Finding The Power To Live Your New Life In Christ

My Utmost For His Highest

 

…unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3

 

“These words of our Lord refer to our initial conversion, but we should continue to turn to God as children, being continuously converted every day of our lives. […] When God through His sovereignty brings us into new situations, we should immediately make sure that our natural life submits to the spiritual, obeying the orders of the Spirit of God. Just because we have responded properly in the past is no guarantee that we will do so again. The response of the natural to the spiritual should be continuous conversion, but this is where we so often refuse to be obedient. No matter what our situation is, the Spirit of God remains unchanged and His salvation unaltered. But we must “put on the new man…” (Ephesians 4:24). […]  Our natural life must not rule— God must rule in us.[…] There are areas of self-will in our lives where our pride pours contempt on the throne of God and says, “I won’t submit.” We deify our independence and self-will […]  What God sees as stubborn weakness, we call strength. There are whole areas of our lives that have not yet been brought into submission, and this can only be done by this continuous conversion.” CHAMBERS

 

Living the Christian life in the power of the flesh is impossible.  It is what our old nature wants to do, and tries to convince us that we can do.  We must be constantly be on our guard … We must submit every aspect of our lives to God.  No qualifications … no equivocations … no reservations … but total submission to the Spirit of God and to the will of God.  The Christian life is an impossibility without it.  So many verses are read as if they are optional.  Do this or that or don’t do this or that …  if your choice.  Like it is nice to do, not need to do.  God’s revealed will in His Word is not nice to do.  (Micah 6:8) “He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?”  What the Lord requires is total devotion. Not halfhearted devotion.  Many Christians live in a silent struggle with their old nature.  They would like others to not know about it, but everyone struggles.  The difference is what each person chooses to submit to.  Listen, you cannot defeat the flesh with the flesh .. only with the Spirit.  Peter thought he could be loyal to Jesus by his own will power .. he discovered that he could not.  (John 18:15-40) When he was empowered by the Holy Spirit, he stood boldly before those who crucified Jesus and preached the Gospel to them.  (Acts 4:5-17) What was the difference?  The source of his strength.  In the first case Peter trusted himself.  In the second, he trusted God. (Zechariah 4:6) “It’s not by [your] might nor by [your] power, but by My Spirit says the Lord God of Hosts”  ELGIN

 

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)

 

Charley Elgin