Sinner or Saint

 

If Christ dwells in our Born Again spirit, our body and soul cannot live in a lifestyle of sin, because it grieves God's Spirit to be a part of anything remotely sinful.

What is a sin? Sin is missing the mark of God's perfect holiness. The main sin is that of unbelief (John 3:18). We condemn our self to hell by our unbelief. No one sin is more grievous to God, than unbelief (Romans 14:23).

The Bible gives us several lists of other particular sins, such as fornication, witchcraft, strife, envy, murder, alcoholism, homosexuality, backbiters, disobedient to parents, proud, unmerciful, covenant breakers, profane, whoremongers, liars, divorcing one's mate, thieves, foolish talk, jesting, covetousness and blasphemy to name a few (Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 1:26-32; 1 Timothy 1:9-10; Revelation 21:8; Matthew 19:18-19; Ephesians 5:3-7, 18; Mark 7:21-22; 2 Corinthians 12:20).

The Body of Christ will welcome most sinners into the ministry with carte blanche forgiveness, except someone who has been divorced. They act as if divorce is the unpardonable sin; even if the otherwise qualified man did not want the divorce.

Yet, we see that there are other characteristics which should exclude someone from the ministry. Consider an alcoholic, a murderer, a liar, a permissive parent, or a sex addict. These are all equal qualifications, and yet often ignored (1 Timothy 3:1-13).

The good news of the Gospel of Christ is that while we still lived in a lifestyle of sin, Jesus died for us all (Romans 5:8, 11). Jesus became sin for us all, so that we all could become the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).

The only unpardonable sin is to blaspheme the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:31). All other sins are forgiven and covered by the blood of Jesus for everyone with the courage to call on His name to be saved.

Prayer:

Father God, You consider anger just as sinful as murder, and lust as hateful as fornication. There are no mortal and venial sins in Your eyes. One sin is as disgusting to You as another (Matthew 5:22, 28,32). Thank You for Your sanctifying work in our life, which sets us free from sin and death (Romans 8:2).

Remind us that if we say we are Born Again, and yet we sin with immunity and no negative side effects, we are deceiving our self (Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8). A Born Again Believer may dabble in sin for a season, or carry a sin with us into our Born Again life, but we cannot tolerate sin for very long. This is because Your holy presence within us cannot dwell in a sinful environment.

Thought for the Day:

The sanctification process takes us through our season of unrighteous living, and changes us step by step to exhibit more Godliness than unrighteousness; we live as an example of a Godly Believer, full of love and spirituality.

Abundant Life

Humans foolishly count our worth by the fame, fortune and success we achieve in this world. These are fleeting and transitory and can change with an unforeseen event in an instant.

As followers of Christ, we no longer pursue aspects pertaining to this earthly realm, but we focus our mind, affections and goals on the purposes of God for us (Colossians 3:2).

God changes our nature from carnal, earthly flesh to one full of purity, Godliness and spirituality (2 Corinthians 3:18). He gives us a way out of every future temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13).

On top of that, He saves us from the punishment of our sins (Romans 6:23). Then He moves into our spirit to live His life through us.

Once we come to an epiphany of our union with Christ, anything is possible, according to the will of God (Mark 10:27). God graciously forgives our sin debt (1 John 1:9).

We no longer desire to fulfill the deeds of the flesh in our mortal body; because we are putting on the new self, which Jesus is renewing within us (Colossians 3:10).

When we focus on our life with an earthly perception, we experience stress, anxiety, anger and many other negative emotions. The consequences of our choices and actions follow us into eternity.

We are never more fulfilled than when we are walking closest to God through Christ in us. He walks with us every moment of every day, giving us His strength to go through every trial, making them adventures in which we can find His joy (Philippians 2:12).

Prayer:

Father God, with our mind focused on You, we walk in perfect peace (Isaiah 26:3). Our deepest affections are reserved just for You. As we focus on this life with an eternal perspective, we are only interested in Your intentions, instructions and inclusion of us in Your plans.

Your peace, which transcends all human understanding, fills our heart and mind through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7). We want nothing more than to bask in Your presence and to walk in step with You through each moment of our life.

Thought for the Day:

True abundance in this life only comes when we adopt a spiritual purpose. - Matthew 6:19-21

Our Spiritual Ears

Preoccupation with the affairs of this material world will dull our spiritual ears to heed God's Spirit in the spiritual realm (Matthew 13:15). This opens us up for Satanic deception, worldly influence and fleshly temptations.

We may even miss the coming of the Lord. He will come when we least expect Him, as a thief in the night (1 Thessalonians 5:2-4). That is why God calls us to watch and pray. 

We open our spiritual ears, watch and prepare for His guidance, comfort and coming. We live in holy anticipation and expectation. Our sole desire as we function in His calling for our life is His will.

A sign of the end times is spiritual apathy, which starves our spirit. We are so focused on our flesh and soul - our thoughts, choices and emotions - that we are spiritually asleep.

We put other pursuits ahead of our Bible reading, gathering with God's Saints, prayer and obedience to God's Spirit moment by moment throughout our day.

Circumstances constantly affect our fulfillment and contentment. We suffer from spiritual anemia. We measure our self-worth from our human accomplishments.

The future frightens us and we feel compelled to abandon the spiritual side of life in order to make provision for our physical and emotional needs first (Matthew 24:38).

We forget that we are created in God's image as triune beings and that He has a perfect plan for our life (Ephesians 2:10). As we take care of His business, He takes care of ours (Matthew 6:26).

His Kingdom is our inheritance and His immortal provision will replace our mortal existence if we will place His will above our own. He calls us to occupy the earth for Him until He comes (Luke 19:13).

Prayer:

Father God, spur us to release our desire to settle for mediocrity in the spiritual realm in order to excel in the carnal world. Help us to take our foot out of the earthly realm and to plant both feet firmly on the Rock of Christ.

Remind us that there is no salvation in pretending to be a Christ-follower. Only a life dedicated to the pursuit of Your will can bear any lasting, spiritual fruit. We want to receive Your free gift of salvation, sanctification and glorification by faith and abide in You forever (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Thought for the Day:

Walking in spiritual completion allows us to persevere in times of trial and tribulation by the power of God's Spirit within us. 

- Colossians 2:10