Once in a dense forest, a big bear broke into a cabin of some hunters. They were out at the time but had left a fire in a pot-bellied stove. The bear saw the red hot stove and figured it was an enemy, so he ran over and put a bear hug on it. Naturally, he was severely burned, but Mr. Bear thought the enemy was trying to fight back, so he squeezed a lot harder and was burned even more. The more he squeezed the more he was burned. What a vicious circle for a vicious bear to be in!
There is a lesson we can learn. There are many people who would say, “What a dumb animal to hug something to his own hurt!” But it might be they are doing the same thing. How many Christians are there who hug worldliness themselves (lying, pornography, adultery, wearing immodest apparel, excessive drinking, etc.) and refuse to part with it? Let someone warn them of the danger and they will hug it all the more. As someone once said to me when pointing out her flaunting fornication, "No one is going to tell me what to do!" First of all, I was not telling her what choice to make with her life, rather, I was sharing what GOD HAS SAID regarding the consequences of her choice ...her 'refusing to let go of a hot stove.'
It's so disheartening to see many 'Christians' who confess they follow Jesus but cannot bear to part the sin of worldliness, and yet they cannot be saved while holding on to it (1 John 2:15-17). They either don't understand or don't care how frightening that is. Christians often profess a desire to go to heaven, but all the while they hang to those very things that will prevent them from going! Have you ever wondered why some people won't let go of the very things that are destroying them? Paul, in the book of Hebrews, wrote, “Wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). Paul was exhorting to put aside the sin that overruns us. As believers in Christ, we cannot purposely continue to sin. I said purposely with intent. Paul also wrote, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth. For you are dead, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:1-3). Our "desires" (and priorities) should now be set on seeking things above and not how to satisfy sinful desires.
What would make a person want to “gamble” on the eternal home of his (or her) soul (Matthew 16:24-26)? Yet, they do. As Christians, we ought to “let go” of anything that has the potential for hindering our being in heaven. I want to make this point ... Now that Christ is living within you, you will begin to hear Him speaking to you in gentle, flowing thoughts that are not your own. Deep within you will hear a voice saying, “This is the way; walk in it” (Isa.30:21). He will begin to guide your steps into a life that not only pleases Him but that fills you with love, joy, and peace that passes all understanding. And He will reveal more of His great love for you and His desire to spend time together with you. One of the things God will speak about is removing sinful thoughts and behaviors from your life because they are destructive to you. Please hear this! Sins destroy your relationships and the fulfillment of His destiny for you. This is considered the outworking of your initial salvation experience (Phil. 2:12).... to work out your own salvation. What does that mean?? It is the laying down of your life, dying to self and coming progressively alive to the workings of the Holy Spirit within you. His design is for the Spirit’s power to flow out through you to others. You will discover that you can cease from willful, rebellious sinning. You can and will manifest the Holy Spirit who is living within you (1 Cor. 12:7-11). I'm addressing all Christians. Get to work allowing God the opportunity to remove these pebbles (sins) within you which can hinder His flow out through you and impede the fulfillment of His destiny for your life. The removing of these sins is one of the pieces of evidence that you are His and His Spirit indwells you (Rom. 8:9-14; 2 Cor. 3:18; Gal. 5:16-25; Eph. 4:22-32; 1 Jn. 1:5-10; 2 Pet. 1:2-11).
I pray you'll consider what I have written in this blog and work together with God to let go of the sins that so easily beset you because again, the overcoming of sins is one of the pieces of evidence that you are His and His Spirit dwells in you.
Until next time,
-Pat-
Amen! Very well said!!
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Delete:)
Awesome, as always!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Viki. I appreciate you coming by.
Deletei use to be like the bear. i think it was a process for me. even though i got "saved" (accepting jesus as savior, repenting, turning over a new leaf), my vices did not disappear right away. i carried them with me, even though saved, until i read the word, studied what it meant, applied it through prayer and help of the holy spirit. only then was i able to slowly stop practicing my sin. my vices began to lose their grip. the more i read, learned, and studied God's word the more i appreciated what jesus actually did for me. then, i began to love him more and i actually wanted to do better. committing sin was no longer attractive. one day i honestly realized God had removed my desire to sin, to disobey, or to hurt him. the funny thing is, i never knew the holy spirit was doing it! he actually healed my desire to sin. now it's easy to obey. that's the cool thing about being sincere in your relationship with God. HE DOES ALL THE WORK IN YOU even when you don't realize it! it's true what you said. pat. if the holy spirit truly dwells in you, the evidence is manifested in the way you conduct yourself. this is a good blog. thank you.
ReplyDeleteGreat testimony & Great Blog
DeleteThank you, Dan. Your testimony is so true for many of us. That's why it's so important to get into the WORD OF GOD, reads it, absorb it, learn it, and apply it. By His Word we get the strength and knowledge to fight against desire, vice, and sin. The more you read, the stronger you become to fight all sorts of temptations because "greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world." I found the very same thing to be true! The desire to sin slowly faded, wrong no longer seemed right, and sin lost its appeal. Thank you for your testimony!
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