“So
then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God; for whoever enters
God's rest also ceases from his labors as God did from his. Let us,
therefore,
strive to enter that rest." – Hebrews 4: 9-12
The
situation today is much the same as it was among the Galatian Christians in
Paul’s day. Having been born again, they trusted in the finished work of
Christ’s crucifixion, death and resurrection, as well as the activity of the
Holy Spirit in their life. Then Satan and the Judaizers - religious legalists –
seduced them by imposing unbiblical rules and regulations on them to allegedly
guarantee them spiritual maturity. They foolishly took part in a useless
struggle in which they sought to please God by their works (Galatians
3:1-3).
We
do this too. We trust in Christ for Salvation, but then we try to perfect our
self by our works. Sanctification - the process of becoming holy and pleasing
to God - is a LIFELONG process. There are no shortcuts. We did not come
to Christ by our works (Titus 3:4-6; Eph 2:8-10), it was a free gift from God. Therefore, we cannot
sanctify our self by our works either. We simply submit to the work of the Holy
Spirit in our life and obey God’s principles in His Word. Sanctification and
Glorification are just as freely given to us by God as Justification.
Many times, negative input from significant others in our lives conditions
us to fail or to live under the heavy weight of condemnation. God wants to
reprogram those thoughts with His living Word, which tell us the truth about
our worth and our victory in Christ. Failing is not failure. Failing in one
area of our life opens us up to the possibility of success in another. We may
lose a battle, but Jesus already won the war 2000 years ago on Calvary’s cross.
If we fail, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins (1 John 1:9), and to stengthen us to do His work (Philippians 4:13). So rather than experiencing
defeat by our failings, we can ask for forgiveness and then ask God to show us
what to do next.
As we look for God’s direction, He leads us to do the works He planned for
us before the beginning of time (Ephesians
2:10). As
we seek His will, we walk in His wisdom as His Spirit leads and guides us each
step of the way. Regardless of life’s circumstances, nothing can separate us
from the love of God (Romans 8:35-39). There is no striving in
our walk with God. We do not need to spend time nor energy on trying to
overcome the flesh or on trying to earn God’s love. The only striving that the
Bible commands us to do is:
1.) to enter his narrow gate through Salvation2.) to enter into His rest.
Hebrews
4:9-12 tells us that we cannot be good enough, holy enough or spiritual enough to
deserve God’s love. We already have God's love, which does not depend upon our
behavior at all. If the Christian walk depended on us, then we would have no
need for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. He died because we can never be good
enough to earn God’s forgiveness and love. It is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Jesus completed the work of our perfection on the cross. Now we only need
to submit to Him as He helps us to make a conscious effort to walk in obedience
to His Will, regardless of the circumstances around us. As we walk in the
Spirit, we do not fulfill the lusts of our flesh (Galatians 5:16). Instead, we put on the mind of Christ (Philippians 2:5) and walk in the unity of the Spirit (Ephesians
4:3). As we
allow the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit to fill our soul and spirit to the
point of saturation, we bask in the Sonshine of His love.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, we continue to experience negative thoughts and attitudes, but
we want to have Your mind within us. Please bring us to a place of inner
healing and help us to walk in complete serenity through faith in Your
goodness. Remind us to set our boundaries to protect us from the negative
people in our lives that tear us down. Point out to us those who are already
walking in victory and fulfillment, so that we can hook our wagon to Your
spiritual stars. We will ask that one to disciple us, and we will follow them
as they follow You (1 Corinthians 11:1).
Thought for the Day:
If we live in the moment, and walk in the moment, we can follow the
Spirit’s leading one moment at a time.
Thank you, Michael Rickard, for the use of your photo.
