As a disciple of Christ, you are continually at war with the enemy of your soul— satan. One of his military tactics in this war is to destroy your Christian testimony. To negate or make it a mere whimper by polluting your heart with sin or apathy.
You must keep Papa’s precepts before you. Meditate on them. Set them safely in your heart. For those who discover them, they are life. They bring wholeness and healing to their bodies.
Above all else, watch over your heart. Diligently guard it because from a sincere and pure heart come the good and noble things of life.
Do away with any talk that twists and distorts the truth. Have nothing to do with any verbal trickery.
Keep your head up, your eyes straight ahead and your focus fixed on what is in front of you. Take care you don’t stray from the straight path— the way of truth, and you will safely reach the end of your road. Do not veer off course to the right or the left. Step away from evil and leave it behind. Proverbs 4:21-27
Unfortunately, many Christian hearts are more like black holes than well guarded fortresses. Whatever tickles their fancy, whether righteous or unrighteous, is allowed entrance.
So what do we do? Keep on sinning so God can keep on forgiving? I should hope not! If we’ve left the country where sin is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn’t you realize we packed up and left there for good? That is what happened in baptism. When we went under the water, we left the old country of sin behind. When we came up out of the water, we entered into the new country of grace— a new life in a new land!
That’s what baptism into the life of Jesus means. When we are lowered into the water, it is like the burial of Jesus. When we are raised up out of the water, it is like the resurrection of Jesus. Each of us is raised into a light-filled world by our Father so that we can see where we’re going in our new grace-sovereign country.
Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life— no longer captive to sin’s demands! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ’s sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way. Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you. God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That’s what Jesus did.
That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time— remember, you’ve been raised from the dead— into God’s way of doing things. Sin can’t tell you how to live. After all, you’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God. Romans 6:3-13
Being conformed to the image of Christ isn’t automatic. It requires time, commitment, study and sacrifice. Something not accomplished by simply sitting in a chair on Sunday morning.
Want to do more than keep a seat warm? Then there must be a metamorphic change of your character.
HUMILITY
What hardens a heart?
Pride!
The refusal to acknowledge you don’t have all the answers ultimately will lead to catastrophe because pride comes before destruction, and an arrogant spirit before a fall. Better to be lowly of spirit with the humble than to divide plunder with the proud. Proverbs 16:18-19
The proud have an elitist attitude. Since they have all the answers, anyone who disagrees with them is misinformed or uneducated. This condescending attitude makes it impossible for them to learn from others, even Papa Himself.
It’s humility that allows Papa’s wisdom to penetrate deeply into your spirit, encouraging you to place your trust in the Eternal. Rely on Him completely. Never depend upon your own ideas and inventions. Give Him the credit for everything you accomplish, and He will smooth out and straighten the road that lies ahead.
Don’t think you can decide on your own what is right and what is wrong. Respect the Eternal. Turn and run from evil.
If you depend on Him, your body and mind will be free from the strain of a sinful life, will experience healing and health and will be strengthened at their core. Proverbs 3:5-8
CONTENTMENT
Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. Philippians 4:6-7
Only by looking at the big picture— eternity, can you objectively assess your current circumstances. It’s this objectivity in the midst of chaos that permits Papa’s peace to saturate your soul.
But for many peace is elusive because their daily companion is stress— the brain’s response to unpleasant or uncontrollable events. The human body can’t cope with stress for extended periods of time without negative consequences.
But if you relinquish control and trust Papa and His wisdom, you’ll learn to live in the moment, not the past or the future. Disruptions are simply opportunities to display your confidence in Papa’s faithfulness.
Papa’s omnipotency and covenant promises assures His chosen that everything, good or bad, has His approval. This truth will guard your heart as it did the apostle Paul who claimed with confidence.
I have learned to be content and self-sufficient through Christ. Satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or uneasy regardless of my circumstances. I know how to get along and live humbly in difficult times, and I also know how to enjoy abundance and live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of facing life. Whether well-fed or going hungry. Whether having an abundance or being in need.
I can do all things which He has called me to do, through Him who strengthens and empowers me to fulfill His purpose. I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency. I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace. Philippians 4:10-13
MERCY
All are benefactors of Papa’s mercy. Through Christ, Papa compassionately extends forgiveness of sin. Affording all the opportunity to escape His judgment of eternal damnation— even though we deserve it.
Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace and always be thankful. Colossians 3:12-15
If the evils of starvation, human trafficking and wars are rampant, it’s because of the absence of mercy. As a disciple of Christ you are to extend mercy even when it…
Disrupts your personal agenda.
May adversely affect your reputation.
Is anonymous.
Includes those outside your circle of influence, regardless of ethnic, cultural or religious backgrounds.
The result?
A Church non-believers can trust because they can say.
I was hungry, and you fed me.
I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink.
I was homeless, and you gave me a room.
I was shivering, and you gave me clothes.
I was sick, and you stopped to visit.
I was in prison, and you came to me.
letsloveothers 