In reality, nothing good comes from our flesh. It is only
Christ in us who works in and through us to produce lasting fruit (Romans 7:18;
Philippians 2:12-13). The roots of the Spirit ground us and the Vine provides
for us.
As Born Again Believers, we are born of God and partakers
of the divine nature of Christ (2 Peter 1:4). When Christ dwells in us, He
gives us the power to conquer temptation and sin (1 Corinthians 10:13).
We do not continue in a lifestyle of sin, because His
seed remains in us (1 John 3:9). His Spirit empowers us and makes us more than
conquerors (Romans 8:37). We are conduits for His work through our life.
Sin no longer controls us because His Spirit dwells
within us and conforms us to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 6:18).
Christ sets us free from the law of sin and death (John 8:36; Romans 8:1-2).
Therefore, we grieve the heart of God when we wallow in
sin and give in to temptation and the flesh. We deny His power within us and we
give Satan the attention that God deserves.
We waste our lives and fail to live up to God's best for
us. When we take the wide road to destruction, we end up with little to show
for a lifetime of living. We reap few rewards in heaven, because we rarely
served Him with our life.
Yet, if we walk in His will each moment of the day, we
accomplish His work in the earth and make a lasting contribution to His
Kingdom. We reap rewards for each act of obedience and earn crowns that we can
cast at Jesus' feet (Revelation 4:10-11).
We cast our crowns, because we realize that we do not
deserve them. Everything we accomplish on the earth is the result of His
Spirit's work in and through us, and we have no bragging rights (Ephesians
2:8-9).
Prayer:
Father God, thank You for Your Spirit who calls to our
spirit and empowers us to walk in Your will each day of our life (Ephesians
2:10; Philippians 2:12-13). Help us to walk in Your Spirit so we will not
fulfill the lusts of the flesh (Galatians 5:15-25). The more our carnality
decreases, the more You encompass our life. We walk in increasing increments of
spirituality, and sin no longer tempts us. We have no desire for this world's
enticements.
You provide for our every need abundantly more than we
even expect, and we give You all the praise and glory for every good thing in
our life (James 1:17). We spend our days singing praises to You as we go about
meeting only Your expectations in our life. As we listen to Your Spirit, You
always work out everything for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28).
Thought for the Day:
If we keep living a lifestyle of sin without conviction
and repentance, this is proof that we are not born of God; we remain in the
flesh and our spirit is still dead in sin; once we know God, His sanctifying
power causes us to gradually lose our desire to keep on sinning.
- Ephesians
2:1; 1 John 2:29, 3:6
