Weeds and Wheat

This is a lengthy passage of scripture, but to try to break it up in sections would do it an injustice, for we need to read this in its entirety all together in order to get the complete picture. And, then we can discuss it.

The Parable Told

Matthew 13:24-30 ESV

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”

The Parable Explained

Matthew 13:36-43 ESV

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

The true church of Jesus Christ is comprised of all people who are surrendering their hearts to Jesus Christ, who are dying with him to sin, in order that they might live with him to righteousness. They have crucified the sinful nature, and they are now living for the Lord (Rom. 6:1-23; Gal. 5:24).

But, then there are the gatherings of the church, or the meetings of the church, which can and do include those who make only a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, yet whose lives do not bear the fruit of the Spirit of God.

Yet, since even true followers of Christ are not immune to sin’s deceitfulness nor to giving way to temptation to sin, sometimes there is a fine line between those who are true followers of Jesus and those who are not, but who have the appearance of being Christ’s followers.

What is this not saying

So, what is this saying here? That we are to leave all judgments to God, and that we are to say and to do nothing if we discern error, or if there is rampant sin within the church being left undealt with? No!

It is clear throughout the New Testament that there are not only false believers among true believers, mixed in together, but there also false teachers, too, who have slipped in among us. Yet, we are not to ignore willful sin and rebellion within the church, or false teaching and teachers. But, we are to make just and righteous judgments in these matters, and we are to follow specific courses of action that God has laid out for us in how to deal with these, which are written down for us in the scriptures.

In fact, in 1 Corinthians 5, not only are we instructed to have removed from our fellowships those living in willful sinful rebellion against God and against his moral laws, but that we are not to even eat with or associate with anyone who calls himself a follower of Christ but it is known that he or she is living in sexual immorality or is an idolater, etc. We, as the body of Christ are to purge the evil from among us so that the evil does not spread throughout the fellowship and infect the whole of the body of Christ.

And, we are warned about false teachers, too, and we are instructed to not put up with what is not sound doctrine, but that we are to test the spirits to see if they are of God. We are not to put up with teaching that is proclaiming “another Jesus” or “another gospel” other than the Jesus and the gospel of the scriptures, but rather, we are to expose what is false (1 Thess. 5:21; 1 Jn. 4:1-6; 2 Tim. 4:1-5; 2 Co. 11:1-4; Eph. 5:11; Rev. 2:13-29).

So, this is not teaching tolerance. It is not teaching a “free for all” where we blend in with the culture of the world and where we “stay in your own lane” so as not to make any judgments and in order that we don’t offend anyone with the truth of the gospel. It is not teaching silence, either, and that we should just look the other way while the world and the false church goes to hell. But, we are to teach what is true and expose what is false.

What we Need to Understand

Not everything is as it appears. Not everyone is who he or she says they are. Anything can be faked, pretty much. And, it can be hard, sometimes, to distinguish the fake from the real deal. But, we are called to discernment and to test the spirits, so that is what we must do so that we are not taken in by those who are fake and who might be trying to lead us astray.

So, how do we distinguish the fake from the real? By the Word of God, studied in full context. In other words, one of the main tricks of the liars and deceivers is to pull scriptures out of context to make them say what they want them to say in order to deceive naïve minds who are not versed in the scriptures. And, so we must test everything we see, hear or read against the scriptures, taken in context, and against God’s divine character and will.

The bottom line here is that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not just forgiveness of sins and our free ticket into God’s heaven. The gospel of our salvation teaches that we must die to our old lives of living for sin and self, and that we must be changed (transformed) in heart and mind of the Spirit of God. And, it teaches that we must now put on our new self in Christ Jesus, and that we must now walk (in practice) according to the Spirit and no longer according to the flesh if we want to have eternal life with God (Lu. 9:23-26; Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Rom. 12:1-2; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).

And, we must also know that we are all going to appear before God one day and that we will be judged according to our deeds (our works). For, what we do is evidence (the fruit) of what we say we believe. So, if we sow to please the flesh, from that flesh we will reap destruction. But, if by the Spirit we sow to please the Spirit, then from that Spirit we will reap eternal life (Gal. 6:7-8; Rom. 2:6-8; Gal. 5:16-21; Eph. 5:3-6; Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).

But, this judgment that determines who will have eternal life and who won’t is not to be determined until the end of time when Jesus comes back. For, those who are faking it now may turn their hearts over to the Lord Jesus at some point in time, as may those who make no profession of faith in Jesus. And, those who now are living for the Lord may fall away from their faith and they may go back to living in the flesh in sinful rebellion against God.

So, we make no final judgments regarding anyone’s salvation for we know not what the future holds. But, we are to discern the spirits, and we are to call out those who profess faith in Jesus but who are living in sinful rebellion against him so that they don’t infect the whole church.

And, we are to call out false teaching and false teachers so that the body of Christ is not led astray, and so that the masses who have professed faith in Jesus Christ don’t end up believing a lie, thinking they are going to heaven, when one day they are going to hear, “Depart from me. I never knew you.”

So, know the truth, for it is the truth which will set you free.

Our God, He is Alive

Music and Lyrics by A.W. Dicus

Our God, whose Son upon a tree,

A life was willing there to give,

That He from sin might set man free,

And evermore with Him could live.

