Purity 425: Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship

Purity 425 05/22/2021  Purity 425 Podcast

Good morning.

Today’s photo of morning on the beaches of Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, Florida comes from a friend’s vacation at the beginning of May.  As I shared yesterday the thing that is featured in this photo that is unseen is the friendship of the two people who ran from their nearby hotel at the crack of dawn and overcame obstacles to capture yesterday’s and today’s morning views.  

But that was yesterday’s emphasis. Today we focus on progress. As Friday was the “dawn of the weekend” and we have progressed to Saturday, the “morning of the weekend”, yesterday’s and today’s photo show the progress of the day.   Although the scenery of these photos, and of our lives, may be the same, today things are just a little bit brighter as we have progressed from shadows to increasing light.    

For some reason it reminds me of a portion of cheerleader’s cheer I remember from my older brother’s pop warner days: “Be Aggressive, BE BE Aggressive!” Its funny what the mind can bring up! I don’t know how the rest of that cheer went but it came up in my mind when I was thinking about progress and being progressive.   

The inevitability of one day progressing to the next is a fact of our lives.   Like dawn changing to increasing morning light, changes come whether we are ready for them or not.  

The key to finding peace in our lives is not being caught in the darkness of trying to live in yesterday’s light but it is found in accepting the changes that the day has brought you welcomed or as unwelcomed as they may be, and living in the light of today.   

We can’t go back. We can’t change what happened yesterday.  But we can take what is important to us today and move forward.  Our pasts are heavy. We aren’t meant to carry it all with us. We are supposed to travel light. We have to leave some of that stuff behind and only take what is valuable and necessary for us to move into today and into the days ahead with confidence and peace.   

Unfortunately, relationships change over time too.  As much as we thought we would have some relationships in our lives forever, sometimes we come to the realization that the relationships that we hold most dear to us will change significantly and can not be carried with us into the future, at least not the way they used to be.  

When relationships end we may find ourselves in a dark place of sadness, regret, and depression, but I can assure you that with each passing day we can move into a brighter place. With each passing day we can be strengthened by the Lord and walk into the new future that He has prepared for us.  Each new day can become a little brighter. 

But we have to “BE Progressive, BE BE Progressive!” We must choose to leave behind what is lost, gather what is dear to us, and start walking toward the light of God’s plan for our lives.  

So take that next step, and the one after it. Keep walking and talking with God as you go, and you will discover that eventually you will leave the darkness behind and you will move from the dawn of your transition to the bright morning of a new life.  

This morning’s meditation verse is:

James 2:10 (NKJV)
¹⁰ For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.

Today’s verse is horrible news for those of us that like to think that they are self sufficient or for those who think they are “doing everything right”.   

People who believe they are a good person are just wrong. 

Romans 3:10 (NKJV)
¹⁰ As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;

The fallacy of believing that we are judged on a scale of righteousness where our good deeds are weighed against the weight of or bad deeds is destroyed by Bible verses like James 2:10.  

The verse indicates that if you attempt to be righteous by keeping the law, doing all the commandments of God, but fail in even one instance you are guilty of it all.  God doesn’t grade on a curve.  Salvation by works is a pass-fail test in which the only passing grade is 100%.   And as

Romans 3:23 (NKJV) tells us
²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

That is all but one, of course, as Jesus, our high priest,

Hebrews 4:15 (NKJV)
¹⁵ … was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.

The fact that we can’t keep the law perfectly shows us that we have to have another way to be declared righteous.   We can’t do it ourselves.  We can’t save ourselves.  

That’s why God sent Christ to live a sinless life and pay the penalty for our sins. There was no way we could do it on our own.  So God’s great love caused Him to devise a plan that would meet the demands of holy justice and enable mankind to be made righteous.  Christ, as the God the Son, paid for the sins of all mankind. Only His Deity gives Him the infinite nature to pay for everyone’s sin.   Likewise only His deity allows for His righteousness to be imputed to the multitudes who put their faith in Him.    

You see He’s paid for everyone, but only those who put their faith in Christ will be redeemed.  Only those who put their faith in Christ have their penalties paid and receive Christ’s righteousness; Only they will be justified before God.   

So rejoice at the fact that we don’t have to be perfect in terms of the law to be reconciled to God.  We never could have done it any way.  On our own we were hopeless. But because of God’s love for us, He made a way where there was no way.  

The good news of our personal salvation should never become old news.  Instead the fact of our salvation should fill us with a hope for the future with Him and cause us to align ourselves with His will for our lives and to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with everyone we can. 

I invite all to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. 

  

 

Today, in continuing recognition of mental health awareness month, we continue to share from Dr. June Hunt’s “Suicide Prevention: Hope When Life Seems Hopeless “.

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. If you need this title you can find it online at several sites for less than $5.00:

D. How to Know the Scriptural Reasons to Say No

Dignitas is anything but dignified. The very existence of this clinic is a direct affront to God’s plan and purpose because it encourages suicide rather than discouraging it. Dignitas is an assisted suicide clinic in Zurich, Switzerland, founded by a man who believes suicide should be available not only for the terminally ill or the severely disabled (where most in his circle draw the line), but for all people. Ludwig Minelli goes as far as to say, “We should have a nicer attitude to suicide, saying suicide is a very good possibility to escape.”

But while Minelli says yes, God says No to each and every thought of suicide.

Have you come to the conclusion that life is not worth living? If you’ve lost all desire to hope, your heavenly Father knows what you are feeling. He desires that you call out to him. God will respond to the honest heart that offers even a flicker of willingness. ...

“I call on you, O God, for you will answer me; give ear to me and hear my prayer. Show the wonder of your great love, you who save by your right hand those who take refuge in you.” (Psalm 17:6–7)

7 Scriptural Reasons to Say No to Suicide

• Reason #1: Suicide rejects God’s offer of inner peace.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6–7).

• Reason #2: Suicide rejects God’s sovereignty over the length of your life.

“You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. ... Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be” (Psalm 139:13, 16).

• Reason #3: Suicide rejects God’s right to be Lord over your life.

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19).

• Reason #4: Suicide rejects God’s commandment not to murder.

“You shall not murder” (Deuteronomy 5:17).

• Reason #5: Suicide rejects God’s ability to heal your hurts.

“Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed” (Jeremiah 17:14).

• Reason #6: Suicide rejects God’s plan to give you hope.

“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him” (Psalm 62:5).

• Reason #7: Suicide rejects God’s power already within you to make you godly.

“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: Suicide Prevention: Hope When Life Seems Hopeless.

----------------------------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

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

 

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship