 “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:5-11 (NLT).
As a believer, you already have the mind of Christ, which is the ability to have His perspective in your daily life. You also have the ability and mandate to have the attitude of Christ. As the 2nd Person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ is Yahweh, the only one and true God. Before Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, He was infinitely higher in position than any created being. This is why it is so amazing that Jesus Christ had a humble attitude of service to mankind. He was God and did not hold onto His divine privileges. Instead, He took a humble position of a slave and was born into the human family. He humbled Himself and obeyed the Father in every way, perfectly fulfilling the law of God on our behalf. But, Jesus didn’t stop there. He further humbled Himself to be falsely and unjustly accused, beaten, shamed, rejected, mocked, and crucified. It is because of His humility all of the way to death that you have been given eternal life. Part of living in grace is emulating the attitude of Jesus Christ and giving up privilege to serve others. “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.” 1 John 2:6 (NLT). Humility doesn’t require others to wash your feet, but rather seeks to serve others in meaningful ways. “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.” Philippians 2:3 (NLT). Ambition and selfishness are usually rooted in personal pride. Humility is the opposite of pride, so it produces an attitude that seeks what’s best for other people. Think about your expectations for yourself and others. Are you motivated by pride? Are you dependent on the respect of others to feel valued? Surrender pride and position to Jesus and follow His example of leadership by serving others. True leadership is equipping and serving others. “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Ephesians 5:1-2 (NIV). When you were given grace to become a believer, you were given every spiritual blessing in Jesus Christ. One of those blessings is the ability and desire to follow God’s example and live in the paths of love, just like Jesus did. Who in your life is a challenge to love? What sacrifice can you make to be kind to someone who is generally unkind to you? "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32 (NIV). “Give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Ephesians 5:20-21 (NLT). To submit to others means to humbly accept them as worth your attention and to listen to them. Mutual submission requires a combination of respect, humility and trust. To live like this, you must have the attitude of Jesus Christ, which is to consider others worthy of your love and service. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 (NKJV). Are you willing to set aside your pride and serve others? “All of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.’ So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.” 1 Peter 5:5b-6 (NLT). If you choose humility, God will honor you. Prayer: “Heavenly Father, It is very difficult for me to trust You enough to let go of my pride. Help me to be like Jesus and trust You to raise me up and fulfill my need for significance. Help me to be humble and lift others up, even when it means that I am seen as a servant. In Jesus’s name, amen.”
0 Comments
 “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’ So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:26-28 (NKJV).
All of humanity's worth flows from God. He made us in His image and gave us authority and stewardship over all of the things that God has put into our spheres of influence. You are God's steward, given authority to take dominion and steward the creation that God has placed around you. You are created to steward yourself, your gifts, your talents, your family and your job, to name just a few things. Notice that your worth is not dependent on how you steward. This is because your worth is dependent on God’s creative purpose. God decided to make you worth more than any other created thing because He decided to make you in His image. David wrote Psalm eight from the perspective of how worthless he felt. “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,” Psalm 8:4-6 (ESV). Often, we can judge our worth by how small we feel in the universe or by how little influence we feel we have. We can look at our social status or at our bank account and feel like we’re not worth very much. What you need to remember is that your circumstances, your mistakes, and your achievements do not define your worth. As a human being, you have significant worth in the universe. You are created in God’s image, a little lower than powerful spiritual rulers. You are crowned with glory and honor. God created you with worth because you’re a human being, made to steward His creation. You carry innate authority, purpose and worth. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV). As a new creation in Christ, you have been remade in the image of God’s Son. As a believer, not only were you born in the image of God, you were reborn into the image of Jesus. Find your worth in this identity. You are a new person made to be like Jesus Christ. God loves you so much that “He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16b (NKJV). Your worth is woven into His love. God is the source of your worth and He thinks you’re worth dying for. So stop trying to find your worth in the acceptance and respect of others. Stop looking for your worth from your accomplishments or social status. Instead, find your worth in who your Heavenly Father says that you are: “But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2:9 (NLT). Your worth comes from God and includes His calling on your life. He has made you in His Son’s image so that you can reflect the Son. Your identity and worth include a specific calling. You respond to this calling by becoming more Christlike. “Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.” Ephesians 4:1-2 (NLT). Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, You have made me in your image and called me your child. You have cleansed me of all of my sin and nailed all of my worthlessness to the cross. Thank you for making me a new person in the image of Jesus. Help me to stop chasing after worth and to realize that I’m already worthy. Please give me the strength, health, and guidance to live my life worthy of Your calling. In Jesus’s name, amen.  “While Jesus was here on earth, he offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him.” Hebrews 5:8-9 (NLT).
In Heaven, Jesus already knew everything. However, He had not experienced physical pain, physical suffering or rejection and conflict from the human perspective. To be our Representative, Jesus Christ had to enter into the human experience and become a person. His firsthand understanding of pain, exhaustion, frustration, and temptation qualified Him to be our High Priest. Experiential learning of God’s faithfulness through desperate prayers qualified Jesus to be your Friend who knows your sorrows. “This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.” Hebrews 4:15 (NLT). Jesus understands your weaknesses because He experienced the same trials that you are experiencing. Jesus learned through experience how to see purpose in His trials, how to plead, pray, and trust. Because of His experiences, Jesus knows exactly what you are feeling. He already navigated the same type of trial that you’re in and He knows from experience the way out. In fact, Jesus can show you a way out, so you can endure the trial. “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” 1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT). Jesus will show you the way to endure each trial or temptation. This may be showing you how to trust and obey without feeling God’s presence. It also may be giving you insight into how to persevere, while trusting in God for daily strength. Or, it may be helping you focus on godly pursuits instead of giving in to the temptations. Experiential learning gives you the context for the truths that you already know from the Bible. You already know that God loves you and cares for you. Look back at the many times that you have experienced His love and care. “We understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 2:16b (NLT). Jesus Christ both knows and has experienced the sovereignty, justice and mercy of God. You already have the Word to tell you His perspective. It is through daily life that you experience the perspective of Jesus. As you navigate times of testing, you learn through experience how Jesus felt and thought when He lived on Earth. “All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NLT). One of the beautiful aspects of sharing in the nature of Jesus Christ and being His special creation is that you get to be like Him. He suffered so He could identify with your suffering. He learned through experience how to trust when God seemed distant. He knew from experience how necessary it is to trust and obey and also how rewarding it is, as you experience the joy in God’s presence. He can comfort you because He was comforted. In the same way, you can comfort others with the same comfort that you’ve experientially learned from God’s faithfulness. Prayer: “Heavenly Father, Please be with me through each time of testing. Please give me a sense of your presence and help me to trust in your promises. Comfort me, so that I can comfort others! In Jesus’s name amen.”  “But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:5-8 (NKJV)
As a saint, there is always the hope that a trial will produce Christ’s character. In your spirit, you will be strengthened and grown. In your soul, you will bear the fruit of the Spirit, resulting in righteous lifestyle choices. God’s grace has lifted you from the meaningless estate of being a Hell-bound sinner. His grace has given you the eternal purpose of being a citizen of Heaven. Since you have escaped the futility of the world’s lifestyle, you are now living proof that God’s character has been implanted into your spirit and you are His child. For this very reason, pay attention to your spiritual growth. Paul says that you’ve been made into a new person in Christ and he also says that the Holy Spirit is changing you by gradual stages into a more accurate reflection of Jesus Christ. “And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.” 2 Corinthians 3:18b (NLT). What are the truths that you believe strongly? Think about the love that God has shown you by giving you eternal life and a righteous nature. Since He has made you righteous already, use your trials to practice being a person who exudes good Christlike qualities. Truth is what stabilizes you and sets you free from false identities, sins, and demonic attackers. Read your Bible and increase in knowledge. The more you know, the more you can grow! Read the gospels and see how Jesus used self-control in adversity. Emulate Him and take control of your will. View each of your health challenges and trials as an opportunity to learn perseverance. Perseverance is a muscle that requires you to flex and strain, resulting in incredible resiliency. If you look back at 2 Peter 1:5-8, you’ll see that the pinnacle of spiritual growth is kindness and love. Kindness and love are tested when your health, finances, or relationships are tested. View each trial as an opportunity to become more patient, more kind, more godly and more loving. Don’t give up! Embrace