Discussion Truth is Truth

[Farine]

When Sin is Exceedingly Sinful...

Romans 7:13 [AMP]:

Did that which is good [the Law], then become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, in order that it might be revealed as sin, was producing death in me by [using] this good thing [as a weapon], so that through the commandment sin would become exceedingly sinful.​

So here is the Bible reference for the term 'sin is exceedingly sinful'--meaning you are desperate to be free of it. This begs the question if you have had sin revealed as sin through almost dying to it. If you haven't had the experience of sin 'producing death in me', then this topic is a foolish one. ...o0(I'm alright. You-know-who really ought to read this.) Um, if you are reading this, then this awareness-building topic is really meant for you.

Mature Christians understand the damage sin does. That's not to say we spend all of our time thinking about it. When we come across it in our own lives, we don't make excuses for it. It's not comfortable to come into the Presence of God knowing that we have had pride or taken advantage of someone or told a half-truth or maybe even didn't return a shopping cart to the grocery store parking lot corral. We know we need God--in we go.

Here is one of the things that I had to confess to God just today. I didn't respond to an inbox message and let that person hanging wondering what was going on until they wrote me back asking if I was okay. No bueno. I apologized to that person and to the LORD. THis is not the only thing that was a conviction in my spirit. I haven't spent as much time with my youngest daughter as needed. So forth and so on. The point of such soul-searching is to invite God to help me realize that these patterns are 'not me'. I did them. Yes. But my identity is to be like Jesus..

In Romans 7:14-15 [AMP]:

We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am a creature of the flesh [worldly, self-reliant—carnal and unspiritual], sold into slavery to sin [and serving under its control]. For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled and bewildered by them]. I do not practice what I want to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate [and yielding to my human nature, my worldliness—my sinful capacity].​

Here is where Paul reveals the power of identity. Paul shows us how he sees his life. Paul is not his human nature. Paul is spirit living in a life that has a sinful capacity separate from his spirit. How do you define your life?

Romans 7:16-17 [AMP]:

Now if I habitually do what I do not want to do, [that means] I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good (morally excellent). So now [if that is the case, then] it is no longer I who do it [the disobedient thing which I despise], but the sin [nature] which lives in me.​

If you want to be free from domination of sin in your life, here is step one. Disengage your identity from it. You may still have it in your life, but you won't be saying these sorts of things:
I am.... anxious....
I am ... depressed..
This is just how I roll.
Nobody is perfect.
If you don't start nothing, there won't be nothing. [sorry, even if you are alone, there is still a sin nature to contend with.]
Do what feels good.

 

[Gideons300]

When Sin is Exceedingly Sinful...

Romans 7:13 [AMP]:

Did that which is good [the Law], then become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, in order that it might be revealed as sin, was producing death in me by [using] this good thing [as a weapon], so that through the commandment sin would become exceedingly sinful.​

So here is the Bible reference for the term 'sin is exceedingly sinful'--meaning you are desperate to be free of it. This begs the question if you have had sin revealed as sin through almost dying to it. If you haven't had the experience of sin 'producing death in me', then this topic is a foolish one. ...o0(I'm alright. You-know-who really ought to read this.) Um, if you are reading this, then this awareness-building topic is really meant for you.

Mature Christians understand the damage sin does. That's not to say we spend all of our time thinking about it. When we come across it in our own lives, we don't make excuses for it. It's not comfortable to come into the Presence of God knowing that we have had pride or taken advantage of someone or told a half-truth or maybe even didn't return a shopping cart to the grocery store parking lot corral. We know we need God--in we go.

Here is one of the things that I had to confess to God just today. I didn't respond to an inbox message and let that person hanging wondering what was going on until they wrote me back asking if I was okay. No bueno. I apologized to that person and to the LORD. THis is not the only thing that was a conviction in my spirit. I haven't spent as much time with my youngest daughter as needed. So forth and so on. The point of such soul-searching is to invite God to help me realize that these patterns are 'not me'. I did them. Yes. But my identity is to be like Jesus..

In Romans 7:14-15 [AMP]:

We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am a creature of the flesh [worldly, self-reliant—carnal and unspiritual], sold into slavery to sin [and serving under its control]. For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled and bewildered by them]. I do not practice what I want to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate [and yielding to my human nature, my worldliness—my sinful capacity].​

Here is where Paul reveals the power of identity. Paul shows us how he sees his life. Paul is not his human nature. Paul is spirit living in a life that has a sinful capacity separate from his spirit. How do you define your life?

Romans 7:16-17 [AMP]:

Now if I habitually do what I do not want to do, [that means] I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good (morally excellent). So now [if that is the case, then] it is no longer I who do it [the disobedient thing which I despise], but the sin [nature] which lives in me.​

If you want to be free from domination of sin in your life, here is step one. Disengage your identity from it. You may still have it in your life, but you won't be saying these sorts of things:
I am.... anxious....
I am ... depressed..
This is just how I roll.
Nobody is perfect.
If you don't start nothing, there won't be nothing. [sorry, even if you are alone, there is still a sin nature to contend with.]
Do what feels good.

Sister, you have nailed step one. You know, I have been posting here for over nine years. Do you know the substance of my very first post? It was revealing satan's greatest weapon that he uses against Christians.

Here is how it goes. Satan, the accuser of the brethren, does what he does best. He accuses. He tells the child of God, after planting a temptation in his path, how pitiful and crummy and hopeless he is, and that he WILL fall and give into the temptation ....again.

'You mean, that's it?? That is his greatest weapon? Give me a break. I don't get it"

Not so fast. He has one more 'twist' to add.... his 'coup de gras'. He does not.speak into our thoughts "You are an unworthy so and so." Oh, no. Not the master deceiver.

He whispers:

"I am an unworthy so and so. What is the point of trying to resist. I always fall anyway." and he whispers it..... are you ready? .....in hos best imitation of OUR voice.

Like a master fisherman, he casts out the delicious bait, a jaded conscious left over from our time under the law.....and with a big hook embedded in it. And what do we do? We swallow it, hook line and sinker.

Look. We, God's church, might not know it (yet). But he knows that sin's power over is is broken. He knows that the old us died when Christ died. He knows we are new creatures, down deep in our core. Bit he also knows that ever since the death of Paul, he has successfully weaseled his way into mainstream Christianity and for the mostpart, clouded our vision and blinded us to who we are in Christ.... new creatures..... overcomers!

So instead of believing as Paul did, that we are crucified with Christ, that the old us really is DEAD, not slowly being mortified by our well meaning but futile efforts, we continue seeing ourselves as just crummy sinners.... bad, bad sinners. Oh, maybe saved sinners but our core is still a cesspool of crumminess, or so we believe.

We do not believe that we are dead and our life is hid with Christ in God. We do not believe that it is no more us who live but Christ who lives in us. We literally believe the opposite. Oh, we memorize the scripture. We even quote it. We just don't believe it to be true for us, right here, right now.

Do we get it? Finally REALLY get it? We are believing his lies, the one who, when he lies, is speaking his native language. And we are totally calling our God a liar, the one with whom it is literally IMPOSSIBLE to lie!

So despite the fact we possess shields of faith that have been guaranteed to shoot down satan's accusations and arrows, despite the amazing promise that our Heavenly Father has given us that He will not allow us to be tempted above that which we are able to bear, despite God's assurance that sin shall not have dominion over us, we have walked around our entire Christian lives..... with shields down. And defeat has followed.

The Word tells us that two cannot walk together unless they are agreed, right? Ever wonder why for the most part God seems so very far away, why our prayer closets seem so hollow? Bingo.

Listen carefully. All of these promises, as wonderful as they are, are not automatic. Let's be sure and understand that. God has ordained that the vehicle that makes them spring into action is our trust in Him that He cannot lie. Yup. Faith. OUR faith. Our faith ....FOR US! Not faith that it WILL be true in some distant future time. That is hope, not faith. Faith is always NOW faith.

What did Jesus teach us?

"Believe that you receive it (now) and you shall have it."

And when we do that, the real progressive part of our sanctification finally begins. The hands of the potter have just been given permission to work. Worm, meet butterfly.

Look, I get it. We resist believing that we are dead to sin because we do not think we can ever really stop. We know ourselves to well. To make that statement, the pressure is heaped on us to "perform" and who can stand up to that wothout caving, right?

Listen. You are right. Yes, WE can't stop sinning. But that is not our job in this arrangement. That is God's job. We believe. He works. Our metamorphasis from crummy sinful worm to radient expression of Jesus in this life? Hey, that is HIS task as the master potter. But His hands can only begin changing us when we are centered on His wheel, fully trusting that what He has promised HE is able to perform..... and WILL perform!

It all starts with our reckoning. (see Romans 6) We must agree with God that sin's power over us is broken, not because we feel it, but because the old us is dead! Remember this. The strength of sin is what? The law? And the law has aithority over is as long as we live. See where I am going with this? And how are we told we are to yield ourselves to God?

As those who are alive from the dead.

So is sinning now impossible for us? Nope, we may slip again, but it changes NOTHING. But the manifestation of that victory is always, always, always:

"According to our faith be it unto you."

So, IF we sin ( not when.....IF).... what do we do? Say it didn't work? Heck no! We confess it, thank God for His merciful provision of forgiveness, and IMMEDIATELY we again hoist our shields of faith that we are new creatures, and free from the power of sin. Our good fight of faith, a fight we have been ordained to win, has now begun. Talk about upsetting and frustrating the enemy of our souls, LOL. He gets beside himself!

Shields up, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. It is time we started believing our God. What He is about to reveal to us, IN us, is going to blow our ever loving minds. We, the real body of Christ, are about to awake and light our lamps. And we do that with what?

Our testimony.

Thank you, Farine. What a great post you have here. I hope you do not mind if I make this a stand alone post to help people who may not be blessing themselves by reading your amazing thread. Heck, I have blessed myself just reading what God has given us to share. Trith has a funny way of setting free, amen? What an amazing God we serve!

Blessings,

Gideon

 

[Farine]

Like a master fisherman, he casts out the delicious bait, a jaded conscious left over from our time under the law.....and with a big hook embedded in it. And what do we do? We swallow it, hook line and sinker.

Well, Gideon, at least you and I have done enough time with the law. The silence on this discussion speaks--apart from your excellent responses, of course. In a short while, I will discuss step two and you can decide if you want to partake in that or not. I know some people are tired of the controversy and so they read for their own benefit without remark. What they come away with is between them and God. Since God is still having me write, with regular promptings in my spirit, there is yet a benefit from His estimation to continue.

I do think that between step one and two is often a long interval which is symbolized by your post and now this response. That is, there are the stirrings of 'could it be?' and 'what if it IS true that His Grace is sufficient in our weakness?" Our spirits turn over within us.

We must agree with God that sin's power over us is broken, not because we feel it, but because the old us is dead! Remember this. The strength of sin is what? The law? And the law has authority over us as long as we live. See where I am going with this? And how are we told we are to yield ourselves to God?

As those who are alive from the dead.

I'm messing up the smooth transitions you have between your major points, Gideon, but here is some additional material. Please forgive me.

Matthew 21:28-32 [NIV]:

“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’
“‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.
“Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”
“The first,” they answered.
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.
​

This week, I showed you the eagerness and enthusiasm of someone now made alive from the dead. The testimony of his joy, praising God spontaneously and quite constantly, points to the 'entering the Kingdom of God'. This man has gone on into it--a spiritual Kingdom.

In this Bible reading, Jesus points to the solemn Chief Priests and the Elders (Matthew 21:23) and urges them to consider the tax collectors and prostitutes who entered the Kingdom of God. That even when these individuals witnessed the changed lives they still did not believe and repent. In this case, I'm testifying that this man was changed--quite differently from you witnessing it personally. The evidence of joy and the simple, heart-felt way praise and worship happens is necessary. Here is the reason for the joy: the awareness of being rescued.

Shields up, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. It is time we started believing our God. What He is about to reveal to us, IN us, is going to blow our ever loving minds. We, the real body of Christ, are about to awake and light our lamps. And we do that with what?

Our testimony.

As you can tell at this point, my response is a hearty endorsement of Gideon's post. Yup, it's accurate. On the testimony of two or three witnesses, truth can be established. Here's an important tip. Don't think. Believe. Don't stick all this 'information' in your mind. Noooooo... Put this in your heart.

Your testimony is what the enemy is working to destroy. Why do you think he tempts and dangles his lures around you? So he can accuse you, yes.. true. But also so that if you stumble, the enemy can try to mock you when you declare the works of God in your life. If your testimony had no value, what would be the point of temptations??? Figure it out. The testimony has great value spiritually. Let the Light in...

 

[Farine]

The Light... The Light is Love... The Light is Truth... and The Truth hurts.

The grace to be aware of the soul-chomping effects of sin releases you as it educates you. You are in deadly peril. Now is the day of salvation. Saved? Saved, oh.... and in that long drawn out breath is the implications of who you would have become had Jesus not intervened.

C.S. Lewis says in Mere Christianity:

“Your real, new self (which is Christ's and also yours, and yours just because it is His) will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him. Does that sound strange? The same principle holds, you know, for more everyday matters. Even in social life, you will never make a good impression on other people until you stop thinking about what sort of impression you are making. Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it. The principle runs through all life from top to bottom, Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.”​

How would this Author know of 'your real, new self', if he himself had not experienced it. It's not the sort of thing that you can write about without direct knowledge. I want to point out just a couple of things from this extended quote.

"Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run... " What? What comes after this statement? "Hatred, loneliness, despair....."

What shall we do with this list? Do we believe that we are ruined without God's intervention? Are we still trying to play a game that we don't have to submit to death of self-life? The fact that millions of people refuse to undergo this transformation does not make transformation a myth.

Maybe a different person's experience will shed more.. er.. light on this topic. Max Lucado writes this:
From 'It's NOT about ME”

"What would happen if we accepted our place as Son reflectors? Such a shift comes so stubbornly however. We've been demanding our own way and stamping our feet since infancy. Aren't we all born with a default drive set on selfishness? I want a spouse who makes me happy and coworkers who always ask my opinion. I want weather that suits me and traffic that helps me and a government that serves me. It's all about me. We relate to the advertisement that headlined, “For the man who thinks the world revolves around him.” A prominent actress justified her appearance in a inappropriate content magazine by saying, “I wanted to express myself.”​

Self-promotion. Self-preservation. Selfcenteredness. It's all about me.”​

The truth? No matter how gently we phrase it--and Max Lucado is one of the most gentlest of Christian writers-- this hurts. Are you going to turn away from the pain of growing awareness or let this labor pain sweep you into a whole new realm of experience with God? The odds are not in your favor. Most people cringe at the first wave of pain and turn back. Don't let the flocking instinct overcome the joy. There is awesome joy to be had here as we move past Step TWO- The Pain of Awareness.

