From Psalm 147
"The strength of a horse does not impress him; how puny in his sight is the strength of a man. Rather, the LORD's delight is in those who honor him, those who put their hope in his unfailing love."
From I Corinthians 1
"This "foolish" plan of God is far wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God's weakness is far stronger than the greatest of human strength."
From II Corinthians 12
"Each time he said, "My gracious favor is all you need. My power works best in your weakness." So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may work through me."
From Hebrews 11
" By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight."
So why rest our confidence in ourselves?
God says he gives rest and peace to those who leave the burden of victory, achievement and success to him and submit to their own weakness.
From Isaiah 26
"Lord, you will grant us peace; all we have accomplished is really from you."
From Psalm 127
"...Unless the LORD builds a house, the work of the builders is useless. Unless the LORD protects a city, guarding it with sentries will do no good. 2 It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones. "
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Power over the appetites of the flesh?
Victory over the appetites and weaknesses of the flesh, even in private thoughts and when alone? Yes. How? Through pure dedication, devotion and discipline to maintain a measure of purity? Well, no actually. Choosing to meet the "expectations" of the Christian life through merely attempting to choose "right over wrong" will lead to consistent defeat and guilt not to mention a cold, mechanical, miserable and lifeless existence. Neither God nor man benefits from any of this "activity".
From Colossians 2
"...You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following rules of the world, such as, 'Don't handle! Don't taste! Don't touch!' Such rules are mere human teaching about things that deteriorate as we use them. These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person's evil desires."
From Galatians 2
"For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law - I stopped trying to meet all its requirements - so that I might live for God."
From Romans 7
"But now we have been released from the law, for we died with Christ, and we are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.
From Romans 2
"...a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not obeying the letter of the law, rather, it is a change of heart produced by God's Spirit."
From Galatians 5
"So I advise you to live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves."
So walking in intimate oneness with the Spirit of Christ who gave us our new life is in contrast to our own self-driven self-discipline to "right and wrong" which leads to defeat. Our choices, because Christ met all the righteous requirements of the law, are no longer merely a choice to do right simply as apposed to doing wrong. In stead of merely choosing between right and wrong, we now choose in our thoughts and actions to LOVE Someone who is very near to us, actually living in us, rather than choosing to ignore and be unfaithful to the one who loves us and who has freely given us undeserved life.
From James 4
" What do you think the Scriptures mean when they say that the Holy Spirit, whom God has placed within us, jealously longs for us to be faithful?"
From Colossians 2
"...You have died with Christ, and he has set you free from the spiritual powers of this world. So why do you keep on following rules of the world, such as, 'Don't handle! Don't taste! Don't touch!' Such rules are mere human teaching about things that deteriorate as we use them. These rules may seem wise because they require strong devotion, pious self-denial, and severe bodily discipline. But they provide no help in conquering a person's evil desires."
From Galatians 2
"For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law - I stopped trying to meet all its requirements - so that I might live for God."
From Romans 7
"But now we have been released from the law, for we died with Christ, and we are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit.
From Romans 2
"...a true Jew is one whose heart is right with God. And true circumcision is not obeying the letter of the law, rather, it is a change of heart produced by God's Spirit."
From Galatians 5
"So I advise you to live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves."
So walking in intimate oneness with the Spirit of Christ who gave us our new life is in contrast to our own self-driven self-discipline to "right and wrong" which leads to defeat. Our choices, because Christ met all the righteous requirements of the law, are no longer merely a choice to do right simply as apposed to doing wrong. In stead of merely choosing between right and wrong, we now choose in our thoughts and actions to LOVE Someone who is very near to us, actually living in us, rather than choosing to ignore and be unfaithful to the one who loves us and who has freely given us undeserved life.
From James 4
" What do you think the Scriptures mean when they say that the Holy Spirit, whom God has placed within us, jealously longs for us to be faithful?"
Monday, January 1, 2007
Refreshing
Companionship in faith is refreshing and I experience it in my family, authors, worship leaders and others. Savanah, my oldest daughter (20), knowing and bonding spiritually with me like no other, has been miraculously lead by the Spirit of God to a few books that she has also shared with me. She has said to me in reference to these books that I would for certain be encouraged by them because of the oneness that the authors and I share, as well as Savanah herself. What a blessing I have been given in Savanah. Almost to good to be true actually.
Now I share these books with you and believe that you will be greatly encouraged by reading them.
The first book is The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer, 1948. He shares that the hearers of the truth of God's Word can find God in intimate conscious personal experience ...............through the presence of God and the faith to experience the reality of his presence. A few sentences from the Preface follow:
"it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God himself..........The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into Him,that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts."
The second book is The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning, 1990.
From a Testimony in the book by Rich Mullins:
"In our society, we tend to swear unyielding allegiance to a rigid position, confusing that action with finding an authentic connection to a life-giving Spirit."
And just a few word from the forward by Brennan Manning, the author:
"This book is..........not for academicians who would rather imprison Jesus in the ivory tower of exegesis.....not for red-hot zealots......not for legalists who would rather surrender control of their souls to rules than run the risk of living in union with Jesus.....It is for the wobbly and weak-kneed who know they don't have it altogether and are too proud to accept the handout of amazing grace....It is for the bent and bruised who feel that their lives are a grave disappointment to God....It is for smart people who know they are stupid and honest people who admit they are scalawags."
Be refreshed
Now I share these books with you and believe that you will be greatly encouraged by reading them.
The first book is The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer, 1948. He shares that the hearers of the truth of God's Word can find God in intimate conscious personal experience ...............through the presence of God and the faith to experience the reality of his presence. A few sentences from the Preface follow:
"it is not mere words that nourish the soul, but God himself..........The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into Him,that they may delight in His Presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God Himself in the core and center of their hearts."
The second book is The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning, 1990.
From a Testimony in the book by Rich Mullins:
"In our society, we tend to swear unyielding allegiance to a rigid position, confusing that action with finding an authentic connection to a life-giving Spirit."
And just a few word from the forward by Brennan Manning, the author:
"This book is..........not for academicians who would rather imprison Jesus in the ivory tower of exegesis.....not for red-hot zealots......not for legalists who would rather surrender control of their souls to rules than run the risk of living in union with Jesus.....It is for the wobbly and weak-kneed who know they don't have it altogether and are too proud to accept the handout of amazing grace....It is for the bent and bruised who feel that their lives are a grave disappointment to God....It is for smart people who know they are stupid and honest people who admit they are scalawags."
Be refreshed
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
