1 John 5:3-4 NLT
Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome. For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.
“Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.”
With Jesus Christ center in our hearts and minds, this should produce a desire inside of us not to live in our old way.
Over time this should become an ever-increasing desire, and it will also make greater efforts of faith to live this out.
We won’t always measure up. And when we don’t, we confess our iniquities and make amends if necessary and press on.
1 John 2:1-2 NLT
My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins-and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
We should demand more from ourselves than any other human being ever could. This should come out of our desire to please God.
1 Corinthians 9:27 NLT
I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.
Our mission as a Christian is to “make disciples.”
Matthew 28:18-20 NLT
Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Our greatest witness and testimony to the saving grace of Jesus Christ will be determined by the work that we allow Him to do in our lives.
Our willingness and attitude about change will determine the trajectory of our spiritual growth.
God’s will, will be done.
If we are truly saved, His perfecting process will happen in our lives, but if we fight this, we need to bring this before Jesus. The lack of desire to please the Lord should create a healthy question in our minds about whether we have or have not been saved.
The single most important thing we can do is to be in the Word of God. Without this, we will have a very frustrating experience. And our efforts will be marked with ups and downs in our walk that are unnecessary.
This doesn’t mean that if we are in God’s Word all the time, our lives will be peachy and we will face many trials and challenges and this is by design.
It’s through these trials that we learn and grow. It’s through these trials that God does His work in our lives. Without the trials, there is no spiritual growth.
If everything we do can be accomplished in our strength, we never give God a chance to show up in our lives. And He wants to show up in our lives; he wants us to experience His Devine joy, which can only come when we give up our control and rely on Him for everything.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT
Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
This is not a suggestion. This is God’s will for us who belong to Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 NLT
Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. Do not scoff at prophecies, but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. Stay away from every kind of evil.
“Don’t stifle the Holy Spirit.”
How do we stifle the Holy Spirit?
With our prideful thoughts and actions. These are the two words that stifle the Holy Spirit the most.
“I know…” and these words are generally followed up with the third word that stifles the Holy Spirit even more and that word is “but…”.
So it goes something like this, a loving brother comes to me gently with an inequity that I am doing, and my response goes something like this…
“I know, I know, I know that verse too BUT this person did this that and the other thing and they should know better.”
And most of the time, this is the statement that is the cherry on top, “And I am covered in the flesh, sometimes it just gets away from me.”
These statements are dripping with pride. And God stands in direct opposition to any prideful thoughts and actions.
These statements simply give us license to continue in our sinful ways.
1 Peter 5:5-7 NLT
In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Our Pastor’s will tell us that we know it when we live it.
We are called to hold every rebellious thought up against the standard of the Holy character of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:5 NLT
We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.
The only way we can teach anyone is when we have it set firmly in our own lives. Until then, it will stand as a barrier to others getting to know Jesus Christ through us.
Heavenly Father, please give me the strength and courage to face the sin in my life, knowing that if I am faithful to lay these things at Your feet, You will be faithful to help me work them out for Your glory.
Let my life stand as a shining example of a life submitted to Your will.
Give me the discernment to know where I fall short and give me the willingness to bring these things to You.
I thank You for Your grace, mercy and forgiveness, let me bring these same virtues to those around me.
In Your loving name, the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen !! 🙏❤️
