God's Transforming and Conforming Power

God’s Holy Spirit sanctifies us throughout our lifetime, until we are perfected according to His standard of the fullness of Christ in us (Ephesians 4:13). He makes us holy, even as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16).

We are fully human, but Christ in us is fully divine. God's Spirit faithfully transitions us from one stage of God's glory to another (2 Corinthians 3:18). He conforms us with the mind of Christ (Romans 12:2).

God's Spirit slowly matures us until we completely share in the divine nature of Christ in us (Ephesians 4:13). We have the same chance, which Jesus did, to live a spirit-filled life.

Our identity is no longer dependent on our accomplishments or our human standing in this world. We are a King's kid (Galatians 3), a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5) and heirs with Christ of the Kingdom of God (Romans 8).

God is a shield for us and gives us His glory to replace our humanity. He hears our cries for help, and He lifts up our head when we are discouraged and alone. He hears us even from His holy hill (Psalm 3:3-4).

We are different people from what we were before we trusted Jesus for salvation; and therefore, we make a huge difference in this world. People recognize that our attitude and demeanor are unique; they sense an aura of peace and kindness that is unlike their other acquaintances.

We mature in Christ as we relinquish total control of our life to Him. We trust God completely to direct our life according to His will and way, even if it is contrary to our human reasoning and understanding (Revelation 3:7).

Prayer:

Father God, You are constantly calling, guiding and encouraging us to trust You with more and more of our life. Thank You for opening and closing doors which would divert us from Your chosen path for our life. Help us to wait patiently on You and not to jump ahead or lag behind Your divine timing.

Arrange divine appointments for us to impact lives in the sphere of our influence and to help them to come to a saving knowledge of Your Son, Jesus. Remind us to put our mind on heavenly things and to reject the carnal concerns with which the devil attempts to side track and discourage us. Help us to realize that Christ in us is greater than Satan and all of his ruses, lies and demons.

Thought for the Day:

When our soul is discouraged, anxious and overwhelmed, we can put our trust in God, and praise Him for what He has already done in our life (Psalms 42:11), and He will change our attitude, thoughts, feelings to line up to His Word and the fruit of His Spirit.

A Balanced Christian Life

The Gospels of the Bible give us a play-by-play account of who Jesus was while He lived on the earth. The Epistles denote the power which Jesus now exercises from within His Body of authentic Believers.

We walk this earthly realm in the flesh, but through the dealings of God's Spirit within us, we crucify the flesh and the lusts thereof (2 Corinthians 10:3; Galatians 5:24). We no longer live in the flesh (Romans 8:5).

As we walk in the Spirit (Romans 8:9), the life of Christ is manifested through our physical existence (2 Corinthians 4:10-11). We live in the world, but we are not part of it (John 17:16).

Christ performs His work through us, which God prepared for us before the world ever began (Ephesians 2:10). Jesus moves into our spirit and we walk with His direction for each moment of the day (Galatians 5:16, 25).

We are controlled and guided by the Holy Spirit, who fills us (Ephesians 5:18). This is accomplished by the particular fruit and gifts of the Spirit, which He provides for each one of us individually (Ephesians 4:8-16; Romans 12:1; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, 27-31).

We submit our negative thoughts to the Lordship of Jesus Christ for healing. We even lay down our positive thoughts and adopt His thoughts as our own (Philippians 2:5).

We have the abiding love and peace of God resident within us (Romans 5:5; Ephesians 2:14). Desiring to live Godly lives, we have everything we need to achieve this through Christ Jesus within (2 Timothy 3:13; 2 Peter 1:3).

Prayer:

Father God, as we surrender our will to Your will, we soon realize that You fill us completely. You lead us to give the fruit of our labors to our local church and to missionaries doing Your work, rather than to spend our time, energy and resources on frivolous amusements and earthly treasures. The earthly is here today, but gone tomorrow; yet Your work lasts into eternity (1 Corinthians 1:9, 6:17; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Ephesians 1:3-14, 4:32, 5:22-33; Galatians 5:22-23; Acts 15:28).

We want to do only Your will with our life. Following the leading of Your Holy Spirit moment by moment throughout the day results in physical productivity, a healthy mental and emotional life, spiritual advantages and material blessings which we cannot even begin to imagine until we walk in Your ways!

Thought for the Day:

When Christ is foremost in our thoughts and we pray about His order for our day, even cleaning the house, tending the children, working in the secular world, ministering at church, preparing meals and spending time with our family is the result of a spirit-filled life.

Missing Out on God's Blessings

We cannot fill our self with God's Spirit through human effort (Acts 8:18-24). God's presence in our life demands obedience. Without it, God's Spirit is quenched. The still small voice of God is always there to lead us, if we will just listen and obey. God's Spirit guides and empowers each step we take as witnesses and ministers for God's Kingdom (Acts 1:1-9; John 1:12, 14:16-17; Colossians 2:9-10).

Carnal people may have prayed for salvation, but they skip one important step...salvation also implies obedience (Romans 8:5-7). If people refuse to walk away from their sin and to believe in God, they are probably not Christians (1 John 2:3,3:6-9; Ephesians 5:5). They constantly grieve and quench the Holy Spirit with their sinful choices (Ephesians 4:30; 1 Thessalonians 5:19).

A carnal person is too proud or fearful to trust God. They rely on their own efforts, because they do not want to bother God. They live a roller coaster life, stressed out and weary. They are either very legalistic or very undisciplined. They only open their Bible on Sunday. When given a choice, they slide into sin, because it is easier than following God's way out of temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13).

The problem with living a carnal life is that we miss out on the abundant blessings of living a spirit-filled life. God loves us and planned every day of our life before we were ever born (Psalm 139:16). Life is so much easier when we live it God's way. His Spirit indwells us at salvation and fills us with each new day (John 3:1-8; Ephesians 1: 13-14; 5:18; Romans 8:8-10).

Prayer:

Father God, thank You for birthing us by Your Spirit as authentic Believers. Your peace fulfills us as Your Spirit glorifies Christ through us (John 7:37-39; 16:1-15). As baby Christians we mimic the sinful behavior of the world, but we are constantly growing in love and obedience to Your Word (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). We struggle with our carnal desires, but we eventually realize that we are already free in Christ, who took our condemnation and gave us His righteousness (Romans 7:15-8:1). We want to walk in Your Spirit and in Your service every day of our life.

Thought for the Day:

When we obey God's Spirit, we do not gratify the lusts of our flesh or desire what is contrary to God's Word, because living by God's Spirit is the opposite of abiding in a sinful lifestyle. - Galatians 5:16-18