There is a God, He is alive,

In Him we live and we survive;

From dust our God created man,

He is our God, the great I Am.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZOycliNiTk

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Do You Know My Jesus?

William F. Lakey, 1956

V.B. Vep Ellis, 1957

Do you know my Jesus?

Do you know my friend,

Have you heard He loves you,

And that He will abide till the end?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I717TmsqePc

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Passions at War

Fleshly Desires

James 4:1-3 ESV

“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.”

The Bible says that the flesh is at war with (against) the Spirit and the Spirit is at war with (against) the flesh, for the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh.

And, the acts of the flesh are obvious, for they are sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, selfish ambition, and the like. And, so we are warned that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But, if we walk (in practice) by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the flesh (See Gal. 5:16-21; cf. Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Tit. 2:11-14).

What Happens?

So, what happens when we decide to go against the Spirit of God and we decide to do what our flesh desires, instead? We hurt other people, for one. We hurt others physically, emotionally, mentally and/or spiritually when we decide to do what our flesh craves rather than to submit ourselves to God to do what he requires of us. And, we hurt ourselves, too.

Even if we think this is just our choice, and that we can sin in secret, and that no one is really getting hurt by it, we are fooling ourselves. For, our lives impact other people’s lives every day. The choices we make do impact other people, for good or for bad, either directly or indirectly. For, we don’t live in isolation. And, what we practice is revealed in our attitudes, in our words, and in our behaviors towards others.

One compromise often leads to another to another. What begins in the mind and heart then moves to acting out what was already being entertained in the mind. And, oftentimes, because sin never satisfies, the one craving the sin won’t be content with just one level of sin, but he or she will have to keep going deeper and deeper into sin in order to keep feeding that flesh.

And, this happens because the flesh is very deceptive, and it is very powerful, and because people minimize the power of sin over their lives and so they get stupid, because they get prideful and they think they can handle it. And so they let their flesh rule their judgments, and that is when they fall.

They “overplay their hand,” i.e. they get overconfident because they think they are in a stronger position than they are. And, this happens a lot with people living in addiction, for they refuse to see themselves as addicts, and if they have a few good days, they are convinced they have licked their addiction, and then it comes back to bite them when their guard is down.

And, they may even call on God to help them, and they may even pray for guidance and direction, but then when God does give them the counsel they ask for, they ignore it, for they think they know better. And, they don’t end up doing what he counsels them to do, and then they act surprised when they fall, and that is because they continued to play with fire thinking they won’t get burned.

So, if your problem is lust, for example, if you pray for God to help you not to lust, but then you keep going places where you know you have fallen before, and where you have gotten trapped before, you are just asking to fail. Or, if you say you want victory over lust, but then you feed your mind with TV shows or movies that sell sensuality, you are already self-defeated.

You Adulterous People

James 4:4-5 ESV

“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, ‘He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us’?”

Honestly, with the cheap grace gospel permeating the church and spreading like gangrene, as it is, I believe the answer to this first question is probably “No.” Many people who profess faith in Jesus Christ are blinded to the fact that their friendship with the world – with the lusts of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is enmity with God.

And, that is because they have bought into the lies, and they have been convinced that faith in Jesus Christ is their “get-out-of-jail-free-card,” and that nothing is required of them – no repentance, no obedience to Christ’s commandments, and no submission to Christ and to his death to sin and living to righteousness.

They feel that their “faith” means they are now forgiven their sins, that God can’t even see when they sin, and that heaven is now guaranteed them no matter how much or how often they sin.

So, they don’t see themselves as enemies of God, because they have been pumped full with all these messages that God loves them just the way they are, that he doesn’t judge them, that nothing bad is going to happen to them, that heaven is secured them, that God smiles on them, and that he delights in them even when they are living in rebellion against him and they are engaging themselves in sinful practices in direct defiance to God.

And, then, if they begin to get a twinge of guilt about their sinful practices, many are telling them to just claim who they are in Christ, as though that is supposed to appease the guilt of their consciences regarding their sinful practices, and as though it is to make them feel better about themselves and to not feel bad about their sins.

And, so we need to face the reality here that God is not pleased with us no matter what we do, that he can see when we sin against him, and that if we make sin our practice, in direct defiance to God’s commands, that not only won’t we inherit eternal life with God, but we will live self-defeated lives on this earth. And, our sins, which we believe are private, are not as private as we may think they are, for they do impact other people in our lives one way or another, and they may overtake us, and we may fall big time.

Submit Yourselves to God

James 4:6-10 ESV

“But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.”

So many people have this false impression of what God’s grace is all about. It isn’t just forgiveness of sins, an escape from hell, and the hope of heaven. For, God’s grace, which brings us salvation from sin, instructs us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and fleshly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for Christ’s return (Titus 2:11-14).

God’s grace doesn’t just forgive us our sins and then let us keep on in living to sin unhindered without guilt. His grace delivers us out of our slavery to sin and it frees us to now walk in Christ’s holiness and purity.

For, Jesus died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to his righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. He gave his blood on that cross to buy us back for God so we would now be God’s possession, and so we would honor God with our lives (Rom. 6:1-23; 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Co. 6:20; 2 Co. 5:15; Eph. 4:17-24).

