Purity 382: Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship

Purity 382 04/02/2021 Purity 382 Podcast

Good morning.

Today’s photo of this heavenly sunrise comes from a friend in Easton, New York who has been participating in our discipleship class via the mt4christ247 podcast.  Since taking the class they find themselves waking up early and beginning their day investing in their faith.  This amazing photo is a result of them looking for the peace that can only come from seeking the Lord because before they decided to walk in the Spirit they would have slept in and missed this sight that they called a “Son-rise” as in the Son of God, Jesus Christ.  

Today is Good Friday, and although our friend took this photo on 3/16 (YES, as in John 3:16) I purposefully held off sharing it until today because, I felt it was only fitting to share this “Son-rise” on the day when we remember that Christ died on the cross to pay for the sins of the world, reconciling to God all those who place their faith in Him.

For those not familiar with John 3:16, I just have to share it:

John 3:16 (NKJV)
¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

So, now you know. God loves you. He sent Jesus Christ to earth to save us, to give us spiritual life, and to dwell with Him forever.  

While today we remember Christ’s death on the cross, it is even more important to remember that He didn’t stay dead.  Jesus showed He was the Son of God and God the Son by rising from the dead.

His example shows us that we who place our faith in Him will never truly die as we are given spiritual life the moment we believe in Him and we will rise with Him when He returns to reclaim and to renew the earth.  

So although we may be saddened by Christ’s suffering for us, keep your head up because He died so that we could truly live.

This morning’s meditation verse is:

Acts 1:8 (NKJV)
⁸ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

 Today’s verse are the last words that the resurrected Jesus spoke to the Apostles before ascending to heaven.  Prior to this He instructed the Apostles to wait for the Baptism of the Holy Spirit to be empowered to be witnesses of Jesus and to share His good news to the ends of the earth.  

 All believers receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit when they place their faith in Jesus.   So we all have the Holy Spirit in us to guide us through our conscience and intuition. We also can have a deep sense of His presence when we commune with God in prayer, worship, or Bible study. 

 The Holy Spirit will convict us of our sins and lead us to repentance. He can also lead us into all truth through revelations from God’s word that give us deeper understanding of our faith and can help us to discern the spiritual aspects in life.  Sometimes He can also reveal to us things that are to come as we receive words of knowledge or intuitions of assurances of outcomes that are later proven to be founded in truth that we can’t fully understand. 

 The Holy Spirit will guide those who seek His presence, wisdom, strength by asking for His Infilling.  But when we are attempting to follow the Holy Spirit we do have to be careful that we are not being deceived by ourselves or the enemy. 

 The Holy Spirit can and will do amazing things in your relationship with Him but there are things He will not do:

 He will never contradict the Word of God or the principles in the Word of God.

 So, if you are getting “a word from the spirit”, that leads you into sin or into confusion you can only conclude that you have been deceived or have deceived yourself. 

 The Holy Spirit’s ministry is to glorify the work of Jesus Christ. That’s why the Apostles had to wait to receive His baptism: to be empowered for ministry.  The evidence of the Holy Spirit’s power in the Apostle’s lives was the incredible growth of the church that followed their receiving the Holy Spirit’s baptism.   

 So as we seek to walk in the Spirit, the Holy Spirit should lead us into a life that glorifies God and the work and wisdom of Jesus Christ specifically.   The Holy Spirit’s power in our lives will be evidenced by our personal progressive sanctification and the good works that we do to build up the body of Christ and to welcome others into God’s kingdom through faith in Jesus Christ.   

 So follow the Holy Spirit’s leadings, ask Him for an infilling of His power when you need it, but be sure to be discerning so that you aren’t led astray by your own ideas or counterfeit thoughts that come from the world or the enemy.   

 We are not perfect, and we may make mistakes along the way but as long as we make sure that the guidance we take lines us with the word of God and its wisdom we can know that we are walking with the Spirit in the direction of God’s plan for our lives.

 I invite all to mt4chritst.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. 

 

Today we will share from Dr. June Hunt’s Biblical Counseling Keys on “Alcohol & Drug Abuse: Breaking Free & Staying Free.

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:

E. How to Recover, Using 10 Spiritual Steps

True freedom must first be gained in the spiritual realm before it can be experienced in the physical, emotional, and relational realms. Take to heart the following steps as you walk down the road to recovery, which is the same road Josh Hamilton traveled.

Without a spiritual relationship with Jesus Christ, Josh believes he never could have become sober and drug free. In Josh's own words: "I went through eight different drug treatment and rehabilitation clinics, but my personal resurrection did not come from a group session or a therapist's couch. I know the twelve steps by heart, but my healing did not come from a strict adherence to those principles. Instead, my life changed from hopeless to hope-filled when I turned to God and asked for His help. I recognized my failings and, most important, my inability to heal myself"

Josh is fully aware of the truth of the following Scripture. ...

"My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever."
(Psalm 73:26)

1. Decide, the time to begin your recovery is today.

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts ..." (Hebrews 3:15).

2. Realize, recovery is a lifelong process, not a onetime event.

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me" (Philippians 3:12).

3. Pray daily for victory! It is through prayer that God protects you.

"Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:41).

4. Read your Bible every day in order to get strength from God.

"My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word" (Psalm 119:28).

5. Meditate on Scripture to fight against falling into sin.

"I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you" (Psalm 119:11).

6. Attend church every week to worship God and to grow with others.

"Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together... but encouraging one another ..." (Hebrews 10:24-25).

7. Share your struggles with caring loved ones.

"Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed" (James 5:16).

8. Have confidence in God! Prioritize growing in your relationship with Him.

"Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33).

9. Depend on Christ's strength to stay drug free.

"I can do all this through him who gives me strength" (Philippians 4:13).

10. Know that permanent change is possible.

"Jesus looked at them and said, '... with God all things are possible'" (Matthew 19:26).

His Supernatural Power

Question: "I am a recovering addict but I've continued to relapse. Recently, I've become a Christian, and now I feel that God has delivered me. Is that possible?"

Answer: Some Christians do receive a supernatural deliverance from drugs, while others do not. No matter which is true in your case, by accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, there is good news for you. When you received authentic salvation, you not only were saved from the penalty of sin, but were also saved from the power of sin. Drugs are no longer your master — Jesus is now your Master. Although this struggle may be a target for spiritual attack or a weakness of past sinful patterns, through the power of Christ living in you, you can rely on His power to overcome temptation by making right decisions after right decisions after right decisions. ...

"We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. ... For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace."
(Romans 6:6, 14)

Biblical Counseling Keys - Biblical Counseling Keys – Biblical Counseling Keys: Alcohol & Drug Abuse: Breaking Free & Staying Free.

----------------------------more tomorrow-------------------------

 

God bless you all!

 

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 Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship