Purity 356 03/03/2021 Purity 356 Podcast
Good morning.
Today’s photo of a blue sky above a mammoth display of God’s glory comes
from a friend who grabbed this shot while on the road near Cedar Pocket,
Arizona. This mountain or hill shows the
colorful historical record of ages past and testifies of upheaval or erosion
that shaped our planet.
I also share it because its Wednesday and I
wanted to encourage you that no matter what mountains you are facing this week
God is still present and available to shape your life too. We may feel our lives are eroding away or are
in constant states of upheaval but regardless of our circumstances God is the
One who is always here to help us to get over that “hump”. When we draw our strength from Him, we can
overcome any obstacle and endure through whatever rocky season we are driving
through.
So keep walking and talking with God. History is His Story, and the amazing thing
is that He wants you to know that and to participate in it with Him by your
side.
This morning’s meditation
verse is:
Romans 6:16
(NLT2)
16 Don’t you realize that you
become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin,
which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous
living.
Today’s verse points to the spiritual reality that there really are only two ways in life: God’s way which leads to life and righteous living and the other way that leads to sin and death.
Sin of course has been defined as “missing the mark”. The “mark” is God’s way. I think that’s an important aspect of our faith to understand. Typically, many Christians understanding of God’s way comes in legal terms because of the existence of God’s law.
They point to the Ten Commandments and figure that as long as they aren’t murdering anyone or committing adultery they are doing okay. Also with this limited understanding of God’s way as a legal moral code, we would try to work around it or try to claim some measure of righteousness for keeping most of the law or being better than others.
That’s the problem with the law: it wasn’t meant to be kept in part, it was meant to be kept perfectly, and none of us could do that. As much as we tried to keep the law, we would invariably fail and to fail one time is one time too many.
So we needed grace. We need Jesus. But amazingly, even when we place our faith in Christ, we still have our free will and can choose to not obey Him.
Because of grace, those who have put their faith in
Christ are saved regardless of how they behave. The word of God tells us that
nothing can separate us from His love.
So if you truly place your faith in Jesus, you can choose to live in bondage to sin and be welcomed into His kingdom when you die.
But verses like Romans 6:16 indicate that sin leads to death. Other verses tell us that Christians will be known by their fruit. While His grace is amazing, there is great danger in thinking that you are a part of God’s kingdom if you continue to stay in bondage.
Are you really saved if you never change or pursue a life that reflects God’s presence?
That’s a personal question that we all have to ask ourselves. God is the only one who knows that hearts of men and He will determine who is His when He calls us home.
Our faith isn’t supposed to be about getting a ticket to heaven. Our faith is supposed to give us new life and bring a sense of heaven to us now. The peace, love, joy, and other fruits of the Spirit are only cultivated in our life when we turn from our sin and become slaves to righteousness.
So look at your life and try to determine who your master is.
If you have placed your faith in Christ but are still a slave to sin, I want you to know that He has set you free. A righteous life is possible through faith in Jesus. When the Lord calls us to salvation, He calls us to better things and wants us to experience a new life free of the bondages of the past. Whatever you surrender to the Lord, He is faithful to take away. So walk away from your sin and follow God’s way to righteous living.
If you’ve already been set free, rejoice but remember
that our freedom didn’t come cheap and we should endeavor to share the gift
that we have been given and encourage our brothers along the way to break the chains
that weigh them down.
Today we will share from Dr. June Hunt’s Biblical Counseling Keys on “Anger:
Facing the Fire Within”
As always, I share this information for educational purposes
and encourage all to purchase Dr. Hunt’s books for your own private study and
to support her work:
D. What Is the Root Cause of Anger?
The root cause of extended anger is typically based on a "wrong"
premise about "rights." The root cause of the nearly catastrophic
Canadian landfill blaze was also based on a wrong premise about rights:
Unscrupulous business owners chose to operate their landfill in their own
illegitimate way rather than yielding to the official permit requirements for
landfills.
When we feel that our real or perceived "rights" have been
violated, we can easily respond with anger. But what are our legitimate rights?
One person would answer, "Happiness." Another would say,
"Freedom to live life my way."
Yet this was not the mind-set of Jesus. He yielded His rights to His
heavenly Father. Based on the Bible, we have the right to live in the light
of God's will as revealed in His Word. Other than that, we are to yield our
rights to the Lord and let Him have His way in our hearts. We are told to...
"Trust in the Lord with
all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways
acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)
- Wrong Belief: “When I am hurt,
fearful, frustrated, or treated unfairly, I have the right to be
angry until the situation changes. It is only natural for me to be angry
about the disappointments in my life and to express my anger in whatever
way I choose. “Right Belief:
“Since I have trusted Christ with my life and have yielded my rights to
Him, I choose not to be controlled by anger. My human disappointments are
now God's appointments to increase my faith and develop His character in
me." The Bible says..."Now for a little while you may
have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that
your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though
refined by fire—may be proved genuine" (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Do You Want to Know God's Plan for Your Life... and for Controlling Your
Anger?
No one wants to be thought of as "out-of-control." No one wants to
live with anger that is out of control. Yet, so often, someone will say,
"I've really tried to control my anger, but for some reason, I just
can't."
If that someone is you, it could be that the Lord is saying, "I know
you can't—but I can. I can provide you the control you need—My supernatural
power can be at work in your weakness—recognize My authority over you and give
Me control of your life. I can change you from the inside out."
Do you need a real change in your life? If so, there are 4 truths you need
to know in order to have a changed life.
4 Points of God's Plan
#1
God's Purpose for You... is Salvation.
- —What was
God's motivation in sending Jesus Christ to earth? To express His love for
you by saving you! The Bible says..."God so loved the world that
he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not
perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world, but to save the world through him" (John 3:16-17).
- —What was
Jesus' purpose in coming to earth? To forgive your sins, to empower you to
have victory over sin—including anger—and to enable you to live a fulfilled
life! Jesus said..."I have come that they may have life, and that
they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10
NKJV).
#2
Your Problem... is Sin.
- —What
exactly is sin? Sin is living independently of God's standard—knowing what
is right but choosing what is wrong. The Bible says..."Anyone,
then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins"
(James 4:17).
- —What is
the major consequence of sin? Spiritual death, eternal separation from
God. Scripture states..."Your iniquities [sins] have separated you
from your God.... The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Isaiah 59:2;
Romans 6:23).
#3
God's Provision for You... is the Savior.
- —Can
anything remove the penalty for sin? Yes! Jesus died on the cross to
personally pay the penalty for your sins. The Bible says..."God
demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners,
Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8).
- —What is
the solution to being separated from God? Belief in (entrusting your life
to) Jesus Christ as the only way to God the Father. Jesus says..."I
am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me.... Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved"
(John 14:6;
Acts 16:31).
#4
Your Part... is Surrender.
- —Give
Christ control of your life—entrusting yourself to Him...."Jesus
said to his disciples, 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny
himself and take up his cross [die to your own self-rule] and follow me.
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his
life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the
whole world, yet forfeits his soul?'" (Matthew
16:24-26).
- —Place
your faith in (rely on) Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior and
reject your "good works" as a means of earning God's
approval...."It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and
this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so
that no one can boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
The moment you choose to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior—entrusting
your life to Him—He comes to live inside you. Then He gives you His power to
live the fulfilled life God has planned for you. If you want to be fully
forgiven by God and become the person God created you to be, you can tell Him
in a simple, heartfelt prayer like this:
Prayer of Salvation
"God, I want a real relationship with You.
I admit that many times I've chosen to go my own way instead of Your
way.
Please forgive me for my sins.
Jesus, thank You for dying on the cross to pay the penalty for my sins.
Come into my life to be my Lord and my Savior.
Change me from the inside out and make me the person You created me to
be.
In Your holy name I pray. Amen."
What Can You Expect Now?
If you sincerely prayed this prayer, look at what God says!
"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and
godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and
goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises,
so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the
corruption in the world caused by evil desires." (2 Peter 1:3-4)
Biblical Counseling Keys - Biblical Counseling Keys – Biblical Counseling Keys:
Anger: Facing the Fire Within.
----------------------------more tomorrow -------------------------
God bless
you all!
Join our
Victory over the Darkness Discipleship Class via the mt4christ247 podcast!
at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154) and Google podcasts (https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLnBvZGJlYW4uY29tL210NGNocmlzdDI0Ny9mZWVkLnhtbA%3D%3D
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at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive
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