Finding Significance and Fulfillment

Well, it's been a week or so, and I've had good intentions to do this post, but every day something seemed to have me busy. Poor excuse, so here it is, the company has left, and I'm finally setting down with some peace and quiet. I want to cover the other seven areas of our "Personal Guidelines and Belief System" from the book study on Victory Over the Darkness. I discussed "Success" last post and talked about how my thinking on "success" has changed throughout my life. This post let's take look at significance and fulfillment in God's eyes.

2. Significance. Key Concept: Time


"Significance is a Time issue. What is forgotten in time is of little significance. What is remembered for eternity is of great significance."


Version: NAS
1 Corinthians 3:10-14


10. According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But let each man be careful how he builds upon it. 11. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12. Now if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13. each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is [to be] revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. 14. If any man's work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a reward.

How many of us are wives, moms, and grandmothers? Dads and husbands? Do we take care of our homes and families? Do we work outside the home? Do we get up everyday and hop on the hamster wheel and seemingly rarely get off? How many of us feel pretty insignificant in the "grand scheme of things"?  I know this concept of significance is similar to the previous one of success, but that is really the point. Taking the time to ponder our significance in life will eventually cause us to ask the age old question. "Am I a success?" and then, "Am I leading a successful and significant life?"


We've all heard the thought about lying on our deathbed and remembering the times with our family and children, and not the amount of money we made or the material "things" in life. When it all comes down to it, material things don't cut it; success and significance in our life have to come from inside our spirit. Our heart, mind and soul are the determining factors. The old saying of "whoever dies with the most toys wins" is a real joke.

The author, Neil Anderson, recalls a conversation he had with a young pastor who had recently been diagnosed with cancer. He had only been given a few months to live. The young man was greatly concerned about his "significance" in God's eyes and spoke of the fact that he had only led a few hundred people to the Lord. Neil reminded him that each of those people now have an eternity with Jesus. And that each one of those people were influencing others and so on and so on. What we may think of as insignificant, if it is done for God, then has lasting and eternal glory attached.

Version: NAS

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do in word or deed, [do] all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Success and significance are not measured in earthly terms. They are measured in spiritual. Fame is not equivalent to success or significance. How many people out there are famous for their lifestyle, fortune, or No 1. hits at the box office? How many people think they are living the dream when in reality when their time comes to meet Jesus face to face, they too late, will realize all their worldly fame and fortune cannot buy them the most important thing in eternity... the knowledge of our Lord, Jesus Christ.


3. Fulfillment. Key Concept: Role Preference
 Fulfillment in life comes when we realize that God has a specific plan and calling for us; that He has a place where He desires each of us to be for a specific time and purpose. Then as we understand that purpose, fulfillment will come. If we understand our "significance" in life, then we can realize "fulfillment" in our life. And submitting our "goals" to God, will ultimately be the test of our success or failure. I believe the scripture that says "with Christ all things are possible". The key phrase just has to be "with Christ". Are your life plans and goals, "with Christ"? And are they in His proper timing?


1 Peter 4:10
As each one has received a [special] gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

Seeking God for our giftings and plans and goals will make our life make more sense. I've learned that if I'm struggling with something, be it a project or desire or plan, I need to be sure that I've received direction and approval from God concerning it. That doesn't mean it will always be easy or a "piece of cake", but it will mean that you know deep in your heart that God is walking ahead of you through it.

God has a unique place and plan for each of us. Seeking Him for His plan for our life ensures that we will be successful and find the significance we are looking for. And we know that each of us is most precious in God's eyes. He loves us like His own Son. We're the apple of our Daddy's eye.

Love in Jesus,
Debra

Letting God Direct Our Emotions

Last post we looked at our feelings of anger, anxiety, and depression. Sometimes these can come from physical and health issues and sometimes these are warning signs about our life goals. I've learned if something is causing me a lot of "stress", I might need to back off for a while, put it before God, and then let Him lead me on how to proceed.


Dr. Neil Anderson is a Christian psychologist and counselor; knowing this gives us the understanding on where he is coming from with this information. He has counseled hundreds of people throughout his career and these concepts are good solid psychology, but based on a Biblical perspective.

Anger Signals a Blocked Goal

"When your activity in a relationship or a project results in feelings of anger, it's usually because someone or something has blocked your goal in that endeavor. Any goal which can be blocked by forces you cannot control (other than God) is not a healthy goal, because our success in that arena is out of our hands.
A wife and mother may say, "My goal in life is to have a loving, harmonious, happy family" Who can block that goal? Every person in her family can block her goal-not only can, but will! A wife and mom clinging to the belief that her self-worth is dependent on her family will crash and burn every time her husband or children fail to live up to her image of family harmony. She will probably be a very angry woman, which could drive family members even farther away from her and each other."

OK, my turn now, I'll give you another glimpse into my past life and experiences.

