Maturing in Christ

When we attempt to overcome the sin in our life that so easily ensnares us, we often fall back into temptation; then we feel shame both for the sin and for failing to overcome it.

We are admonished to be holy as God is holy, yet we can only do this by allowing the Holy Spirit to give us both the desire and the power to walk in increasing realms of God's glory each day (Philippians 2:12-13).

The foolish Galatians had to learn to trust God to sanctify them with the same faith that allowed them to trust Him for their salvation (Galatians 3:1-3). We are to live in this same manner.

Paul struggled with walking in a manner worthy of the Lord (Colossians 1:10). The duality of flesh and Spirit within him kept him on a roller coaster most of the time (Romans 7); however, he finally realized that the Spirit of life in Christ already set Him free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2).

He no longer needed to struggle with sin, but to walk in the Spirit who frees us from the law of sin and death. As we draw near to God in dependence, worship and praise, then we resist the devil, and he is bound to flee from us (James 4:7-11).

Through Calvary's cross, Christ exchanged His righteousness for our sin; we simply need to access this free gift by confessing our sin and trusting in Jesus for salvation (John 17:11-23; 1 Corinthians 6:17). Then, the Holy Spirit brings us into ever increasing maturity in Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18).

We learn to walk in the Spirit each moment of the day, led by the still, small voice of God (1 Kings 19:12) within our spirit (Galatians 2:20). We know we are in God's will when we follow that perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3), regardless of what our mind is telling us to do, or what conventional wisdom or human reasoning wants us to do.

Jesus gave us His righteousness and we now live as Jesus did in the world. We are an expression of His divine nature, because He lives within us (1 John 4:17; 2 Peter 1:4). This allows His living water within us to fill us to overflowing and to spill out into the world around us (John 7:38).

Prayer:

Father God, we thank You for Your vigilant watch care over us (Psalm 121:4). You protect us from Satan's wiles and temptations (Ephesians 2:2). Help us to realize that Christ in us enables us to live a life free from the demoralizing and destructive sin that tries to entrap us (2 Corinthians 4:10-11) and to actually, factually not just positionally, live a holy life, just as Christ in us is holy (Matthew 11:28-30; 1 Corinthians 6:17).

Thank You for keeping us, strengthening us, guarding us from our flesh, the world and the devil (Isaiah 42:11; Psalm 4:8). We give You all of the praise and glory for the maturity we attain over our lifetime. We strive only to stop following our human reasoning and to enter Your rest (Hebrews 4:10).

Thought for the Day:

We no longer struggle with life on our own, because the Trinity of God abides within us, and the Holy Spirit gradually but consistently replaces our negative attributes with Christ's righteousness.

Life-Changing Verses - Part 2 - Verse to Live By

God gives us a very simple plan for life. He encourages us to seek Him with all of our heart; not to depend on our human reasoning; and before we do anything, to ask Him to reveal His will for our next moment of time.

Then, He guarantees that He shall direct our paths (Proverbs 3:5-6). God will work out every circumstance, no matter how bad it is, for our ultimate good, if we love Him and are willing to walk in His will (Romans 8:28).

God created us for a special purpose before we were even born, starting with our salvation through Christ. We do not earn salvation by our works of righteousness. According to His mercy He saved us by cleansing us with regeneration.

God renews us by giving us His Spirit (Ephesians 2:8-10). Our Father God loved us while we were still sinners (Romans 5:7-9). He sees our whole life without the parameters of time or the constraints of mortality. God is eternal and views all of our years on earth from an eternal perspective.

We are crucified with Christ, but we still live on this earth; yet it is not us, but Christ who is living in and through us. And the life we now live in this human body, we live by the faith of God's Son who loves us - enough to die for us (Galatians 2:20).

We receive God's Spirit, which has nothing to do with our human effort, talents or hard work; and neither can we sanctify or perfect our soul through any work of our own (Galatians 3:1-3).

Our walk with God is a life-long process of growing in intimacy with Him, and enjoying the daily fellowship of almighty God. There is nothing that we cannot do as long as we are following His perfect will for us (Philippians 4:13).

If we submit to God and resist the devil, Satan is obligated to flee from us (James 4:7). He may gain permission from God to throw some type of trial in our path, but Christ in us is greater and more powerful than Satan could ever hope to be (1 John 4:4).

Prayer:

Father God, there are so many verses that stand out to us as we read Your Word, highlighted by Your Spirit in order to enlighten us and improve our brief life (James 4:14) on this earth. Thank You for giving us Your fullness as a free gift (Romans 3:23, 6:23; Ephesians 3:16-19, Amplified Bible). We give You all of the praise and honor due to Your name.

Because of Your mercy, we live our life free from the twisted duplicity of Satan's lies, and we relish the fact of our freedom in Christ. You make us whole and heal our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual diseases. You strengthen us from the inside out and You pour Your love and grace over us like a fountain of mercy. We love You with our whole spirit, soul and body, even into eternity.

Thought for the Day:

As we earnestly seek the Lord and thirst after Him to the point of fainting in this dry and weary land in which we live, He is our sanctuary - full of power and glory, the lover of our soul, which is better than life itself, and He satisfies our soul with His constant love; therefore, we continually praise Him with joyful lips and a mouth full of praises. - Psalm 63:1-11

---

Secret Intents and Motives

When we depend on someone else for our sense of value, we put our self into bondage to that person. Our motives, goals and opinions revolve around that person's whims.

People come and go in our life. They have unrealistic expectations of us, tire of us and dump us on the curb like a useless sack of trash.

However, Jesus never ever leaves us or forsakes us (Hebrews 13:5). He died for us in spite of our self and our failings. He approves of us in Christ and fully accepts us with all of our idiosyncrasies (Hebrews 13:8).

We can also put our self into bondage to religion by attempting to earn God's love and acceptance. We drive our self endlessly to work harder and to do better to please Him.

The truth is that our "self" is already crucified with Christ (Colossians 3:3; Galatians 2:20). At Salvation, we are fully accepted in the Beloved of God (Ephesians 1:5-7). God's Spirit fills us to the brim and overflows on everyone around us.

We prove that we love Him by our obedience to His Word (John 14:15). We do not always keep each letter of the law all the time, but our motive in life is to walk in His ways (Galatians 3:24; Psalm 86:11-17).

God sees our whole heart - including our secret intents and motives (1 Samuel 16:7). He encourages us to keep our self unspotted by the world (James 1:26-27).

Jesus loved us even when we did not love Him (1 John 4:19). We feel secure in His love, because it is not dependent on whether we earn or deserve it. It is a free gift, which lasts forever (Romans 3:23, 6:23).

Prayer:

Father God, the world values human attributes like popularity, physical features, power, influence and financial abundance; but You reward faithfulness to Your Word. You discern our secret intents and motives and discipline or bless Your children according to the desires of our heart (Jeremiah 17:10).

Help us to shed the trappings of this world that we carry with us into our relationship with You. Purify our thoughts and teach us Your ways, so that we want only what You want and value only those things which bring You honor and glory forever and ever.

Thought for the Day:

We attempt to justify our motives and actions, but the Lord weighs them on His scales; as we consult the Lord, He will guide our steps and establish our plans in His will.

- Proverbs 16:2-3