Does sin really mean anything anymore? Does it have a lasting impact on us, to make us try to steer way from it or do we sin, just because we are forgiven for it already?
Jesus went to the cross to save us from our sin, He hung there dying for the sin that we take so easily, we do it without even thinking about it, without thinking of the impact it had on Him. Can you imagine changing our thought process from well it is just a little lie or a little complaint, and start thinking that was the nail that penetrated Jesus's hand. It was the crown of thorns that hung on Jesus's head, the sin is every single drop of blood that fell from Jesus, so that we can walk a new life. Our sin, hung on the cross with Him and when we are complacent about sin, we are complacent about what Jesus did for us. There is no small sin, when you realize what Jesus did for us, when you think about Him hanging there so that we could live in forgiveness.
Next time you think it is just a little sin, think about what Jesus did to forgive us of that sin. What He did for you and me, was nothing to take lightly, nothing to take forgranted. He died so that we may live in freedom.
Sin is an act of rebellion against God. In 1 John 3:4 "Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness." He has given us so much and every time we sin, we spit in Jesus's face. We are no better than the crowd that taunted Him, spit at Him, called Him names, we know it is wrong, but do it anyhow. When we sin, we are being rebellious against God, we are doing the very thing that grieves God, isn't it time to stop grieving God and start living the life He calls us to?
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Complaining
Have you ever complained about where you are? Have you complained about a situation in your life?
I know that I have, maybe I am alone in this, but when I do that, do you think that I am ultimately telling God that it is His fault? Look at the Israelite's in the Old Testament, God took them out of Egypt and saved them from slavery, a life of torture, but they began to complain against God. saying why did You take us out of Egypt so that we wander the desert, it was better where we were. They forgot what it was like where God saved them from, they forgot they were saved for a reason and complained against God. God was angry with them, He expressed His anger to them, because they were sinning against Him by complaining, saying why me God and so on. I want to be back in Egypt.
Have you ever complained about where God has you? God designed our lives, He orchestrated each thing for a lesson so that we can grow closer to Him, so that we can learn to give Him praise for every situation that we are in, instead of being like the Israelite's and complaining about where we find ourselves. If you say that it wasn't God's plan, then you are taking the power out of God and saying that it is all about you, just as the Israelite's did. Do you think that angers God? I do, I believe each word of the Bible is God breathed and He has put the story of the Israelite's in there for our purpose so that we can learn from them, not so that we can be like them.
God calls us to give Him thanks for every situation we are in, because when we do not, we are making it all about what "I" want instead of making it about what God wants. We are telling God that we want to go back to where we were, instead of saying God I want to be what you call me to be, I want to do what you call me to do, so I am a living sacrafice for you, I want what you want and you wanted me here, I praise for that, it takes it out of our choice and gives it to God.
Are you feeling in a bad place, do you not have the answer? Are you cursing God for where He has you instead of thanking Him? Maybe it is time to get on your knees and pray, confess it as sin and repent, that means turn from it, because it can't be about what "I" want, but has to be about what God wants.
In every hard place you find yourself, thank God for it, because doing anything other than that is a sin. It is time to get right with God, it is time to allow Him to live and move and have His being in you. God wants to be King of our lives, He wants to receive the glory, He has you right where He wants you, it is His plan, not our own. His choices, so that we can learn, do you want to learn or be like the Israelite's and wander even longer? God calls us to absolute surrender and giving Him praise for it all. Give God thanksgiving in every circumstance.
I know that I have, maybe I am alone in this, but when I do that, do you think that I am ultimately telling God that it is His fault? Look at the Israelite's in the Old Testament, God took them out of Egypt and saved them from slavery, a life of torture, but they began to complain against God. saying why did You take us out of Egypt so that we wander the desert, it was better where we were. They forgot what it was like where God saved them from, they forgot they were saved for a reason and complained against God. God was angry with them, He expressed His anger to them, because they were sinning against Him by complaining, saying why me God and so on. I want to be back in Egypt.
Have you ever complained about where God has you? God designed our lives, He orchestrated each thing for a lesson so that we can grow closer to Him, so that we can learn to give Him praise for every situation that we are in, instead of being like the Israelite's and complaining about where we find ourselves. If you say that it wasn't God's plan, then you are taking the power out of God and saying that it is all about you, just as the Israelite's did. Do you think that angers God? I do, I believe each word of the Bible is God breathed and He has put the story of the Israelite's in there for our purpose so that we can learn from them, not so that we can be like them.
God calls us to give Him thanks for every situation we are in, because when we do not, we are making it all about what "I" want instead of making it about what God wants. We are telling God that we want to go back to where we were, instead of saying God I want to be what you call me to be, I want to do what you call me to do, so I am a living sacrafice for you, I want what you want and you wanted me here, I praise for that, it takes it out of our choice and gives it to God.
Are you feeling in a bad place, do you not have the answer? Are you cursing God for where He has you instead of thanking Him? Maybe it is time to get on your knees and pray, confess it as sin and repent, that means turn from it, because it can't be about what "I" want, but has to be about what God wants.
In every hard place you find yourself, thank God for it, because doing anything other than that is a sin. It is time to get right with God, it is time to allow Him to live and move and have His being in you. God wants to be King of our lives, He wants to receive the glory, He has you right where He wants you, it is His plan, not our own. His choices, so that we can learn, do you want to learn or be like the Israelite's and wander even longer? God calls us to absolute surrender and giving Him praise for it all. Give God thanksgiving in every circumstance.
Hardening Your Heart
God has explained of what He is and what we are to be in so many places in the Bible. We have the choice to make what we are and when we are not able to walk in the way He is calling us to be, it does not fall on Him, it falls on our choices. For example, He calls us to love, even when we do not feel like it, because He is love and when we don't do it we are not being what He calls us to be.
I struggled for a long time with what is love and when it is a feeling, it is easy to do, but when it I don't feel loved it is very difficult to love. At that point, love becomes a choice and to be like Jesus I must be willing to make that choice, because if I do not, I am being just the enemy of our lives has set out for us to be. The Devil wants to rob us of our choices, he is constantly reminding us how hard things are, but God says all things are possible for those that love Him, that we need to pray without ceasing, that we need to be willing to say, not my will but Your will, but that it hard when we don't feel like it, but I believe that is the reason there is so much written in the Bible about us doing as Jesus wants us to do and not doing what "I" want to do. We are flawed, but that is so that we will rely on Jesus and not on our feelings.
When we rely on our feelings we harden our heart from the truth of who God is and when we do that, it is all about feelings and is not about what God wants in us. The scripture that comes to mind is
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." Without love I am nothing. I didn't say it, God said it. Without the truth of love what am I? When we look at love is, we will see that love is no longer about a feeling, because when someone has wronged you our nature says wrong them back, but God says Love them. Look at 1 Corinthians 13:4-13 we must have love to be like Jesus and without it we are just like the world.
What is Jesus calling us to? If you are struggling to love like Jesus, it requires death of self, because we want love to be about a feeling and God wants it to be about a choice. In our marriages, this is clearer than the sun, because there are times when it is hard to love the other, but God designed marriage to be like a relationship that is to reverence Him and when we are doing it for self gain, it is no longer about God, but about self. When we only do it because it feels good, we are no longer being what God calls us to be. That is we need to die to who we are and live for who He wants us to be. If I harden my heart to God's truth, I will not see love for what it is, but see it for what the world sees it as. That is a feeling. God calls us to a higher place and when we can't seem to do what God calls us to, that is a sin, because no longer is it about God, but about self.
Are you following God or are you following your heart? When we follow God, it will not always be easy, but in the end our reward will be out of this world.
I struggled for a long time with what is love and when it is a feeling, it is easy to do, but when it I don't feel loved it is very difficult to love. At that point, love becomes a choice and to be like Jesus I must be willing to make that choice, because if I do not, I am being just the enemy of our lives has set out for us to be. The Devil wants to rob us of our choices, he is constantly reminding us how hard things are, but God says all things are possible for those that love Him, that we need to pray without ceasing, that we need to be willing to say, not my will but Your will, but that it hard when we don't feel like it, but I believe that is the reason there is so much written in the Bible about us doing as Jesus wants us to do and not doing what "I" want to do. We are flawed, but that is so that we will rely on Jesus and not on our feelings.
When we rely on our feelings we harden our heart from the truth of who God is and when we do that, it is all about feelings and is not about what God wants in us. The scripture that comes to mind is
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 "If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing." Without love I am nothing. I didn't say it, God said it. Without the truth of love what am I? When we look at love is, we will see that love is no longer about a feeling, because when someone has wronged you our nature says wrong them back, but God says Love them. Look at 1 Corinthians 13:4-13 we must have love to be like Jesus and without it we are just like the world.
What is Jesus calling us to? If you are struggling to love like Jesus, it requires death of self, because we want love to be about a feeling and God wants it to be about a choice. In our marriages, this is clearer than the sun, because there are times when it is hard to love the other, but God designed marriage to be like a relationship that is to reverence Him and when we are doing it for self gain, it is no longer about God, but about self. When we only do it because it feels good, we are no longer being what God calls us to be. That is we need to die to who we are and live for who He wants us to be. If I harden my heart to God's truth, I will not see love for what it is, but see it for what the world sees it as. That is a feeling. God calls us to a higher place and when we can't seem to do what God calls us to, that is a sin, because no longer is it about God, but about self.
Are you following God or are you following your heart? When we follow God, it will not always be easy, but in the end our reward will be out of this world.
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