So, we are to submit ourselves to God, and we are to resist the devil, and we are to flee temptation and draw near to God. We aren’t to tempt fate, so to speak. God is not ok with us making sin our practice. He says we must die with him to sin and that we must put on Christ and his righteousness. And, he says we must walk (in lifestyle) according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh if we want to have eternal life with God (Rom. 8:1-17).

And, he says we are to repent of our sins, turn away from them, and turn to him to follow him and his commands. And, this involves humbling ourselves before God, acknowledging our sin, weeping over our sin, and truly having heart changes which do a 180, i.e. which turn from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God.

This is like you were going one direction, and now you turn, and you go the opposite direction of what you were going. You once lived to gratify the sinful cravings of your flesh, but now you live to please God and to live to him and to his righteousness, all for his praise, glory and honor.

Our God, He is Alive

Music and Lyrics by A.W. Dicus

Our God, whose Son upon a tree,

A life was willing there to give,

That He from sin might set man free,

And evermore with Him could live.

There is a God, He is alive,

In Him we live and we survive;

From dust our God created man,

He is our God, the great I Am.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZOycliNiTk

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The Lord is at Hand

Do Not Be Anxious

Philippians 4:1, 4-7 ESV

“Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm thus in the Lord, my beloved. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

We live in troubled times. Our nations are being torn apart and are being given over to the beastly New World Order, which is presently conquering the world one nation at a time. It is just a matter of time before we have the full rule of the beast in place in this world, ruling over the entire world.

The church, at least here in America, and I suspect in other nations throughout the world, is in a crisis situation, for the church has largely been given over to the beastly New World Order, too, via the US government and the world and big business, with which the church largely has joined forces in an unholy union, unequally yoked together with unbelievers.

Thus, the church at large is on a massive moral and spiritual decline, for they have compromised their faith and convictions with the world in order to attract the world to their gatherings, and in order to appease human flesh.

They have turned the house of the Lord into a marketplace, which God forbids. They are unequally yoked together with the unbelieving world; which God also forbids. And they have turned to humans and their marketing schemes and books to tell them how to grow God’s church, rather than turning to the Lord and to his Word and to submitting to his ways for growing his church.

And, the market-driven and flesh-driven church has cut the Lord’s gospel message in pieces, and has altered his message, and has turned the grace of God into a license for lasciviousness.

So, it appears the majority of those professing the name of Jesus do not really know God, and yet they are being given a false hope of heaven for when they die, based on a lie which tells them that a mere profession of faith is enough to assure them of heaven when they die, yet with no requirements for death to sin or living to righteousness.

Rejected and Persecuted

And, so those who are still holding on to the tenets of the Christian faith as taught by Jesus and his NT apostles, are being excluded, rejected, falsely accused, mistreated, fought against, and persecuted for their faith and for their testimonies for Jesus Christ and for his full gospel message.

So, this is an encouragement here to stand firm on our faith, and to not back down, and to not compromise with the world or unite with the worldly church in their hypocrisies, and in their giving of their lives over to the flesh. But, we are to remain committed to our Lord and to his Word, and to purity, faithfulness, honesty, holiness and righteousness.

And, it is also an encouragement to those who are being mistreated for their faith and for their stand on the truths of God’s word. We are to rejoice in the Lord in all things. And, we are to let our reasonableness be known to everyone.

So, what is our reasonableness? It is sensibleness, wisdom, being realistic, and fairness. And, the gospel of Jesus Christ is all that, so it is speaking the truth of the gospel to people out of love and concern for their lives, taking care to let them know the truth that can set them free.

And, then there is the reminder that our Lord is at hand, i.e. he is near us who have trusted in him to be Lord and Savior of our lives, but he is near in the sense, too, that his coming again to take us to be with him forever is approaching. Both senses of that word “near,” should give us comfort.

So, we should have no reason to fear what is going on in the world and what we are presently having to endure, and what we will most likely have to endure in days or years to come, as the persecution of true followers of Jesus increases and spreads throughout the world.

So, instead of being anxious about the things that are taking place in the world and in our nations and within the gatherings of the church, we should commit all these to the Lord in prayer, and make our requests to the Lord concerning the condition of our present world and the adulterous church, too. And, we should take to him in prayer any persecutions we may be facing and our persecutors, too. And, trust him to work all for good for those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Rom. 8:28).

When we commit our circumstances over to the Lord, and when we take his yoke upon us and learn from him, and we let him carry our burdens, then the peace of God fills our hearts.

But, this is not to say that we are not going to continue to go through hardships and persecutions. Jesus promised we would. And, this doesn’t mean we won’t feel them, either. Paul said he despaired even of life. But, we have to just keep crying them out to the Lord and trust him with them. And, one day he is going to take us home, and then our suffering will be over and our tears will be wiped from our eyes, and we will be at home with our Lord.

Think About These Things

Philippians 4:8-9 ESV

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.”

While we wait for our Lord’s return, we are to live godly and holy lives, pleasing to him, and we are to continue to fight off Satan’s evil attacks against us, and we are to continue to say “No!” to the flesh and “Yes!” to the Spirit. And, we are to set our minds on things above and not on things on the earth. And, we are to think about things that are godly and pure and holy, and we are to keep our eyes on Jesus, and we are not to let our minds wander from our pure devotion to our Lord or to become fearful, but we are to focus our attention on what is praiseworthy, instead.

