Wednesday, July 17,
2013, 5:00 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “Believe Him” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, your words to my
heart. I read Ephesians 1 (NIV):
Paul,
an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To
God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
Grace
and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Praise
be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the
heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him
before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance
with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has
freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his
blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace
that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us
the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in
Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring
unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
In
him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him
who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order
that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise
of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message
of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in
him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our
inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the
praise of his glory…
Holy and Faithful
This letter is addressed to God’s holy people, the faithful
in Christ Jesus. To be holy means to be set apart for God and for his service,
as well as it means to be righteous, godly, pure and faithful. Faithful then
means to be truthful, loyal, devoted, committed, trustworthy, dependable, and
constant (continuous, persistent and/or relentless). So, how do we become holy
and faithful people in Christ Jesus? The key phrase here is “in Christ Jesus.”
We cannot do this in our own flesh, willpower, human
strength, or wisdom and reasoning. None of us can even come to faith in Jesus
Christ unless the Father first draws us to him. As well, not one of us will
ever be good enough in our own merit to be holy and faithful people to God. It
is only by God’s grace, through faith in Jesus Christ, that we are even able to
enter into such a relationship with God, i.e. with Jesus Christ. Our salvation
is a gift, paid for by the blood of Jesus Christ. He paid the price (the
ransom) so that we can be set free from slavery (or imprisonment) to sin and
the ultimate punishment for sin – eternal damnation.
So, how do we come to such faith? First of all, it is a gift
from our Lord God, but it is a gift we must receive by faith. On the subject of
faith, the Bible has much to say, for even the demons believe in Jesus, and
they shudder. So, mere intellectual acknowledgment of Jesus Christ and of what
he did for us in dying on the cross for our sins is not saving faith. A true
understanding of faith knows that it basically involves cooperating with God in
allowing his Spirit to transform us into new creatures in Christ Jesus, so it
is a yielding of control of our own lives over to the control of our Lord
(master) Jesus Christ so that “I” (my flesh) no longer lives (is in control),
but Christ lives in me, and the life I now live I live by faith.
We are chosen by God/Christ to be holy and blameless. Again,
we cannot do this in our own flesh or of our own merit. Not one of us, in and
of ourselves, could ever be holy and without fault. We just can’t do it! That
is why Christ died on the cross for our sins. Through his death and
resurrection he made the way possible for us to have his holiness and his
blamelessness charged to our account. And, he set us free of the charge of sin
which stood against us – this is forgiveness! We just have to say “Yes” to
Jesus and allow him to do his work of righteousness in our hearts. And, he will
save us, forgive us, cleanse us, and make us into new creatures in Christ Jesus
for the praise of his glory!
Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, he must deny
(disallow) himself (his self-life or flesh nature), take up his cross daily
(die daily to sin and self) and follow (obey) Christ. We don’t do this in our
own strength or willpower. It is the Spirit who works this within us as we
cooperate fully with that work. We can choose to yield to our flesh or we can
choose to yield control to the Spirit of God, and to allow him to work his
righteousness in us. We don’t become puppets on a string when we believe in
Jesus. We still choose daily to either yield control of our lives to Christ or
to follow our own way of thinking and reasoning. Turning from sin, being
transformed in heart and mind, and walking in faithful obedience to Christ are
all the working of the Holy Spirit within us as we, by faith, yield control of
our lives over to the Lord and we submit to and surrender to his grace.
Every Spiritual
Blessing
For those of us who have come to Christ with such faith, we
have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. Amen! God
doesn’t put us out there and then just leave us hanging. He gives us all we
need to live for Jesus Christ while we still live in these flesh bodies. He
already conquered sin and Satan, so “in Christ” we also are able to have
victory over sin, our flesh and over Satan’s and sin’s control and dominion
over our lives. It is no longer a question of who will win. Satan already lost!
