Bruce Cooper
If God let you know that it was His will for you not to put your hand on a hot burner on a stove, would it be hard or easy to obey His will? Probably easy, because in this instance, our will and God’s will are in alignment, our own will is also not to put our hand on a hot burner. Why, because when we put our hand on a hot burner we’ve learned that it hurts.
But if we know that it is God’s will to love or forgive our enemies, it is usually not easy to obey His will because our will is not always in alignment with God’s will. We seldom, in and of ourselves, want to love or forgive our enemies, especially when they have grievously harmed us. God’s nature and our carnal nature are not always in alignment, they are not always the same. What we want to do, our carnal or human will, is not always aligned with God’s will, even as His children.
In Romans 7: 14-25 Paul talks about the Law being spiritual and the principle that evil is within himself and us. In Romans 8:1-17 Paul also notes that “But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness.” We all die, each and every one of us, because that sin in our nature is real. And that “righteousness” that Paul speaks of isn’t ours, it’s the righteousness of Jesus.
Romans 8:1-17 states:”Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.” Emphasis is mine.
The other day I was driving alone in my car, and as I was praying, I became aware of my former self for a minute or so. It wasn’t a good feeling and the difference between how I used to think and what I thought of was notably different from what I endeavour to focus on now. The contrast was more than I would have thought it would have been. There was a darkness to my former way of thinking and I voiced to God that I never wanted to go back to the way I used to be or think. I’m thinking that was God’s grace giving me some insight into what had changed over the years. I can tell you that it left a lasting impression.
1 John 1:9 NIV states: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Those sins that we commit, which can be any one of a thousand things, such as an unthinking word of slander about someone else or a condescending thought or an attitude of spiritual superiority over someone else, can creep into our minds so easily. That “sin” in our humanistic nature is still there.
But even though our sinful nature is undoubtedly there, there is another side of the coin that Paul would have us focus more on.
Because of my faith and trust in Jesus, God’s Holy Word tells me that I am a child of God and as such Christ is my righteousness, He is faithful, He has redeemed me and He is my sanctification. God the Father sees me in His Son, the attributes of Jesus are transferred or imputed to us, the children of God, now. Learning to abide in Christ is a lifelong process and while we are in our bodies it is a process that is never completed but it is vitally important to understand what has already been accomplished in us and that which we have realized or overcome while in the flesh are not one and the same.
We are sanctified, faithful, righteous, redeemed now. Not because of what we have done but because of what Jesus has done and what has been attributed or imputed to us. When we focus on a negative, it beats down our self perception of our worth in God’s eyes and moves us away from our faith and trust in Him. We focus on our sin rather than His righteousness. That does NOT mean we think any less of our sin, because sin DOES matter. The thing is, we confess it, move away from it and continue to move forward. Our trust is in Him, not ourselves. Jesus is the means to our end state. HE will bring us to completion in Him.
1 Cor 1:30-31 states: “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.”
Rom 11:35-36 ““Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them? For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.”
James 1:17 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”
By focusing on what Jesus accomplished on our behalf we start from a place of truth and work back to a point of need. That moves us closer to God in adoration and thankfulness. When we focus on our sin we are starting from a point of need, attempting to establish a point of truth for ourselves, which moves us away from God.
SATAN SAYS THAT SIN IS WHAT YOU ARE, IT DEFINES YOU.
JESUS SAYS, THIS IS NOT WHO YOU ARE, WITH MY HOLY SPIRIT IN YOU,
MADE POSSIBLE BY YOUR FAITH AND TRUST IN ME, WHO OBEYED MY FATHER’S WILL
WITH MY DEATH AND RESURRECTION
YOU CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH ME (CHRIST,) I WILL STRENGTHEN YOU AND I WILL COMPLETE YOU IN MYSELF.
Luke 9:62 “Jesus said to him, “no man who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Do we give up on God or do we most times give up on ourselves?
Most times it is us giving up on ourselves.
When you set your hand to a plow you focus on where you are going, not looking back where you have been.
Phil 3:13-14 “Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” Emphasis is mine.
I know this. I am not thoroughly satisfied with the transformation that has taken place in me over the years, because I am still aware of some of my many shortfalls. But I also know that I would never want to go back to the way that I was. I never realized how much I had changed or the extent to which I have changed. Sure, there is always more to change, but God’s Holy Spirit does dwell in me and Christ will bring to completion, that which He started in me.
The message: DON’T GIVE UP ON YOURSELF, IT IS CHRIST THAT WORKS IN YOU TO BRING YOU TO COMPLETION IN HIM!
Worthy is the Lamb! Blessings!
NarrowPathMinistries 