Belong to Christ

Gal 5:24 “And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts.”-

Being part of the Vine is to belong to Christ. Those who belong to Christ have been forgiven of their sins and have been transform from death to life. A person who has truly given their life to Christ will strive to please God in every part of their life. The old habits of the flesh and the desire to fulfill the lust of the flesh have been crucified with Christ and have been nailed to the Cross. A person who is in Christ will allow the Spirit of God to led them in a deeper walk with God. As long as the carnal nature sits on the throne of our hearts, we will always be warring against wanting fleshly desires. The Spirit leads us to a place in our life where we our willing to present our life a living sacrifice to God in complete consecration. The carnal nature (self) is removed from the throne of our heart and the Holy Spirit is given full control. We still have daily choices to make, and we our not exempt from temptation, but our primary desire is now to fulfill what the Spirit desires. The actions of our life are not written down in tablets of stone, but are written on the tablets of our heart to fulfill that which is good and acceptable to God. The Spirit leads unerring, perfecting holiness in all who are willing to be led by the Him. 

Heaven

Rev. 22;4,5 “And they shall see His face, and His name shall be in their foreheads. And there shall be no night there, and they will need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light...”

Heaven, what a wonderful place that will be. To see Jesus face to face. We all fantasize what it will be like in Heaven. We wonder if we will be able to sit down and visit with those who have gone before us. We long to see our loved ones that loved Jesus and served Him on this earthly journey. We wonder what our mansion will look like. Many things about heaven that we wonder about. John gives us a glimpse of heaven. Standing on the Island of Patmos, the sky is opened and God lets John take a peek into what life will be like after we leave this world. It is clear that sin will not be there. That is why it is essential that we have our sins forgiven and cast away. Only that which is holy will be able to enter into heaven. The blood of Jesus is the only thing that will cleanse us from an unholy heart. We also know that there is no sun or artificial light there, yet light illuminate everywhere. This is the light of God that comes for the essence of God. All that live in heaven will be in love with Jesus and will serve Him with gladness. Heaven will not be a place we visit, it will be a place where we will live forever and ever, praising and serving God. 

Leadership

1 Kings 12:7 “If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them and answer them and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.”-

The greatest of all leaders are those who are willing to lead by example. There are many skills that a leader must have if people are going to follow. A leader must have a vision, they must be able to know how to delegate, and to motivate. But a true leader is a servant leader who is not afraid to get their hands dirty. A leader understands how to relate to those who follow them. They know how to empathize because they have been there. A leader speaks with confidence, yet is kind in speech, encouraging others to press on and not give up. Jesus is our greatest example of what a leader should be. He lived a servant’s life, giving His life as a ransom for others. Because He was willing die for us, we follow Him gladly and willing. 

Hidden Treasures

Prov: 2:4,5 “if thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hidden treasure, then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.”-

Finding and experiencing the deeper things of God does not come by accident. Hidden treasures take time to find. Taking time to think on the word of God will help us better understand who God is and what He desires for our lives. Getting to know God better is done on purpose. Knowing God’s word needs to go deeper than reading for the sake of just memorizing words. The word of God needs to be applied to our heart. The application of living out His commandment is done by putting in to practice what He wants us to do. “Love thy neighbor, as thyself” are profound words given to us by Jesus, but what does it mean to love your neighbor, how do you go about showing love to your neighbor? “Lord, help me to take the time to seek God and ask Him to open His word to me, and help me to live it as I face my world today”. 

Training Our Body

1 Corinth 9:27 “ But I keep control of my body, and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”-

Growing in Christ requires that we work out spiritually, training our body and mind to do the will of God. Left to our own human tendency, it is easy to let down and allow legitimate human weakness to brings us down. Paul is teaching us that being a spiritual man will not come without some effort, and if we are not careful, our faith can become shipwrecked. Presenting ourselves as living sacrifices to God is the 1st step in bringing our bodies into subjection. Consecrating our life to Him and His will means that we seek 1st His desires before we act on impulse to fulfill our desires. It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that make it possible for us to transcend the human flesh. He will empower those who are willing to say “yes”  to Him. Bring our body into subjection may require us to get up earlier in the day to spend some time with God. It is taking control of our thoughts when the devil bring temptation that will grieve God if we yield. It may mean that we make ourselves put down some things we enjoy that we may reach out and touch others for Christ. Disciplining ourselves to do what is right is something we set our will to do. If our will has been surrendered to Christ, then half the battle is done.  

Legacy of Blessings

2 Chronicles 21:20 “and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years and departed without being desired”-

The life we live will either leave a legacy of blessings or one of regrets. Jehoram lived a selfish life, and only cared about fulfilling his own selfish desires. In the end, he died a man without a friend. What kind of legacy will we leave behind when our days on this earth are over? How will people reflect when they speak about the life we lived? The choices we make in life will blaze a trail behind us and those who are looking on may follow. Our lives may not be perfect, but our heart can be. We can leave a legacy that will point others to God. It will not be the stand we take that will led others to Christ, but the love we show to others and how we treat our fellow man. Standing for right is to stand for truth and God’s word, but standing without love is counter productive. We have but one life to live, may we live it by walking in the steps of Jesus, and let His love flow through us.  May we leave a legacy that will count for eternity. 

Always to Pray

Luke 18:1,8 “And He spoke a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray and not to faint,... shall He find faith on the earth?

Praying is not a magical formula to get what we want. Yes, God desires to give us the desires of our heart, but prayer is more than just asking for things. Prayer is taking time to talk to God about life and getting to know Him better. We read God’s word and asked God to reveal His word to us. God speaks to us through our minds, conscience, and His word. He reveals to us what is right and good. Will God find such openness of heart when He returns? We must not quit talking to God, we must believe that He will take care of our needs and trust Him to keep us from falling.  There may be times like Job that we don’t feel that God is anywhere near, but we must not give up our faith in God. We may be going through some difficult times, but He is in control and has a purpose for everything He does. May He find me faithful, always praying and trusting Him.