Tuesday, Nov. 8th, 2011
Today's Passage: Romans chapter 1
Memory Verse> Rom. 1:20
In the course of years that I've been walking with the Lord, I've observed the lives of believers who were in relationship with God at one point. But in time, that walk became less and less evident until there was no longer a trace of the bond between that person and God. And as a result of seeing this phenomenon time and time again, I came to the central question that troubled me for a while. How is it possible for people who supposedly love God to walk away from Him and live the opposite way from His laws?
A relationship with God is just that -- a relationship. It must be maintained, not by us, but by our Father. He knows how easy it is for us to lose focus of the most important thing in our lives. So He uses the Holy Spirit, Who speaks to us and convicts us of the areas where we stand in the most danger of going against His will. While for most of us, this is a good thing, and we run to the throneroom, confess our sins, and receive forgiveness as well as a closer walk with God, others resent this "high-maintenance" activity. What we see in the beginning is they seem to be okay with God living in their hearts. But as time goes by and He requires us to relinquish more and more control, the resentment grows.
The whole idea of being able to simply walk away after having enjoyed a relationship with God at one time has to do with being double-minded. Unholy alliances with the world and everything it stands for cause our allegiance to God to waver depending upon the season we're in if we're not completely sold out to Him. And this is the situation in which those who question their loyalty to God find themselves. Therefore, it IS possible to find oneself "in love" with Jesus one minute, then not even recognized as one of His own the next. What we don't take into consideration is that whatever foothold we give the enemy is access to torment us about our loyalty to the kingdom of God. He dangles whatever he can before us -- relationships, money, things we may have had success with in the world before Christ, you name it -- and it is up to us to reject those things or allow the doubts to rise concerning whether or not to let them go.
In the end, the struggle is simply too painful and no longer worth the trouble. It becomes easier to just lapse back into what we used to know, and to tell the truth, walking in the flesh can be as easy as getting on a bike again after a while. Our old nature WILL return if we don't do what's necessary to cut all ties with it and let the Holy Spirit do His work in our lives, trusting God to make the change complete no matter how painful it may be. Here's the sad reality: the more we reject God's ways, the more we'll find that He releases us to do so. Ultimately, He will give us over to the reprobate mind referred to in today's passage, and we become the complete opposite of what we once used to be. The result: former gospel artists singing secular music, and even so-called ministers condoning homosexuality as well as other sins as something God accepts in spite of what His Word says. Saints, we must be very careful about allowing ourselves to get on this slippery slope of backsliding. There is no going back from it. Stay in the shadow and shelter of the Shepherd's care.
Prayer: Father, You've purchased my soul from the enemy's grasp, and You deserve all of me. But more than anything, I WANT to live for You because You loved me first. You went to the pit of hell itself for me, and I'll go wherever You desire. To live for You is not burdensome, but a privilege and an honor. Keep me in the cradle of Your grace, and I'll live to bring You glory always. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Today's Passage: Romans chapter 1
Memory Verse> Rom. 1:20
In the course of years that I've been walking with the Lord, I've observed the lives of believers who were in relationship with God at one point. But in time, that walk became less and less evident until there was no longer a trace of the bond between that person and God. And as a result of seeing this phenomenon time and time again, I came to the central question that troubled me for a while. How is it possible for people who supposedly love God to walk away from Him and live the opposite way from His laws?
A relationship with God is just that -- a relationship. It must be maintained, not by us, but by our Father. He knows how easy it is for us to lose focus of the most important thing in our lives. So He uses the Holy Spirit, Who speaks to us and convicts us of the areas where we stand in the most danger of going against His will. While for most of us, this is a good thing, and we run to the throneroom, confess our sins, and receive forgiveness as well as a closer walk with God, others resent this "high-maintenance" activity. What we see in the beginning is they seem to be okay with God living in their hearts. But as time goes by and He requires us to relinquish more and more control, the resentment grows.
The whole idea of being able to simply walk away after having enjoyed a relationship with God at one time has to do with being double-minded. Unholy alliances with the world and everything it stands for cause our allegiance to God to waver depending upon the season we're in if we're not completely sold out to Him. And this is the situation in which those who question their loyalty to God find themselves. Therefore, it IS possible to find oneself "in love" with Jesus one minute, then not even recognized as one of His own the next. What we don't take into consideration is that whatever foothold we give the enemy is access to torment us about our loyalty to the kingdom of God. He dangles whatever he can before us -- relationships, money, things we may have had success with in the world before Christ, you name it -- and it is up to us to reject those things or allow the doubts to rise concerning whether or not to let them go.
In the end, the struggle is simply too painful and no longer worth the trouble. It becomes easier to just lapse back into what we used to know, and to tell the truth, walking in the flesh can be as easy as getting on a bike again after a while. Our old nature WILL return if we don't do what's necessary to cut all ties with it and let the Holy Spirit do His work in our lives, trusting God to make the change complete no matter how painful it may be. Here's the sad reality: the more we reject God's ways, the more we'll find that He releases us to do so. Ultimately, He will give us over to the reprobate mind referred to in today's passage, and we become the complete opposite of what we once used to be. The result: former gospel artists singing secular music, and even so-called ministers condoning homosexuality as well as other sins as something God accepts in spite of what His Word says. Saints, we must be very careful about allowing ourselves to get on this slippery slope of backsliding. There is no going back from it. Stay in the shadow and shelter of the Shepherd's care.
Prayer: Father, You've purchased my soul from the enemy's grasp, and You deserve all of me. But more than anything, I WANT to live for You because You loved me first. You went to the pit of hell itself for me, and I'll go wherever You desire. To live for You is not burdensome, but a privilege and an honor. Keep me in the cradle of Your grace, and I'll live to bring You glory always. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment