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Ixtheus Christian Devotionals |
Victory in the Christian Life by brother bob....<><
It is not uncommon for people who have
just become Christians to start to doubt that they really are saved. The
emotions that felt so good the first day wear off and normal life seems
to return. But it is not the emotional high that proves that you are saved....something
different has happened in your life...you have become a new creation in
Christ Jesus. Old things have passed away, and you are given a brand new
start with your life.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he
is a new creature:
old things are passed away;
behold, all things are become new.
2 Cor 5:17 (KJV)
That is why Jesus refers to it as being "born again" (John 3:3).
Jesus replied, "With all the earnestness
I possess I tell you this:
Unless you are born again, you can never
get into the Kingdom of God."
John 3:3 (TLB)
The following Bible verse gives us assurance when we start doubting that we really are Christians. Consider this...
But as many as received Him,
to them He gave the right to become
children of God,
to those who believe in His name:
(John 1:12 NKJV)
This verse tells us that everyone who receives Jesus Christ into their life is given the right to become a child of God. To "receive Him" means to welcome Him gladly into your life. Before you may have been running away from God, denying His existence, and doubting the truth of the Bible. But now, the Holy Spirit has done a work in your life, forgiven your sins and blotted out your past. And you feel a new presence of Christ in your heart. Paul puts it this way...
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless
I live;
yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:
and the life which I now live in the flesh,
I live by the faith of the Son of God,
who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Gal 2:20 (KJV)
But then, the enemy of our faith, Satan, realizing that he has lost his power over you, will try to plant doubts in your mind that you really are saved. Especially if you should go back to doing some of the same sins you did before you were saved. However, this time if you should do them, something is different...you feel guilty, dirty, repulsive within yourself...you cannot believe that God could forgive you or love you ever again...you are experiencing "conviction of sin" . The Holy Spirit who now lives on the inside of you is pointing out your sin so clearly, you can think of nothing else. You want to be rid of it and be done with it....but how? How can God forgive me when I went back on my commitment to Christ? The answer is found in 1st John 1:9...
If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Confess your sin, agree with God that it is sin, and make an inner commitment that you will never do it again. But if you do, the same remedy is always open to you...confession, and repentence, and God will forgive and continue to cleanse you of all unrighteousness.
The Walk of Faith - Put your trust in the promises of God
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ:
for it is the power of God unto salvation
to every one that believeth;
to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
{17} For therein is the righteousness
of God revealed from faith to faith:
as it is written, The just shall
live by faith.
Rom 1:16-17 (KJV)
The chief characteristic of children of God is faith: they "believe in His name". This means that they trust Jesus and know that He is the way to God. Therefore if you have prayed and received Jesus Christ into your life then God has given you the right to become a child of God. So, instead of putting your trust in your "feelings", which can change from moment to moment like a wave of the sea, put your faith in the promises of God, which are settled forever in heaven, and cannot change.
...if you confess with your mouth the Lord
Jesus
and believe in your heart that God
has raised Him from the dead,
you will be saved.
{10} For with the heart one believes unto
righteousness,
and with the mouth confession is made
unto salvation.
{11} For the Scripture says,
"Whoever believes on Him will not be put
to shame."
{12} For there is no distinction between
Jew and Greek,
for the same Lord over all is rich to
all who call upon Him.
{13} For "whoever calls on the name of
the LORD shall be saved."
(Romans 10:9-13 NKJV)
This Bible verse tells us two things that
we need to believe if we are truly Christians. The first of these
is that we must believe in our heart that Jesus Christ was raised from
the dead. In order to believe this we need to believe that Jesus Christ
actually lived, died on a cross and then was raised from the dead by God.
This is critical to our proper understanding of Christianity.
a.. If Jesus did not really exist
then our sins are not paid for by anyone and we are still in danger from
God's wrath.
b.. If Jesus lived but was just
a good man and a teacher but did not die on the cross then we have the
same problem plus another one... His teachings are so high that unless
our sins are forgiven and we have confidence before God then it would be
absolutely impossible to live the Christian life.
c.. If Jesus really did die on
the cross but did not rise from the dead then we would have no way of knowing
if He had truly conquered death.
d.. But when we believe the well
attested historical fact that Jesus did rise from the dead then we affirm
all the central truths of the Christian faith.
The second thing we have to believe and
live by is that Jesus Christ is Lord. This is to say that Jesus is the
Supreme Commander of the universe and is above every individual, government
or human structure. This means that we must obey His Word. And in order
to obey His Word, we must read and study His Word, and make it a part of
our very lives, that is , let it change us.
For unto us was the gospel preached, as
well as unto them:
but the word preached did not profit them,
not being mixed with faith in them
that heard it.
Heb 4:2 (KJV)
[1}I beseech you therefore, brethren, by
the mercies of God,
that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice,
holy, acceptable unto God,
which is your reasonable service.
{2} And be not conformed to this
world:
but be ye transformed by the renewing
of your mind,
that ye may prove what is that good, and
acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Rom 12:1-2 (KJV)
God wants us to read and study and hear His Word, apply it to our lives, throw out the old worldly ways, and replace them with God's heavenly ways....one command at a time..."walking" from precept to precept, examining the ways of God, and taking them by prayer and faith into ourselves, confessing and rejecting the old ways of the world the flesh and the devil, and leaving them behind for the new life in Christ. And then God gives us this wonderful promise that we already have eternal life...
And this is the record, that God hath given
to us eternal life,
and this life is in his Son.
{12} He that hath the Son hath life;
and he that hath not the Son of God hath
not life.
{13} These things have I written unto
you
that believe on the name of the Son of
God;
that ye may know that ye have eternal
life,
and that ye may believe on the name
of the Son of God.
1John 5:11-13 (KJV)
Having filled your life with the Presence of Christ, the joy of doing His will, and the peace which comes from having your sins forgiven, and the assurance that you have eternal life, you will be overflowing in your desire to share Him with those around you...
Your attitude should be the kind that was
shown us by Jesus Christ,
{6} who, though he was God, did not demand
and cling to his rights as God,
{7} but laid aside his mighty power
and glory,
taking the disguise of a slave and becoming
like men.
{8} And he humbled himself even further,
going so far as actually to die a criminal's
death on a cross.
{9} Yet it was because of this that God
raised him up to the heights of heaven
and gave him a name which is above every
other name,
{10} that at the name of Jesus every knee
shall bow
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
{11} and every tongue shall confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Phil 2:5-11 (TLB)
Are you ready to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father?
Jesus said...
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before
men,
him will I confess also before my Father
which is in heaven.
Mat 10:32 (KJV)
God bless you as you do.
In Christ.
brother bob.......<><
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IXTHEUS CHRISTIAN DEVOTIONALS
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God Bless You.....brother bob.......<><
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