Galatians 5:16-18 But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh (of human nature without God). For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the [Holy] Spirit, and the [desires of the] Spirit are opposed to the flesh (godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other [continually withstanding and in conflict with each other], so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do. But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.
A Blogger friend @ (http://ma-sblog.blogspot.com/) posted this poem:
Remember how I (the Lord) pursued you.
Remember how I saved you.
How I let you fall so I could raise you up.
How I opened and closed doors to direct you.
I let your heart be empty and broken so that I could fill and heal it.
I do remember, but at times the enemy is louder, realer, and seemingly more present.
He (the flesh, the ungodly world, and the devil) makes me doubt, despair, run away from You.
He whispers lies and sends messengers of deceit my way.
He takes the sins of the past, which You (God) have forgotten, and puts them ever before me.
Accusing, mocking, gleeful over the things he has to use against me.
But wait upon me He says. And so I wait.
I have been asked to start a "New believers" Wednesday night class at our church, and pray that the truth of what & who we have been saved from and what & who we have been saved to is unpacked and delivered honestly and easily understandable, that the Holy Spirit works in both the teacher and the students for spiritual growth, life application and glory to God. To bring to light, as in the first half of this poem, that it is the Lord that pursues and saves us. That we learn to walk by falling when we don't have the strength. We sometimes take unproductive side paths that break our heart and will. But it is Lord that picks us up, dusts us off and mends our scratches, encourages us, points opens doors to the right path and close doors that lead to wrong ones. Life is a learning experience for the Christian on the path of righteousness.
John 14:26-27 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. 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, neither let it be afraid.
But there the obsticles along life's road, the enemy in the second half of that poem, calling us all to take another path. I heard lately that the "father of lies" Satan uses three main tactics against us, bring doubt, deception, and distractions. Sly and subtle tactics to tempt us to turn our hearts from the Lord to self indulgent desires without a thought of God or His will. To our sin nature of the fleshly desires, it all looks big, it looks exciting, it looks inviting, but it is without the Lord its empty. Why do we so easily turn our heads to inequity? Remember that, this side of Eden and Heaven, there is a battle for our hearts, our minds and our souls. Thank God, the Holy Spirit wages war against the flesh desires of the sinful nature within each of us, and the Lord God purses us, raises us up, opens & closes doors, fills and heals our heart when we turn and walk in the Spirit to His loving arms; the arms of our Heavenly Father, who is teaching us to grow and mature, to trust and obey, to live in a fallen world without being a part of it, as a child of God, for His purposes and glory. I saw a bumper sticker that said: "If you do not change your direction, you will head up where you are heading." Repent means to turn 180 degrees around from going the wrong way on the wide road to destruction and start heading down the narrow road to abundant life, eternal life, kingdom life.
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
Remember.
In Christ, Brian
4 comments:
Just passing by to thank you for the much needed prayer...I just left a comment on another blogger's site and I wrote that the carnal mind is enmity to God...It is a hard process but by His grace, we can shed those worldly things one by one as we seek Him more. God bless.
It is so wonderful that God knows and sees all and He leads us away from Satan, if we are willing to heed the Holy Spirit.
Life is a learning experience and I wonder how much more we will learn when we are with Him.
Thanks for this thought provoking post.
God bless,
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Brian,
I am humbled that you are able to use this "thinking out loud" of mine. A new believers class sounds like a really good thing, I wish I'd had one when I was first saved. I spent many years as a very immature Christian, not really having any direction, but being held onto by Him.
I love that Philippians passage as well.
God bless:)
Rosel, Thanks for coming by and adding that God's grace is needed int he battle between the flesh and the Spirit. Dependency on the Lord and His strength is key.
C.O.G., I once heard that we would be amazed at all the schemes of the Devil that the Lord keeps from us, that we never know. God loves His children and we can bank on that. Plus all the knowledge of the ages will be ours in the kingdom of heaven with Jesus. It's "beyond comprehension" great!
Ma, Thank you for being a blessing! We all had that time of being an immature Christian and with the "growing into the likeness of Christ" process of sanctification,I hope to have this down in a hundred years or so. Praise God that He uses cracked vessels (like me) to work and achieve His perfect will and purposes this side of heaven.
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