in our society, but it does not mean we can drop the need for it in our churches. These are but a few of the things that we rarely hear taught in most churches today, but it is my personal prayer that we get back to the proper placement of ownership for all that we are and all that we have. We are stewards of what God has given us to use in this life...are we good stewards or are we self centered as those who continued to ignore God in the parables of the vineyard? It is a question that only we can really answer. God is the one who has made us to be all that we can be, and it is self that limits us in spiritual growth so that we can seemingly control who we are. It is just another reason to cut those ties that bind us to this world and this life so that we can sore with Jesus Christ our Lord. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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