When our younger daughter was in junior high, we had recently left our home church due to a big mess of our very public pastor's making. Sometimes you stay, sometimes you leave. It was a nasty time there with sides being chosen and we just couldn't be a part of it all...so we started church hunting. About that time our younger daughter decided she would leap headlong into rebellion and family discord. (Wow, what a difficult time jr. high can be!) No matter where we went she would decide to "act out". Eye rolling, chair sliding, pouting, mumbling cuss words under her breath...you get the picture? oh, it was all such fun. I would come home from church mad and disgusted, not to mention embarrassed and feeling guilty about her behavior. We disciplined her, talked to her, grounded her...to no avail. She was not a happy little church camper.

How did it end? Not well. Her behavior caused us to temporarily give up on church going because it was such a spectacle. Wrong decision...things got worse in our lives, and I'm sure a lot of it was because we didn't keep with it. Now, I know better. I know the enemy was flat out having a hay day with our daughter. I didn't know how to fight for her, I was run over, uninformed, and I let the enemy run rampant in her life, because I was taking all the responsibility for her, not letting God do His capable work. All this caused me deep depression, anxiety, and anger because I saw my daughter and my family suffering the fallout.

In reality, in a Biblical perspective I would have seen fruit if I would have hung in there, realized that as much as I want to, I cannot MAKE anyone love God, seek Him, or have a relationship with Him. I needed to be a steadfast godly mom, pray, trust God for her life and relationship, and then not carry the load of it all. It was a difficult time for our whole family, and I felt helpless. In reality I wasn't. I just needed to turn it over to God and then let Him lead me and her Daddy in discipline and structure for her life. Oh, I prayed, but it was full of desperation, not faith and trust. I felt like her behavior was on me, that I was a bad mom, and that life was going down the proverbial toilet.

Good news is I did finally learn these things. Now, I go to God in prayer for His direction, safety and leading for my family. It takes the load off of me. I turn problems and anxiety over to my Heavenly Father, who loves her far more than I ever could. Thank you God, it's too much for me to carry. She has become a responsible adult, and even though she walked through some really tough times, she knows and loves the Lord with all her heart.

We cannot believe that our self worth and success is based on goals that other people can control. We cannot GET our loved ones saved or "back on track". We can't make other people do the things we want them to do. We can't be in charge of everyone, or even our own family. Free will is a concept that God has been dealing with for eternity. God didn't desire for Adam and Eve to sin and mess up His perfect idea of "family" but they did. He didn't give up. Yes, things changed for mankind but He always has a plan of redemption. So if you feel anger, depression, and anxiety over family matters, know that HE has the plan, and the way to bring it about. Faith for our loved ones eternity is something we can pray for and engage in, but we are not responsible.

This is just one area that my life goal has been frustrated. I could recount a dozen more,  but this one seems to be universal with parenting, and even with a spouse. Prayer is what changes things, not nagging.

Version: NAS

Philippians 4:5-7
5. Let your forbearing [spirit] be known to all men. The Lord is near. 6. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Which reminds me, peace will not come any other way than through Jesus Christ and His control of our lives. I've tried other ways, and they just haven't worked. It's easy to get out of this place of peace when I try to do it all by myself. Just needed to remind myself of this. God is so good and His Word is like water to a parched soul.

Love, In Jesus,

Debra

"According to the Flesh"

If asked to describe our "Spiritual Walk" how many of us would find ourselves using the words inferiority, insecurity, inadequacy, guilt, worry, or doubt? I think a lot of us might find one or all of these feelings being part of the description. A great number of born-again believers are still having a problem with finding day to day victory in their personal lives due to the fact that we are still having trouble realizing our "Identity in Christ" and then applying it.

                                                                               

(click to enlarge)

Carnal or Fleshly Christian

diagram by Bill Bright,

Campus Crusade for Christ

Do you have feelings of inferiority?

Ephesians 2:4-6

4. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5. even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6. and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly [places], in Christ Jesus...

Spiritually speaking, we are in a place with Jesus that is above the hands of the enemy, we are in a place of "ruling and reigning" with Jesus. We are God's children and heirs to the Kingdom.


Do you feel insecure or afraid?
Hebrews 13:5-6
5. Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never fail you nor forsake you." 6. Hence we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid; what can man do to me?"

There are many opportunities for insecurity and fear to overtake us, but if we put our trust in Jesus, He will be with us to overcome.


Do you have feelings of Inadequacy?
Philippians 4:12-13

12. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. 13. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

No matter what kind of situation we are in or no matter what we may be facing God will give us His strength to do whatever He calls us to do.


Feelings of Guilt?
 Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Jesus is not laying blame on us or pointing a finger at us, He is loving and forgiving, and wants us to move forward.


Are you worried?
Philippians 4:6
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.


1 Peter 5:7
casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.


John 14:27
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.


God says give Him our fears and anxiety. He is bigger than all our problems.



