Posts Tagged ‘Reformed Theology’
The Unknown Sin Of Most Christians
The sin of most Christians is one that we do not realize we have done. This sin, about which I speak, is the sin where we take credit for being born again of our own will and not by the will of God.
People are always being told to just “accept” Jesus as savior and you will be saved. I thought this as well, even saying it, until I started studying the scriptures for myself.
The following verses made me see that it was by God’s will that we are saved and not by our own will. I could no longer say, “I was saved when I accepted Jesus.” Instead, what I now say is, “When God saved me…”
We all realize that we are a sinful people. Because of this sinfulness, we are spiritually dead to God. As we read in these scripture verses.
In Ephesians 2: 1 we read the following:
1 – “And you hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins;”
From Colossians 2: 13 we read:
13 – “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath He quickened with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses;”
In being spiritually dead our will is free only to act according to our nature and, since we have a sin nature, it is our nature to commit acts of sin. That is why we take credit for our salvation. It is natural to say “I” and we see no wrong.
The word “quickened” in these verses talks about the act of being “born again”. So when does the act of being quickened or “born again” occur, and when are we saved if we cannot choose to be saved of our own will?
In my studying this question, these verses made me see that it is by God’s will that we are saved and not by our own will.
In Ephesians 2: 4, 5 we read this:
4 – But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 – Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)”
Now we see that the act of being “born again”, and awakened from being spiritually dead, occurs by God’s grace while we are still dead in our sins.
Further on in Ephesians 2: 8, 9 we read these verses:
8 – “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 – Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
We must be given life before we can respond to God calling us. Just like Lazarus had to be given life before he could respond to Jesus calling out to him to “come forth”. If he had not been given life, Lazarus would have stayed in the grave. So we, too, would remain in our dead spiritual grave unless we are first given life to respond.
In Romans 9: 11 – 16 where the Apostle is giving a defense of the doctrine of election, he explains why God chose Jacob over Esau:
11 – “(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
12 – It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
13 – As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
14 – What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
15 – For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
16 – So then it is not of him that wills, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.”
We see here that it was not by Jacob’s will, or because of any works that he might do, that God choose him over Esau. No, for it was by God’s will, according to election, that Jacob was chosen.
One last verse that sums all this up quite nicely is found in John 1: 12, 13 where we read the following:
12 – “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, to them that believe on his name:
13 – Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
Many pastors will quote verse 12 but never follow up with verse 13, which explains verse 12.
You will be told that if you receive Jesus you will be given the right to become children of God. When actually this verse is saying that God first gives man the right to become children of God and, in response, man will receive Jesus.
Verse 13 explains this and tells us how this happens, and when. The first thing we read in verse 13 is “Which were born”. This is talking about being “born again” which has to happen first, and the act of being “born again” is not by one being born into a Christian family, or because of any good works, NOR BECAUSE OF THE WILL OF MAN, but of God.
You see, it is by God’s will that anyone is saved, and we are saved by grace which is the act of being “born again”. Because we are spiritually dead, we have to be given life, spiritual life, first before we can believe on Jesus and confess Him to be Lord.
In saying, “When God saved me…” gives God credit for our salvation, and rightly so. For it is by His will, not ours, that we are born again and given the power to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and to be brought into the family of God.
Jesus, Politics and Peace
Too many people believe that Christianity and politics go together, especially among the evangelical community. However, what does God say in Scripture about Jesus and politics.
The results of the thesis mentioned are in the first verses you are going to see.
From 1 Timothy 2: 1, 2:
1Ti 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
1Ti 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
How does the recent election year wrangling fit in with these verses? They do not. Everything that happened during that time went against everything that God said for Christians to do.
In addition, in everyday politics, with different parties seeing different views contributing to divisions among so many people, notably among Christians, these commands from God are not being obeyed; anything but being obeyed.
Here are a few other verses to read. See how politics fits into any of them.
2Ti 2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
2Ti 2:4 No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
Rom 13:1 let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.
Rom 13:2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.
Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
The premise of all of these verses is that Christians are to live in peace with everyone. In politics that cannot be done. It is that simple.
Voting is one thing, as long as we remember that when the counting is over Christians are to accept the results of the election, without reservation, because the results are God’s will. To rebel against the results of an election is to rebel against God.
