CHANGING WHO WE ARE
Greetings in the name of Jesus:
Contrary to many beliefs in the church today truly living the Christian life is one of the hardest things you will ever do. The reason is that it is not based upon our control of circumstances or the talents we may naturally have. We cannot by the power to live for Christ or in any way manipulate God to look upon us more favorably than He does anyone else so we can have no advantage. The Christian life is first and foremost our commitment to Christ, and our own willingness to allow His Spirit to transform who we are right now into a creature that fits into God's Kingdom.
For a great many people that thought stirs up some anger and resentment in that they have absolutely no voice in what is good enough or how far God requires them to go with His personal plan for their lives. For me it has been much like wading out in quicksand because the further I go the deeper I am required to go until I am completely helpless to do anything myself and each movement requires a complete trust in God for strength and mobility.
We do not seem to understand that God was literal when He told us we must die to this world. For us to be in the center of God's will for our lives we must let go of all of that which we have been clinging to in this life, and that particularly means a death to self and the constant drive we have to win at any cost...in other words the natural tendency to survive. Much of our real battle is with self in some way...it may be our self awareness, or our egos about physical appearance or position among other men and women. That has a lot to do with the competitions that we place ourselves in with people. It deals with the
" Am I going to be liked or accepted" theories that go on inside of our heads.
In the final analysis are we going to give up this life in exchange for what God has promised us, or are we going to fight until we have exhausted ourselves from any resource available to us at the end of our life? To fight with God all of our lives on receiving the free gift of peace, love, joy and rest in this life from knowing exactly where we are and where we going is ridiculous and yet all too often it becomes the mainstay ways of our lives in Christ. God simple and not Church complicated becomes a phrase that means more to me everyday as I learn that I must follow Christ in a death much like the one that He died for me...but it is a death of my will, and my refusal to be in charge, and in control of who I am.
That is something that most of us still are not even willing to admit to...so how can we ever become ready for the journey it will take to seek God as the Apostles did even unto death? We don't seek God even unto the point of any persecution or blood lost for His sake so I know that most of us will never seek Him to the point of dying for Him. As we are studying the teachings in Acts 9:1-19 about the conversion of Paul we need to realize just how serious this is for our eternal future. God will indeed take us on as His beloved children, but we must show forth the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, and we must be willing to be shown as Paul was shown what things we must suffer to receive eternal life. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
Contrary to many beliefs in the church today truly living the Christian life is one of the hardest things you will ever do. The reason is that it is not based upon our control of circumstances or the talents we may naturally have. We cannot by the power to live for Christ or in any way manipulate God to look upon us more favorably than He does anyone else so we can have no advantage. The Christian life is first and foremost our commitment to Christ, and our own willingness to allow His Spirit to transform who we are right now into a creature that fits into God's Kingdom.
For a great many people that thought stirs up some anger and resentment in that they have absolutely no voice in what is good enough or how far God requires them to go with His personal plan for their lives. For me it has been much like wading out in quicksand because the further I go the deeper I am required to go until I am completely helpless to do anything myself and each movement requires a complete trust in God for strength and mobility.
We do not seem to understand that God was literal when He told us we must die to this world. For us to be in the center of God's will for our lives we must let go of all of that which we have been clinging to in this life, and that particularly means a death to self and the constant drive we have to win at any cost...in other words the natural tendency to survive. Much of our real battle is with self in some way...it may be our self awareness, or our egos about physical appearance or position among other men and women. That has a lot to do with the competitions that we place ourselves in with people. It deals with the
" Am I going to be liked or accepted" theories that go on inside of our heads.
In the final analysis are we going to give up this life in exchange for what God has promised us, or are we going to fight until we have exhausted ourselves from any resource available to us at the end of our life? To fight with God all of our lives on receiving the free gift of peace, love, joy and rest in this life from knowing exactly where we are and where we going is ridiculous and yet all too often it becomes the mainstay ways of our lives in Christ. God simple and not Church complicated becomes a phrase that means more to me everyday as I learn that I must follow Christ in a death much like the one that He died for me...but it is a death of my will, and my refusal to be in charge, and in control of who I am.
That is something that most of us still are not even willing to admit to...so how can we ever become ready for the journey it will take to seek God as the Apostles did even unto death? We don't seek God even unto the point of any persecution or blood lost for His sake so I know that most of us will never seek Him to the point of dying for Him. As we are studying the teachings in Acts 9:1-19 about the conversion of Paul we need to realize just how serious this is for our eternal future. God will indeed take us on as His beloved children, but we must show forth the fruit of the Spirit in our lives, and we must be willing to be shown as Paul was shown what things we must suffer to receive eternal life. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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