Choosing Something Bad And Expecting Something Good To Result

... by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. —Galatians 6:14

"Consecration, being dedicated to God’s service, is our part; sanctification, being set apart from sin and being made holy, is God’s part. We must make a deliberate determination to be interested only in what God is interested.” - Oswald Chambers

I have known a good number of Christians who have made tremendous errors in spiritual judgement.  Those errors have derailed their lives and brought grief and heartache … sometimes that lasts a lifetime.  And yet, they persist in continuing to make similar choices based upon their emotions … their desire to “fix the problem themselves or satisfy the need that seems to dominate their lives.  

Although they may sing “Jesus loves me this I know” … time and again they choose their own path and solutions over the path that God has laid out for them. (Proverbs 16:9) They quench the Spirit and listen to their flesh.  They ignore the Biblical counsel of their friends and family … and repeat the same mistakes that they have made in the past with, predictably, the same result. When I see this happening, my heart breaks because I know the joy they have rejected for the trouble that they will inevitably embrace as they meet the consequences of their choices.  

Does that sound dismal? That’s because it is.  God has called us out of that life.  But our faith must be more than a philosophy … a “get out of hell free” card.  The great gift we have came with a price .. Jesus on the cross .. yet even that is a distant thought when making life choices.  That truth is not enough to motivate us to choose God .. to follow the Spirit .. to sacrifice the flesh.

So why does that happen? For one reason, most of us do not separate ourselves from our old life.  It’s one thing to be in the world as a Christian.  It’s quite another to participate with the world.  To embrace what we know to be sin in an effort to secure the world’s substitute for God’s will and way.  Jesus prayed ...

I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. - John 17:15-17

We are to be in the world but not of it— to be separated internally, not externally. The interesting thing is that although I might speak to the wayward Christian to encourage them to draw close to Jesus, only the Spirit of God can bring conviction to their hearts and only they can yield to that conviction and turn to God in repentance.  So what to do.  Well. Be an example.  Love them .. not their sin … like Jesus.  Pray for them.  And bear the hurt in your heart as you watch them struggle with the impossibility of the life they have chosen.  Jesus spoke to the problem … the Apostles wrote about the problem to the churches .. my point, it is not a new problem in our generation.  It is the age-old struggle between the flesh and the Spirit natures.  The nature that you feed is the one that will dominate. 

Today .. choose Jesus.  He is the Way and the Life and the Truth. (John 14:6) Stop doing what you know is wrong for you.  The only way you can do that is by the Spirit. “It’s not by might or by power but by the Spirit”(Zechariah 4:6) You must understand that “It’s not by MY might or by MY power but by HIS Spirit”.  You can do it!  With His help.  Do it today.

Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory. 

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone