Lovely Sunday - In Him

Good morning, Father;

Thank you for a wonderful day, yesterday. You were evident in many ways, including my time with Anne, Reilly's tournament victory in CS volleyball, my interaction with Kyle Wrenn and his family as well as your fulfillment of prayer by meeting and getting to know Jonathan Kristy and Aaron from the CCHS golf team. Thank you for keeping Anne and Reilly safe with the high winds and rain from the storm.... Praise you, Father. Glory to you in the name of Jesus Christ.

Please be with me now as I share my heart reading your word....

There is such a clear distinction between those that Believe in God through a saving faith in Jesus Christ and those that do not... Romans 8 is a treatise on this fact as Paul states; "1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires."

We know exactly what the sinful nature or 'fleshly' nature is all about because we see it in ourselves; "I am better than him/her", "I've got to get mine first", "I would love to have her/him", "No-one will notice if I just take this one thing." or "That's so unfair, I should have been promoted/honored/provided something, not him/her." We all have these thoughts and feelings, don't we?!! These promptings are fleshly, sinful thoughts. They come from deep inside of us, don't they? We all have them, Believer and non-Believer because we have the sinful nature inside of us.

"Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires." Those that are not Believers and growing in the knowledge of God 'have their minds set on what that nature desires'. Their lives are based on what their nature (flesh) desires. The basis, search, dissatisfaction with life stems from 'what that nature desires'. Paul later says that "7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." Get that.. CONTROLLED. We all have those thoughts, but are we controlled by those thoughts. Is that sinful (fleshly) nature what controls our lives? Are the standards for success or happiness based on what the world says is success or happiness? Is our entire life dependent on worldly success or happiness? If so, you are hostile toward God and cannot please Him.

"But those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." NOT the sinful (fleshly) nature, but the Spiritual nature.

Paul says that "those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires." "9 You however, are CONTROLLED NOT by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you."

When we Believe in God through a saving faith in Jesus Christ we are no longer CONTROLLED by the sinful nature, but are victorious over that sinful nature and God gives life to our mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in us. We now have the power to overcome the sinful nature and call upon Him to strengthen us, change our thoughts, give us power to ACT godly and not be controlled by the sinful nature in us.

2 Peter 1:5 "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7 and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."

and the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ is what transforms us into godly people; counteracting the sinful nature and helping us to act in love.

Amen