It concerns me that so many Christians today are captivated by authority, power, eschatology, theology, etc. So few seem to be captivated by Jesus. It certainly appears that many have left their first love and have latched on to doctrines and self-centeredness. Jesus is the reason we are Christians, but so many concern themselves with everything but Him. The mystery of God is Christ in us, not miracles and mysteries in us. We must not put the cart before the horse.
Colossians 1:25-27,
25 Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God,
26 that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations; but has now been manifested to His saints,
28 to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Jesus, of His own will, freely gave Himself up for the atonement and the removal of our sins, Our sins were forgiven by the blood of His cross, and our sins were removed by our becoming a new creation, the body of the living Christ. Yes, sin remains in our bodies of flesh, but sin has no power over us, for greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world.
But thanks be to God that though we were slaves of sin, we became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which we were committed, and having been freed from sin, we became slaves of righteousness, Romans 6:17-18.
But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, we derive our benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord, Romans 6:22-23.
This is Christianity, following the example of Jesus and laying down our lives for the sake of others; abiding in Jesus, and overcoming all obstacles. Yes, we treasure our communion with the Lord and how it affects us personally. But love seeks not its own. Love seeks the welfare of its beloved. When the Lord sheds His love abroad in our hearts, we instinctively share it with everyone we meet. We can’t help it, because we have become enslaved to God and God is love. Therefore, we lose our lives that we may find them.
The more we love one another, the closer we come to God, and the more likely we are to endure. ‘The one who loves his brother abides in the light and there is no cause for stumbling in him,’ 1 John 2:10.
Common sense dictates we should pay attention to our walk with the Lord. I have found if I walk humbly before the Lord my needs are met. I pray for things such as an understanding of His word, as well as physical needs, and I trust Him to supply those needs.
Do you want to know what will happen in the end times? [We’ve been in the end times for over 2000 years.] Do you want to know the truths of the gospel and how the mystery of God unfolds? Read and study, and, at the same time, acknowledge God and trust Him to reveal what He desires for you to know when He desires for you to know it.
Don’t try and dissect His word, just read it and allow the Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and direct you in its secrets. The natural man cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God, because they are spiritually appraised. They are examined and investigated by the spiritual mind, which is the mind of Christ.
1 Corinthians 2:6-16,
Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom, which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written,
“THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN,
ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM.”
For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.
But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man. For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, THAT HE SHOULD INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ.
We have been called to follow Christ in the heavenly places, walking by the Holy Spirit of God, wherein we learn the things of God. Nowhere are we told to bring Christ down to earth and to follow our thoughts.
Rather than make God submit to us and give us the answers we want when we want them, we must submit to Him through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Then, and only then, will we have the mind of Christ and be able to discern the thoughts of God.
The beginning, the path we travel, and the end of that path, are one and the same: deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow Jesus. God bless us and keep us in His care.
Jon David Banks, God’s most unworthy servant
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org
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