Freedom from the Tyranny of Pride

Pride is often the result of emotional wounds and false concepts, which we develop over the years of our life. I noticed that the more insecure a person is, the stronger and higher they build their wall of pride. The sad fact about this tragedy is that this only increases their lack of confidence.

These dear people attempt to survive life on their own. Satan encourages people to reject God's Truth and to believe his lies instead (Romans 1:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:11). They view our concern and offers of help as pity, which they vehemently reject. They do not understand that humility and interdependence will give them more assurance than pride ever will (1 Peter 5:1-10; James 4:6-10).

Satan uses humanism and self-assurance to destroy people (Luke 22:31). If you suggest that people stop putting their confidence in their natural abilities, they erupt in anger, which they use as yet another wall of defense (Philippians 3:3). Pride does not have to perpetuate our problems, if we simply repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, we will have a victorious life (Romans 10:9; Acts 20:21).

God's Word advises us not to function from selfish ambition and vain deceit, but to humbly think of others as better than our self (Philippians 2:3). This does not mean that we act like a doormat or allow others to abuse us; nor does it mean that we neglect our needs or inflict harm on our self. It simply means that we take our self off the throne of our life and obey God's Spirit as He directs us to bless others (Mark 12:31; Romans 12:10).

Prayer:

Father God, teach us that completely forgiving those who injured us in the past, and nurturing total faith in Your faithfulness are the only remedies for the destructiveness of pride. Once we acknowledge our need for You in our life, we no longer feel the need to live life on our own terms and through our own power. We no longer desire to hide behind our wall of pride, which crumbles in the face of adversity anyway. We surrender all to You right now and give You complete control over our life.

Thought for the Day:

The Bible emphatically states that pride ends in destruction, because pride is an assassin, which is just waiting to destroy our lives. - Proverbs 16:18

God's Ultimate Plan

Through Adam, God formed humanity in His image and likeness, as His ultimate creation in the Garden of Eden. Sin cast us down from our lofty position; and instead, required that we toil in the earth for our sustenance. However, the divine Christ took the form of a human being to redeem mankind for eternity. Now, He works in our life until we willingly surrender our carnal flesh for mortification by His Spirit, until we realize that we are dead, and our life is now hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3).

When we consider Jesus’ prayer in the Garden, prior to Judas’ betrayal, we can assume that He dreaded the horrendous coming events, which God required of Him. He begged God multiple times to allow the cup to pass from Him. Whether He feared the torture and crucifixion, or the bounty of God’s wrath, the debt of our sin or His separation from our Father for that period of time, we do not know. However, it is clear that Jesus felt apprehensive and craved His disciples’ support and prayer at that time.

We all know the end of the story. Jesus triumphed over sin and death. This same powerful Christ lives within us, with all the dynamic authority of His resurrection. He delivers every authentic Born Again Believer from any situation, which life throws at us, even death (Roman 8:11-23). Once the dynamite power of Christ moves into our spirit, we connect to the victory of the perfect union with Christ in us. We are now heirs with Jesus of all the glory due to Him, not because we are worthy, but because of what He did for us through Calvary’s cross (Romans 6:5).

Our humanity is dead, because we are crucified with Christ; yet Christ lives in and through us (Galatians 2:20). We are conformed to the likeness of His death through baptism, and then raised to walk in the freshness of new life in Him. We excel in His Kingdom work through His divine life within us. As Christ consecrates our spirit, soul and body to His service, we abide in Him as our righteousness, our salvation, our sanctification, our serenity, our sanctuary and our sufficiency.

Although all of creation awaits the revelation of the sons of God for its redemption (Romans 8:19), we currently abide in Christ with all the power of the triune Godhead residing within us. Yet, we live as prisoners to our negative emotions, our fleshly lusts, the lure of the world and the wiles of Satan and his minions. The reality of Jesus as the Lord of our life needs to sink into our soul until we eat, sleep, breathe and see it more clearly than any truth we have ever learned. Then we will walk in this reality with all the power of the triune Godhead within us (Mark 16:17-18).

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, You draw us into a closer union and fellowship with You through each passing day. We yield in unconditional surrender in order to partake of Your divine nature, unconditional salvation and victorious life. We desire nothing less then perfect conformity to Your nature and to be filled through all of our being with all the fullness of Your spiritual power (Ephesians 3:19). We rely on You to bring us into a deeper and more intimate abiding in Your presence within us, until we lay down our will and walk in Your will instead.

Thought for the Day:

When the storms of life shake our peace and our faith in our Rock, Jesus Christ, we can blame our self-efforts for this malady; however, we find abundant faith to meet any turmoil, when we trust only in our Savior and Lord. – Galatians 3:1-3

Life Changing Advice

 

Wise counsel is hard to find in this day and age. Everyone waters down the Word and gives carnal advice (Proverbs 12:15). We are blessed when we know the difference and refuse to listen to ideology from sinners or those who mock God (Psalm 1:1). Godly men and women give the best advice (Proverbs 11:14-15). We give them the details of our circumstances and they pray with us and give us Biblical advice. Any advice contrary to Biblical precepts is useless and vain. We are wise to disregard unbiblical counsel.

