“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:12 ESV)
It is not enough to just profess faith in Jesus Christ. We must follow him in obedience to his commands (New Covenant) and wherever he leads us in doing whatever he wants us to do, as his followers. And if we follow him in obedience, then we will not walk in darkness. We will not deliberately and habitually participate in sinful practices. For we can’t walk in obedience to our Lord and walk in sin at the same time. We either are slaves of sin or we are slaves of God and of his righteousness (see Romans 6:1-23).
Paul said something similar to this in Galatians 5:16:
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
So, if you are someone who is “struggling” with (regularly giving in to) sinful practices, this is the solution to your struggle. You have to surrender your life to Jesus Christ, submit to Christ as Lord (Owner-Master) of your life, leave your life of sin behind you, and now follow him in obedience to his commands, by the grace of God, in the power of God’s Spirit living within you. For if you are following Jesus in obedience, and if you are truly walking by the Spirit in doing the will of God, you will not walk (in practice) in sin.
“They said to him therefore, ‘Where is your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’” (John 8:19 ESV)
Whether we are Jew or Gentile by physical birth, if we do not believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, and as our Messiah, we do not know God – Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit. We are not in relationship with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He is not our Father, and we are not his people if we do not believe in Jesus Christ. And to believe in Jesus Christ is to die with him to sin and to walk in obedience to his commands, in his power, and it is to no longer make sin our practice.
“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, ‘If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’ They answered him, ‘We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, “You will become free”?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’” (John 8:31-36 ESV)
Now, as we read on further down in this passage we realize that these were not people who believed in Jesus to be Lord and Savior of their lives. They may have believed something he said, but he made it clear to them that God was not their Father because they did not accept Jesus as the Christ who was to come and who had then come. And they were not Abraham’s children because they sought to kill him, because they rejected him for who he was. And then he told them that their father was the devil, and that their will was to do his desires. For they would not believe in Jesus (John 8:37-47).
So, even though it says that they “believed” him, I think this (above) helps us to understand better why he then told them that if they abide in his word, then they are truly his disciples. And the same message applies to us. And to abide is to remain, to stay, and to continue with, but it can also mean to obey, keep to, conform to, act in accordance with, uphold, and agree to. For it is not enough to just say that we “believe” in Jesus, for belief, which is of God, comes from God, is gifted to us by God, and is persuaded of God will submit to God’s will and purposes for our lives, not resist him and his Spirit.
[Hebrews 12:1-2; John 1:12-13; John 6:44; Ephesians 2:8-10]
For, outside of true biblical faith in Jesus Christ we are all enslaved to sin. But when we believe in Jesus with genuine God-given and God-persuaded faith in Jesus Christ, then we are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and we are raised with him to walk in newness of life in him, no longer as slaves to sin, but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. So we are to not let sin have dominion over our lives any longer to where we obey its desires, for if sin is what we obey, it leads to death. But if obedience is what we obey, its end is eternal life with God (see Romans 6:1-23).
But notice here with me that just because we make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we have died with him to sin and that we are now living to him and to his righteousness. And that is why we have so many warnings and instructions to the church in the New Testament letting us know that if sin is what we practice, we are still slaves to sin. So we do not have the hope of salvation from sin and eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips profess. So, please take this to heart. And please read the Scriptures in their context so that you are hearing the truth.
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Give Thanks
By Don Moen / Henry Smith
Give thanks with a grateful heart
Give thanks to the Holy One
Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son
And now let the weak say, "I am strong"
Let the poor say, "I am rich
Because of what the Lord has done for us"
We give thanks to You oh Lord
We give thanks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXmv6MuUH6k
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