Are you plagued with doubt?
James 1:5
But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.

God says "ask" and He will give us wisdom and understanding. We don't have because we don't ask. I used to make a lot of immature and unfortunate mistakes. I still mess up, but I try to ask God now for wisdom and understanding of people and situations. He helps me put myself in their place to view their thinking, which in turn helps me make better qualified and more sensitive decisions.

But still the question: why do so many of us believers live so far below our potential in Christ? Why are we not enjoying the abundant, productive life that God has promised and that we have inherited?

Part of the answer is that so many of us have not taken these spiritual truths to heart. We have not appropriated and applied them to our spiritual identity, or to our day-to-day experience. So many of us have been born again for years yet we fail to have victory over sin. This is a victory clearly given to us by Jesus and God's Word.

Another reason we don't gain ground in our daily victory over sin is that we are ignorant of how the kingdom of darkness is impacting our progress to maturity. We have a living personal enemy that actively tries to block our attempts to grow into spiritual adulthood. We have to learn how to stand against him.

1 Peter 5:8
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

2 Corinthians 2:11
in order that no advantage be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes.

Paul wrote this to the church in Corinth. Maybe they weren't ignorant of the schemes of the enemy, but today too many of us Christians are; we don't acknowledge Satan or his ability to influence and impact or lives. We at times live in denial of the role he can play in our daily life.

Next time we'll talk about the parameters of the Spirit-filled Walk.

love, in Jesus,

Debra

(concepts taken from

Victory Over the Darkness

by Neil Anderson)

The "Spiritual Man"

Wednesday we saw in this scripture written by Paul, that there are three types of "Man". The Natural Man who is unsaved, the Spiritual Man who is born-again, and the Fleshly Man, who is saved, but living "according to the flesh"; someone who is not "walking in the Spirit".

Version: NAS

1 Corinthians 2:14-3:3
14. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. 15. But he who is (a) spiritual (man) appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. 16. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he should instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ. 1Cor 3:1. And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to babes in Christ. 2. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able [to receive it]. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, 3. for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?

Last post we looked at the "Natural Person", a person who has not met Jesus Christ through salvation. Today we'll look at the "Spiritual Person", a born-again brother or sister in Christ.  

(click image to enlarge)

The Spiritual Man also has a spirit, soul, and body, like the Natural Man, but he has been mightily transformed at salvation.  At conversion his spirit became united with God's Spirit. The spiritual life which resulted from this union with God is characterized by forgiveness of sin, acceptance in God's family and the realization of personal worth. Take a person who feels alone, insecure in their identity, and is deep in sin: in a moment they can be transformed.

Illustration by Bill Bright, Campus Crusade for Christ

The soul the the Natural Man who is directed by his own choosing and even at times directed by demonic influence, can be miraculously transformed into a person who is hearing and listening to the Holy Spirit. His mind becomes renewed and transformed by prayer, Bible Study, and submission to God. The Spiritual Man's emotions are reflected by peace and joy instead of turmoil and fear. He is free to choose to walk according to the Spirit, not forced to walk in the "flesh". As a person chooses to walk by the Spirit of God his life brings forth the fruit of the Spirit.

Illustration by Bill Bright, Campus Crusade for Christ

Galatians 5:22-23

22. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23. gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

"The body of the Spiritual person has also been transformed. It is now the dwelling place for the Holy Spirit and is being offered (daily) as a living sacrifice of worship and service to God."

1Corinthians 6:19-20

19. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 20. For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

Romans 12:1-2
1. I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, [which is] your spiritual service of worship. 2. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

"The flesh, conditioned to live independently from God under the old self, is still present in the spiritual person. But he responsibly crucifies the flesh and its desires daily as he considers himself dead to sin."

Romans 8:6-8

6. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, 7. because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able [to do so]; 8. and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

I had been a Christian for 38 years but I still wasn't "there" yet. I knew I was going to Heaven, I knew I trusted Jesus as my Savior, but I still had a mind that dwelt on the wrong kinds of thoughts. My mouth, words, and actions were not consistent with Jesus', and I still did not exhibit the fruit of the Spirit on a daily basis. I was no where near "crucifying the deeds of the flesh".

So we can see that this diagram of the Spiritual Person is an "ideal". It's the model of maturity toward which we are all moving and growing.

2 Peter 1:3

seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.

Isn't it wonderful to know that whatever it is that we need to mature and grow in Jesus, resulting in "walking by the Spirit" is available to us? Most of us live somewhere between the ideal Spiritual Man and living a life that is more like the Natural Man. We may not be where we want to be, but we're not where we started. The road of "sanctification" can take our whole lifetime.

Tomorrow we will look at the "Fleshly Man". Hope you all are still with me in this. It seems like a lot of textbook facts and thinking, but it all comes together. I really love the logical and almost scientific way at looking at this.
I really appreciate your comments everyone. It's such an encouragement to me. No matter how many times I study this God always gives me something new.

love to you all,

Debra

Crucified With Christ

Quoting from the book Victory Over the Darkness by Neil Anderson:

"Generally speaking, all unbelievers are partakers of the old nature characterized by sin. Personally speaking, before you came to Christ you were one of those individuals. You were a sinner because it was your nature to sin; that is known as our old self, or as the King James Version says, the "old man"."

The New American Standard Version says it like this:

1 Corinthians 2:14
But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

So what happened to our "old man", or "natural man" at salvation?... He died. Not physically of course, but the old nature we had in our inner man, the one we inherited from Adam. And what was the method of our old man's execution?

Version: NAS

Romans 6:6-7
6. knowing this, that our old self was crucified with [Him], that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin; 7. for he who has died is freed from sin.

Colossians 3:3
For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

Galatians 2:20
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the [life] which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me.

Galatians 6:14
But may it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

At salvation we are placed "into Christ", the one who died on the cross for our sins. Being "in Christ", our old self, our old nature, died with Him there. And why did it have to die? Romans 6:6 tells us that the old self was independent and disobedient to God, so it had to die in order that "our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin.

"Death is the ending of a relationship, but not of it's existence. Sin hasn't died; it is still strong and appealing. But when your old self died with Christ on the cross, your relationship with sin ended forever. You are no longer in the flesh, but "in Christ". Your old self - the sinner - and your old nature- characterized by the sin which was inevitable since you were separated from God - are gone forever because you are no longer separated from God."

Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

This doesn't say that we are sinless, The death of our old self formally ended our "relationship" with sin, but it did not end sin's existence. Sin and Satan are still around, but sin's power over you has been broken.

Romans 6:7-14
7. for he who has died is freed from sin. 8. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9. knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10. For the death that He died, He died to sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts, 13. and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin [as] instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members [as] instruments of righteousness to God. 14. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law, but under grace.


There has been a lot of scripture that basically says the same thing to us. At salvation our old nature dies, and we become a new creature "in Christ".

We are no longer under any "obligation" to serve sin; to obey sin, or to respond to sin. We must realize this and incorporate it into our identity. Yes, we may sin, but we are no longer compelled to by our nature.

This is part of our new Identity In Christ. A simple statement, but a life-changing TRUTH. 

Sin's power over us is broken!

You may say, OK, this is good, but how does this affect my everyday life?
Have you ever said, "I know that this is wrong, but I just can't help myself?" Have you ever felt like you are powerless to quit a bad habit? Do you have problems with your mouth, the things you say, a bad attitude, nagging thoughts and little sins? I had these kinds of things in my life that I just could not get past. I thought it was just "me" and that I would never be able to get beyond them. Not until I realized that God's Word declared me dead to sin was I able to realize that, yes, it would be possible for me to quit them. Life changing and freeing.
Click on  Crucified With Christ as sung by Phillips, Craig and Dean. A powerful song, with a powerful message.

May we all remember this,

love,

Debra


(concepts and quotes taken from
Victory Over the Darkness )

Before and After

Friday we looked at the idea of having two natures living within us; good and evil, the "black dog" versus the "white dog". We saw scripture that disputed this idea for the born again Christian. Let's look at the word "nature" pertaining to our spirit and soul and see what the Bible has to say about our "nature" after we have accepted Jesus as our Savior.

Version: NAS

Ephesians 2:1-3
1. And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2. in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

2 Peter 1:3-4
3. seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of [the] divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.
 
The verses from Ephesians speak about our "old" nature, before we knew Jesus. It clearly says we were dead, living in the lusts of our flesh, and children of wrath. The verses from 2 Peter tell us that we have escaped the corruption and are now partakers of the "divine" nature of God. Comparing these two verses show us that we didn't add a new nature on top of the old, but we exchanged our nature.
 

I have a great example, that all of us moms can appreciate (dad's too, or anyone else who has been around a baby). As babies go there is the obligatory dirty diaper to deal with. What if instead of taking off the diaper in question and doing a clean up, we just decided to put a new fresh diaper on top of the old dirty one? Well, that would solve nothing, huh? Dirty, stinky, messy, and uncomfortable. Putting a fresh clean diaper on over the filthy one would do nothing to change us, only "appear" fresh on the outside. But it wouldn't take long for the "stink" to find it's way out, and some other unsavory "matter" also.

Salvation and putting on the "new" nature of Jesus Christ is a "change" in the best way of thinking. The old dead, stinky life we used to lead is exchanged for the new fresh clean "nature" that God will give us.

Ephesians 5:8
for you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light

This scripture that we looked at on Friday really says it. We were not IN darkness, but we WERE darkness. At salvation we don't walk into the light, we BECOME light. Just as Jesus is light, we are in Him and He is in us, so we become light. God has changed our basic nature from darkness to light. We aren't just thinking about improving our nature, our nature is already changed. We need to learn how to walk in harmony with our new nature.

