Intentional Pursuit
"By wisdom the Lord laid the earth's foundations, by understanding, He set the heavens in place; by His knowledge the deeps were divided, and the clouds let drip the dew. My son, preserve sound judgment and discernment, do not let them out of your sight; they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble; when you lie down, you will no be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet (Proverbs 3:19-24)."
The Lord is the One who gives wisdom. It is from Him that we gain knowledge and understanding. Apart from Him, it would be impossible for any of us to walk a straight path. By His Spirit He gives us direction, truth and conviction of sin. Our hearts are desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9) and if left to ourselves, we would perish. Because we all have a sin nature, and are bent towards disobedience, rebellion and living a selfish life, we must intentionally seek after God. Understand, that once you are saved, you are sealed with the Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:22) and no one can snatch you out of God's hand (John 10:28). Your eternity is forever sealed in Christ. But there is a continual battle going on between your flesh and your spirit. The flesh wants everything that is carnal or earthly and your spirit desires the things of God (Romans 8:5-11).
God gave you and me the free gift of grace in the Lord Jesus. This grace is not based on anything that we do, but solely on what Jesus did. On the cross, He paid the penalty that you and I deserved. The work is finished and there is nothing more to be done. However, it is up to each one of us to die to ourselves daily, or rather, surrender our will to God's will. We must stay in the word of God and allow His truth to penetrate our heart and mind. Otherwise, the ways and patterns of this world will begin to creep in and we will begin to walk a defeated life.
There are so many things fighting for our affection. Not to mention satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). He makes sin seem so appealing. No one wakes up one day and says, "I think I will have an affair." No one who takes a drink or tries a drug for the first time thinks they will become an alcoholic or addicted to drugs. No one who throws their food up or starves themselves on purpose thinks it will lead to an eating disorder. satan makes a plea to all of our senses and pressures us to live in the moment. Therefore, we must be intentional on what we think about~what we allow in our minds. "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 3-5)."
You and I have the power to choose what we meditate on. If a thought enters your mind that does not line up with the word, you can immediately cast it out. The mind is where the battle begins. So, if satan can get your mind, then he has won that battle. This is why it is so important for each one of us to meditate on God's truth! When attacks come (and they will) we will be able to stand and not give in.
All of this is counter to the world and its views. The world tells you, "get all you can," "live in the moment," "material things are what is important," "you are number one," "it's all about feeling good," "money and power are what life is about," to name a few. The gospel however, tells us to lose our life so that we may find it, to die to ourselves, to think of others first, to love as Christ loves and to be humble. Fortunately, those who are in Christ, have the power of the Holy Spirit living on the inside which makes all of this possible.
Ask God to give you His wisdom and strength to help you live for Him. Seek Him first, above all else, and He will give you everything that you need (Luke 12:31).
The Lord is the One who gives wisdom. It is from Him that we gain knowledge and understanding. Apart from Him, it would be impossible for any of us to walk a straight path. By His Spirit He gives us direction, truth and conviction of sin. Our hearts are desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9) and if left to ourselves, we would perish. Because we all have a sin nature, and are bent towards disobedience, rebellion and living a selfish life, we must intentionally seek after God. Understand, that once you are saved, you are sealed with the Spirit (2 Corinthians 1:22) and no one can snatch you out of God's hand (John 10:28). Your eternity is forever sealed in Christ. But there is a continual battle going on between your flesh and your spirit. The flesh wants everything that is carnal or earthly and your spirit desires the things of God (Romans 8:5-11).
God gave you and me the free gift of grace in the Lord Jesus. This grace is not based on anything that we do, but solely on what Jesus did. On the cross, He paid the penalty that you and I deserved. The work is finished and there is nothing more to be done. However, it is up to each one of us to die to ourselves daily, or rather, surrender our will to God's will. We must stay in the word of God and allow His truth to penetrate our heart and mind. Otherwise, the ways and patterns of this world will begin to creep in and we will begin to walk a defeated life.
There are so many things fighting for our affection. Not to mention satan masquerades as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14-15). He makes sin seem so appealing. No one wakes up one day and says, "I think I will have an affair." No one who takes a drink or tries a drug for the first time thinks they will become an alcoholic or addicted to drugs. No one who throws their food up or starves themselves on purpose thinks it will lead to an eating disorder. satan makes a plea to all of our senses and pressures us to live in the moment. Therefore, we must be intentional on what we think about~what we allow in our minds. "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 3-5)."
You and I have the power to choose what we meditate on. If a thought enters your mind that does not line up with the word, you can immediately cast it out. The mind is where the battle begins. So, if satan can get your mind, then he has won that battle. This is why it is so important for each one of us to meditate on God's truth! When attacks come (and they will) we will be able to stand and not give in.
All of this is counter to the world and its views. The world tells you, "get all you can," "live in the moment," "material things are what is important," "you are number one," "it's all about feeling good," "money and power are what life is about," to name a few. The gospel however, tells us to lose our life so that we may find it, to die to ourselves, to think of others first, to love as Christ loves and to be humble. Fortunately, those who are in Christ, have the power of the Holy Spirit living on the inside which makes all of this possible.
Ask God to give you His wisdom and strength to help you live for Him. Seek Him first, above all else, and He will give you everything that you need (Luke 12:31).
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