Amen! We just have to live like we believe that – “in Christ” and in his power,
wisdom, understanding and strength within us. We don’t fight off Satan’s
temptations and attacks with carnal weapons, but with spiritual weapons of
faith, truth, the word of God, our witness for Christ, salvation, righteousness
(of Christ), etc. And, we only have these spiritual weapons “in Christ.”
The Purpose of His
Will
As I read through this passage of scripture, these words
jumped out at me: “every spiritual blessing;” “in love;” “in accordance with
his pleasure and will;” “the mystery of his will;” “his good pleasure;” “he
purposed in Christ;” “chosen;” “predestined;” “according to the plan of him;” “works
out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will;” “we might be for
the praise of his glory;” “marked with a seal;” “guaranteeing our inheritance,”
etc.
God’s sovereignty (having supreme authority and power) over
all things is predominant in this passage of scripture, as well as is his
awesome love, grace and mercy! He did not save us just so we could go to heaven
one day, as wonderful as that will be. He had a plan and a purpose for each one
of our lives even before he created us. He ransomed our lives so that we would
be free of slavery (imprisonment) to sin. This does not mean we will be
sinless, but that sin should no longer have dominion over our lives because
Christ is living in us, and he conquered sin and Satan! Amen! We just have to
live like we believe that – in Christ! He chose us to be holy and blameless and
faithful to him. This is his plan and his purpose.
He also planned and purposed that we should walk in his
love, grace, mercy and freedom, i.e. that we should have daily communion and
fellowship with him, listening to him speak, obeying what he shows us, being
his hands and feet to those he brings into our lives, and sharing his gospel in
word and in life so that many more can come to know him, too. And, he planned
and purposed for us that we should walk in his peace, trust, faith, wisdom and
understanding, love, compassion, passion, and with an understanding and
acceptance of his sovereignty over our lives; i.e. that all things that come
into our lives are for his purposes and his glory; for our spiritual growth;
for our perseverance in our walks of faith; for his character to be revealed in
us; and for us to be used of him in the lives of others; etc.
Life is not always going to make sense. We may encounter
times of confusion when things in this life just don’t add up. Life may not
seem fair at times, and we may face many difficulties, temptations, attacks of
the enemy, heartaches, persecutions and even abandonment. Sometimes we may feel
all alone in this world, especially if we have chosen to come out from the
world and to be separate. We may long for our heavenly home, for when our
salvation will be complete, and for when we will have reached perfection and we
no longer are tempted, troubled or feel pain and suffering. Yet, it is then
that we must remember that God has a purpose and a plan for everything in our
lives, even those things that hurt us or that don’t make sense to us. And, so
we yield control once more.
Sometimes in life we have questions for which we don’t have
answers. Sometimes we pray and we can’t hear God speaking, i.e. he seems silent
concerning our requests. And, so we cry out for him to hear us, even though we
know he does, and for him to answer. Yet, he doesn’t always give us the answers
we desire, nor does he explain all of his ways to us. He just says “Trust me.”
“Believe me.” “Rest in me.” And, he reminds us that his ways are greater than
our ways and his thoughts greater than our thoughts, i.e. he doesn’t think and
work like we do. He has purposes for what we go through in this life beyond our
human comprehension. We may even desire the right things, but he may have
planned for us to go through injustice or heartache, and so he asks us to just trust
him that he knows best.
Trust
in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in
all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight. – Pr.
3:5-6 (NIV)
Believe Him / An
Original Work / July 15, 2013
My heart cries: Lord,
won’t You hear me
Seeking You for the
answers
To my heartache and
questions
I have concerning my
life?
Speak, Lord, to me
right now.
“Oh, dear one, why
don’t you trust Me
With your life’s
circumstances?
Give your all on the
altar
In submission of your
will
To My purpose for you.
“Surrender your life
completely
To your Lord and your
Savior.
He has all things
planned for you
For His glory and
honor.
He’ll work all things
for good.
“Believe Him. He will
fulfill all
Of His promises to you
For your life and your
future.
Trust Him. Rest in His
love.
He’ll give you peace
from above.”
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