We need the nature of Christ within us so we can BE like Christ, not just ACT like Christ. We were not given the power to imitate Jesus, but to really BE like Him. Becoming a Christian is not a matter of acting like one until you become one, it is a matter of becoming a Christian, then we learn to walk as one. We are not based on performance to become a Christian. "Measuring up" and doing good deeds will never get us to heaven. To address the idea of "gaining our way to heaven" with good intentions and good deeds doesn't fit the Biblical criteria for salvation. We could never be good enough or do enough good deeds. Our salvation is based on our acceptance of Jesus Christ and nothing else. 

God knows we cannot solve our problems of our "old nature"; our old sinful self by simply improving our behavior. He doesn't say "Here are my standards, now you need to measure up to all the rules and regulations." In fact He did allow that for a time, and that was known as the dispensation of "the Law". (the Old Testament during the time of Moses until the time of Jesus.) And by the way, we didn't do a good job. He knew He would have to change our nature. He has to give us an entirely new self, the life of Christ in us, which in turn provides the grace to allow us to change.

This fact that we have a new nature is really exciting to me. Years ago when I was struggling with wrong behaviors and bad habits the knowledge of this radically changed my thinking. "You mean I'm not trapped in the sin cycle?" That one piece of information was enough to wake me up. It was a long road, and I'm still not "there" but finding out that I wasn't on a treadmill of sin operated by the enemy was absolutely liberating.

We are starting to get into the "meat" of this study. Hope the new schedule will be easier to keep up with. Thank you everyone. I know that many of you take time out of your super busy schedules to meet here everyday. You cannot know how much I appreciate each and every one of you!

love, in Jesus,

Debra

(concepts taken from Victory Over the Darkness

by Neil Anderson)

Tug of War

"You may have heard the illustration of the two dogs. Some people say we have two natures within us vying for control of our lives. They claim that our old sin nature, which we inherited from disobedient Adam, is like a big black dog. Our new nature, which we inherited through Christ's redemptive work, is like a big white dog. These two dogs are bitter enemies, intent on destroying each other. Whenever you involve yourself in worldly thoughts or behavior, you are feeding the black dog. Whenever you focus your mind and activities on spiritual things, you are feeding the white dog. The dog you feed the most will eventually grow stronger and overpower the other."

This may be an interesting analogy to explain our sinful behaviors, but let's see if this is truly a Biblical way of looking at our lives. Let's look at the following scripture verses to see if the theory of the two natures inhabiting our lives sounds like what God has to say about us.

Version: NAS

Colossians 1:13
For He delivered us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.

Romans 8:9
However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.

Ephesians 5:8
for you were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore if any man is in Christ, [he is] a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

This idea of the two natures and the power we allow them, may be an idea about an "unregenerate" or unsaved person. But once we accept Jesus into our hearts things change. We are "delivered from darkness", "we are not of the flesh, but of the Spirit". We were "formerly darkness, but now we are children of light", and we are a "new creature". So in looking at these scriptures we can see a big difference in the concepts.

To me this sounds like a tug-of-war; an opportunity to have a split personality in our spirit. Brings to mind the idea of the little man in the red suit with horns and a pitchfork, on one shoulder and the little angel with a halo and wings on the other. Both whispering in our ear the advantages of their influence.

The author states, "If we see ourselves part light and part darkness, part saint and part sinner, you will live in a very mediocre manner with little to distinguish you from the non-Christian."

All this goes back to our Identity in Christ. We need to have a strong belief in who God says we are. We need to believe the scripture verses about us being "IN CHRIST". This is why I have spent so much time on knowing our "identity". If that concept is not fully believed and accepted in our way of thinking we cannot move on in our Christian growth. We get caught in the quicksand of failure and stagnation.

"Satan knows he can do nothing about who you really are, but if he can get you to believe you are not different from the natural (unsaved) person, then you will behave no differently from the natural (unsaved) person."

But you may be thinking, all this "new creation" stuff sounds good, but why do I still behave like an unsaved person? Here are the words of Paul, speaking about his old life. Ever feel like this? Why do I still do things that are not godly or Christlike?

Romans 7:15
For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I [would] like to [do], but I am doing the very thing I hate.

Because we don't really KNOW our true identity in Christ. The fact that we are changed from saint to sinner by Jesus atonement, His death on the cross for our sins, and resurrection, may be understood and acknowledged, but we have not allowed it to penetrate our heart and spirit.

Many pastors and preachers tell us from the pulpit, we are still "sinners", (and yes, we all still sin) but that is not our identity in Christ.  Here again, we cannot be confused with what we do versus who we are. This goes back to the last lesson where we discussed our "words", not only to others but to ourselves.  If we continually call our children, stupid, losers, a person who will never amount to anything, etc. Will they not believe it? Even if they are good solid kids with a high IQ and motivated; will our words not, over time, begin to tear down their self esteem?