the trial as an opportunity to become more consistently Christlike. There is tremendous grace available when you must learn through experience the goodness and faithfulness of God. Trials are the context for developing your character to be more like Christ, reflecting His characteristics more accurately. Jesus became qualified to be our High Priest because He learned experientially how to go through trials and temptations. He became the perfect Captain because He was tested Himself and found the faith and perseverance. In the book of James, you are urged to view your trials as experiential-learning opportunities to become perfect like Jesus. “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” James 1:2-4 (NLT). What is the purpose of the trial? It is for you to grow your roots down into Jesus and produce His perfect fruits. Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, Teach me to trust you, even when I can’t see your rescue. Show me the ways that you are working in me and in the situations in my life. Give me a thankful heart to recognize and thank you for your provision, your blessings, and your love, despite my difficult circumstances. Fill me with your grace, so that I can grow to be a better reflection of Jesus. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening — it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong.” Hebrews 12:11-13 (NLT).
Two guys go to the gym. One does the least amount possible and just survives the experience. The other person sees the gym as an opportunity and trains. Both people spent time in the gym, but only one was trained. As you look at your opportunities to receiving training in endurance, stamina and character, are you participating or just present? Every believer is a child of God and each has a training regimen that is designed to grow his character and produce Christlikeness. The outcome of the training depends on how you engage with the training. Attitude and participation empower training. Verse twelve basically says, “Stop complaining, stop feeling sorry for yourself. Straighten your back. Flex your spiritual muscles and give your full attention to your training. “It’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living.” Your mental attitude in training is a predictor on how effective the training program will be. In your soul, strengthen your resolve and engage the training. As you look forward, make decisions about your attitude and your actions. Be hopeful and expect growth. Verse thirteen says to clear a path ahead of you, so that you won’t fall and hurt yourself. This means that you must plan your way through this discipline or trial. Shine the light of God’s counsel onto your path forward: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105 (NKJV). Find God’s promises about His faithfulness and strength. Shine those promises onto the landscape of discipline. Adjust your perspective so that you are walking in the joy of His presence and in the strength of His resilience. You CAN do all things through Christ who gives you strength! No discipline is enjoyable but it can produce a peaceful harvest of righteousness. Look through the pain into the loving face of your Father, as He encourages you to respond with a growth mindset. Exercise your spiritual muscles by responding in faith, hope, and expectation for victory. Decide that the battle is worth it. Decide to grow your character through your response to this difficulty. Become more like Christ and produce a harvest of right living, as you choose each day to live in His peace. Say this out loud, “I will stop complaining and feeling sorry for myself. I will engage this training opportunity and grow in maturity. I will choose to see God’s love and provision. I will read His Word. His truth is my reality. I am not a victim. I am an overcomer!” Think about your typical reaction to adversity. Is there an adjustment that you need to make to your response? Consider your current spiritual condition. Are you in a stubborn sin? Could God be targeting some of your spiritual weaknesses and asking you to exercise them? It doesn’t matter why you’re in a trial. What matters is whether you are training and improving in your character. Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, It is very to traverse these trials. Please give me the perspective of hope for becoming more like Jesus in my core personality. Please give me spiritual stamina to handle the adversity and pain. Please give me healing, hope, and wholeness and restore to me the joy of my salvation. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life? If the old way, which brings condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes us right with God! In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way. So if the old way, which has been replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new, which remains forever!” 2 Corinthians 3:7-11 (NLT).