 

[Gideons300]

The Light... The Light is Love... The Light is Truth... and The Truth hurts.

The grace to be aware of the soul-chomping effects of sin releases you as it educates you. You are in deadly peril. Now is the day of salvation. Saved? Saved, oh.... and in that long drawn out breath is the implications of who you would have become had Jesus not intervened.

C.S. Lewis says in Mere Christianity:

“Your real, new self (which is Christ's and also yours, and yours just because it is His) will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him. Does that sound strange? The same principle holds, you know, for more everyday matters. Even in social life, you will never make a good impression on other people until you stop thinking about what sort of impression you are making. Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original whereas if you simply try to tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it. The principle runs through all life from top to bottom, Give up yourself, and you will find your real self. Lose your life and you will save it. Submit to death, death of your ambitions and favourite wishes every day and death of your whole body in the end submit with every fibre of your being, and you will find eternal life. Keep back nothing. Nothing that you have not given away will be really yours. Nothing in you that has not died will ever be raised from the dead. Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay. But look for Christ and you will find Him, and with Him everything else thrown in.”​

How would this Author know of 'your real, new self', if he himself had not experienced it. It's not the sort of thing that you can write about without direct knowledge. I want to point out just a couple of things from this extended quote.

"Look for yourself, and you will find in the long run... " What? What comes after this statement? "Hatred, loneliness, despair....."

What shall we do with this list? Do we believe that we are ruined without God's intervention? Are we still trying to play a game that we don't have to submit to death of self-life? The fact that millions of people refuse to undergo this transformation does not make transformation a myth.

Maybe a different person's experience will shed more.. er.. light on this topic. Max Lucado writes this:
From 'It's NOT about ME”

"What would happen if we accepted our place as Son reflectors? Such a shift comes so stubbornly however. We've been demanding our own way and stamping our feet since infancy. Aren't we all born with a default drive set on selfishness? I want a spouse who makes me happy and coworkers who always ask my opinion. I want weather that suits me and traffic that helps me and a government that serves me. It's all about me. We relate to the advertisement that headlined, “For the man who thinks the world revolves around him.” A prominent actress justified her appearance in a inappropriate content magazine by saying, “I wanted to express myself.”​

Self-promotion. Self-preservation. Selfcenteredness. It's all about me.”​

The truth? No matter how gently we phrase it--and Max Lucado is one of the most gentlest of Christian writers-- this hurts. Are you going to turn away from the pain of growing awareness or let this labor pain sweep you into a whole new realm of experience with God? The odds are not in your favor. Most people cringe at the first wave of pain and turn back. Don't let the flocking instinct overcome the joy. There is awesome joy to be had here as we move past Step TWO- The Pain of Awareness.

We are told that the law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. How is that done in a new believer? "Hey, wait a sec! Did we not get free of the law when we were saved?" Well, yes, but unfortunately, our minds have not yet been renewed. We still think like old natured men.

So how is it done? Well, first, and this is critical, the new saint hopefully takes seriously the "standards" God sets for our walk with Him.

We are told that without holiness no man shall see the Lord. We are told "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." These are not waived by grace. They are to be made possible by it!

Now, as new Christians, do we possess holy natures? Righteous natures? Yes. But holy natures? No. Do we possess "pure" hearts... single eyes? Nope. Not yet. So what is the deal? What are we to do?

Easy. We are to try with all that is within us, in our natural strength.... and fail. This is our wilderness walk. There is no escaping it. It stands between us and the rest that remains for the people of God. Out of Egypt, but not yet planted in the promised land. Welcome to Romans 7.

Here, like Paul did, we find that we want to do good, to please God, yet we more often do the opposite. We want to avoid evil, and yet it is often seems like a magnet to our hearts. Amen?

And why must we walk though this "valley of the shadow of death"? It is so that we might finally see that what God has called us to, we cannot do, even given a thousand lifetimes.

So why must we do this? As new Christians, it is most natural of us to still think works must be performed in order to become holy. Heck,how else will we become holy?

Let's be sure we understand. There is no waiver on this call from our God to be holy as He is holy. We cannot simply ignore its call and rest content with forgiveness and imputed righteousness. The power of sin reigning over us must be broken. So why the necessity of our trying..... and failing to walk pleasing to our heavenly Father?

It is so that we learn that self effort.....i.e. living under the law... can never make us holy. Our " our" righteousness is simply filthy rags in the eyes of God. And there is the lesson of the schoolmaster.

This is the lesson God is about to awaken us to.

We need new natures.

And in the process of trying and failing, we learn to literally hate our old self driven nature, where evil always seems to triumph. Finally, the schoolmaster had done its job, and praise God, we graduate to see that just as we needed grace for forgiveness, we need grace for holiness as well. And that does not come by more effort, but by more faith!

So has this been the path the church has followed up till now? Has our futile efforts made us like Paul, where we finally see ourselves as wretched men?

Sadly, no. Instead, we have instead tried to simply lower the standard, and swallowed the lie that since no one can really be holy, we needent even try. "God understands, right? Heck, nobody is perfect, right?" Sadly, He does not.

And it is this criticsl error that has led us into this Laodecian languishing as His church today dinds itsepf, going through our religious motions, hearing again and again the message of His cross and what it accomplished for us, but remaining totally ignorant of the second half of the gospel, the message of His ressurrection and what that accomplished for us as well. Grace has been twisted to be an excuse for sin, rather than a defeater of it. But praise God, that is all about to change.

The putting on of our new nature is as easy as our initial salvation was. It can be done in a heartbeat. Faith can be instantaneous. But the putting off of our old natures? Escaping the iron grip of our flesh? Guys, that takes time, and as you confirm Farine, it takes pain. Our pride simply does not like to be told that we have no ability to please God with our efforts. And our old nature, once satan's possession, does not want to die. But given enough failures, when we finally see that it is going to take a miracle to become truly holy, we discover that God has one with our name on it.

Like the Israelites bitten by snakes in the wilderness, we writhe and moan,
(or in our case, ignore that we have been bitten at all), seeking to be healed and made alive again. And when did that healing finally take place for the Jews in the wilderness? When they finally looked away from themselves and looked solely to the brazen serpent, healing came. Until that moment, nothing but pain, defeat and death.

Guys, we are told the Jesus is OUR brazen serpent and when we finally see our calling of "possessing our vessels in holiness and righteousness all the days of our lives" is impossible in our strength, and yet resist the temptation to lower the standard to make us acceptable still wrapped in our fleshly natures, we hear the tumblers click into place and the massive doors to FREE INDEED begins to swing open.

And at that point, as wretched men, broken by the law,, we have endured the pain, nothing wavering. We have come to the point that we have NO strength. We have entered the rest that God has had for is since the day we were saved. And why? Because, glory to God, we have ceased from our own labors, even as God did with His.

The pain of coming to the end of ourselves is real. Learning to hate our life is not fun..... for our flesh. But you see, when we finally realize we are no longer in the flesh, and owe it nothing, and that in truth, we are not that old us any longer, then praise God, the mother of paradigm shifts takes place. We have just been transplanted from the highway TO holiness, to the highway OF holiness! And our lives will never be the same again.