Him Who Strengthens Me

Philippians 4:10-13 ESV

“I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

And, lastly, we need to learn to be content in whatever situation God places us in, whether we are living in plenty or in need, whether of good reputation or of bad (because we are teaching the true gospel). It doesn’t mean we are tolerant of sin or wickedness of any kind. We are not to be content with wickedness reigning in people’s lives. But, we are to speak the truth in love in hopes that many will surrender their lives to Jesus. But, we have to be willing to accept that with that will come difficulties in relationships, and that we will be hated, rejected and persecuted by some people.

Yet, God will strengthen us in every situation he allows us to go through. We just have to yield to him and trust him and rest in him and follow his lead. And, again, we can endure much knowing that this will not last forever, but that one day our Lord will come to take us home. In the meantime, though, we live for him and we do what he says and we don’t make compromises with the world. We stand strong on the Word of the Lord. Amen!

When I Go Home

By G. M. Eldridge

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes…” Revelation 21:4

In the moment He appears

And the light from heaven shines,

I’ll forget ev’ry fear,

Ev’ry pain I’ll leave behind.

Then I’ll see Him as He is

And I’ll know Him as I’m known.

Ev’ry tear wiped away when I go home.

Ever present is the tho’t

That a moment waits for me

When unworthy as I am,

His glory I will see.

I will empty all my praise

Before my Father’s throne.

Ev’ry tear wiped away when I go home.

If the trial I endure

And your presence I can’t find,

Be near me, Lord, I pray,

Bring back unto my mind

That your promises are firm

And I’m never on my own.

Ev’ry tear wiped away when I go home.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z98Zvr1CyXg

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Copyright 2019 by Acapeldridge

All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission

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Contemplating Death

January 24, 2020

We are all going to die one day. It is inevitable, unless the Lord returns first to take us home to be with him. My youngest sister died 5 years ago this month at the age of 61. My next to oldest brother died this past November at the age of 71.

Although, as far as I know, I am in good health, I am 70, and so I have lived a lifetime. And, so I am thinking about death and what I would want to have at my funeral, should there be one for me, and especially what I would want the sermon to say. For the message is very important to me. I believe that is the critical point of all funerals.

So, this evening I felt the Lord had something for me to write. He put the song in my head, “My Jesus, I Love Thee,” which talks about death and heaven. But, my brain was in a fog. I was reading scriptures, but nothing was working with my brain.

So, I closed up my computer, and I lay down on the sofa. In the dark I closed my eyes, and in the quiet I prayed. And, then these words here began to come to me. So, I am now going to write whatever the Lord Jesus gives me to write this evening, which I believe is to be my funeral sermon, although anyone can use it who wants to, if it fits.

The Message

If you are hearing this read to you right now, then that means that I have gone home to be with the Lord for eternity. I am no longer suffering. I no longer am in a spiritual battle against the enemy of my soul who would want to destroy my life. My tears are gone. I am rejoicing that I now get to be with my Savior forever. I am at rest. The war is over. The battle is won!

It has been a long hard road that I have been traveling. Life has not been easy for me. It was hard from the very beginning. But, God had a plan and a purpose for it all. He was preparing me for something special that he had designed for my life from even before I was formed in the womb of my mother. For, he was preparing me to be one of his messengers who would take his gospel message to the ends of the earth in these last days before our Lord’s return. And, that is why Satan has fought against me so hard.

But, I am at peace now. The battle is over. The victory is won! And, I am with my Lord forever, and I am rejoicing in Him. And, yes, I am repeating myself, because sometimes we need to hear things more than just once.

Most Critical

So, what message should I leave with you? What is the most important thing you need to hear right now? If I could tell you anything, what would it be?

What I need to tell you is the same thing many of you have heard me say over and over again, because it is what God’s Word teaches over and over again, and because you understanding and believing this message, and you applying it to your life is critical to determining where you will spend eternity.

If you want to be saved from your sins and have eternal life with God, you must die with Christ to sin and live with Christ to his righteousness – all in the power and working of his Spirit. And, His Spirit is living within those who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin, and who have been raised with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness (Read Rom. 6:1-23 and Eph. 4:17-24).

“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.’” Luke 9:23-26 ESV

Thus, we are not saved from our sins and bound for heaven on a mere confession of Christ, or on a mere profession of faith in Jesus Christ. We aren’t “saved,” then we live however we want, and then one day, when we die, we get to go to heaven. That is not what God’s Word teaches.

Faith in Jesus Christ is something we must exercise every day. And, that faith is realized in what we do, not in what we profess. And, the doing has to be in obedience to our Lord and to his commandments (New Testament). And, we have to be walking (living, in practice) according to (in agreement with) the Holy Spirit of God. And, we have to NOT be walking (conducting our lives) according to the flesh, if we want to have eternal life with God (Read Rom. 8:1-17 and 1 John 1:5-9).

“And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” 1 John 2:3-6 ESV

For, Jesus Christ, God the Son, did not give his life up for us on that cross just so we could be forgiven our sins and so we could go to heaven when we die. He died that we might die with him to sin and live with him to righteousness. He died that we might no longer live for ourselves, but for him who gave his life up for us. And, he gave his life blood for us on that cross to buy us back for God that we might now be God’s possession, and that we might now honor God with our lives (Read 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Co. 6:20; 2 Co. 5:15, 21; Tit. 2:14).

