“You also became imitators of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything. For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thessalonians 1:6-10 NASB1995)
The Scriptures teach that we are to be imitators of God, not
in a mocking nor in a false to the truth kind of way, as some people do, but in
truth and in righteousness we are to model our lives after the character of our
Lord and after the teachings of the Scriptures on what it means to believe in
Jesus Christ and to be a follower of Christ. And Jesus set the example for us
to follow when he lived on this earth, and so did his New Testament apostles,
although they were not perfect in every way as is God. None of us are!
And if our faith in the Lord Jesus is biblical
God-persuaded, God-gifted, and God-honoring faith, which is of God and not of human
flesh, we will die with Christ to sin, and we will be raised with Christ to
walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as
slaves to God and to his righteousness, by the Spirit, in obedience to God and
to his commandments. Sin will no longer be what we practice, by habit, but we
will now follow our Lord in obedience to his will and purpose for our lives,
empowered by God.
Now, if we receive the truth of the gospel of our salvation
in truth, and in righteousness, and so we give up our former lives of living in
sin and for self, and so we now surrender our lives to the Lord to do his will,
it is going to cost us friends, the respect and support of some family members,
our standing with the world around us, and perhaps loss of jobs and income,
etc. And even in the gatherings of what are called “the church,” we may be rejected,
cast aside as unwanted, persecuted, and treated as an outcast.
But if we accept these trials and tribulations in our lives
as part of the cost of following Jesus with our lives, and if we do not give
way to fear, and if we do not retaliate with hate, but we continue to show
love, even to our enemies, then we may be able to set the example to other
followers of Christ who are also suffering much for their walks of faith, in
obedience to the Lord, as to how we should respond to our unjust suffering. So
this may involve us sharing some of our experiences and how the Lord helped us
to overcome.
For God does not promise his followers a life of ease and
comfort. He promises us a life of suffering as Christ suffered for us and gave
himself up for us so that we might die to sin and obey God with our lives, by
God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in the Lord Jesus. For through suffering we
learn humility, patience, perseverance, compassion, and that our dependency has
to be fully in the Lord and not in ourselves, and that God will empower us to
defeat all enemies coming against us so that we may not lose faith.
And all that we suffer in this life God will use to make us
more like him and to prepare us for the work of the ministry, so that we will
be his servants and witnesses and messengers throughout the world in sharing
with the people the truth of the gospel of our salvation, despite all
opposition, rejections, and persecutions. But we have to yield control of our
lives over to him, and we have to cooperate with his work of grace in our lives
in conforming us to the people of God who he has planned for us to be.
And, as followers of Christ, we are to be those who are
spreading the truth of the gospel to the people of the world. But we must make
certain that what we are sharing is the truth and not the lies, for many lies
are being spread in the name of truth via some people teaching Scriptures
outside of their context and them making them say what they do not say if
taught within their appropriate context. So be students of the Scriptures who
study them in context under the direction and guidance of the Holy Spirit of
God.
For Jesus Christ taught that to come to him we must deny
self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) him. For if
we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity.
But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience
to our Lord and to his commands, in his power, then we have eternal life with
God. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew
7:21-23).
And..
By God-gifted faith in Jesus Christ, which is not of our own
doing, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to
walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but as
slaves to righteousness in walks of obedience to God’s commands. We are no
longer to permit sin to reign in our mortal bodies to make us obey its desires.
For if sin is what we obey, it results in death. But if obedience to God is
what we obey, it results in sanctification and its end is eternal life with God
(see Romans 6:1-23).
And..
The grace of God, which is bringing us salvation, is
training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live
self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for Jesus’ return. For Christ
“gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for
himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.” “For
we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (See Titus 2:11-14; Ephesians
2:8-10)
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts
26:18; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22;
Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews
12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]
As the Deer
By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1
As the deer panteth
for the water
So my soul longeth
after You
You alone are my
heart's desire
And I long to
worship You
You alone are my
strength, my shield
To You alone may my
spirit yield
You alone are my
heart's desire
And I long to
worship You
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Jesus, Who Rescues Us
An Original Work / June 17, 2025
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