by David Brenneman
It's oh so heartbreaking when I hear of Believers treating others in the way the world treats their own.
Believers not at all realizing that they are grieving the Spirit of God when they are not exhibiting the character of Christ within the Church let alone outside of it.
Is there anything we do or say or think that escapes the notice of God in Christ Jesus?
Are we naive enough to believe that He doesn't notice or isn't aware of the cries of His own sheep? Do we not realize or remember the parable of the 99 left on the mountain while He searches for the one?
In Genesis 20, Jesus met a man in his dreams to give warning to leave Abraham’s wife alone...for if that man had done anything he would have been sinning against Him.
What we do, what we say, what we think, is ALL noticed by God.
Your every single thought and intention.
Your every selfish desire. You may be blinded to what drives you to do, say, or think something, but God is not.
Do we so readily and so quickly forget the passage that tells us it is the Lord Jesus Christ who searches the hearts?
Your heart, your whole heart, is what He is jealous for!
People sometimes come to Christ and attempt to live as they once did. It doesn't work that way. Some give up on the path that God has them on because the world's offer was more tempting. Some have wrecked marriages because their selfishness was that great and they were blinded to that truth.
Jesus knows your true heart. Not the one that you present to the world around you.
He knows your desires. He knows what you really intend to do before you do. He knows every single possible outcome. Every single future that can be is laid bare before Jesus.
He knows why you responded in anger.
He knows why you stubbornly refused to follow Him instead of exercising patience and trusting Him, even though you don't think of it that way.
You cannot fool Jesus. You can fool yourself.
Our lives are on exhibit to the world when we come to Christ for salvation. People are supposed to see our good works and glorify our Father in Heaven.
When we are not living life to that end, then what is the world seeing in us?
If we aren't realizing that truth of the radiance of Christ is to shine from us...that light of truth that drew us to Him to be saved...then we miss why we are still here.
Satan wants us to be the ones to cover up.
He wants us to be the ones to hide the light of Jesus Christ by way of our poor choices and decisions. To belittle and weaken the value of life lived in Christ Jesus.
We who are in Christ Jesus are to put what He wants and desires as the most important thing of our lives. To live is Christ, to die is gain.
It hurts to put down things that we know we want because the Spirit says we need to. Been there and done that often in life.
We see something that we don't think will ever happen again and if we don't grab it now it will be gone. Oh how we fail to realize the power of God!
We ruin relationships because we truly are not trusting God. We ruin lives because we are not truly trusting God.
That's the truth when our lives are not exhibiting Christ in us first and foremost.
We will always tend to trust in our hearts rather than what our eyes need to see or our ears need to hear. Jesus said to trust in the Lord with ALL your heart. Lean not on your own understanding. When it appears to make sense and when it makes absolutely no sense. When temptation is at your doorstep realize that Satan's on the other side of that door.
Your life may be the only sermon that someone who's seeking Jesus will ever see. Another good hymn has the line in it of giving our best to the Master.
We all deceive ourselves. We need the One in us to teach us all things, that's what the Spirit does for us. We need His impartial view of our thoughts, motivations, desires. THEN we need to heed what He says! Do you really want to have to explain in your own words to Jesus why you ignored His Spirit?
What sermon would your life show? Would your life be a good one? Or would your activities, actions, be a type of sermon that's an example of what Christianity is not to be like?
Would your life be one that glorifies God or glorifies you?
We are only here in this here this now for such a time as this...to point people to Jesus. The Church will be drawn up at the Rapture when the last person to be saved is saved. What if YOU, in how YOU live your life, is prolonging that because you aren't being the example that Christ Jesus wants you to be?
The choice is yours. The sermon that is your life is either going to be a good one or a bad one.
Jesus said we will know people by their fruits. What would He say about your fruits? Not what you say...what would He say? Would He tell YOU to get behind Him? "You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s purposes, but men’s.” Matthew 16:23 NASB.
"Take my life and let it be
consecrated, Lord, to thee.
Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in endless praise,
let them flow in endless praise.
Take my hands and let them move
at the impulse of thy love.
Take my feet and let them be
swift and beautiful for thee,
swift and beautiful for thee.
Take my voice and let me sing
always, only, for my King.
Take my lips and let them be
filled with messages from thee,
filled with messages from thee.
Take my silver and my gold;
not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use
every power as thou shalt choose,
every power as thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it thine;
it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart it is thine own;
it shall be thy royal throne,
it shall be thy royal throne.
Take my love; my Lord, I pour
at thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself, and I will be
ever, only, all for thee,
ever, only, all for thee."
Author: Frances R. Havergal (1874)
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