In fact, his grace to us is not just a “get-out-of-jail-free-card.” His grace to us is that he died to deliver us out of our slavery to sin. So, contrary to popular opinion, God’s grace is not free license to now continue in willful, blatant sinful rebellion against God as a matter of life course, and then claim that all your sins are covered under God’s grace. What a slap in the face to God. What a mockery that is of God’s grace to us.

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who 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.” Titus 2:11-14 ESV

So, please know that if you are claiming Jesus as your Savior, but you are still living for the flesh, doing what you want to do, and your life is not committed to Jesus Christ, to following him in obedience to his ways; and if you are not surrendered to your Lord to do his will for your life, the scriptures teach that you do not know God, he doesn’t know you, and you don’t have eternal life with God. But, you will die in your sins, because you would not die to your sins and live to Christ and to his righteousness (Read Gal. 5:16-21; Eph. 5:3-6; Rom. 2:6-8; Gal. 6:7-8 and Rom. 8:1-17).

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” Galatians 6:7-8 ESV

So, take this to heart, for not one of us knows if we have tomorrow. In fact, if you are hearing this read at my funeral, and I am gone, please know that I did not know when I would breathe my last breath, either. So, don’t play with fire. Surrender your life to Jesus Christ today while you still have today.

My Jesus, I Love Thee

Hymn lyrics by William R. Featherstone, 1864

Music by Adoniram J. Gordon, 1876

My Jesus, I love thee, I know thou art mine;

For thee all the follies of sin I resign.

My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou;

If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I love thee because thou hast first loved me,

And purchased my pardon on Calvary's tree;

I love thee for wearing the thorns on thy brow;

If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,

And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;

And say, when the death-dew lies cold on my brow,

If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight;

I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright;

I'll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;

If ever I loved thee, my Jesus, 'tis now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHrF4_1r-qA

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But a New Creation

Corrective Lenses

Galatians 6:11 ESV

“See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.”

As we get older, our eyesight begins to go. We get cataracts which make seeing a lot more difficult. I have them, but they only impact my night vision so far. But, I don’t drive at night, so I am ok.

But, I do have to wear corrective lenses with bifocals, and if I don’t have my reading glasses on, then working on the computer is really difficult to do. So, I am thankful to the Lord for reading glasses (for corrective lenses) that make it possible for me to continue doing what I am doing in writing what he teaches me each day from his Word.

And, so it is with our spiritual lives. We are all born with poor spiritual sight, born in the flesh into sin, without the ability within ourselves to attain God’s righteousness, his acceptance, and his salvation from sin (Rom. 3:23).

So, we all need “corrective lenses” to help us to see (to discern, to see through spiritual eyes). And, we receive these spiritual corrective lenses by God-given faith in Jesus Christ – all because of God’s grace to us in providing the way for us to be delivered out of our slavery to sin, and to be empowered of the Spirit of God to now live to our Lord’s righteousness, and for his glory, honor, and praise.

And, so we die with Christ to sin, and we are resurrected with Christ to newness of life in him, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. We leave behind us our former way of living for sin and the flesh, and we are transformed of the Spirit of God away from sin, to our Lord, and to living to his righteousness (Rom. 6:1-23; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).

Boasting in the Flesh

Galatians 6:12-13 ESV

It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.

How might this apply to us today? Are there those today who profess faith in Jesus Christ who are trying to make a showing in the flesh? Most certainly! And, I see two ways in which that could possibly apply.

One of those ways is the whole turning of God’s house into a marketplace and the marketing of the church to the world as though it was any other kind of business. All of that is in the flesh, for that is certainly not what God wants. And, it’s purpose is to look good to the world, to make the church and the gospel appealing to the world, so that the world will feel at home in the gatherings of the church. But, that is not God’s plan for his church.

And, so church services are now often more like big theatre productions with the intention to entertain the crowds, and to draw in large crowds, too, through the means of entertainment. So, they have to have a great band and a dynamic speaker, who also has to be fun and entertaining, too, for that is what the flesh of humans craves. And, church gatherings can’t be boring, but have to be fun. And, they have to be relaxed and casual.

And, so marketing books on how to build your church (i.e. business) are replacing the Holy Spirit in many of today’s modern churches. Books written by mere humans (not God-breathed) are being studied in place of the Bible. Movie clips are being shown as sermon illustrations, and sometimes those movies are filled with sensuality and immorality and even nudity, if one were to watch the whole movie. And, all this is to appeal to human flesh.

And, are they trying to force this new way of doing church, and this new gospel, too, which appeals to human flesh, on all Christians? You bet they are! They are trying to get all of us to join them in their compromises with the world, and with their flesh-driven church gatherings, and their cheap grace gospel, too, which requires no death to sin and no obedience to Christ and to his commands, and no submission to Christ or his cross, either.

For, Satan is behind this turning of God’s house into a marketplace, and this unequal yoking of the church with the world and with the government and big business. He is the one behind this diluting of the gospel, too, to make it more appealing to human flesh, because he wants to turn everyone away from pure devotion to Jesus Christ. So, he is the one behind those who would try to force us to join with them in their dissipation, too.

And, yes, behind this is also a desire to not have to be persecuted for the sake of the gospel, but also to not have to obey the gospel, but to be given a false hope of heaven while leading you to believe that you can live for yourself and ignore God’s commandments and yet still go to heaven. So, yes, this is of Satan, and he definitely is trying to get us all to desert our Lord and to follow him, instead. And, he is being largely successful, for the time being, but God has the last word! Amen!

