Psalm 119:153-154
“Look on my affliction and deliver me,
for I do not
forget your law.
Plead my cause and redeem me;
give me life
according to your promise!”
Many people are professing faith in Jesus Christ, and they
are believing him for their salvation from sin. They want the Lord to deliver
them from the penalty of sin, and from the shame of sin, but not many truly are
willing to let the Lord deliver them from their bondage (addiction) to sin.
They want to have eternal life with God. They want to claim
the promises of God over their lives. But they aren’t willing to do what the
Word of God teaches they must do to have eternal life with God. And, this is
not works-based salvation.
The Scriptures teach that faith in Jesus Christ is humbling
ourselves before God, that it is surrendering our lives to Jesus Christ, making
him Lord (owner-master) of our lives. They teach us that salvation from sin is
death to sin and it is living to God and to his righteousness (Lu. 9:23-26; Rom.
6:1-23; 1 Pet 2:24).
They teach us that the gospel according to Jesus Christ
means that we leave our lives of sin behind us, and that we are transformed in
heart and mind of the Spirit of God, and that now we follow our Lord Jesus in
surrender and in walks of obedience to his commands (Eph. 4:17-24; Rom.
8:1-17).
However, one of Satan's biggest lies, which is permeating
the gatherings of what is called "church," is that we can't be free
from our slavery to sin, and that the best we can hope for is just to be
forgiven our sins. But Jesus died that we might die with him to sin and live to
his righteousness (1 Pet. 2:24).
So, you don't have to live in bondage to sin. You don't have
to give in to temptation time and time again, making sin your practice. Jesus
died to free you from addiction to sin. Don't believe the lies that tell you there
is no way out. There is!! Freedom is possible by faith in Jesus Christ (Rom.
6:1-23).
Satan wants to keep you trapped in sin feeling there is no
way out. He wants to keep you feeling hopeless. He wants you to believe
addiction is something you can't be free from or that it will take years to be
free. Don't believe the lies. Believe the truth that Jesus can/will set you
free! (Eph. 4:17-24).
Psalm 119:155-156
“Salvation is far from the wicked,
for they do not
seek your statutes.
Great is your mercy, O Lord;
give me life
according to your rules.”
But not everyone has faith. Not everyone is willing to
believe Jesus for salvation from sin. Even many people who profess faith in
Jesus Christ don’t truly believe him for salvation from their bondage to sin,
because they don’t truly want to be free. And, they don’t want God to be in
control of their lives.
And, the reason for this is that they want to retain control
over their own lives. They want to retain the option to sin if they want to
sin. For, they want to live in self-indulgence and in self-pleasure when it
suits them. They don’t want to have to give up the self-life. But some of them
also want the “Christian” life, too. So, they try in their own flesh to be
good, at times.
But they find it futile to try to conquer sin in their own
flesh, because they can’t, because flesh cannot put flesh to death, and because
it is not really in their heart to be free from slavery to sin. Mostly they
just want to perform, to look good to others, so others will think they are
good Christians, but while they still maintain power and control over their own
lives.
So, although they claim to have faith in Jesus, and even
though they may even be claiming to be a Jesus follower, they are still the
ones in the driver’s seat, manipulating, scheming and maneuvering how things
are going to go. Thus, they are pressing forward in their own strength, not in
the strength of the Lord, which is why they continue to fall back into sin.
For, they are unwilling to obey the Lord. They are unwilling
to take full responsibility for their own lives, to do what they know they
ought to be doing. So, they are spiritually lazy, slothful, and apathetic regarding
holiness, righteousness, and obedience to the Lord. Thus, they are fruitless regarding
God’s eternal kingdom, too.
They are self-centered, self-absorbed individuals who are
living immature and irresponsible lives, unwilling to submit to the authority
of God over their lives, but who make a pretense of living the Christian life
while they continue to hold on to their sinful practices, rather than to give
them up and to allow the Spirit of God to truly set them free.
For, we can’t make up the rules. We can’t decide what we
will do or not do for our Lord. He is the one who sets the rules. He is the one
who determines the boundary lines we are not to cross over. If we want to have eternal
life with God, then we must submit to his rules (his commands).
And, he says that we must forsake our lifestyles of sin,
that we must allow him to change us in heart and mind, and that we must now
walk in obedience to his commands, and no longer live to gratify the sinful
cravings of our flesh (Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).
Psalm 119:159-160
“Consider how I love your precepts!
Give me life
according to your steadfast love.
The sum of your word is truth,
and every one
of your righteous rules endures forever.”
As followers of Jesus Christ this is where our heart is to
be, but not on a surface level only, and not to impress others with our
spirituality, but in truth, and in submission to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
We must be those who (agape) love (prefer) the commands of
our Lord. Now, we are not under the Old Covenant, so we don’t have to obey all
the same rules and regulations as did the Jews. But under the New Covenant we
are still to obey God’s moral laws, which he explained in much further detail
in the New Testament.
For example, Jesus said that we are not to commit adultery,
but then he expanded on that by saying that to lust after another (not your
spouse) is to commit adultery in our hearts. And, he said that to hate someone
is the same as to murder someone.
And, Jesus and his New Testament apostles both taught that
to love God is to obey him, and if we don’t walk in obedience to our Lord, we
don’t love him, and we don’t know him (Jn. 14:23-24; 1 Jn. 2:3-6).
They also taught us that to be in relationship with Jesus
Christ and with the Father means to die with Christ to sin and to live to
Christ and to his righteousness, and that if we don’t die with Christ to sin,
but we keep on living in our sin, that we won’t have eternal life with God (Lu.
9:23-26; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Gal. 5:16-21;
Gal. 6:7-8).
So, we need to be those who (agape) love (prefer, obey) the
commands of our Lord Jesus. For, in them we will find freedom from sin and life
everlasting with God in heaven, all to the glory and praise of God!
Listen to Our Hearts
Songwriters: Geoff Moore / Steven Chapman
So listen to our hearts.
Hear our spirit sing
A song of praise that flows
From those you have redeemed.
We will use the words we know
To tell you what an awesome God You are.
But words are not enough
To tell you of our love,
So listen to our hearts.
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