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| NEW CREATION - "NEW MAN" Once we are saved we are to turn away from sin. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." We may still have thoughts or feelings that are not in line with God, and we WILL be tempted to sin. However, once we turn away from our sinful nature we are to resist the devil as 1 Peter 5:8 instructs, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. And James 4:7 says, "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." The temptation does not put us in sin. Acting on the temptation does. In her book Praying with Authority and Power, Barbara L. Potts wrote this prayer: "Putting on the "New Man" "Most Holy Father, I pray that the Church would 'purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God' (2 Corinthians 7:1, NIV). May a deep conviction and repentance come upon us so that we would have eyes to see our nakedness and be willing to pay the price that You require for purity. That we would submit to Your refining fire to bring forth pure gold: 'the beauty of holiness' (Psalm 96:9) within us (see Revelation 3:16-18). Father may we put on the character of Your chosen people, clothing ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, forgiveness, love, unity, peace, and thankfulness' (see Colossians 3:12-17). I pray that we would 'put off, concerning [our] former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of [our] mind' -- that we might 'put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness' (Ephesians 4:22-24). 'For the hour has come...to wake from slumber... So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather [let us] clothe [ourselves] with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature' (Romans 13:11-14, NIV). Ephesians 4:29-32, "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. I was reading The God I Don't Understand by Christopher J. H. Wright and he brought up a very insightful point. He writes, "So Do You Believe in the Devil?" "Faced with this question I feel the need to make a qualified 'yes and no' answer. Yes, I believe in the existence of the devil as an objective, intelligent and 'quasi-personal' power, utterly opposed to God, creation, ourselves, and life itself. But no, I do not 'believe in the devil' in any way that would cede to him power and authority beyond the limits God has set. The Bible calls us not so much to believe in the devil as to believe against the devil. We are to put all our faith in God through Christ and to exercise that faith against all that the devil is and does - whatever he may be." Wow, that is a great revelation for me! We should not "allow" the devil to take center stage in our minds. We MUST NOT give him that honor by allowing our thoughts to dwell on what he's trying to do to oppose or "hurt" us. We MUST give Honor to God and His Son, Jesus. We do this by meditating on God's Word and His will. If we focus on God, and not the fear of what the devil is trying to do (against God's Word AND will), we then strengthen our faith in God. "Now here is the picture of the Believer's standing, or position of authority in Christ: We are told (in Ephesians 1:19-22) that Christ is at the right hand of God (verse 20) and all things are under His feet (verse 22). So where is the Believer in this scene? Ephesians 2:6, which we quoted earlier, states that Believers are seated with Christ in heavenly places. Now, of course, we are not yet physically seated in Heaven. But this statement expresses our position of reinstated dominion. According to the Scriptures, through our union with Christ, we have died to sin, been buried, resurrected to new life, and are now seated with Him in heavenly places. Through this process, we have been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the Kingdom of God (see Colossians 1:12-14). We literally become a 'new creature' (2 Corinthians 5:17) in a new Kingdom, with a new mindset and a new inheritance. We are now 'heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ' (Romans 8:17). All that Christ is and has is now ours. We are seated with Christ in authority, and all things - including all powers and principalities - are under our feet!" Excerpt taken from Praying with Authority and Power, written by Barbara L. Potts. I believe any conduct proscribed or forbidden in scripture (the Bible) is a sin. Whether it is adultery, murder, covetousness, homosexuality, lying, etc... I also believe we are not put on this earth to condemn a person for their sins. "For all have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Only God can, and does, condemn a person for their sins. John 3:16-18 says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."
Believers (a person who is saved and is a Follower of Jesus - Christians) are instructed to council one another and edify (to instruct or improve morally or intellectually) each other. We are to pray and love our fellow man. Yes, we are supposed to teach, and help, a person realize they're living in sin. And we are supposed to help them understand that we can have eternal life with God as long as we accept Jesus as our Savior and ask for forgiveness for our sins. God gave us Salvation through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ who defeated sin when He rose again. No Christian should EVER subscribe to hate or unloving actions toward a person who is living in sin - REGARDLESS of the sin. We are supposed to hate the sin (the actions), but we are INSTRUCTED to LOVE the sinner as Jesus loves us. It is not through anyone’s good works, or righteous living that they are, or can be, saved. It is ONLY through the grace of God. A Word on Citizenship - I have been lamenting the state of our nation, and the quick demise of the ideals (based on the Bible) on which our Founding Fathers built this country. This article has recently put my "citizenship" in perspective. What a Christian must be (Matthew 5): 1. Broken in spirit, burdened for others, meek, humble, hungry for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, wise, patient, loving, joyful, and gracious (Matthew 5:3-12) 2. Salt to preserve and light to shine (5:13-16) 3. A teacher and keeper of the truth (5:17-19) 4. Free from hypocrisy, selfishness, and grudges (5:20-24) 5. A peacemaker (5:9, 25-26) 6. Free from lusts (5:27-30) 7. A family man (5:31-32) 8. Truthful (5:31-37) 9. Nonresistant to mistreatment (5:38-41) 10. Charitable, neighborly, and God-like in society (5:38-47)
All this is possible through: 1. The new birth (2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 John 2:29; 3:5-10; 5:1-4, 18) 2. Walking and living in the Spirit (Romans 8:1-13; Galatians 5:16-26) 3. Proper use of Christian weapons (jesuslovesyoutoo.com/ArmorofGod.aspx; 2 Corinthians 10:4-7; Ephesians 6:10-18; Colossians 2:6-10; 3:3-10; 2 Timothy 2:21)
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| O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.
You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.
Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;
Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.
For You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.
How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.
Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!
Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men. For they speak against You wickedly;
Your enemies take Your name in vain. Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You? I hate them with perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting. | | 1 Chronicles 29:11-12 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness,
The power and the glory,
The victory and the majesty;
For all that is in heaven and in earth is Yours;
Yours is the kingdom, O LORD,
And You are exalted as head over all. Both riches and honor come from You,
And You reign over all.
In Your hand is power and might;
In Your hand it is to make great
And to give strength to all. Psalm 145 I will extol You, my God, O King;
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised;
And His greatness is unsearchable.
One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.
I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty,
And on Your wondrous works.
Men shall speak of the might of Your awesome acts,
And I will declare Your greatness.
They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness,
And shall sing of Your righteousness.
The LORD is gracious and full of compassion,
Slow to anger and great in mercy.
The LORD is good to all,
And His tender mercies are over all His works.
All Your works shall praise You, O LORD,
And Your saints shall bless You.
They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom,
And talk of Your power,
To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts,
And the glorious majesty of His kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The LORD upholds all who fall,
And raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look expectantly to You,
And You give them their food in due season.
You open Your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The LORD is righteous in all His ways,
Gracious in all His works.
The LORD is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He also will hear their cry and save them.
The LORD preserves all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
My mouth shall speak the praise of the LORD,
And all flesh shall bless His holy name
Forever and ever. | |
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