Blessings,

Gideon

 

[Zayin7]

When Sin is Exceedingly Sinful...

Romans 7:13 [AMP]:

Did that which is good [the Law], then become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, in order that it might be revealed as sin, was producing death in me by [using] this good thing [as a weapon], so that through the commandment sin would become exceedingly sinful.​

So here is the Bible reference for the term 'sin is exceedingly sinful'--meaning you are desperate to be free of it. This begs the question if you have had sin revealed as sin through almost dying to it. If you haven't had the experience of sin 'producing death in me', then this topic is a foolish one. ...o0(I'm alright. You-know-who really ought to read this.) Um, if you are reading this, then this awareness-building topic is really meant for you.

Mature Christians understand the damage sin does. That's not to say we spend all of our time thinking about it. When we come across it in our own lives, we don't make excuses for it. It's not comfortable to come into the Presence of God knowing that we have had pride or taken advantage of someone or told a half-truth or maybe even didn't return a shopping cart to the grocery store parking lot corral. We know we need God--in we go.

Here is one of the things that I had to confess to God just today. I didn't respond to an inbox message and let that person hanging wondering what was going on until they wrote me back asking if I was okay. No bueno. I apologized to that person and to the LORD. THis is not the only thing that was a conviction in my spirit. I haven't spent as much time with my youngest daughter as needed. So forth and so on. The point of such soul-searching is to invite God to help me realize that these patterns are 'not me'. I did them. Yes. But my identity is to be like Jesus..

In Romans 7:14-15 [AMP]:

We know that the Law is spiritual, but I am a creature of the flesh [worldly, self-reliant—carnal and unspiritual], sold into slavery to sin [and serving under its control]. For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled and bewildered by them]. I do not practice what I want to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate [and yielding to my human nature, my worldliness—my sinful capacity].​

Here is where Paul reveals the power of identity. Paul shows us how he sees his life. Paul is not his human nature. Paul is spirit living in a life that has a sinful capacity separate from his spirit. How do you define your life?

Romans 7:16-17 [AMP]:

Now if I habitually do what I do not want to do, [that means] I agree with the Law, confessing that it is good (morally excellent). So now [if that is the case, then] it is no longer I who do it [the disobedient thing which I despise], but the sin [nature] which lives in me.​

If you want to be free from domination of sin in your life, here is step one. Disengage your identity from it. You may still have it in your life, but you won't be saying these sorts of things:
I am.... anxious....
I am ... depressed..
This is just how I roll.
Nobody is perfect.
If you don't start nothing, there won't be nothing. [sorry, even if you are alone, there is still a sin nature to contend with.]
Do what feels good.

when sin is exceedingly sinful for me is when it has been revealed to me "as sin" and i have been brought to repentance and the practice of that things has ceased fully ceased in my life .(and this is a reality in so many areas and ever increasingly so ) then, that sin to me become exceedingly wicked for it would be a knowledgeable act of my own will to go back into the practice of it ,(it would be impossible for me to o back and renege on repentance since it is the holy Spirit who dwells within me which revealed it as sin to me and led me to repent . thus what was sinful ,to me ,has become exceedingly sinful.

only those who have truly repented of sins they know to be sin really get that .

i would say more but-perhaps when im back .

 

[Farine]

when sin is exceedingly sinful for me is when it has been revealed to me "as sin" and i have been brought to repentance and the practice of that things has ceased fully ceased in my life .(and this is a reality in so many areas and ever increasingly so ) then, that sin to me become exceedingly wicked for it would be a knowledgeable act of my own will to go back into the practice of it ,(it would be impossible for me to o back and renege on repentance since it is the holy Spirit who dwells within me which revealed it as sin to me and led me to repent . thus what was sinful ,to me ,has become exceedingly sinful.

only those who have truly repented of sins they know to be sin really get that .

i would say more but-perhaps when im back .

Hello Zayin! Welcome to the topic! You're right. Only those people who have struggled to NOT SIN understand the grip of it. Only those who have felt the grip appreciate the release. The goal of the discussion is to encourage those who read to investigate and grab ahold of the 'inheritance of the saints'.... the power of the Kingdom of GOD for the renewal of the soul. Yup. Ya got saved. AWESOME! But there's more. And with more folks stepping into the MORE of GOD, there is such joy and peace and love.

Yes I do hope you write more. There are many topics in this discussion at this point. Feel free to reach back and read something else and comment on it. There's no need to limit the discussion to what has just been written.

 

[Farine]

The Uneven Playing Field.

Which group are you in?

Romans 12:3-5 AMP:

For by the grace [of God] given to me I say to everyone of you not to think more highly of himself [and of his importance and ability] than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has apportioned to each a degree of faith [and a purpose designed for service]. For just as in one [physical] body we have many parts, and these parts do not all have the same function or special use, o we, who are many, are [nevertheless just] one body in Christ, and individually [we are] parts one of another [mutually dependent on each other].​

If the Bible says we are supposed to be like the bottom picture, all 'swimming' together--and you know in your heart that you are all doing your own thing--what 'Big Fish' is out there seeking whom he may devour? [1 Peter 5:8]

Life was not meant to be lived as a solo 'fish'. What happens at that point? Life is uneven, more difficult. Romans 12 goes on immediately after verse 5 to discuss how gifts and talents are meant to be shared. As a 50 year old, I have never seen more detached people in my life! Saying that the Bible is the Word of GOD while not doing it is not recommended.

1 Corinthians 6:12 AMP:

[ The Body Is the Lord’s ] Everything is permissible for me, but not all things are beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything [and brought under its power, allowing it to control me].​

So it is possible to 'do you' without consideration of other people's destiny or lack thereof, but how is beneficial? Look around you. How many people moved from one residence to another without help? How many people are sitting in hospital rooms without visitors? How many single mothers have no respite care--parenting without a break! The list goes on and on. WHen people break down because life wore them out, they break down by themselves.

If you have any perceptions of the Kingdom of God, if any still small voice is audible to your inner man, you should feel the oppression of this generation on your spirit. These are not times to be following Jesus alone. If you are reading this and saying to yourself that you would like to fellowship, but don't know who.. inbox me. I mean that. May the Spirit of God lead you to fellow Saints so you can be refreshed and be refreshing to others. Amen and amen!

 

[Gideons300]

The Uneven Playing Field.

View attachment 190695 Which group are you in?

Romans 12:3-5 AMP:

For by the grace [of God] given to me I say to everyone of you not to think more highly of himself [and of his importance and ability] than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has apportioned to each a degree of faith [and a purpose designed for service]. For just as in one [physical] body we have many parts, and these parts do not all have the same function or special use, o we, who are many, are [nevertheless just] one body in Christ, and individually [we are] parts one of another [mutually dependent on each other].​

If the Bible says we are supposed to be like the bottom picture, all 'swimming' together--and you know in your heart that you are all doing your own thing--what 'Big Fish' is out there seeking whom he may devour? [1 Peter 5:8]

Life was not meant to be lived as a solo 'fish'. What happens at that point? Life is uneven, more difficult. Romans 12 goes on immediately after verse 5 to discuss how gifts and talents are meant to be shared. As a 50 year old, I have never seen more detached people in my life! Saying that the Bible is the Word of GOD while not doing it is not recommended.

1 Corinthians 6:12 AMP:

[ The Body Is the Lord’s ] Everything is permissible for me, but not all things are beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything [and brought under its power, allowing it to control me].​

So it is possible to 'do you' without consideration of other people's destiny or lack thereof, but how is beneficial? Look around you. How many people moved from one residence to another without help? How many people are sitting in hospital rooms without visitors? How many single mothers have no respite care--parenting without a break! The list goes on and on. WHen people break down because life wore them out, they break down by themselves.

If you have any perceptions of the Kingdom of God, if any still small voice is audible to your inner man, you should feel the oppression of this generation on your spirit. These are not times to be following Jesus alone. If you are reading this and saying to yourself that you would like to fellowship, but don't know who.. inbox me. I mean that. May the Spirit of God lead you to fellow Saints so you can be refreshed and be refreshing to others. Amen and amen!

You know I am in agreement with you. Where tuo are coming from is truth indeed.

But at the same time, let's remember rhe children of Israel in the wilderness. The spies sent by Moses have returned from spying out the land of promise. We are remember the story, don't we?Ten spies came back, terrified. Giants in the land. Now God had promised them victory anyway, giants or no giants. Every step they took would be their possession. But the spies were looking with eyes of the flesh.

Two spies, Joshua and Caleb had a different story. They simply believed their God. And so they stated their case before the people. "We are well able to take the land, because God has given it to us." Do we all remember that too?

And what were the results? To a man, the entire group of God's chosen people saw rheir hearts melt within them. Their fear overtook their faith. Their sheep tendencies ruled over their desire to follow the shepherd. And all
600,000 souls, save two, died in the wilderness, never enjoying the promises God had clearly made them.

Yes, Juline, its is critical that we as God's people not try to be "one man armies". We NEED each other. I know I do. But if it means we have to cast truth aside, for the sake of fellowship, it is far better off to cling to Jesus, even if He temporarily leads us into the valley alone. Why? Because the truth is, we are not alone at all.

My prayer, my earnest plea is that God awakens us all, even if it is slow and one by one. It makes the fellowship that ensues from stepping out in faith, no matter who goes with us, that much sweeter when we are joined by others.

But until then, let us remember thst Jesus plus one solitary weak but believing soul is a majority. On judgement day, those who surrounded us, making us feel confident because of their sheer numbers, will not be there. It will be us and God.

And the books will be opened.....

Farine, I hope you are not offended by this somewhat of a tangent on what you are sharing. Yes, we are one as the body. We need one snother. Amen and amen. But we need one another to be believing the promises of God as we seek His face with all that is within us.

If not, we will simply follow in the path of the 599,998 Israelites whose bones were bleached white in the wilderness, far, far short of the land of promise.

Blessings, and thank you for the fellowship you have offered me so many times in the past. I so look forward to more in the future Your heart is the heart of God. True fellowship is an amazing and rare thing, and I for one am thankful beyond words.

Blessings,

Gideon

 

[Farine]

Where's The Fruit?

On January 10th, 1984, this Wendy's commercial aired.

This will bring back memories for some people. The pop culture picked up on the theme of "Where's the beef?" Now you can catch the reference to today's topic. Aside from being in escrow on my move which pulled me in several directions, the fact that Gideon's post was the last statement for several days with no response from anyone illustrates something quite profound.

Lack of fruit.

Please do not be concerned about what I think. We are all too concerned about what fellow human beings think or feel or want.

This is what God says.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.​

I do not cut down and throw anything into the fire.

If your life is missing the grace-empowered fruit of the Spirit from the list in Galatians 5, pay attention. This silence of a godly discussion is not good. But I am bearing fruit in other places, so my heart is at peace. I may sound like Paul, pressed into boasting in 2 Corinthians 10, to show that the power of God is with me to produce effective help in the lives of other people. Verse 7 of that chapter has these fateful words: 'You are judging by appearances." I would say this is happening in this discussion.

The supply of the Kingdom of God is still available...

 

[Gideons300]

Where's The Fruit?

On January 10th, 1984, this Wendy's commercial aired.

This will bring back memories for some people. The pop culture picked up on the theme of "Where's the beef?" Now you can catch the reference to today's topic. Aside from being in escrow on my move which pulled me in several directions, the fact that Gideon's post was the last statement for several days with no response from anyone illustrates something quite profound.

Lack of fruit.

Please do not be concerned about what I think. We are all too concerned about what fellow human beings think or feel or want.

This is what God says.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.​

I do not cut down and throw anything into the fire.

If your life is missing the grace-empowered fruit of the Spirit from the list in Galatians 5, pay attention. This silence of a godly discussion is not good. But I am bearing fruit in other places, so my heart is at peace. I may sound like Paul, pressed into boasting in 2 Corinthians 10, to show that the power of God is with me to produce effective help in the lives of other people. Verse 7 of that chapter has these fateful words: 'You are judging by appearances." I would say this is happening in this discussion.

The supply of the Kingdom of God is still available...

I think a lot of people will read this exhortation and hear "You ought to be bearing fruit!". And why do we react when something like this is presented?

It is simply because the exhortation is heard with fleshly ears. We automatically assume that is we are lacking, it is up to us to fix it. I mean how else will it be fixed? We are wrong.

If we read firther into Christ's words, here is what He tells us.

"Either male the tree good, or male the tree evil."

You see,after all is said and done, our lack of fruit is but the symptom of the real problem. We can try to fix the symptom, but until we get to the root of the issue, we will end up just as fruitless, but a whole lot more frustrated.

Listen. The solution to our lack of fruit is not to make fruit. If that was the case, would we not have already done so? The fact that this fruitlessness plagues the entire body of Christ ought to be a clue to is that something else is the issue here.

And what is that issue? It indeed is a root issue, no pun intended. It is simply that we are not rooted properly into Jesus. After all, He promised that if we abode in Him, and Him in us, we will bear MUCH fruit! Amazing God!

Now this answer stirs up all sorts of angst within us. We do not like to think we are "doing our Christianity wrong". Some here will stop reading at this point of introspection and switch their ears to the OFF position. But there is a wonderful blessing hidden in this challenging statement. Do we not get it?

God is the one who is responsible for producing fruit in us!

And if we fix that which is preventing that blessing from taking place, we will marvel at what God does in us. Family, friends, co-workers, they will all see the change. It will be evident to even the dullard. But the ones most shorcked, surprised and blessed by this cornucopia of fruitfulness..... lofe, joy, peace, patience... self control?? US.

So what is the secret we have overlooked? Look back at the words of Jesus. He does not tell us to BE fruitful. No. He tells us to make out tree good. Huge difference.

You see, inside us, at our core, either beats the nature of a man controlled by self, bound to sin and to this world, or a nature of a child of God that is FREE INDEED, fertile soil waiting for God to grow fruit in it. We are told that we are no longer in the flesh. Though we still live in fleshly tents, our Spirits are not who we once WERE. No, guys. We are new. We were given new natures the day we were born again. The old carnal us died.

So why is it not working if this is the case? If rhe old us is really dead, why are we still so selfish, so weak towards sin, so tempted by things of the world? Simple. Possessing robes of righteousness and putting them on are two different things. When Jesus tells us to make our tree good, He is not exhorting us to work harder, but to simply believe the truth of who we are in Him.

Oh, we have believed but half of the gospel. Yes, Jesus died for our sins. Ues, we are forgiven. But fruit does not grow in the soil of thankfulness. It grows in the soil of faith alone. He has assuredrhe old us died when He died. And more, that He now lives IN us to change us into His likeness. He promises it! Glory!

So how do we get a grip on our lives and walk out our Chrisitanity as Jesus wants us to do? We give up ever trying to wrestle our old natures into submission. They will not go quietly into the night. There is but one way. The biblical way. We must reckon them dead, not slowly dying. We must put on our new natures by a radical act of faith alone. That is how we make our trees good.

And when we do so, taking a stand against the accusations of the enemy, holding up our shields of faith that it really is no longer us that live, but Christ who now lives in us, trusting that God will do His part and make us fruitful and lead us to fully experience what FREE INDEED looks and feels like, praise God, the mother of all paradigm shifts occurs.

Joy and prace flood in like a river, and living water washes over all rhe little seeds of the fruits of the Spirit God has already planted in our new natures. And bless God, thry begin to swell and germinate.

Our mustard seed faith was just enough, and soon, to our amazement, our fruitful orchard of God's holy character in us will begin to bear fruits, fruits we once thought impossible.

It is coming. We who are His are being awakened to this very truth. All who love the Lord will come to the place of reckoning their old man dead. Some will come quickly, and some will take a bit longer befre they admit that in them, they have NO strength.

But let all know this, before the Lord comes, every sheep will hear rhe glorious good new of the gospel, that God not only calls us to holiness, but He also indwells us and in so doing actually "causes us" to walk in joyful obedience. Guys, that is something to ahout about.

Blessings to all, and Juline, thank you for being so faithful in this post.

Gideon

 

[Farine]

God is the one who is responsible for producing fruit in us!

In the acknowledgement of my agreement with Gideon, I could write a novella. I'm settling for a short quote with a short reply in the hopes that others will study his response in detail as someone who has experienced the transformation from white-knuckled, self-based goodness to the glorious freedom of BEING GOOD through the outworking of the Holy Spirit. This is real. This is what you are meant to have. Don't settle.

 

[Farine]

Why People Find God's Way Distasteful.

The Latin of the root word 'Decision' literally means 'to cut off'. A decision to follow Jesus through life includes the cutting off of your old life in the flesh as explained by Gideon. There are more reasons why people find God's Way displeasing.

Here is a short list.

They want to decide to not decide.
They dislike pain of any kind.
Service? No thank you.
Why do they have to worship?
Jesus' Name is offensive.
They are not interested in being tested for genuine faith.

We understand in a primal way that gravity exists. We operate always being aware of that downward pressure on our bodies. In the same way that gravity holds us to earth, God's holiness and goodness holds us to a moral standard that He maintains from Heaven. Reviewing that list of objections must include the consequences for holding any one of those perspectives as the final answer.

1) The Fate of Fence-sitters.
Sorry, this category does not exist. The endgame of the decision to not decide is to refuse the adoption invitation to be in God's family and to be excluded from the Righteous-by-Faith. It is eternal separation from God.

2) The Constant Search for Comfort

We give up ever trying to wrestle our old natures into submission. They will not go quietly into the night.

Hey, following Jesus is **not** comfortable. NEXT!

3) The Wannabe Prince or Princess
Oh, the marketing folks must love you! They stroke that sensation that your life needs this or that. Service is a necessary part of growing spiritually. I hate to break the news to you this way. You are promoted in the Kingdom of God through service. If you do not serve, you have low position or (gulp) possibly no position in the Kingdom of God when Jesus comes to establish His rule on earth.

4) Church is Boring!
Ok, maybe church has entertainment deficits. Entertainment is not the goal here. God is worthy to be worshiped and outside of the hour long service too. God formed us for worship and His good pleasure. Worship releases blessings too, and brings you into God's Presence where there is fullness of Joy. To pull back from fully adoring and enjoying God is to worship something else. Man is a creature that worships SOMETHING.

5) Baa! I'm a sheep!
Flocking behavior .. er.. peer pressure.. is a big reason people pull back from the offensive reactions to the Name of Jesus. Oh wait, let's also mention the generic spiritual words like 'God'.. 'Universe".. or the other associated words like 'Blessings", "Faith" or "Love" and watch people try to keep mankind's approval.

6) Skipping Class!
The Light of Truth reveals many to be missing important spiritual qualities. Let's take love for such a deficit. 1 Corinthians 13 states that if your life is missing love, your life is wasted. Um, were you hoping to get all the way to the Divine Reckoning without that being revealed? Isn't it grace to have that particular matter established while you STILL HAD TIME to fix it? Stop playing.. Get serious. Anyone who has genuinely encountered God understands the importance of being taught and passing one's tests.

 

[Farine]

Defending the Dream.

In the children's book 'What do you do with an idea?" by Kobi Yamada, a boy has an idea, represented by a walking egg. We start here with the acknowledgement of the author.

Godly dreams while similar to ideas in their ability to pull deep responses from us, have supernatural backing. God really wants to see these goals manifested in our lives. Again, this is a topic pulled from the newsroom of living. There are several areas of ministry that I dream about. These dreams seem as fragile as a raw egg. One of my dreams is about Kenya and my friend Emily who started INSPIRE Youth and Children's Organization. When Emily and I compared our dreams, we found almost a perfect match. We saw a plot of land which divided between the teaching arm of INSPIRE and the entrepreneurial arm of INSPIRE with teaching gardens and other facilities like an aquaponics greenhouse.

One dream is about the United States and it features a small acreage that would legally be permitted for a cluster of tiny houses. There are locked sheds for communal storage like for bicycles and often used tools. There are other amenities which foster community among the residents and allow for participation based on preferences.

Here are just a couple of dreams. What happens in life when you dream? Someone comes along with a sledgehammer, right?
Someone in the guise of being helpful points out problems that mean those dreams will never happen.

Godly dreams are tougher than they look. This week Emily tried hard to get her passport because she's been sponsored to come to the United States in the first three weeks of May. Five times she has made the arduous and somewhat dangerous trip to Nairobi to visit the governmental offices to obtain this. Five times she has been turned away without it. The fifth time, she finally discovered that no employee had even begun the paperwork. But this fifth time, she had a helpful member of the staff actually commit to working on her file. The whole time, I've been in prayer for her to obtain this passport. I want her to come to the States because I believe that's part of the dream.

As far as the dream for the tiny house community that it is resting in my soul, next to the dream of being an author and across the way from the dream of seeing people released into "Free Indeed", I'm relying on God to help me see these matters to completion. I was told recently by a critic that I don't even know how to speak English. This critic implies my communication is so sloppy and frustrating to listen to that I should just not talk. At all. If I receive that criticism into my heart, there is the distinct sound of shattering glass as my author dream breaks.

This would be a good place to warn would-be critics about swinging anything hard near someone's godly dream. It's not the dreamer you have to worry about. It's the BIG GOD standing behind the dreamer that requires your attention. There is a long dialogue from the book of Ezekiel where God addresses this kind of behavior. Ezekiel 34:17-20 NIV:

“‘As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?​

“‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another. I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the Lord have spoken.​

 

[Farine]

Discussion update:

As our date towards a final move-out deadline nears there may be few posts. I will still endeavor to be present especially if someone posts or asks a question. Today's conversations with family members reveals the differences in how guided we are versus most of the population. I was closely examined by relatives. They were full of all kinds of doubts and reservations and fears and so forth. I am not full of these kinds of concerns.

So as you go through your own particular brand of challenge (and no one is spared), keep in mind that God meant for you to thrive.. to have life and have that more abundant. God bless all you readers out there. I will be back in a day or two!
Farine

 

[Gideons300]

Discussion update:

As our date towards a final move-out deadline nears there may be few posts. I will still endeavor to be present especially if someone posts or asks a question. Today's conversations with family members reveals the differences in how guided we are versus most of the population. I was closely examined by relatives. They were full of all kinds of doubts and reservations and fears and so forth. I am not full of these kinds of concerns.

So as you go through your own particular brand of challenge (and no one is spared), keep in mind that God meant for you to thrive.. to have life and have that more abundant. God bless all you readers out there. I will be back in a day or two!
Farine

My dear sister in the Lord, I want to offer up prayers for you in your time of being "stretched" into being a bigger you. From my own experiences, although these times are often not what one would consider 'pleasant', they do yield a bigger basket to hold more fish, so to speak. Your basket is simply being expanded.

I marvel somewhat at the words Jesus once spoke. See whst you think:

"When the son of man returns, shall He find faith on the earth?"

Why do I marvel? Because we have overlooked this passage and what it is telling us. Faith..... real God pleasing faith is rare. Lest we forget, out of 600,000 that were miraculously delivered and made the exodus from the bondage of Egypt, only two souls had faith. Two. The others, although children, never set foot inside the promised land. They had faith enough to leave bondage. That is often easy. But they did not have the rarer type of faith, the fairh to enter freedom.

The faith to get saved is often more about us than God. We know we are sinners. Sinners go to hell. We do not want to go to hell. So we reach out blindly to God to save us. And He does. But God is not finished with our faith. He wants to dwell in our hearts, closer than a brother, and He dwells there.....by faith! He wants us to be freed from the power of darkness, and to make us overcomers so that we might reign over the power that the world, the flesh and the devil exercises over us. That too is done by faith. He wants the fruits of the Spirit to abound in our lives. Yup. That too is done by faith.

What we have failed to understand is that our small mustard seed faith when we first came to Him is meant to GROW. Our entire walk in Him is not a static, 'get saved once and you're in' occurance. It is a walk, where our faith is tested, exercised. It starts small, a tiny seed. It does not stay a tiny seed. It ends up a large tree, big enough that others can be blessed by it.

And what is this faith growing process called? It is called our good fight of faith. We each have a battle ahead of us. Some.... a few... are In the midst of the fray. But sadly, many are still at the starting line, wondering "Is that all? Get saved, go to church, try to 'be good', read your Bible, pray? Is it any wonder sheep are losing heart?

For countless millions, they have escaped the bondage of Egypt, but do not even know of the walk God has for us, right here, right now. And what is this blessing we have, up till now, been blinded to? It is the glory of walking in the rest of God, where He overshadows us with His wing, transforms us from lumps of raw clsy into vessels fit for His use, delivers us fully from the old us that loves things He does not, and causes us to walk pleasing to Him.

But praise God, all that is about to change. We are about to be awakened to what real faith is, and the glorious part is that all He asks is that we exercise the tiny mustard seed of faith He had aleady granted us and step out and believe His every word.

I used to think that beyond faith for salvation, theye was only one more 'rung', and that was laying hands on those dying of ilnesses. Early in my walk I actually tried. Crickets in heaven. Embarrasment on earth. I did not yet understand that I had to kill doubts in my heart about ME before I could ever truly believe for others.

Farine, times like these that you are walking through often seem like hinderences to ministry. There is no glory in the challenge of the mundane. We want bigger battles. But God knows that it is in these little battles that our faith is tested, that our swords are sharpened, that our shields are made stronger, that our baskets are expanded. Keep on. God is with you.

I pray we all, myself at the head of the line, see more clearly that the only way we can truly please our Father is to believe Him, regardless of the circumstance, regardless of the impossibility. Let us remind one another, He is the God who cannot lie. CANNOT.

May we all see that of all the sins we may commit, the one most grievous to God is unbelief. He knows that in us... our old nature.... nothing good dwells. Nothing we conjure up from our flesh-ruled imaginations surprises or shocks Him. But unbelief is different. It calls HIS character into question.... HIS faithfulness to do what He has promised to us as His children. Unbelief is character assasination of God.

I do not want to be another Thomas, one who fully believes only when my eyes finally behold my Jesus returning on His white horse. More than anything else in this life, I want to please Him by believing Him, and what He has promised.

There is no doubt that many of the things He has promised us seem flat out impossible. But Peter tells us this about His promises and the true benefit of our believing them, regardless of their seeming impossibility :

"Wherefore are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these (the promises), you might be partakers of the divine nature".

2 Peter 1:4

Do we get it, finally really GET IT?. This is how we are transformed from sinner to saint. We believe thst we receive His character.... now. We believe that the old us is dead, not slowly dying. Our God, our patient, merciful and longsuffering God, is about to awaken us to the power of faith that will let us flee the road TO holiness and set our feet on the highway OF holiness. The glory of God is about to overtake a church who for the most part, is quite content ot not be overtaken. But God will do so regardless, praise God. That is how much He truly loves us.

Be not dismayed, dear weak ones. Your weakness is a hidden blessing, for it is when we finally understand how weak we truly are, and that we need a miracle to walk pleasing to Him, that we finally will awake to how easy it is to please God. He wants to transform us, and liberate us from our old fleshly self ruled natures. All He asks is for us to want it.

The Lord knew the answer to the question He asked above. He will indeed find true faith on the earth when He returns. The bride will not be found groveling in her threadbare soiled robes of religion and going-though-the-motions Christianity. No, no. She will be adorned in splendor, beauty for ashes, fully prepared to meet her beloved.

We are not there yet, but thank God, we are beginning to awaken, and what we shall shortly see will be nothing less than life from the dead. The trial of our faith, basket stretching as I call it, will yield in eternal weight of glory in us. All we have to do is stand in trust that our God not only can make us holy, and wholly His, but WILL!

Be blessed dear sister. My prayers are with you. You dreams are God inspired.

Gideon

 

[Alithis]

Why People Find God's Way Distasteful.

The Latin of the root word 'Decision' literally means 'to cut off'. A decision to follow Jesus through life includes the cutting off of your old life in the flesh as explained by Gideon. There are more reasons why people find God's Way displeasing.

Here is a short list.

They want to decide to not decide.
They dislike pain of any kind.
Service? No thank you.
Why do they have to worship?
Jesus' Name is offensive.
They are not interested in being tested for genuine faith.

We understand in a primal way that gravity exists. We operate always being aware of that downward pressure on our bodies. In the same way that gravity holds us to earth, God's holiness and goodness holds us to a moral standard that He maintains from Heaven. Reviewing that list of objections must include the consequences for holding any one of those perspectives as the final answer.

1) The Fate of Fence-sitters.
Sorry, this category does not exist. The endgame of the decision to not decide is to refuse the adoption invitation to be in God's family and to be excluded from the Righteous-by-Faith. It is eternal separation from God.

2) The Constant Search for Comfort

Hey, following Jesus is **not** comfortable. NEXT!

3) The Wannabe Prince or Princess
Oh, the marketing folks must love you! They stroke that sensation that your life needs this or that. Service is a necessary part of growing spiritually. I hate to break the news to you this way. You are promoted in the Kingdom of God through service. If you do not serve, you have low position or (gulp) possibly no position in the Kingdom of God when Jesus comes to establish His rule on earth.

