Follow Up on Last Sunday's Message
I received this from Nate Kugler this week and thought it was really good and I wanted to pass it on to all of you:
As a PS
to your message, you said ‘Heart work’ is God’s work but we have an important
role.
For who
has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. (1 Cor. 2:16)
Do you
not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? (1 Cor.
3:16)
Keeping
this in mind that we have the mind of Christ and that the Holy Spirit lives
permanently in us,
1. Let
not sin therefore reign in your mortal bodies to make you obey its passions.
2. Do not
present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness,
3. but
preset yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to live and
your members to God as instruments for righteousness. But put on
the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its
desires. (Rom. 13:14)
But it is
impossible to live the Christian life in my own strength.
It is
common for people to seek to gain salvation through good works. It is also common for Christians to seek to
gain favor with God through good works.
However
we read in Col. 2:6, 7 that just as you have accepted Christ Jesus as your
Lord, you must continue to live in obedience to him. Let your roots grow down into him and draw up
nourishment from him, so you will grow in faith, strong and vigorous in the
truth you were taught. Let your lives
overflow with thanksgiving for all he has done.
(NLT)
We
received Christ by faith and so we need to live the Christian life by faith
depending on having the mind of Christ and remembering that the Holy Spirit
dwells permanently in us.
I can do
all things through him [Christ] who strengthens me. (Phil. 4:13)
Put into
action God’s saving work in your lives, obeying God with deep reverence and
fear. For God is working in you giving
you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him. (Phil. 2:12b, 13 NLT)
So if I
am
not letting sin reign in me
not presenting myself as an instrument
of unrighteousness
but presenting myself as an instrument
of righteousness
putting on the Lord Jesus Christ and
making no provision for the flesh
I do so
because I have the mind of Christ and
the Holy
Spirit dwells permanently in me
and it is
God who is at work in me
giving me the desire to obey him and
giving me the power to be able to do
what pleases him.
So I am
thankful for what he has done, and give him the praise instead of wanting God
to love me more because I am such a good person.