One cannot be involved with politics and live in peace with “everyone”. You either follow Jesus, and be obedient to Him, or you follow your political party’s leaders and do what they say and be at odds with everyone who does not believe in your politics. Is this how you, a Christian, want to be?
As 1 Timothy 2: 2 says, “that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life – with everyone – in all godliness and honesty.”
You just cannot serve both Jesus and politics and have peace with everyone. It is one or the other. Choose wisely.
May God open your heart and give you insight and wisdom. Amen.
Divine Grace – God’s Choice
How were you saved?
Most likely the answers you would give would be deceiving, because no matter what you would say, unless you said that by “God’s Grace Alone” you were saved you would be giving a wrong answer.
Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now workethin the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Unsaved man in his natural state is spiritually dead. In this condition he can do nothing to be saved. “Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” God must do a work in your heart to save you.
Remember Lazarus? He was in the grave and dead for four days when Jesus came along. Jesus called out for Lazarus to “come forth”. Guess what. Nothing would have happened unless God did a work before Lazarus could respond. What do you think that would have been? Jesus “first” had to give life to Lazarus before he could even hear what He was saying, and then respond to come forth just as Jesus commanded.
With that in mind, you will notice in verse one above that it says, “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” God tells us that it is by His will, and not man’s will, that we are saved. We need to be “quickened” or Born Again to be saved. It is by God’s will and God’s “grace” that we are quickened.
The great preacher Charles H. Spurgeon, in speaking on Grace, said the following,
“If any man be saved, he is saved by Divine grace, and by Divine grace alone; and the reason of his salvation is not to be found in him, but in God. We are not saved as the result of anything that we do or that we will; but we will and do as the result of God’s good pleasure,and the work of His grace in our hearts.”
Man being dead in his sinful state can do nothing to be saved. Not even will himself to be saved. He will never hear the call of Jesus to “come forth” unless he is first given life, “born again”, in order to hear Jesus call him and respond as God wills for him to do and that is to come forth and confess that Jesus is Lord.
It is by God’s Grace alone, and not by man’s will, that we are saved. If you do not agree with scripture maybe you have not, as yet, ever experienced the Grace of God in your life, and you are still dead in your trespasses and sins thinking that you are saved.
My prayer is that God will do a work of life in the heart of all who reads this message and truly make you a born-again child of God. All because of the Grace that Jesus works in all whom He saves.
The Faith of Our Salvation Was Written By Jesus
Our salvation is not of our works. We know this by scripture, especially one that is written in Ephesians 2: 8, 9. Here is what it says.
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
It is by grace, and not by our works, that we are saved, and we are given this gift of faith with which we believe on the Lord Jesus, and this gift of faith comes from God. The question is this. Whose faith is given to us through which we believe?
The answer is given to us in Hebrews 12:2
Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
The faith through which we believe was created by Jesus. He wrote our faith by His obedience to the Father while He was here on earth. Only Jesus lived a life in perfect obedience to God and, in doing so, He did for us what we could not do for ourselves.
The faith, through which we believe is given to us, after being saved by grace, and it is through the perfect faith of Jesus by which we are justified. The proof of this is our believing in Jesus as Lord through this faith given to us for one specific purpose – our Salvation.
Jesus created our faith; He authored it and finished it through His perfect obedience. Without His faith given to us we would not, and could not, be saved.
Gal_2:16 (KJV) Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
Truly, Jesus wrote the faith of our salvation. Praise God that He did.
I cannot imagine my imperfect faith, that I would work up, satisfying God’s justice and being forgiven for my sinful and imperfect life. It just would not be good enough.
A Greater Freedom
On July 4, 1776 the American colonies declared its independence from Great Britain claiming itself to be a free nation comprised of 13 states creating a country called The United States of America. The rest is history.
However, do you know that there is even a greater freedom, one that God offers to man from which they need to be set free or perish?
This is something everyone who has ever lived, is living now and will live in the future already has, and is something with which they are born. There is none better than Jesus to explain what it is from which man must be set free.
Read these verses from John 8 in which Jesus is speaking:
Joh 8:31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Joh 8:33 They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayestthou, Ye shall be made free?