4) Church is Boring!
Ok, maybe church has entertainment deficits. Entertainment is not the goal here. God is worthy to be worshiped and outside of the hour long service too. God formed us for worship and His good pleasure. Worship releases blessings too, and brings you into God's Presence where there is fullness of Joy. To pull back from fully adoring and enjoying God is to worship something else. Man is a creature that worships SOMETHING.

5) Baa! I'm a sheep!
Flocking behavior .. er.. peer pressure.. is a big reason people pull back from the offensive reactions to the Name of Jesus. Oh wait, let's also mention the generic spiritual words like 'God'.. 'Universe".. or the other associated words like 'Blessings", "Faith" or "Love" and watch people try to keep mankind's approval.

6) Skipping Class!
The Light of Truth reveals many to be missing important spiritual qualities. Let's take love for such a deficit. 1 Corinthians 13 states that if your life is missing love, your life is wasted. Um, were you hoping to get all the way to the Divine Reckoning without that being revealed? Isn't it grace to have that particular matter established while you STILL HAD TIME to fix it? Stop playing.. Get serious. Anyone who has genuinely encountered God understands the importance of being taught and passing one's tests.

Hello Farine ..missed ya. I was another enforced break lol. Ouhh the persecution lol.
As always i enjoyed browsing through.
On the topic of “church” is boring...
That ones going to grab my attention of course.
But how would i broach such a topic here ? Its both simple and complex.
Sometimes its best to take another tact along the same narrow path. So i will.
I believe that to convince ONE thourougly is far more effectual then the trying to attempt the masses partially.
I trust you may do me the honour of recieving this advice of action.
Read 2 books im now recommending ..the 2nd because i think you WILL pass it on to others aftr you read it. The first because i believe you (and my good bro Bruce (gid..) will greatly benifit from it.
The two books are.
The Last Reformation .&
Sound Doctrine. Both by Torban Sondergaard. Both FREE in ebook and audio book. Both EXTREMELY challanging stiring goading and provoking.- and now proven by signs wonders and miricles multitudes being saved and going out to save others .
-it would do me a great honour if you and gidion would at the very least consider reading them . and not form opinions based upon others opinions but pray and then read them for yourselves. thelastreformation.com / rescources...books ，youll find them.

My update in way of sharing is that we are now free having begun in earnest the untangling of the worlds weeds that made us so unfruitful in time past.we have sold our house ，final move out tomorrow.and fly first to the philppines to see my wifes family then sth phillpines to encourage and diciple a couple and to gather and train some more and as always Go out and find sick to pray with and heal，drive out devils preach the gospel... It is now what we commit our life to doing for Jesus..and he is with us.
On friday morning a lady from the churched system phones us..the lord had been speaking to her heart. In many years of church attendance it came to her from the lord that she was not yet saved. And she desired soo strongly to be baptized in water. She could get no rest about it. For year she had asked 3 churched system leaders and been refused. So she heard of our venture in fiji and that we baptise repentant people and called us. We dropped everthing and went to her house. We layed hands on her and prayed. A demon manifested and screamed and came out.them we filled the bath and baptized her in obedience to JESUS .she recieved freedom and spoke in tongues and is very joyful now. She also was going to the Dr later that day because of limps inside her throat.so we commanded healing in Jesus name .Praise GOD she messaged us later and said they are gone ，dr could find nothing.shes healed. The days before that ..the 2nd to last day of my wordly employ i got to share the whole gospel with 3 customers the last of them iprayed with and she was touched powerfully by the holy spirit. I hope to share more with her because we dont do or stop at the sinners prayer but deliver ALL the gospel..repent be baptised recieve the holy ghost.... all of it. We dont desire to bring forth still borns who die in church pews.
So our life is very full of vision at present (and battle )but the lord jesus is strong in us and we learn to abide in him. Knowing and doing his will is easier then we thought.. It just Do what he says. and he shows up and honours HIS word.

 

[Farine]

I marvel somewhat at the words Jesus once spoke. See whst you think:

"When the son of man returns, shall He find faith on the earth?"

Why do I marvel? Because we have overlooked this passage and what it is telling us. Faith..... real God pleasing faith is rare.

This particular phrase struck me because God has been revealing this to me in my prayer time.

Matthew 4:24-25 NIV:

News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.​

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 NIV:

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried,that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.​

In the first reference, there really wasn't a way to effectively number how many people were present. When it came time to reinforce the faith of the 'brothers and sisters' after the resurrection, there is about five hundred people. What happened to the rest? They were healed of various diseases. They saw the demon-possessed set free. This wasn't like anything they had ever experienced. That was enough to get them in motion but not enough to get them to believe.

Jesus was constantly looking for faith. From the Centurion in Matthew 8:10:

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.​

Responding to His own disciples. Matthew 8:28 NIV:

He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid? Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.​

What do you believe?

 

[Farine]

Hello Farine ..missed ya. I was another enforced break lol. Ouhh the persecution lol. As always i enjoyed browsing through.

Now I know to pause a moment to pray when I detect an 'enforced break'. Thank you for your kindness that this discussion is useful. The reference to the books are retained for that time after the move when I can focus.

I believe that to convince ONE thourougly is far more effectual then the trying to attempt the masses partially.

It's funny that you say this because God's leadership presented this to me as my assignment and I didn't get it for a long, long time. The one-on-one aspect also builds up the one who is helping. The amount of learning is off the chart. Digging deep into my faith, prayer life, worship, warfare.. you name it was part of the assignment. A lot of what is in Truth is truth was part of just another day on the job for the LORD.

If someone has a partial understanding, this is a very vulnerable position for themselves and whomever they come into contact with.

Once the Holy Spirit has remade the person, there is a huge burst of productivity and joy and desire to express what this experience has meant for them. I've just recently seen someone remade through the power of God. It is awesome and glorious! Thank YOU LORD! You have several accounts not only in this post but many others reaching back as you shared your ministry here.

On friday morning a lady from the churched system phones us..the lord had been speaking to her heart. In many years of church attendance it came to her from the lord that she was not yet saved. And she desired soo strongly to be baptized in water. She could get no rest about it. For year she had asked 3 churched system leaders and been refused. So she heard of our venture in fiji and that we baptise repentant people and called us. We dropped everthing and went to her house. We layed hands on her and prayed. A demon manifested and screamed and came out.them we filled the bath and baptized her in obedience to JESUS .she recieved freedom and spoke in tongues and is very joyful now.

This is real. This is currently happening. On Friday morning... If you are reading this, a decision is before you. Do you accept that these kinds of events happen in our day? I'm not interested in building your knowledge if it just stays in your head. There is about 13 inches between your head and your heart.

I hope to share more with her because we dont do or stop at the sinners prayer but deliver ALL the gospel..repent be baptised recieve the holy ghost.... all of it. We dont desire to bring forth still borns who die in church pews.

The reason why I'm still writing on Truth is Truth is because I believe that you, the Reader, can believe .. all the gospel.. repent.. be baptized .. receive the Holy Ghost.. as Alithis says.. all of it. I want you to have God's Best. (And yes, a partial response is very unwise. ) I believe you do want all of it. We have struggles, but we have great joy, peace and love.. we are effective in our lives. You are meant to have life, and that more abundant.

 

[Alithis]

To clarify - enforced break. I meant from CF.
I posted strong godly advice to a user.
But due to the nature of the system the post was in a teen only section . Such segregation is prohibitive.but anyway...I'm back lol.