James 1:14-15… But each one istempted when he is drawnaway by hisowndesires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it givesbirth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death. (NKJV) James had just finished telling us that God never tempts us, in…James 1:13… But God, as we see revealed throughout scripture (easily seen in…Job 1:12…&…Job 2:6), will allow Satan to tempt us, if God so chooses… Jesus’ half brother James tells us in the opening scripture, that “sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death”… Friends, this is the “second death” spoken of in the Bible, that results in a separation from God for an eternity…to be spent in the lake of fire (as recorded in…Revelation 21:8), if a person dies in their sins before becoming a Christian in God’s eyes…John 8:24… Here is an excellent link for anyone who wants a biblical answer to the question: “What is the second death ??” http://www.gotquestions.org/second-death.html But for those who God has graced with salvation, through saving faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9)…they have been given the Holy Spirit as a lifelong Helper (John 14:26), to keep Satan at bay in the life of the Spirit filled Christian, who is a diligent disciple of Jesus Christ… (See attachment at the end for more on God’s saving grace) Ephesians 5:18-20… And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; butbefilledwiththeSpirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and makingmelody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for allthings to God the Father in the name of our Lord JesusChrist, (NKJV) I am here to testify that there is absolutely no better feeling anyone could experience in their lifetime, than to know with 100% absolute certainty, that they will be going to heaven when they pass on from this short life…1 John 5:13… When I ask people if they believe they are going to heaven when they die, I get all kinds of answers that either reveal an uncertainty in their voice…or an answer based on false doctrine like a “works based salvation”, that is found nowhere in God’s inerrant Word, the Bible… (See Jesus’ warning about good works done in the name of the Lord, not getting someone into heaven when they die, in…Matthew 7:21-23) There can be times when Christians may doubt their salvation…but this is because Satan (or their own flesh) is messing with their minds, to give them doubts, or fears, or worries, or anxiety that he so masterfully uses…to keep God’s redeemed children from growing in spiritual wisdom and knowledge, as they are being conformed into the image of Christ…Romans 8:29… The circumstances surrounding each new believer varies by age, their family structure, and their ability (or desire) to attend the right Bible believing and teaching church, and/or their access to obtain and read a Bible, in order to be able to grow in spiritual maturity… But make no mistake about the fact that spending time feeding upon God’s Word (hopefully daily), is where the rubber will meet the road in the life of any Christian… Jesus tells those around Him (and us) in His “Sermon on the Mount” preaching, that ‘Man shall not live by breadalone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’, in…Matthew 4:4… I believe God wants the spiritual growth of His redeemed children to be a steady, constant, lifelong process… This continuous maturation in the life of a Christian is commonly called progressive sanctification… Here is a link giving you more information on progressive sanctification… http://www.gotquestions.org/progressive-sanctification.html But because we as Christians are given “free will”…many (especially the younger Christians) will choose to feed their own selfish desires, leading to sin…as James pens in the opening scripture… Far too many young Christians believe that the party scene with the excess drinking and other choices of entertainment…along with pre-marital sex in many cases…is something that they should naturally be doing as young, single Christians… There is a tragedy occurring when wasting those “20 something years” on selfish desires…when some of life’s most challenging decisions in a Christian’s life should be made with God’s help… Decisions like getting into and finishing college…learning the right trade, if college is not in the plans…finding a good job…finding the right future spouse…and other important life changing decisions, which are being made by many of these young Christians, without seeking God’s help before these decisions are made… Heck, at age 52, it took me over 7 years before I finally realized that living for the Lord was so much more gratifying, than doing what I wanted to do… I pray that the Lord would use my mistake of living for me, to open the eyes of these young minds to see that God promises that He is capable of opening doors that they would never be able to get through with their own mortal efforts, using their own feeble minds… God wants to bless His children in ways that we could never imagine or expect… But God wants us to be obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit that He has given to each and every one of His redeemed children… It is this supernatural “power” of the Holy Spirit (if allowed complete control of the heart, mind, and soul of God’s children), that the apostle Paul writes to the Ephesians about, in… Ephesians 3:16-20… that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through HisSpirit in the inner man, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height— 19 toknow the love of Christ which passesknowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to Him who is able to doexceedinglyabundantlyaboveall that we ask or think, according to thepower that works in us, (NKJV) Friends I have experienced this supernatural “power” of the Holy Spirit in my own life… But the Holy Spirit’s supernatural, life changing “power” that will bring “the peace of God, which surpassesallunderstanding” (Philippians 4:6-7), will only be in full effective in the life of the Christian who submits their lives to God… The apostle James pens this, in…James 4:7-8… Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will drawnear to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. (NKJV) These cleansed hands and a purified heart, that the apostle James tells us are necessary, to have Satan “flee from you”…are only found in God’s children who turn from and repent of any known sins…as they pray to the Lord to take back full control of their lives…1 John 1:9… If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanseus from allunrighteousness. (NKJV) When God cleanses “us from allunrighteousness”, and we do our best to Walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16)…we will experience “the love of Christ which passesknowledge”…and God willing…we will also benefit from God’s richest rewards which He promises to those who diligently seek Him, in… Hebrews 11:6… But without faith it is impossible to pleaseHim, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that Heisarewarder of those who diligentlyseek Him. (NKJV) Heavenly Father, I pray that Your living and powerful Word would ignite a fire with-in the hearts of Your redeemed wayward children, to begin living their lives for You…instead of seeking the short term sinful gratification like those still living in the world of sin and shame… I pray Lord, that once Your children taste and see that living for You is best (Psalm 34:8-9)…that walking in sweet fellowship with You will become the most important part of their lives… I pray for this fullness of Christ in all of our lives, in Jesus’ most precious name and for His sake…Amen… Blessings in Christ, bruce r mills
P.S. Here is a link for this most important days writing, about how God’s grace is received to become a Christian in God’s eyes; through understanding and obeying the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, after first being drawn in by God…John 6:44… https://godsmanforever.wordpress.com/2013/07/11/gods-group-thoughts-for-7112013-the-truth-about-sin/
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