But, there are also those who want to appear righteous before others while they secretly engage in all sorts of evil. So they, too, will try to make a good showing in the flesh, presenting the idea that they are actually walking in the Spirit. And, that is because they want other Christians to think well of them and to think they are doing well spiritually when they aren’t. So, they will profess that they have repented of their sins, too, when they haven’t.

The Cross of Jesus

Galatians 6:14-16 ESV

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.

So, we as the church need to get back to the basics. We need to return the house of the Lord – his church, his people – back to what he intended us to be, doing what he has called us to do.

And, so we need to leave Babylon, i.e. these institutional market-driven and flesh-driven churches (businesses), which are unequally yoked together with the world. And, we need to gather together as the body of Christ under the headship of Christ, being led by the Holy Spirit of God, doing what God has called us, his church, to do.

And, we need to truly be crucified to the world in every respect. This doesn’t mean we entirely separate ourselves from the people of the world, but that we live truly separate from the world of sin – away from the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride of life, and to Christ.

And, then we go out into the world with the gospel, the true gospel, which teaches death to sin and living to Christ and to his righteousness. We don’t immerse ourselves in the culture of our society to win the world. We win them to Jesus by living holy and godly lives in purity of devotion to Jesus Christ, as examples to them of what it means to be followers of Christ.

For, Jesus died for us on that cross, not just to forgive us our sins, but to deliver us out of our slavery to sin, and to make us new creatures in Christ Jesus, our Lord, empowered of the Holy Spirit of God to walk in purity of devotion to our Lord, in surrender to his will, and in obedience to his commands, and all for the glory of God. Then we can rest assured that we are in Christ and that we 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; Tit. 2:11-24; 2 Co. 5:15, 21).

Blessed Assurance 

Frances J Crosby, 1873

Phoebe P Knapp, 1873

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

O what a foretaste of glory divine!

Heir of salvation, purchase of God,

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

Perfect submission, perfect delight,

Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;

Angels descending bring from above

Echoes of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission, all is at rest

I in my Savior am happy and blest,

Watching and waiting, looking above,

Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior, all the day long;

This is my story, this is my song,

Praising my Savior, all the day long.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPVt__1i3ZY

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Lifting our Burdens

Caught in Sin

Galatians 6:1 ESV

“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted."

Who is this referring to? It is speaking of our fellow believers in Jesus Christ. If any one of our fellow believers in Christ happens to fall into sin, and is overtaken by sin, or is literally caught in the act of committing a sin or a sinful course, then this is what our approach should be with that person.

First of all, we need to make certain we don’t have a log in our own eyes before we proceed to help a brother or sister in Christ take the speck out of their own eyes. For, the blind can’t lead the blind to full sight. If we ourselves are overtaken in a sin, we can’t help others to get free from their sinful behaviors. So, first we need to clean up our own lives.

Nonetheless, I would not recommend that someone who has just recently been overtaken in a sin be the one to help restore another overtaken (caught) in a sin, for the temptation would be too great to return to sin or to even lead the other into even deeper sin. For, I believe when it says here, “you who are spiritual” it refers to those who are walking according to the Spirit and who are not walking according to the flesh.

Also, I would caution against males helping females, and vice versa. Especially those who are married should not be trying to help someone of the opposite sex. Even pastors can fall into sin trying to help someone of the opposite sex to be restored back to a right relationship with the Lord. We need to be very wise in this, and we need to guard our hearts against falling into sin ourselves. Our hearts may be in the right place in wanting to help others, but we need to exercise much wisdom and caution, too.

So, those who are walking according to the Spirit, and who are not struggling with (as in regularly giving in to) sin themselves should restore the one who has fallen into sin. And, to restore is not to just give the other person a pat on the back and to tell them that God loves them and so they are ok. God does love us, for real, but because he loves us he died for us on that cross that we might be delivered from our slavery to sin, not so that we could continue on in our sin unhindered and without guilt (Rom. 6:1-23).

So, restoring means helping that person back to a walk of faith according to the Spirit of God, and to help that person to know how to overcome temptation to sin in the future so that they don’t fall into that same trap of sin again. And, so it would be to check up on that person, too, to see how they are doing and to encourage them in the Lord in their walk of faith.

But, this must be done with gentleness. And, gentleness is not weakness or powerlessness, but it is power under reserve or controlled strength. For, if we are going to help others out of sin and into walking in righteousness and to not return to that same sin again, we can’t be weak on sin. We can’t be apologetic about the truths of scripture, either. We have to speak the truth in love, and we have to be emphatic about what needs to be done to ensure that we don’t fall back into the trap of the devil and be overtaken again.

But, know this! There are people who profess faith in Jesus Christ who are still living in addiction to sin, who don’t really want out of their addiction. They may confess wrong doing, and they may act as though they want to change, but they are not willing to relinquish control of their lives over to God. Self is still on the throne of their lives. So, they may be in a “sin, confess” cycle of repeating the same sins over and over and over again.

Many of those who are living this way are users and manipulators, and they will try to drag you down with them. So, be wise and discerning, for not everyone is who they say they are. Not everyone tells the truth. There are many liars and deceivers in the world. So, pray always for God to give you insight and wisdom. And, remember to speak the truth in love, and sometimes that means with “gentle force.”

Bear Others’ Burdens

Galatians 6:2-3 ESV

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself."

We need to be people who are compassionate towards others who are going through hard times or who have been caught in a sin, but we need to exercise that compassion with much wisdom and discernment, as was previously mentioned. For, being tough on sin, and speaking the truth in love does not mean we are not compassionate people. The opposite may actually be true.

Take Jesus, Paul, Peter and John for examples. They were all compassionate people. They cared about what others were going through. They reached out and helped people in their times of need. But, they didn’t go light on sin in order to make people feel good about themselves, for that wouldn’t help anyone. It was because they loved others with God’s love that they spoke the truth in love, and that they addressed sin issues in full frankness, and that they did not give people an out for continued sinful courses.

So, bearing one another’s burdens does not mean we go soft on sin, or that we don’t speak the truth in love to them. For, if truly we are bearing their burdens, we will feel the weight of their sin, and we will feel the heaviness of their burdens, and we will have such compassion towards them that we will want to share the truth with them that will set them free!

If the burden they are carrying is not a burden of sin, but the loss of a loved one, or the loss of a job, or need of money to pay a bill, or help with something, or they may be someone who is being abused or taken advantage of in some way, we need to care about their circumstances deeply as though we are going through that ourselves. And, that should lead us to inquire of the Lord as to how we can best help them.

But, again, we must exercise much caution and discernment here, for not everyone is on the “up and up.” And, we can be taken advantage of if we are not careful. So, we just need to pray for much wisdom and for the Lord to lead us into what he wants us to do or to say to help those in need who are carrying these burdens.

If our fellow believers are going through hard times and trials, we need to encourage them in the Lord and in His Word, too. For, we can help some, for sure, but their real help comes from the Lord who is the only one who can comfort their hearts and mend their damaged emotions and heal their diseases. He is the only one who can truly lift their burdens from their hearts, and who will take the weight of them on himself, and who will fill them with his peace and with his calm reassurance.

Testing Our Own Work

Galatians 6:4-5 ESV

"But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.”

If God is going to use us in the lives of others to help them, we need to be humble in our own estimation. We need to have fair and honest evaluations of our own selves, and not think more highly about ourselves than we ought. But, this doesn’t mean we go around putting ourselves down all the time. That is not true humility. That is inverted pride. For, it still centers on self.

And, I am not talking here about being honest about ourselves and our own failures, but I am talking about comments which draw attention to ourselves and which open the door for others to respond “Oh, you are fine,” or “You are really a good person,” and the like. We should not go around self-abasing, i.e. belittling and degrading ourselves. That is not being humble.

Again, true humility has to do with being honest with ourselves and not thinking about ourselves in a manner which is not true. And, it is not self-focused, but it is God-focused, and it is focused on helping others at the cost of our own desires or time or resources or reputations, too.

And, we should not compare ourselves to others, either, whether to make ourselves seem lowlier, or whether to make ourselves appear superior. For, it is not about us in contrast to someone else. It is about us and our relationships with Jesus Christ and whether or not we are obeying him, and whether or not we are walking according to his plan for our lives or if we are still living to please our own flesh.

So, this applies, as well, to those whom we may be trying to help if they come back to us with “You just think you are better than me.” It is not about us and them or them and us. It is about Jesus and how we measure up to his standards. It is about knowing Jesus and doing his will, and obeying him, and walking in his ways, according to his standards, not ours.

For, if we are going to help lift anyone’s burdens, we have to point them to Jesus. And, to know Jesus is to obey his commandments. For, God’s love for us is not just that we be forgiven our sin, but that we be delivered out of our slavery to sin and that we now become slaves of his righteousness (Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; Eph. 4:17-24; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Tit. 2:11-14; 1 Pet. 2:24).

Do You Know My Jesus?

William F. Lakey, 1956

V.B. Vep Ellis, 1957

Do you know my Jesus?

Do you know my friend,

Have you heard He loves you,

And that He will abide till the end?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I717TmsqePc

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Live for Jesus

Tossed To and Fro

Ephesians 4:11-16 ESV

“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

Because of the times in which we now live, when we share the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, we should no longer share it with just those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ, but with all people, regardless of their professions of faith.

And, the reason we must do this is because so many people are being led astray, and they are following after “another gospel” and “another Jesus” other than the gospel and the Jesus of the scriptures.

And, not only must the truth of the gospel be shared with all people, regardless of what faith in Jesus they outwardly confess, but we must also refute the lies of those humans, who by their cunning, craftiness, and deceitful scheming are leading the masses to another gospel, which appeals to human flesh.

And, again, this is because so many people are buying into the lies, and they are believing the lies over the truth. And, those lies include the obliteration of the true gospel and the convincing of people that the truth is the lie and the lies are the truth.

And, so we can’t assume that everyone who confesses faith in Jesus Christ truly knows God and has truly been born again of the Spirit of God, for many don’t and haven’t.

So, in probably the majority of cases, at least here in America, we have to get people to “first base” before we can even begin to lead them all the way to “home base.” For, they have to have the correct foundation to build upon before they can begin to grow in their walks of faith to maturity in Jesus Christ.

But, “first base” isn’t as elementary as a lot of people make it out to be. And, the fact that they make it too elementary, I believe, is a huge reason that so many who profess faith in Jesus never grow to maturity.

So, as followers of Jesus Christ, we need to be those who are speaking the truth in love to the body of Christ, as well as to the world, because so many within the church are being tossed to and fro, and they are believing the lies, and they are rejecting the truth.

And, so they don’t truly know God, and so they aren’t truly saved from their sins, and they don’t really have the hope of eternal life with God, either. For, their faith is from the flesh, not from God, and their assurance of salvation is based in a lie, not in the truth.

Giving Themselves Up

Ephesians 4:17-19 ESV

“Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.”

Let’s begin here with the gospel message that has been most popular in my lifetime, which is 70 years.

It lays out the scriptures regarding who Jesus is (God, the Son of God), and how he died on a cross for our sins, and rose from the dead, and ascended back to heaven, and sent his Holy Spirit to indwell his followers, and how one day He is coming again to take his own to be with him forever.

And, it talks about sin and our need to be saved from our sins so that we can go to heaven one day. And, then it talks of our need to invite Jesus “into our hearts” to save us (to forgive our sins so we can go to heaven one day). And, it may or may not include the teaching that we must repent of our sins, and even there it may only use “repent” in the sense of “confession of sin.”

So, some people listen to this message, and so they invite Jesus into their hearts (some for real, some not), and they may or may not confess their sins, but they believe that Jesus has now forgiven them their sins and that heaven is now guaranteed them, case closed.

And, thus, growing to maturity in Christ, though recommended, becomes optional, for whether or not they ever grow past their initial confession of faith, they still believe they will go to heaven when they die.

But, this passage in Ephesians tells us that we must not only confess our sins, but that we must leave them behind us, gone, no longer in control of our lives, no longer enslaving us. We must be free from slavery to sin.

We aren’t supposed to live any longer like we did before we believed in Jesus. Those who live that way have hearts which are hardened towards God. They are alienated from the life of God. Do we get this?

If we continue in willful habitual sin against God, as a matter of our life course, after we confess him as Savior and Lord of our lives, our hearts are hard towards God, and we are alienated from Him and from the life of God, in our lives, that could be ours through genuine God-given faith in Jesus Christ, which submits to Christ as Lord of our lives.

The Truth in Jesus

Ephesians 4:20-24 ESV

“But that is not the way you learned Christ! — assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

But, in today’s world, and within today's modern institutional church, the simplistic gospel of my era pales by comparison to the gospel that is being taught today, with regard to simplicity.

For, now people are being told that all they have to do is accept God’s grace, i.e. that Jesus died to save them from their sins. Or, all they have to do is acknowledge who Jesus is, or they just have to repeat some words after someone else and they are told they are now saved and going to heaven, and it can’t be taken away from them.

And, many now are going way beyond that by saying we don’t have to repent (turn away from our sins), that we don’t have to obey Christ and his commandments, and we don’t have to submit to Christ as Lord. For, they say, that is “works-based” salvation and we are not supposed to add works to our salvation. And, then they go on the offense against those of us who are teaching the true gospel which says we must die with Christ to sin and that we must live to Christ and his righteousness.

But, again, we can read right here in Ephesians 4 that the truth of the gospel, that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord, is that we must put off our old self, our old sinful nature, which belongs to our former way of life. We must, by the Spirit of God, put it to death. We must die to sin and self and to the corruption of our sinful nature which craves after deceitful desires, so that we can now live in freedom from slavery to sin and to Christ’s righteousness (See: Rom. 6:1-23; Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9; Tit. 2:11-14; 1 Pet. 2:24).

Then, we need to be renewed of the Spirit of God in the spirit of our minds, in our thinking and believing. We need to be turned from darkness (sin) to light (righteousness), and from the power of Satan to God, so that we can receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 26:18).

It is like doing a 180. We were going one direction, now we have turned, and we are now going the opposite direction, by the grace of God, and in his power at work within our lives, as we cooperate with that work. And, then we must put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

But, none of this is done in our own flesh. None of this could possibly be done in the flesh, for it is of the Spirit of God, not of the flesh of man. We can never regenerate ourselves. All this is saying is that we have to submit to our Lord, and we must do what he says, and we must cooperate with his work of grace in our lives. For, we are saved by God’s grace THROUGH FAITH, and that faith is realized in what we do.

But, it doesn’t end there. We don’t just die to sin and self once, be born again of the Spirit of God, have the promise of heaven when die, and then live however we want. For, the NEW SELF we must put on is surrendered to God, lives in submission to Christ, walks in obedience to his commands, and daily dies to sin and self, and lives to Christ and his righteousness.

For, we read in Romans 8 that we must walk (in practice) according to the Spirit of God and no longer walk according to our sinful flesh if we want to have eternal life with God. And, it tells us that if we walk (in practice) according to our flesh, that we will die in our sins, instead. So, know the truth, believe the truth and live the truth (Rom. 8:1-17; 1 Jn. 1:5-9).

Shine On

By Ann Aschauer

So shine on through the darkness;

Be the salt and light for all your world.

Live for Jesus, 'til you see Him,

And your faith has its reward;

Shine on through the darkness;

Let His love shine through you all your days.

Go and win your generation for the Lord.

c 1990 Ann Aschauer