Growing In Christ~A Continual Process
"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:12-14)."
My friend, the day that you chose to follow Christ marked the day your life was forever changed. He put His Spirit in you-His seal of ownership-and gave you a new heart. It was the moment the transformation within you began. Your old life passed, and new life begun! Praise the Lord! You.will.never.ever.be.the.same. There is a distinction (or should be) in the life of every follower of Christ, and that is, you no longer live for yourself. You live for the Lord Jesus. In doing so, you lay down your life-your desires and your wants-and you allow God to work in and through you His way.
As a Christ follower, you are still far from perfect and will have times that you sin because the old sin nature is still in you. The key is that you no longer allow sin to dominate your life-it is not habitual. "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother (1 John 3:9-10)."
It is important that you understand that there is a battle within each of us between our flesh and our spirit. The spirit desires to please God and our flesh desires to please our own selfish cravings and lusts. No one is exempt. We will all fall short. When you sin, confess it or agree with God it is sin, turn from it and move on. Don't stay down and don't run from God. Run to Him. He already knows anyway. He will always, always forgive you. "If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9)." Remember, Jesus is our High Priest who lives to intercede for us. "Therefore He is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through Him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their (His followers) behalf (Hebrews 7:25)." Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus that He is faithful even when we are not! He will always give us the power to overcome by His Holy Spirit.
Life with Jesus is extraordinary! To have a relationship with Him is like no other. He loves you and me too much to leave us where we are, so He consistently, lovingly and purposefully grows us in Him. This process of becoming more like Christ will continue until the day He calls us home. How does Jesus grow us in Him? He uses His word and He uses other people and circumstances that cause us to put our faith into action. Think about it for a moment, if you went through life without trials and difficulties or never had to deal with people who hurt or mistreat you, you would never know just how much you need God. You would never know how faithful He is to His promises. You would never know how He can do the impossible. You would never know how much strength He gives. You would never know He is your peace in the storm. You would never know that He will never leave you. You would never know His sweet presence in times of trouble. You would never know that although you could lose it all, as long as you have Jesus, you have everything!
This is why God's word says, "count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of our faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4)." You and I can count it all joy despite the circumstances because we know that God is perfecting us, making us more like Him and this my friend, is a beautiful thing! Let us be counted worthy to be in the kingdom! You and I should be living our life in such a way that is counter to the world. We should be different! People should know that we follow Christ even if we don't say a word! The light of Christ in us should shine so brightly that people of the world are uncomfortable (in a good sort of way) around us! You and I are the fragrance of Christ to the world! "For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:15-17)."
My friend, you and I are not perfect, but we should be authentic and we should be continually and habitually growing in the Lord Jesus. One day soon we will say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but to all who have longed for His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8)."
My friend, the day that you chose to follow Christ marked the day your life was forever changed. He put His Spirit in you-His seal of ownership-and gave you a new heart. It was the moment the transformation within you began. Your old life passed, and new life begun! Praise the Lord! You.will.never.ever.be.the.same. There is a distinction (or should be) in the life of every follower of Christ, and that is, you no longer live for yourself. You live for the Lord Jesus. In doing so, you lay down your life-your desires and your wants-and you allow God to work in and through you His way.
As a Christ follower, you are still far from perfect and will have times that you sin because the old sin nature is still in you. The key is that you no longer allow sin to dominate your life-it is not habitual. "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are. Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother (1 John 3:9-10)."
It is important that you understand that there is a battle within each of us between our flesh and our spirit. The spirit desires to please God and our flesh desires to please our own selfish cravings and lusts. No one is exempt. We will all fall short. When you sin, confess it or agree with God it is sin, turn from it and move on. Don't stay down and don't run from God. Run to Him. He already knows anyway. He will always, always forgive you. "If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9)." Remember, Jesus is our High Priest who lives to intercede for us. "Therefore He is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through Him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their (His followers) behalf (Hebrews 7:25)." Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus that He is faithful even when we are not! He will always give us the power to overcome by His Holy Spirit.
Life with Jesus is extraordinary! To have a relationship with Him is like no other. He loves you and me too much to leave us where we are, so He consistently, lovingly and purposefully grows us in Him. This process of becoming more like Christ will continue until the day He calls us home. How does Jesus grow us in Him? He uses His word and He uses other people and circumstances that cause us to put our faith into action. Think about it for a moment, if you went through life without trials and difficulties or never had to deal with people who hurt or mistreat you, you would never know just how much you need God. You would never know how faithful He is to His promises. You would never know how He can do the impossible. You would never know how much strength He gives. You would never know He is your peace in the storm. You would never know that He will never leave you. You would never know His sweet presence in times of trouble. You would never know that although you could lose it all, as long as you have Jesus, you have everything!
This is why God's word says, "count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of our faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4)." You and I can count it all joy despite the circumstances because we know that God is perfecting us, making us more like Him and this my friend, is a beautiful thing! Let us be counted worthy to be in the kingdom! You and I should be living our life in such a way that is counter to the world. We should be different! People should know that we follow Christ even if we don't say a word! The light of Christ in us should shine so brightly that people of the world are uncomfortable (in a good sort of way) around us! You and I are the fragrance of Christ to the world! "For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:15-17)."
My friend, you and I are not perfect, but we should be authentic and we should be continually and habitually growing in the Lord Jesus. One day soon we will say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but to all who have longed for His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8)."
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