The same holds for our consideration of ourselves. We have been born again, but if we continually call ourselves "sinners", "just barely hanging on", or any other negative description will we too not be in danger of believing it? Negativity in our thoughts and words concerning ourselves and others, shape our opinions and begins to create an atmosphere of defeat.

The "inner change" that the previous scripture verses describe is the result from our "justification"; what happens the moment of our salvation, in our spirit. The outer man's change of our personality, thinking, and emotions occurs throughout our lifetime and that is "sanctification".

Let's look at the diagram from chapter 1 of the study.

Our spirit is changed from darkness to light at salvation, justification, and our outer man is changed over the course of our lifetime by studying the Word of God, prayer and an attitude of willingness and submission to the Holy Spirit.

So let's think of ourselves as that new creation In Christ, and not get caught up in an idea of good dog, bad dog tug of war. We are in Christ and He is in us.

love, in Jesus,

Debra

(quotes and concepts taken from

Victory Over the Darkness

by Neil Anderson.)

"Constructing" the Body of Christ

Having raised two girls who are now 29 and 35, I have learned as many lessons as they have. I was a loving parent, but not always a "model" parent. I didn't always approach a situation or react to them in a Godly manner. I'm the first to admit it. Sometimes I was as big a child as they were. I have yet to meet the "Perfect Parent", and looking back on my parenting skills I'd have to say I could have improved in so many areas. I've had to apologize to my girls for my shortcomings during their growing up years. I wish I knew then what I know now. My hind sight might not be exactly "20-20" but it's much better than it was at the time. I refer to this time in my life, because I think back on handling matters with sometimes more negativity than positive ways of handling things. I'm no Dr. Phil, but thank you Lord, that I've learned a few constructive things along the way.


The author of Victory Over the Darkness recounts a conversation he had had with a pastor friend that was bemoaning the congregation of his church. "They are all a bunch of "losers". What can I do to get out of my church?" Dr. Anderson in turn, asked him. "I wonder if they are really losers or if they just see themselves as losers because that's how you see them?"


This brings up such an important fact: How do we perceive others? How do our impressions of other people color our opinions and relationships with them and about them? I used to make snap judgements on people. I think we all have opinions, that is just human nature, but how long do we take to form them? Is it based on their appearance, way they speak, way they dress, job they may have? Are we looking at them through our own eyes or through God's eyes? Just as we talked about in the beginning of this study, we need to view people the same way God sees them; as a child of God, wholly loved and accepted by the Father. I have learned this over the years. I have asked God to show me beyond the surface, to see someone's heart, and to be able to relate to them as He sees them, not just view the outside and the obvious. I guess this is referred to as "putting ourselves in someone else's shoes".


So then, if we see someone as a "loser", and we treat them as such, will that be the image they also see of themselves? What if instead, we see our brothers and sisters in Christ as saints, redeemed, and totally loved in Jesus? Will they then see themselves in this same way and begin to reflect this understanding in their own attitudes, actions, and behaviors? This is where I could have improved as a parent. Speaking positive affirmation more than I did. Frustration with situations I didn't know how to handle, caused me to see the negative instead of seeking God for positive reinforcement with my words.


As stated by the author, "I believe the greatest determinant for how we treat people is how we perceive them. And how do we express our perceptions of people? Primarily by what we say to them... Studies have shown that in the average home, for every positive statement, a child receives 10 negative statements. It's only slightly better in the school environment; 7-1. It's no wonder so many children are growing up feeling that they are losers. Parents and teachers are conveying that perception every day in how they talk to their children...studies go on to say that it takes four positive statements to negate the effect of one negative statement...We affect others significantly by what we say about them, and what we say is significantly determined by how we perceive them."

Version: NAS

Ephesians 4:29
"Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such [a word] as is good for edification according to the need [of the moment], that it may give grace to those who hear. "

The word "edify" means to improve morally or intellectually, enlightenment, guidance in education, to improve information, and knowledge. In other words to be constructive and build someone up, not tear someone down. Our words affect others and bring change. It's better to be positive in our addressing of someone or a situation, rather than to be negative and to ultimately tear down someone; Constructive assessment, instead of negative. It's all in our attitude and perception of others.

Version: NAS

Ephesians 4:11-13
11. And He gave some [as] apostles, and some [as] prophets, and some [as] evangelists, and some [as] pastors and teachers, 12. for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13. until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ.

This is the scripture passage that Jesus spoke to me back on June 16, 2001. He said, "This is your call". And it has been my driving force since then. To build up the body of Christ.

Yesterday's post on our salvation was an eventful one for me. Stepping out there to discuss a topic that is very controversial. We all have such varied ideas and thinking. Thank you for the opportunity to see brotherly love at work. I think we all said how we felt about the subject in love, and hopefully no one was offended or changed their minds about anyone. I really hope not. I have seen churches split over matters such as this, end time prophecy, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, just to name a few. Thank you, that we can all discuss and view what others have to say in respect and love. I could have skipped over this subject, but I chose to dive in instead.