Joh 8:34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
Joh 8:35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
Joh 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
In verse 34 the word “servant” actually means “Slave”. The problem is that everyone is born with a sin nature, making everyone a servant, or slave, to sin. Everyone who dies without being set free from this slavery will perish. Only in Jesus can this freedom be found. As Jesus said, “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” Jesus also said, “No one can come to the Father except by me.” No one else can give you this freedom.
Receiving this freedom is easy. In Romans 10: 9, 10 we read this:
Rom 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. (set free from sin)
Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
You can receive your own freedom. Repent of your sins. Believe on the Lord Jesus. Call upon Him as Lord, submit to His will, and receive the freedom, true freedom from being a servant to sin to being a servant to God, which only Jesus can give.
Make this time your time to receive your freedom. Believe on the Lord Jesus now and be saved from suffering eternal punishment because of your enslavement to sin. Jesus will set you free, truly free indeed.
Today you can proclaim this your Independence Day.
You Talk Too Much!
The month of March is very special to my wife and me. It is when we celebrate our wedding anniversary. This year we will celebrate fifty two (52) years of marriage and we are even more in love with each other than ever before.
I know my wife loves me for she will tell people that I have very few faults and none of them is bad, except for one. She tells me that I, “Talk too much” and never know when to shut up. I just keep going on and on and on. With this, I will agree. If she can say it and I canagree, that is love talking.
Every morning I usually get up a lot earlier than doesmy wife. I like spending this time washing up, getting breakfast, enjoying the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. Then I will get paper, that I usually retrieve off of the front porch when I first come out of the bedroom, take it with me into the living room with my coffee and settle into my favorite seat and enjoy them; mostly the coffee these days, however.
During the washing and the making of breakfast and coffee, I like spending time with God. It is not a kneel down and pray kind of a meeting. It is just a time that I like talking with God and telling Him my thoughts, concerns and thanks intermingled with some praise and worship of Him. Sometimes, though, it seems I have a hard time saying anything and will just ramble on. Until, until just one particular morning.
Right in the middle of my rambling I suddenly became blank in my thoughts. I could not think of anything to say and it scared me. Then suddenly a verse came to me and I knew it was from God. Through His word, He was talking to me.
What I heard made me think that He must have been listening to my wife, for what I heard was this, “You talk too much… “”Be still and know that I am God… “” .”
One part from my wife and the important part from Psalm 46: 10
Of course, God was right. Every morning during our time together I was doing all of the talking. Many times, it was only words of repetition just to hear me thinking. I was never quiet. Never listening for Him and forgetting that God will only talk to me through His word.
It has taken me quite a while to be obedient in this respect for I do like talking. Just ask my wife. Yeah, once I get started I do talk too much. I never know when to quit and I just keep going on and on and on. However, with God’s nudging, I am learning to listen to my wife more and, more importantly, listen to God more.
It is amazing how many more wonderful qualities I am discovering about my wife since I have been listening more to her and have become less at going on so when I do talk. It is still on a learning curve, but getting better.
God’s presence in the morning has started to become more real to me as well. I find when I do talk less and just enjoy spending time with Him, while talking less,it has actually brought me closer to Jesus than ever before.
You know, as my wife has said, “You talk too much” and having God tell me, “Be still and know that I am God…” has been a wonderful learning experience for me. I have become closer and more in love with both of them than ever before.
You know, I do believe that God really does listen to His children. If it happened to me, it can happen to you. I was going to say, “I pray God does the same for you”, but He already knows that, for He knows my every thought. I am glad that He does for those moments when I am still, knowing that He is God.
Peaceful – A Christians Lifestyle
The Christians who took part in the rebellious actions on January 6, 2021 against Congress did so thinking they were doing the will of President Trump, when actually they were acting in disobedience to the will of God.
I can only imagine that they were:
1. Not real Christians but Christians in name only.
2. Have never read the New Testament for themselves on living the Christian life.
3. Were never taught from the pulpit how a disciple of Jesus is supposed to live their life after having been born again by the Spirit of God.
If any of these had happened, they would have known a very simple verse on how to live the Christian life. It is found in Romans 12…
Rom 12:18 If it be possible, as much as lies in you, live “peaceably” with all men.
Rom 14:19 Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
As followers of Jesus, we are to live peaceably with all men.
