Monday, May 30, 2016

Faith In Jesus - Focus On The Truth - Foresaking The World

My Utmost For His Highest
 
Lord, I will follow You, but… —Luke 9:61
 
“Suppose God tells you to do something that is an enormous test of your common sense, totally going against it. What will you do? Will you hold back? If you get into the habit of doing something physically, you will do it every time you are tested until you break the habit through sheer determination. And the same is true spiritually. Again and again you will come right up to what Jesus wants, but every time you will turn back at the true point of testing, until you are determined to abandon yourself to God in total surrender. Yet we tend to say, “Yes, but— suppose I do obey God in this matter, what about…?” Or we say, “Yes, I will obey God if what He asks of me doesn’t go against my common sense, but don’t ask me to take a step in the dark.”[…] In the spiritual realm, Jesus Christ demands that you risk everything you hold on to or believe through common sense, and leap by faith into what He says.”  CHAMBERS

Perhaps when you read what Chambers had to say, you thought, “well, that is about doing something great for God, being called to some great ministry or performing some great act of faith.”  There is not a greater act of faith than choosing to follow God in obedience to His revealed will.  Choosing God and rejecting the world, your culture, the natural desires and way of life “is an enormous test of your common sense.”  It is so natural to yield to the common sense way of living.  There is a diagram in mathematics called a Venn diagram that describes the dilemma we face. 
There is part of our life (in the part where the circles overlap) where the world and the Word are in agreement.  The problem is, that that space gets smaller and smaller over time.  The world, the cultural definition of truth and what’s right, is at odds with its Creator.  Man wants to go his own way, and does. On the other hand, Christians secretly hope that there might be heaven on earth in their lifetime.  When the truth of the matter is that life on earth will get much worse before it gets better.  (Matthew 7:13-14) “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”  Many that are going to hell are satisfied that what they do in this life is adequate to get them to heaven.  It is not.  Jesus is the only way.  He is the small Gate, the narrow Way.  As Christians, we soon learn that as Christians, we are yet drawn to the natural life.  We are tempted to accept the definition of good and true that our culture offers.  It seems to be common sense.  It is certainly the way to find acceptability from those that live and work around us. But that is not who we are.  (2 Corinthians 5:17) “If anyone is in Christ, they are a new creature.  Old things have passed away.  All things have become new.”  Our new life requires faith and focus.  Faith in Jesus and focus on the Truth.  And rejection of the World.  CHARLEY

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