Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Guard Your Heart - Don't Dance With The Devil

My Utmost For His Highest
 
We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ… —2 Corinthians 5:10
 
Paul says that we must all, preachers and other people alike, “appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” But if you will learn here and now to live under the scrutiny of Christ’s pure light, your final judgment will bring you only delight in seeing the work God has done in you. Live constantly reminding yourself of the judgment seat of Christ, and walk in the knowledge of the holiness He has given you. Tolerating a wrong attitude toward another person causes you to follow the spirit of the devil, no matter how saintly you are. One carnal judgment of another person only serves the purposes of hell in you. Bring it immediately into the light and confess, “Oh, Lord, I have been guilty there.” If you don’t, your heart will become hardened through and through. One of the penalties of sin is our acceptance of it. It is not only God who punishes for sin, but sin establishes itself in the sinner and takes its toll. No struggling or praying will enable you to stop doing certain things, and the penalty of sin is that you gradually get used to it, until you finally come to the place where you no longer even realize that it is sin. No power, except the power that comes from being filled with the Holy Spirit, can change or prevent the inherent consequences of sin. “If we walk in the light as He is in the light…” (1 John 1:7). For many of us, walking in the light means walking according to the standard we have set up for another person. The deadliest attitude of the Pharisees that we exhibit today is not hypocrisy but that which comes from unconsciously living a lie.” CHAMBERS
 
Normally I glean a few spiritual nuggets from the Chambers devotion and leave the rest, but today there was nothing to leave out.  Accommodating sin is like a girl going to a dance and seeing her old boyfriend.  He asks her to dance, and she says, “yes”.  Just one dance, she is certain her date won’t mind. Accommodating sin .. is like dancing with the devil … but it was just a dance we say … harmless .. meaningless .. we came to the dance with our “date” Jesus and we will leave with him.  But what harm can one little dance do?  Problem is, it won’t be just one dance … The body of Christ in America is like the proverbial frog in the pot.  We are being cooked and don’t know it.  We have grown accustomed to sin, have embraced it, and no longer see it as sin.  We make excuses for it because we are still really in love with it.  We don’t want to let it go.  Even hearing that it is sin from the pulpit or in a Bible study no longer has an effect on us.  Our hearts have become hardened toward the truth.  You know it’s true.  That is not the life we have been called to .. it is the life we have been saved from.  Examine your heart .. do it today. (2 Corinthians 13:5) “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you….”  Then my friend lest you might think I am making this stuff up to make you feel guilt or something  …. (Proverbs 4:23-27) “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.” It’s in the Book, because it is a problem for us jars of clay.  ELGIN
 
“Guard Your Heart”  Steve Green
 
What appears to be harmless glance?  Can turn to romance  And homes are divided
 
Feelings that should never have been  Awakened within Tearing the heart in two,  Listen, I beg of you
 
Guard your Heart  Guard your Heart  Don't trade it for treasure  Don't give it away
 
Guard your Heart  Guard your Heart  As a payment for pleasure  It's high price to pay
 
For a soul that remains sincere with conscience clear  Guard your Heart
 
The human heart is easily swayed  And often betrayed at the hand of emotion You dare not leave the outcome to chance
 
You must choose in advance  Or live with the agony  Such needless tragedy
 
Guard your Heart
 
Charley Elgin

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