Fruitful Lives

 

Every time we step out of God’s will for our life, we open our self up to experience unnecessary trials (John 15:6).  Only as we remain connected to the divinity of Christ in us and draw our spiritual, physical, emotional, mental and financial sustenance from Him, do we experience true eternal life and peace (Romans 8:6). As we abide in Him, the divine nature of Christ in us will deal with any trouble that comes into our life. We cast our self on Christ, as helpless trustees of His Kingdom, ready to depend on Him in all things.

Any anxiety, stress, fear or concern in our heart signals an idol in our life, which we did not yet fully surrender to God. We surrender it and then place our self trustingly into God’s capable hands for safekeeping and to use as He wills. We no longer take charge over our life, because God directs our steps (Psalm 37:23). We watch the hands of God mold us from a lump of clay, into a vessel of honor for His use. We start each new day fully surrendering to His ministrations of our every need.

Christ who is our life dwells within our spirit (Colossians 3:4). We do not isolate our self from life in order to abide fully in Christ. We follow the guidance of His Spirit moment by moment throughout the day. We live fruitful lives, which God uses to feed those who hunger after Him (John 15:5). We can still function in the vocation in which He calls us to serve. We simply do all things for His glory, no matter what our profession happens to be. We live through our spirit, as we work in our body and love Him with every fiber of our soul.

We abide in Christ and He abides in us (1 John 2:28, 3:24; Ephesians 2:10). We are completely surrounded by Christ, because we live in Him and He lives within us. Faith in God’s faithfulness frees our soul from the trials and worries of life. The abiding Christ in us liberates us from the endless draw from sin and the world. God keeps us in and through all evil (Matthew 6:13). Submission to God guarantees that if we resist the devil, he must flee from us (James 4:7-8).

Therefore, attaining perfection through Christ in us is definitely within our reach. In faith, we cease from our efforts to achieve, and instead we obey God’s Spirit each moment of the day. Sin is not inevitable. Christ in us can live a sinless life in, through and instead of us, because He keeps us from evil and protects our soul from slipping into sin (Psalm 121:7). We consciously die to our humanity each morning and abide in Christ throughout the day. If our flesh happens to lift its dead head, Christ will gain victory over it.

We rise to the level of Christ-centeredness, which God provided for us to enjoy. We live in joyful consecration to our living Lord. By faith, we obey God’s direction for each moment of our day. The bond of our branch to His Vine is secure (John 15:5). God establishes the heart of the humble and the blameless forever (Psalm 112:8). He constantly restore us and strengthen us to enjoy a solid and faithful walk in Him each day of our life (1 Peter 5:10).

Prayer:

Father God, the heroes in the Hebrews Hall of Faith all achieved this status because they obeyed You in the specific area in which You called them. There was no mustering up of volumes of faith, just obedience to Your call in their life. Your plan is for all of us to live in this same simple faith in Your faithfulness that strengthens our obedience. You establish us all as living stones, a holy priesthood, a royal nation and your chosen people (1 Peter 2:5,9).

Thought for the Day:

Commit each of your trials to our Father’s care and obey with faith in Him through each moment of it.

Higher Purpose

Paul and Barnabas embarked on an extensive journey and planted churches all along the way. The fledgling Believers they left behind suffered for their faith in Jesus. So, the apostles made a return visit on their way home to encourage the Christians in all the churches they started. They strengthened these fledgling Saints and encouraged them to persevere through tribulation, because their ultimate destination was the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:21-22). Paul also reminded them that we are never alone in our persecution. We have one another, as well as our Savior that lives within us (Galatians 2:20).

We often reap tribulation from some ill-conceived scheme of our own, or from a decision or action perpetrated by some self-centered person in our life. At other times, we are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and we fall victim to some evil deed. However, God uses every tribulation to build up our faith and to allow the fruit of His Holy Spirit to replace the carnality in our life (Galatians 5:22-23). We learn to rejoice in suffering and to persevere through it (Romans 5:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:16). It is miraculous what praising will accomplish in us and for us.

Paul also went on a second missionary journey, this time with Silas to assist him. In one town, they were accused of causing riots and sentenced to time in jail (Acts 16:20). Knowing the secret of the power of praise, the men prayed and sang hymns even while they were chained behind bars (Acts 16:25). God blessed their faith and miraculously delivered them from their bondage. This phenomenon caused their guard and his household to accept the saving knowledge of Christ into their lives (Acts 16:30-38).

When we view our tribulation with the eyes of the Holy Spirit, we learn the secret of contentment regardless of where we are, what we have or what is happening to us (Philippians 4:12). There is always something to thank God for. We may have received a faux fur coat rather than a genuine mink; however, we are still warm. We may have a small income rather than great wealth, but we still have everything we really need. We may have physical ailments, but we are still alive. There is always something for which we can praise the Lord. Adversity and advantage are actually two sides of the same coin (James 1:2-8).

When we allow our self to focus on what we do not have, or on our problems and negative circumstances, we lose faith. We doubt God’s love for us, and His power to provide. Our greatest gift in life, as well as in death, is eternal life. No one can kill a Christian. They can only change our address! Paul reminds us that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). The Lord rejoices in the death of His Saints, because we are no longer separated from Him by time and space, and we will live in His presence for eternity (Psalm 115:16).

The purpose of tribulation is to conform us to the likeness of Christ (Romans 8:29). A secondary purpose is that we are forced to totally trust in God for deliverance, when we encounter trouble that we cannot navigate on our own. As we see God’s mighty hand move in our behalf during these times of trial, our faith grows and we learn wisdom and patience (James 1:4-8). Eventually, we learn to be joyful at all times, even in tribulation. This is because of the Godly character built into our life, as well as because of the hand of God that is always strong in our behalf (James 1:2-4).

Prayer:

Lord God, we find total peace and joy only when we give thanks to You in all of our circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Our fulfillment depends more on our relationship with You than it does on our state of affairs. We may not have what we want; but if we did not have what we need, then You would certainly provide it (Philippians 4:18-20). Remind us to wait on You and to be of good courage, knowing full well that You will strengthen our heart and supply our needs in Your perfect timing and way (Psalm 27:14).

Thought for the Day:

No one who places their hope in the Lord will ever be put to shame. - Psalm 25:3