All Things Are New

 

Every person ever born inherits a sin nature from the first Adam, which results in our fall from God's grace (1 Corinthians 15:45). That is why God gives us both the desire and the power to walk in His salvation (Philippians 2:12-13). He purifies us in order to present us holy, blameless and beyond criticism. Holiness unites us with the Trinity of God (John 17:21).

Holiness does not involve legalism, stoicism or an angry God. There is nothing we could ever do, which is too hard for God to forgive. He knew we were going to commit sins before He ever created the world (2 Timothy 1:9). He sent Jesus to pay the debt for each sin we commit, as well as those things, which He led us to do and we failed to obey (John 1:29).

When we come to Christ in repentance, Jesus makes us a brand new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). He moves in and gradually removes every area, which stands in opposition to God. Then He remodels and restores us from the inside out (Romans 2:4, 12:1-2; Acts 11:18). God changes our will and our intentions. He is purifying for Himself a people who are passionate about obeying Him (2 Corinthians 5:15).

God helps us to stand firmly on the Rock of Christ, to remain steadfast in our devotion to Him and to cling to the hope He gives us through the Gospel of Christ (Psalm 18:2; Colossians 1:22-23). The entire Godhead is found in Jesus, and He and His divine nature abide in each of us (Colossians 2:9; 2 Peter 1: 2-4). I heard it said, "God cares about every aspect of our life, from the nursery to the nursing home."

Prayer:

Father God, by Your Holy Spirit and with Christ in us, we contain the fullness of Your power, authority, fruit and gifts (Galatians 5:22-23; 1 Corinthians 12; Acts 1:8; Ephesians 3:19). You call us to be light and salt in the earth so that people will see You in us (Matthew 5:13-16; Colossians 1:27). Remind us to cooperate with Your Spirit as He transforms us into the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Thank You for loving us enough to send Jesus to die in our place (Romans 4:25).

 

Thought for the Day:

God has good plans for our future; and He always gives us hope, regardless of our circumstances in life. - Jeremiah 29:11

His Exact Replica

After Salvation, we often focus our attention outwardly. We see God on His throne in Heaven, but we see our self as struggling alone in life and in need of His divine help. Some people say we are nothing but puppets, forced to serve as our Divine Manipulator dictates. However, we are more like a glove. Christ exactly fills us and we are perfectly molded to His character and nature (2 Peter 1:4).

Our union with Christ involves our spirit, soul and body. He unites them in vision and purpose with Christ. Through this union, God expresses His heart through us in sympathy for the hardships of others, in patience in tribulation, and in devotion in Bible study, prayer and fellowship with other Saints of God. Consequently, God fulfills through us His purpose for us in the earth (Ephesians 2:10).

In this manner, the union between the Creator and the created, the divine and the human, the eternal and the temporal is complete (Colossians 2:10). The Spirit directs us, and we move as His exact replica on the earth. Jesus also walks beside us, as well as living within us. He completely surrounds us, finishing His work of sanctification in our soul. We live, move and exist in Him (Acts 17:28).

Christ redeemed us from sin by the cross, and He works out His intentions in us and through us (Ephesians 2:10; Colossians 2:9-10). Jesus is our all in all (Colossians 1:17). He justifies our spirit; sanctifies, inspires and directs our soul; and will eventually glorify our body. Jesus is the expression of God’s glory and the exact image of God’s being (Hebrews 1:3). He speaks the oracles of God through our voice (1 Peter 4:11).

Also, Jesus heals a sick body through the laying on of our hands (Mark 1:41; 6:5; 5:3; 7:32, 33; 8:23, 25; 16:18; James 5:15). He sees a need and meets it through the resources He provides for us (1 John 3:17). He will even raise the dead, cleanse the leper and cast out demons in and through us (Matthew 10:8). As we walk in union with Christ, by the direction of His Spirit, we walk as shining stars, shedding His light in the dark, lost world around us (Colossians 1:27; Philippians 2:15).

Prayer:

Father God, Your will flows from a combination of Your divine love and wisdom. Harmony in our relationship with You increases as we live in union with Christ. This guarantees that more accord abides between our will and Yours. We soon find that our purpose is to do nothing more in life than to allow Christ to work through us. Fill us with the spiritual gifts and fruit of Your Spirit, and help us to lay down our plans and expectations, so You can use us for Your purposes each moment of our day. 

Thought for the Day:

If we only focus on Christ on the cross, we may forget the fact that the risen Lord dwells within our spirit.

Our Family Tree

The concept of “Family” started in the Garden of Eden. God created Eve for Adam and the excited man exclaimed, “This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” We cannot get any more related than that (Genesis 2:23-24). God created one man to be married to one woman for a lifetime. In spite of the way the world treats marriage today, the Word of God repeatedly blesses the union of the family (Psalms 128:3; Acts 10:2; Acts 16:31-34). This is the most complex unit in our society, however, and it often causes us the most hardship, because we are so interdependent on one another.

God expects parents to walk in His ways and to teach them to their children (Deuteronomy 4:9-10; Esther 1:22). God had total confidence in Abraham to command his children and his household to follow the Lord, to keep His ways and to live by Godly precepts (Genesis 18:19). Jacob followed in his grandfather’s footsteps and made sure his family also followed the ways of the Lord (Genesis 35:2). Joseph cherished his family so much, that even when they sold him into slavery, he did not take revenge on them. He provided for them during times of famine and forgave them for their treachery towards him (Genesis 50:17-21). Joshua boldly proclaimed his as well as his family’s allegiance to God (Joshua 24:15).

God created the woman to bless the man (1 Corinthians 11:7-9). Once the first couple sinned by rebelling against God, Our Father put it into the heart of the woman to desire her husband and to obey his rule over her (Genesis 3:16). A wife is advised to look well to the ways of her household, not to live in a lazy manner and to live faithfully with her own husband (Proverbs 31:27; 1 Corinthians 7:10; Ephesians 5:22-24; Colossians 3:18; 1 Peter 3:1). God even gives us Sarah as an example and exhorts us to reverence and respect our husband (1 Peter 3:6).

God exhorts husbands to live faithfully with their wife, not to get drunk or to be greedy for ill-gotten gains, not to be a fighter or covetous, to rule their household well, to help their children to walk in an orderly fashion, and to be hospitable and apt to teach (1 Timothy 3:2-5, 12). God even commends grandparents who impart His Word to their grandchildren (2 Timothy 1:5). We all have a place to serve in God’s family both at home and at church.

Family dynamics is one of the most tenuous life systems on earth. Every family experiences trials and conflict. God gives us clues in His Word on dealing with trouble. His primary focus during a disagreement is reconciliation (Matthew 5:24). Unresolved conflicts often destroy our association with others. Jesus died to redeem mankind to God; and God filters this reconciliation down into all of our relationships (Matthew 4:24).

The first step in relationships is not to judge the other person’s motives, meaning or reasoning for their words or actions (Matthew 7:1). If they say or do something that is offensive, ask them to clarify their reason for their words or actions. Often, our interpretation of the incident is based upon our insecurities and injuries from the past, rather on their motives or intentions (Matthew 7:5). We over-react because their behavior triggered an old wound in us. We see every incident from our own perspective.

God encourages us to take the other person’s perspective into account as well as our own (1 Tim 4:1-2); otherwise, discussions can escalate into an all out war. Through discussing all the options, no one party “wins” all the time (Proverbs 10:23). Often, neither side gets their way, and both parties choose a third selection as the best course of action (Proverbs 14:15). God gives His wisdom and grace in every situation, if the couple, parent or child is wise enough to seek His counsel (Psalm 2:10-11, 111:10).
 

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for creating us to live in families. Help us to appreciate the good aspects in the family You birthed us into, rather than allowing our focus to remain on the negative features. Give us wisdom as we choose our mate, and lead us by Your Spirit to the person best suited for us, someone that we can bless and who will bless us in return. You are able to protect everything that we entrust to You; therefore, we put all of our relationships into Your capable hands (2 Timothy 1:12). It is so good for us all to dwell together in unity (Psalm 133:1).

Thought for the Day:

“If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.”
- Romans 12:18