As a believer, you are officially under the New Covenant, which is the new way that makes you right with God. This is why you want to understand grace and live in grace. Grace is the new way. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV). The new way is through the Jesus Christ who said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6b (NKJV). When you come to Jesus who is the new way, you enter into a New Covenant with God. That covenant or promise is that He will justify you because of what Jesus did for you. When you enter into this New Covenant with God, He does everything. You receive it and spend the rest of your life participating in His grace. Every aspect of your life is grace. Grace gives faith. Grace gives forgiveness. Grace gives a new heart. Grace makes you a new creation in Christ. Grace writes God’s laws in your soul and guides you to apply them. Grace comes to you in the form of the Word of God, the fellowship of church, and prayer. All you have to do is choose to participate in this New Way. “The old way, with laws etched in stone, led to death” and … “brings condemnation.” This is because if you come to God through obeying His laws, you will fail. You will fail because when you break one law, you break all of God’s laws. In the old way, it is pass or fail. 100% obedience is a pass. 99% obedience is a fail, which leads to condemnation and eternal death. The old way was glorious because the law comes from God and reflects His holiness. The New Way is overwhelmingly glorious because it comes from God and reflects all of His attributes, from love to justice to holiness to grace. Not only does Jesus absorb all of the condemnation and death from the Old Way, He also gives you all of the acceptance and life of the New Way. When you require yourself to be perfect or obedience to merit God’s acceptance or to feel like a good Christian, you are choosing the Old Way. Instead, choose the New Way and be accepted and a good Christian because that is who Jesus Christ made you to be already. You have been created in grace, so live in grace. Participate in gardening the holiness that has been planted inside of you by the Holy Spirit. He’s planted life inside of you, so life it! Jesus is Life. To live is to be like Jesus. The old way produced death because it was merit-based. The new way produces life because it is based on Jesus’s merit. His life is inside of you. You’re free to live in the glorious new way. Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, I want to live in Your presence. I want to shine with Your holy brightness from the inside out. I reject perfectionism and accept Your grace through Jesus Christ. I accept the commandments that Your Spirit has written into my heart. Please fill me with Your mercy, love, holiness, kindness, justice, and with Your presence. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.” 2 Corinthians 3:16-18 (NLT).
The god of this world is constantly blinding the minds of unbeliever, so that they can’t turn to Christ. Naturally, when an unbeliever hears the truth, they are hardened towards it. It just doesn’t make sense to them. The gospel is simple: Believe and be forever changed. The above verses speak of this change. When you turned to the Lord Jesus, your ability to think truthfully was imparted. You were given the mind of Christ, which means that you can think about each aspect of life from His perspective. Thinking truthfully is the first step in living truthfully. As you live out God’s truths, you demonstrate His wisdom. Wisdom is to apply God’s truth, so as you apply His truth, you demonstrate His thoughts. As you think like Him and make choices that reflect His thinking, you are changed to be more like Him. Without turning to Christ, no one can accurately reflect the image of God. Through the grace of God, the minds of many are released from blindness to see and receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit is the agent in this process, as He draws an unbeliever to Jesus. At the point of conversion, the believer’s mind is suddenly set free and he understands! Suddenly, life starts to make sense and the truth of the Bible becomes very relevant. It is from this awareness of God’s relevant truth, that the sanctification process takes place. Again, the Holy Spirit is the agent who makes us more and more like God. As you experience more grace through the power of the Holy Spirit, your soul increasingly aligns with His spirit. You thinking, emotions, and actions change more and more into a reflection of His glorious Being. “No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us.” 1 John 4:12 (NLT). God is invisible and has only been seen perfectly through Jesus Christ and imperfectly through His saints. What defines His image is love, holiness, and goodness. These three should characterize the believer’s personal culture and daily practices. The world uses manipulation, power, control and corruption to reflect the image of Satan. The church uses love, humility, self-control and righteousness to reflect the image of God. There is a significant amount of manipulation and control in Christian parenting and in church government. These reflect the wrong image for the world to see. Instead, we are to parent Biblically and lovingly, with consistent discipline and clear expectations. Our marriages are to be loving and a demonstration of unity. Our pastors are to humbly serve, and we are to submit and listen. Mutual submission in love and leadership reflects the image of God. This is counter to our culture because power and pride flow from position. But, in God’s design authority and meekness flow from position. Reflect on your process of sanctification. Are you becoming “more and more like Him as you are changed into His glorious image?” Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, Examine my heart to see if there is pride, control or manipulation growing in my soul. I want to reflect you in how I think, feel and behave. Please grow my character to be more and more like You, as I am changed into Your glorious image, one day at a time. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.” Hebrews 12:11-15 (ESV).
The difficulty with going through trials is that often they involve some type of conflict or betrayal, or they involve a life situation that is out of your control. For the betrayal type of trial, you have to be stabilized by the truth of your identity. When you’re faced with a situation that’s beyond your control, you must trust in God’s sovereignty. Both types are difficult because one challenges your character, while the other challenges your ability to release control. Notice that verse eleven assumes that you have some pruning to do, which may be true in your trial. Sometimes, there is a small amount of truth in an accusation, which requires a thoughtful response. Other times, there is an internal need for control that must be weeded out and replaced with hopeful trust. That is why in verse twelve, the writer advises you to take a posture of resiliency. Stand up straight! Stop hunching your shoulders! Walk a straight path, using God’s perspective to illuminate your next steps. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105 (ESV). Be honest and truthful with yourself and others, creating a smooth path in front of you. It may not be an easy path, but it will not have any deceitful traps waiting to catch you. “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.” Hebrews 12:14-15 (ESV). Bitterness is that small, reasonable voice that points out how unjust it is that you are in this situation. Bitterness reminds you that the person who is attacking you or causing this drama is a worse sinner than you. The spirit of bitterness plants seeds of injustice in your heart and waters them with negative thoughts. You may be helping or you might just be allowing the roots to grow deep into your soul. After a few hours or a couple of days, your thinking has become defiled, with anger and irritation flowering from the roots of bitterness. As these blossoms go to seed and float out of your mouth, the hearts and minds of others around you become defiled as well. This is why it says, “strive for peace… and for holiness.” Holiness is set apart and humble. Peace assumes that the relationship is more important than the conflict. Dig up the roots of bitterness with the shovel of loving forgiveness. “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32 (NKJV). None of this is natural to your flesh, but it is natural to your spirit. This is why bitterness is a fruit of the flesh and forgiveness is produced by your tenderhearted spirit. Choose wisely! Live in grace and forgive. Trust God for the outcomes, while having the mind and mouth of Christ saying, “Father forgive them.” Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, I bring you my attitude and my hurt feelings. I choose to release the injustice and the offense from (person’s name) to Jesus. I choose to forgive (name). As I navigate these difficult circumstances, I will trust in Matthew 6:33 by seeking Your Kingdom and resting in your providential care. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” John 15:1-2 (ESV). God’s grace is felt when the Father prunes off your character, so that you can bear more fruit. To live in grace means to submit to the pruning of the Holy Spirit, as the Father sends you opportunities for growth.
There are two ways to respond to a difficult season. First, you can see it as an injustice and be frustrated with God. The second way is to respond by trusting God and learning to respond like Jesus. To see the positive potential in a trial takes self-control and an intentional attitude choice. If you will live in grace, you must see the grace in the trial and respond with grace. Remember that grace is undeserved favor, so you can respond to a trial that you don’t deserve with favor. “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:11 (ESV). Not all trials are discipline, but all trials are opportunities to be trained and refined. All of us have the flesh demanding to be pampered. Sometimes, we have to choose to endure the pain, knowing that it will yield the fruits of righteousness, which will establish peace in our hearts and minds. When you’ve gone through significant health or life difficulties, you learn that God is good and trusting Him is your source of peace. From this knowledge, you can grow right responses, right attitudes and righteous fruits. “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” James 1:2-4 (NLT). Troubles can come to you because you live in a world that is impacted by the fruits of death. People sin constantly around you and those sins create ripple effects of death, causing physical, emotional and relational toxicity and sickness. Trials also arrive in your life because of your own immaturity or refusal to apply the Biblical culture. Finally, tough times can be for your personal growth, not specifically as discipline for a personal fault. When you are in a trial, ask the Holy Spirit if this trial is for discipline or if it is simply an opportunity for new learning. Let the trial till up the soil of your soul, revealing any rocks that might need to be pick up or any weeds that need to be pulled. Then, take the opportunity to plant the seeds of joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and self-control. Are you in a sustained sickness? Are you dealing with a toxic work environment? Consider it an opportunity for great joy because your endurance and faith have a chance to grow. James says that if you respond correctly, you will become perfect and not have any deficits in your character. Finally, remember that every trial passes through the sovereign hand of God before it gets to you. He is responsible for the length and intensity of the trial. You can trust Him. Living in the trial is usually not His long-term plan for you. This too shall pass into your life’s rearview mirror. Look forward and see the harvest of righteousness that will be produced by how you interact with this trial. That’s how you can participate in God’s grace, as He gardens and prunes your soul’s branches. Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, It is hard to be joyful when trials come my way. It is also difficult to see difficult situations as opportunities. Please give me extra grace when you allow me to pass through a difficult trial. I want to produce fruits of righteousness. I want to respond with hopeful expectation that you’re doing some character development and refining me. In Jesus’s name amen.”  “Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.” Ephesians 5:1-4 (NLT).
Purity is powered by love. The Greek word for love in verse two is agape. Agape love is love that originates from God and is not self-serving, but serves others without any expectations. Jesus is our perfect example of love because He is 100% God in born as a human. God defines Himself as love and Jesus exemplifies that love by coming to Earth and serving us, saving us without any expectations of repayment. Why would agape love be the foundation for purity and rejecting sexual immorality and greed? By definition, pornography, sexual outside of marriage, gay relationships and sexual fantasy are all selfish. Lust is the driving force behind sexual immorality and greed, resulting in an insatiable appetite for satisfying your cravings. On the other hand, agape love is interested in blessing others. Just like Christ blessed us with all spiritual blessings, a believer wants to bless others and do what is in the interest of others. “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” Philippians 4:2 (ESV). Agape love considers what is in the best interest for other people. In the area of sexual purity, agape love realizes that adulterous sex hurts the spouse and fornication or pornography hurts those who are being objectified. There is no victimless crime with pornography because even a future spouse can be impacted by the pornographic fallout. “Imitate God in everything that you do because you are His dear child.” Notice that this statement is made from a context of grace. Your identity is established. You are God’s beloved and accepted child. You no longer have to chase acceptance and love from impurity. You already have ultimate acceptance and love as a sure reality in your life. So, imitate God and make decisions from that identity of being agape loved, so you can agape love others. “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” Romans 6:9-14 (ESV). As a son or daughter of God, you have the freedom to choose to use your body as an instrument for doing the right thing in each situation. You have been born into God’s family through an act of Jesus’s selfless love on the cross. The old selfish you is dead and buried and the new, selfless you is resurrected and alive. Take control of your will and make it serve righteousness. In war, the “dead man’s switch” is when a leader dies and the factions that served under him continue to execute his will. He’s gone, but his will continues to be done by the remaining commanders. Don’t let this be the case in your soul. The dead man is gone, so take control of the remaining forces. Your body doesn’t have to serve the old rebel any longer. “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.” You have to grab the dead man’s switch and turn it off! That means using your will to starve the dead man’s remaining flesh and to activate the alive man’s army of righteousness. Prayer: “Dear Heavenly Father, Please show me how much you love and accept me. Let me feel your acceptance in my soul and let me understand your love for me. You have already given me the power to be pure and released me from the bondage to sin. Help me to imitate you and make selfless choices. In Jesus’s name, amen.” |