If you would like to read the theology and doctrine with scripture references behind my position on this, please go to the Official Website of the General Council of the Assemblies of God and type in "Security of the Believer" for several articles on this. It's a broad reference to both theories on this topic. It's interesting and nonthreatening no matter what your viewpoint.

( Hope everyone still loves one another.)

Love, in Jesus,

Debra

(concepts taken from Victory Over the Darkness
by Neil Anderson)

Relationships: 101

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to do some marriage counseling with a couple from our small church. This couple was in an extreme situation, and I think the pastor who usually did the counseling was at a loss to help them. Knowing that I had been involved in Freedom In Christ Ministries, the pastor felt there were some spiritual attacks directed toward one of the spouses, so they were turned over to me. When I heard their story, I was amazed at some of the bizarre behaviors that were occurring. After prayer with them, I knew God would have to totally lead me in helping them. It was impossible in "the natural". "In the natural" is my phrase for doing things the world's way and the world's way of thinking. There were deep seated issues here that needed to be addressed as individuals. Relating to the other as a spouse was secondary. Getting right with a spouse, a friend, a relative, or anyone else, begins with getting right with God, individually, first.

As in the words of the author, Neil Anderson, "It's hard to make any relationship work unless we are in right relationship with our Heavenly Father. The first thing we must realize is that God is our loving Father and we are His accepted child. This is the foundation truth for our spiritual identity. We have been declared "righteous" by Him because of our faith in Christ. As long as we believe that and walk accordingly, our daily experience of practical Christianity will result in growth. But when we get our eyes off of our "identity", and try to produce in our daily experience the acceptance God has already extended to us, we will struggle. We don't serve God to gain His acceptance; we are accepted, so we serve God. We don't follow Him in order to be loved; we are loved, so we follow Him."

Believing what the Bible says about us is the key to a successful relationship with God and then resulting in good relationship with others. Satan, our enemy, will try to convince us that we are sin-sick, unworthy and unacceptable; someone who will never amount to anything. Believing the lies of Satan will lock us into a defeated, fruitless life. Believing God's truth about ourselves and our Identity in Christ will truly set us free.

Romans 6:1-6
Version: NAS

1. What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? 2. May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3. Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4. Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5. For if we have become united with [Him] in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also [in the likeness] of His resurrection, 6. knowing this, that our old self was crucified with [Him], that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin;

These verses have truly made an impact upon me and my thinking. Newness of life, and that my old self was crucified with Jesus, so that sin might be done away with...I no longer had to be a slave to sin.

It's amazing the amount of baggage we all carry around, even as born-again believers. So many things shape our outlook on life and our inward look at ourselves. I've talked alot about my own experience, and how I perceived myself. It all affected my relationship with my husband, family, friends, and my children. I had wrong ideas and understanding about God. Those effected me, my personal choices in life, and then how I treated others. Not until I realized that I was totally loved and accepted by God, and that I had access to Him, that resulted in confidence, did my life start to change. Old hurts and confusion were lifted off of me. I began to see myself as God saw me. I started to let go of the old ways of doing things and reacting to those around me. God began the task of healing my wounded feelings and life. Thank you God, that you are not satisfied to leave us in our state of humanity. Thank you for loving us so much that You desire us to live a life of freedom and Truth!

Blessings today as we learn to walk in

Freedom and Truth,

Debra

(concepts taken from Chapter 3
Victory Over the Darkness)

No Spiritual Bandaids

How many of us want and need a "quick fix"? Problems in our lives that we look at, shoot up a prayer to God, and then try to cover up from everyone else? No time to deal with the issues, just a need to have the matter taken care of? 

 "God, please fix this!!!"

We might be able to get away with this for a while, maybe even a long while, but eventually we will realize the "problem" is still there. Nothing healed, nothing resolved, nothing really fixed. Oh, it may look a little better. But is it a lasting solution, or is your problem just sitting there, or maybe the problem is even "infected"?

When our older daughter was about 13, she and a friend had been riding a motor scooter (which I had forbidden but she did it anyway) out in our rural subdivision. The streets were not "paved" with concrete, but more of an asphalt surface, you know, hardened tar and gravel. Well, the inevitable happened; a spill on the bike and a screaming, crying kid, limping up the driveway with blood covering her bare legs. She was in a lot of pain and no "I told you so's" were needed. Now, what if I had just wiped off the blood and put on a bunch of band aids?

I called the doctor, and this was his advice. Put her in a warm tub with some Epsom salt, and be prepared for some time to work. Having worked in the ER, I am accustomed to a little blood, so I did what could have been done for her there. Tweezers in hand I set about the job of removing debris and gravel. An hour or so later, and after hearing a few, "NO!, NO's" She was cleaned up and slathered with Neosporin and some bandages. The healing began, but not until the junk was out, and the wound cleaned. A quick fix would not have beneficial here. Time, information and some work were critical to see this resolved in a way that would permanently have a good outcome.

Do we have behaviors that God has been trying to speak to us about? Attitudes and ways of thinking that are non-productive? How about relationships that are difficult and a source of constant concern? Just like a physical ailment, injury, or disease, we cannot ignore problems hoping they will go away. A quick fix, usually doesn't last, and can cause more harm in the long run.

Our spiritual lives can be this way. A lot of debris, hurts and pain. Incidents that are major sticking points in our lives. We can't make any progress because we don't allow God to get in there and do the work.

We need to give God permission to teach us and show us what kind of steps we need to take, to see healing and lasting change come to our lives.

Seeing lasting change in our spiritual lives takes a little effort and attention. It takes time in prayer and reading God's Word; Bible study and listening for God's direction in our life. None of these things can be accomplished by snapping our fingers. Our development as Christians takes time. Salvation is immediate, but the renewing of the mind and our conforming to the likeness of Jesus can be a process.

One of the complaints that I had about my early years and into young adult life was that I was out of balance. I had been taught "doctrine" (not always the truth), but didn't have any "practical" information on how to live my life. It was all about what I should "believe", but nothing about "how to live" the Christian life day-to-day.

Then we can go the other direction in that we just want to know what to do, without having a belief system to back it up. We need both; good doctrinal understanding about God, and then practical teaching about our Christian walk. We won't be able to find the steps for our future and a healthy Christian life, attitudes, and relationships if we don't have a good foundation of who God is, and how He feels about us.

It's critical to realize that we need to establish our Christian lives on what we believe, instead of forming beliefs based on how we behave.


This will be the only way to see our identity in Christ really causing us to move forward. We need the proper Identity In Christ, and then the correct doctrine and theology to go with it. Don't skip the doctrine part to get to the "quick fix". Let's let God teach us about Himself, have that firmly planted in our hearts, then allow that knowledge to bring change.

Love,

Debra

 

concepts taken from Chapter 3,

Victory Over the Darkness

Finding and Keeping Our Identity IN CHRIST

The difference between the first Adam and the last Adam, Jesus Christ, spells the difference between life and death for us. Perhaps it is best stated in scripture:

Version: NAS

1 Corinthians 15:22
"For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive."

The phrase "in Christ" is the most critical element of our identity. So let's look a little deeper to see what this really means:

We weren't born "in Christ". We were born into sin, thanks to Adam and his sin in the Garden of Eden. So, what is God's plan to transform us from living like Adam to living like Jesus? When Jesus was speaking to Nicodemus, He told us in John 3:3, "We must be "born-again". Our physical birth brings us only physical life, but Jesus promises us spiritual life, "Zoe" life, through Himself.

John 3:36
"He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son shall not see life..."

When we become believers and have that re-birth experience we have our name written the the Lamb's Book of Life.

Revelation 21:27

and nothing unclean and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

The "lamb's book of life" is literally a list of names of those who have asked Jesus into their hearts as Lord and Savior.


Contrary to what a lot of Christians believe, eternal life is not something you get when you die. We are spiritually alive in Christ right now. We were born again spiritually at our "salvation experience". We take on the "Zoe" life. When we die physically, we will exchange our earthly bodies for another "heavenly" type body. But our spiritual life in Christ will continue on; our spirit will move on to be with Jesus in heaven.


As in the words of the author, "Salvation is not a future addition; it's a present transformation. Eternal life is not something you get when you die. Eternal life is something you possess right now because you're "in Christ"."

Being a Christian is not just a matter of "getting something"; forgiveness of sin, and eternity in heaven with God, but we receive a new nature. Being born-again transformed us into someone who didn't exist before; a saint, a divine masterpiece, a child of God, and a citizen of the Kingdom of God.


It's not what we do as a Christian that determines who we are, but it's who we are that determines what we do.

When we have our identity straight; knowing that we are a child of God, a new creation in Christ, it will affect how we think, our decisions and our outlook on the future. Knowing we are God's child, loved and cherished by Him, we will be raising our heads and feeling hope and optimism, not feeling defeated, unloved, and condemned. Knowing who we are "in Christ" will absolutely change our life.

Version: KJV

2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

1 John 3:1-3
1. See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and [such] we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. 2. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that, when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him just as He is. 3. And everyone who has this hope [fixed] on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.


So leave behind the identity with Adam, and find your true identity "in Christ" with Jesus. Think of yourself as the new creation in Christ. Look over the list of "Who I Am in Christ" from the earlier post of January 28, and start believing them. Believe what God has to say about you, then find your actions and life start changing too.

Love,

in Jesus,

Debra

concepts and ideas from Chapter 2,

 Victory Over the Darkness