However, we often close our eyes to the facts, refuse to trust in the Lord, turn our back on His wisdom and spurn His advice. Then, we end up eating the bitter fruit of our pride and experiencing the panic of the path we chose (Proverbs 1:29-32). So often our choices come as a result of our desires, as well as the advice we receive from others and the example set by our elders and our peers. However, our choices are more effectual if we walk in the guidance of the Holy Spirit moment by moment throughout the day.

When we do things our way, we step out of God’s will and have no spiritual power in our efforts. We strive and strain until we give up or burn out (Galatians 6:9). God loves us even when turmoil fills our heart and we are frail, ignorant and desire-driven. In His rich mercy and great love, God forgives our sins (Ephesians 2:4-5; Romans 5:8). When we repent, the mighty Lord, who lives within us, rejoices over us with gladness, He quiets us with His love and He exults over us with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). How lovely!

When we listen to the Lord’s direction, we live in peace and safety (Proverbs 1:33). God’s Spirit equips us with everything we need to accomplish the will of God with our life (Hebrews 13:21). As we follow the leading of God’s Holy Spirit, He brings ultimate fulfillment and deep contentment, peace and joy to our life. He holds our right hand and keeps guiding us with His wisdom and counsel all the days of our life. When we take our last breath here on this earth, God receives us into the glories of Heaven (Psalm 73:21-24).

At times, we have unfathomable issues in our heart that we cannot access or understand. However, a Godly counselor is trained to help us to uncover them (Proverbs 20:5). Sometimes, we depend on our peers for advise, but they do not have the experience that an older person has (1 Kings 12:6). Our Pastor and his wife accumulate wisdom from advising people, as well as their own life experiences. Our parents know us better than anyone, and they too can offer sound advice. Our spouse should also give us counsel, especially if the decision involves him/her. Even our children may have wise counsel if they are Godly.

Prayer:

Father God, all the days of our life are in Your hands (Psalm 31:15). We cannot live a successful life on this earth unless we live in the center of Your will (Proverbs 3:5-6). We depend on Your wisdom to guide us through each day, and to put us in the right place at the right time to perform Your will in each moment. We thank You for our daily bread, for forgiving our sins and for helping us to forgive those who sin against us. By Your Spirit we stand against temptation and we live a victorious life through Christ in us.

Thought for the Day:

Without wise counsel, our endeavors are often disappointing; however with the wisdom of many counselors our plans come to favorable fruition. – Proverbs 15:22

Living Holy of Holies

The faulty thinking of most Born Again Believers is that we are separated from Christ by the ethereal boundary between Heaven and earth. We view God in Heaven with Christ sitting on the throne at His right hand. That leaves us all alone, struggling down here on Terra Firma to live a holy life. When we come to the understanding that we are dead, and that Christ is now alive within us (Colossians 3:3), we stop striving to perfect our self and we step aside and let God be God in our life.

Jesus substituted His life for ours on the cross. In the same way, He now lives our life for us and through us. Jesus fulfills our Father’s will in us as we follow the leading of His Spirit moment by moment throughout the day. Life no longer requires any effort from us. God only wants our obedience. We simply stand firm as we watch the Lord bring deliverance in us and through us (2 Chronicles 20:17). Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, the Holy of Holies (Hebrews 9:3). The Holy Spirit lives through us in the perfection of Christ and according to the will of our Father (Colossian 2:9).

Jesus challenges us to hunger and thirst after righteousness (Matthew 5:6). Christ is our righteousness, and our deliverance, redemption, sanctification and so much more (1 Corinthians 1:31). There is nothing left for us to strive for or to attain to. Therefore, there is no way we can boast about our accomplishments in the Lord. We boast in Him instead (1 Corinthians 1:31). Once we get the focus off our self, and place it on Christ where it belongs, then He can use us to fulfill His purpose in the earth.

 
If our flesh is tempted to sin, we simply remember that it is dead and hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3). When we view any temptation through the eyes of the Spirit living within us, the sin loses its appeal for us. We realize that we would much rather live righteously through Christ than unrighteously through our old, dead flesh. In the same way, if we attempt a ministry for the glory of God, and the Spirit did not lead us to serve in that area, we will never find His anointing in it.

When Jesus lived in the flesh, He suffered trials in every area of life, and had just as many temptations as we do. Yet, in each instance, He drew from the strength of His divinity; and in the end, He conquered death and Hell for all of us (Revelations 1:18). Every Born Again Believer lives in divine union with this same Christ. Even though we still live in a body of flesh, we now live by the faith of the Son of God who cares for us and sacrificed Himself for us (Galatians 2:20). We draw from the strength of His divinity within us for healing, wisdom, strength and direction for a victorious life.

Prayer:
Father God, Jesus prayed that He is in us, and You are in Him. He wanted us to experience this same unity with one another so the world would know You sent Him and that You love us as much as You love Him (John 17:23). All of Your fullness dwells in Christ and He is the head of all powers and principalities. In Him, we are made complete (Colossians 2:9-10). Therefore, help us to let Your light within us shine so brightly, that people will see Christ in us and glorify You, who are our living hope (Colossians 1:27; 1 Peter 1:3).

Thought for the Day:
We search in vain for Christ outside of our self, only to discover that He lives in all of His fullness within every Born Again Believer.






Thank you, Tracy Hassall, for the use of your glorious photo.