"Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.) For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body, according to the working whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Himself." (Phillipians 3:17-21)
There is only ONE who is "able even to subdue all things unto Himself." It certainly is not me. And even if you have more will-power than I do (admittedly I have none at all) it is not you, either. For no matter how disciplined a person is, no matter how much will-power, no matter how strong they are in themselves, only One is able to subdue ALL THINGS….and that is GOD. It is the Lord God Almighty, who gave His Son to us. It is Jesus Christ Himself who subdues all things by the power of God, because He IS GOD and CREATOR OF THE UNIVERSE. And it is the Holy Spirit of God. It is the Lord our God who is ONE LORD. It is THE LORD. (Deut. 6:4; Mark 12:29)
Recovery programs can teach us guidelines to healthy living, but it is only the strength of the Lord, the power of God, that causes us to remain faithful to Him and consistent with those program guidelines that we have been given. It is only HE that is our victory, it is not the programs themselves. And no matter what you believe, it is not you who are able to overcome sin. There is none perfect except God. Our fleshly appetites (not just food and drink, but emotions and greed and ambition and anger and fear and worry and so many other things) have control over us all until we surrender ourselves to the Lord. There is no one who does not sin... EXCEPT GOD…whose name when He walked on this earth among us was JESUS CHRIST:
"Only in the Lord shall one say, I have righteousness (salvation and victory) and strength [to achieve]." (Isaiah 46:24 AMP)
But we will go our own ways, walking right into defeat, unless we appropriate for ourselves, the gift that the Lord Jesus Christ left for us when He went to sit at the right hand of the Father in heaven. That gift is none other than: THE HOLY SPIRIT.
As the opening scripture says, there are those who "mind earthly things" and then there are those whose "conversation is in heaven."
I find that my desire is for eternal things, yet I can get distracted by temporal or earthly things. I also find that this happens dependent upon whether I am walking "in the Spirit" or am, instead, "walking by the flesh."
"For, brethren, you have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh….walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." (Galatians 5:13-16)
It's very simple. We are to walk by the Spirit. So why don't we do that always?
I believe it is because we don't pull away from the turmoil and activities that surround us each day, long enough to do so. We don't separate ourselves and pray.
Remember how often Jesus pulled away from the crowds and went off to pray?
When things get too hectic around me, as happened prior to this trip, time alone with the Lord sometimes gets set aside. And when I later stumble, I am surprised… when it really should come as no surprise at all. For if I am not walking by the Spirit….filled with the Spirit, aware of the Spirit's leading in all things, with my mind on heavenly things…then I must be walking by the flesh, with my mind on earthly things and not on the Lord. And that's when sin happens.
The Lord has left us the strength and the power to be obedient by sending to us the Comforter, the Holy Spirit of God. We just need to pull away and receive a fresh filling from Him each day, and sometimes throughout the day. AND we need to pray for one another….which ALSO requires pulling away. (I'm preaching to ME!)
I'm thankful for God's continued mercy, grace and faithfulness to me. I'm thankful for His forgiveness and that He brings me to repentance each time I fail. And I am thankful that the Word of God promises me that as I continue to submit to the Holy Spirit, He will subdue all things unto Himself…INCLUDING MY FLESH!
In the Lord alone is my victory! And on Him I must rely!
I agree, there are times when I miss my quiet time with my Lord -- giving Adoration, confession, and thanksgiving -- and when things begin to go out of wack I sit and think, why Lord? Why? Funny, how it will take a little time for that inner voice to say, hello...are you talking to me (I know, like Jesus would say that, but I think that He would in jest correct me by saying something like are you talking to me...someone you haven't spoken to in a while). Then of course, I feel remorse and ask forgiveness and our merciful Father is there with His open arms. GW
ReplyDeleteI heard a pastor this morning, who had just returned from a mission trip/worship conference in Cuba. The folks there have so little (in their fully socialized communistic environment) that they have much more freedom than we do....because they have no distractions of things...things that need upkeep and maintenance and our time and attention. It just keeps coming back to me more and more about how bad off we are because of "stuff". I can't help but think of the church in Laodicea, (and it causes me to shudder when I do) and of how timeless God's word is, or should I say how much it transcends all times and reaches home to grab us in this day where we are rich but spiritually are poor and naked instead...and lukewarm. Maybe our biggest foe is our "stuff"! Maybe its time to get rid of the stuff! After all what good will the stuff have been to us, if we miss heaven because of it?
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