What they did that day was anything but peaceful. They should have known that as disciples of Jesus they are also soldiers of Jesus in the spreading of the Gospel of salvation found only in Jesus and, as soldiers, they should have been obeying this command from 2 Timothy 2…
2Ti 2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
2Ti 2:4 No man that wars entangles himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
The only way a Christian would not want to become involved with the affairs of this life would be if they were following the commands found in 1 John 2…
1Jn 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
If anyone loves the things of this world, they would have found it easy to take part in the rebellion on that January day and, in doing so, showing themselves that they may not be a Christian at all. That is why it would have been so easy to take part in that violent and disastrous action.
Christians are to be different. We are to be peaceful and loving people showing forth the love of God to others. There are many verses in the Scriptures that speak of how a Christian is to be, and here are a few of them:
2Co 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
Col 3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
1Pe 3:11 Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
On that day in January, there is one thing they who called themselves Christians should have been doing:
1Ti 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;
1Ti 2:2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
1Ti 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;
They who said they were Christians on that infamous day need to ask themselves, “Are they really disciples of Jesus?”
Maybe another question they should ask is this, are they attending a “Real” Christian church or just one that plays at being Christian. They certainly need to start reading the New Testament Scriptures for themselves and asking God to give them understanding into His Word. They should also be looking at their church leadership to see if they are qualified to be pastors, elders, deacons, etc.
The bottom line is this. Christians are to live peacefully with all men. For that is their lifestyle according to the Word of God. On January 6, 2021, many people showed by their actions that they are Christians in name only; their church leadership has failed them, or both.
Being In The Presence Of Jesus
Did you ever wonder what it must have been like in the time of Jesus, being in His presence and listening to His every word? I have, and no matter how hard I try, nothing comes close to knowing what those encounters were like.
However, I do know a way that I can come into the presence of Jesus and listen to His every word whenever I want; even when I have the need to be with Him and to hear what He has to say to me.
Now you might think that I am talking about prayer, and it could be part of it but no it is not about prayer. Here is a hint.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:2 The same was in the beginning with God.
John 1:3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us,
Need another hint? Try this.
Romans 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
So, what is the Word of God? Yes, it is the Scriptures. However, Who is the Word of God? See John 1:1 above. Jesus is the Word of God and the Scriptures are the Word of God written by God. Did you catch that?
Every time you pick up the Bible to read it, you are reading the Word of God; the very words of Jesus just as if He were sitting with you and talking to you. Every time you read the Scriptures, you are actually in the presence of Jesus listening to everything He has to say to you.
Now the Bible itself is not Jesus but the Words that are in the Scriptures are the very Words of Jesus and by reading them, you are in His presence, and He is talking to you personally. Think of that for a moment. By reading the Scriptures, you are with Jesus listening to His every word.
Just like two of His disciples after the resurrection. They were heading to another town when they met up with Jesus and, in the process, He told them all things that must happen.
Luke 24:32 And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?
When you read the Scriptures Jesus will do the same for you, for you are in His presence. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. When you read the Scriptures, your faith will become stronger because you are hearing directly from the Word of God, His name is Jesus, and you are in His presence.
Marriage – An Ordained Invention
Is marriage just a tradition or is it more than that? Many people will tell you that there is no such thing as a traditional marriage. You see, a tradition can be a ritual, a practice or a habit, but does the biblical description of a marriage make it a tradition?
In Genesis 2, we read the following:
Gen 2:18 And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
Gen 2:20 but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.
Gen 2:21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
Gen 2:22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
Gen 2:23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Gen 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
Gen 2:25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed
The first marriage ever performed, God invented it, did the ceremony Himself and ordained that this is what marriage should be. After Adam did not find a helper for himself among the animals God then created the woman to be the one to stand by the side of Adam to be his lifelong mate, to work together, to be a companion in a loving relationship.
Eve was someone created different from Adam to become the missing part of man, to complete him but to have different feelings, thoughts and actions, and made so that the two would come together in a physical way for pleasure and creation. God created the man and the woman to become one in mind, body and soul. No other combination can be the same.
Jesus, during His time on earth, affirmed this to be God’s intention and that marriage was to be a lifelong commitment between a man and a woman.
In the Gospel of Mark chapter 10, this is how Jesus responded when confronted by some Pharisees about divorce.
Mar 10:2 And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him.
Mar 10:3 And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you?
Mar 10:4 And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put heraway.
Mar 10:5 And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.
Mar 10:6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.
Mar 10:7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
Mar 10:8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
Mar 10:9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
You see in these verses that marriage is to be a lifelongcommitment – until death separates them, and marriageis to be between a man and a woman.
For a marriage to be between anyone else is to separate what God invented marriage to be, ordained and performed by God Himself, when He joined Adam and Eve in that first marriage.
Any other kind of a marriage disobeys God’s creation, separates what God has ordained for a marriage to beand will not, now or ever, be blessed by God.
As affirmed by Jesus:
Mar 10:6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.
Mar 10:7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
Mar 10:8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
Mar 10:9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
So yes, marriage between a man and a woman is a tradition, invented and ordained by God to be the one and only way for a way marriage to be.
How Is Your Salvation Working Out?
How long has it been since God forgave you for your sins and you were born again into the family of God? So, how has your salvation been working out? Everything going OK, or are you having problems doing the things that you were told you should do now that you are saved?
You know, maybe just maybe you have been going about it all wrong.
Many churches will tell newborn Christians, “this is what is expected of you, and you should now follow this or that in order to keep your salvation.” After all, you do not want to lose what God gave you, do you?
Some churches might say this to you what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians:
Php 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Sounds scary, does it not? After having lived in sin for many years, doing what you wanted, you are now expected to be perfect and do what the church tells you to do. Yeah, I know, it made me worry also when I was first saved.
However, God had mercy on me and, by His grace, He put me into a position to read the read the rest of the verses that followed. Here they are.
Php 2:13 For it is God which works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Php 2:14 Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
Php 2:15 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God…
Look at verse 13 and read, read and read it over several times until it sinks in. It is God which works in you both to will and to do of HIS good pleasure. I kept reading this verse over and over and over until suddenly in the thick skull of mine I realized what it was that God was telling me. He is working in me both to will and to do what HE wants me to do, because it pleases Him.
You see, I did not make a bunch of changes right away, but I did begin to notice how my actions were starting to be different. Here is but one example, I was really good in being quite selfish. Hardly a day would go by without insisting, “has to be this way,” without considering what my family wanted, and I was married with two kids. Good example, huh?
Then it started. One day, after proclaiming loudly on doing it my way, I saw a look in the eyes of my two kids that I had never before noticed. It bothered me to no end. Over a period of a week, I started feeling the same way with anything that I wanted, without asking what others would like. Then it dawned on me. God was working in me to change my very selfish attitude.
At first that sacred me as I realized that I was being so selfish, not taking into consideration what others of my family would like, and doing so in the presence of God. The thought of that un-nerved me to no end. Then I realized that God, in His mercy, was working His will in me to start thinking of the needs and wants of my family, in putting them first before me.
God just opened my eyes for me to see my selfish attitude, and how it was hurting other members of my family. In His way, He was letting me know that this needed to stop. God was giving me the will and desire to do as He wants. God changed me because it pleased Him.
Since then, in every part of my life, I have seen God work in me to see those things that needs to be changed, working in me to show me those wrongs and to give me the will and desire to stop; to do those things He wants of me.
When God saves someone, He does not let them go on their own to become a good Christian by themselves. God knows what we need, what He wants us to do, and He works in us His will to become willing, not only to change, but also to actually make the change as He wants.
As we work out our salvation on a daily basis, living each day doing our normal activities, God will show us those things in our life that He wants to change. We may go for days or weeks before God steps in and, in some way, puts the breaks on our activity, and then the change begins. We will never know when that will happen, but it will happen.
After God’s Grace has saved us, He does not leave us by ourselves to grow on our own, to change on our own. For by His Holy Spirit God works in each and every one of us, for whom Jesus died to secure our salvation, to show us our sins, to see how bad they really are and then to work in us His will to change us so that we become willing and do those things that He wants.
Yes, as disciples, God works in us – some like me more than others – through our whole time here on earth both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Soon the fear and trembling that we experience will become a sign to us that God is working in us once again because it pleases Him. Even discipline can be involved, as I have discovered, and we will praise Him for what He is doing.
So, as you walk with Jesus on a daily basis, if someone asks the question, “How is your salvation working out?” You can joyfully answer, “Wonderful! Just wonderful!”
Riff's Christian Journal 