Andrew Murray: Two great enemies obtained dominion over man when Adam sinned—the world and self. Of the world Christ says, "The Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him" (John 14:17).
Worldliness is the great hindrance that keeps believers from living a spiritual life. Of self Christ said, "Let him deny himself" (Mark 8:34). Self in all its forms—self-will, self-pleasing, self-confidence—renders life in the power of the Spirit impossible.
(Google image, How to handle selfish people)
Nothing can deliver us from these two great enemies except the cross of Christ. Paul boasts in the cross by which he has been crucified to the world. He tells us, "They that are Christ's have crucified the flesh" (Galatians 5:24).
To live the spiritual life, we must completely give up the old life to make room for the blessed Spirit. He will then be free to renew and transform our whole being into the will of God.
Without the Spirit, we can do nothing acceptable to God. "No man can say that Jesus is Lord, but by the Holy Ghost" (1 Corinthians 12:3). No man can truly say, "Abba, Father" except by the Spirit of God's Son sent into our hearts.
In our fellowship with God and with men, in our religious worship and our daily vocations, in the highest pursuit that life can offer and in the daily care of our bodies—everything must bear the seal of the Holy Spirit.
Of the Son we read, "Him hath God the Father sealed' (John 6:27). We are sealed in Christ. When the Spirit descended upon Jesus at His baptism, He was led by the Spirit to the wilderness and led through His whole life to the cross.
"Through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God" (Hebrews 9:14). We, too, are to live daily as those who are sealed by the Spirit.
The words, "Him hath God the Father sealed," are true of every believer. The Son and every son have been sealed by the Father. The New Testament standard of the Christian life and its devotion is that everything we do bears the stamp of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit cannot inspire our devotion, unless He inspires our daily life. The Spirit of Christ must rule the whole man if He is to perform His blessed work in us.
The indwelling of the Spirit means that nothing is to be thought of, trusted, or sought after except continual dependence on His blessed work.
The way we live our daily life will be the test of the sincerity of our heart's devotion. As we mature spiritually, our confidence in God who works in us through His blessed Spirit will grow.
Every thought of faith in the power of the Spirit must find its expression in prayer to God. He will surely give us His Spirit when we ask Him to work in us what we need.
A seal attached to a document gives validity to every word it contains. Even so, the Holy Spirit of promise who sealed us also ratifies every promise that is in Christ. This is one of the great differences between the Bible and human standard of the Christian life.
In the Bible, the seal of the Spirit is accepted in His control of every movement and every moment of our life. By human standards, we are content with sadly partial surrender to His guidance.
(Chapter 5, pp. 27-29)
by Andrew Murray
Copyright © 1984
Copyright © 1984
by Whitaker House
Used by permission
Let's pray-
Father, when Adam sinned, he opened the door to two great enemies, which obtained dominion over all mankind—the world and self. And we're finding that worldliness is the great hindrance that keeps believers from living a spiritual life.
Help us understand that nothing can deliver us from these two enemies except the cross of Christ, by which He was crucified to the world.
When we live the spiritual life, we are to completely give up the old life to make room for Your Spirit to transform our whole being into Your will for us.
We're to see that our fellowship with You and others, and in our religious worship and our daily vocations, the highest pursuit that life can offer and in the daily care of our bodies—everything is to bear the seal of the Holy Spirit.
As a seal attached to a document gives validity to every word it contains, the Holy Spirit of promise seals us with the promise that we are in Christ.
He is to be in control of our every movement and every moment in our lives, but by human standards, we are only partially surrendered to His guidance.
We ask for Your help in understanding the importance of fully surrendering to Your Spirit, so we will reveal Christ's working in our lives.
Our prayer is for victory over our partially surrendered living for Christ. In His name we pray for help. Amen
Today's Bible verses-
James 1:6-8 ESV "But but let him ask in faith, with
no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave
of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For
that person must not suppose that he will receive
anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man,
unstable in all his ways."
2 Corinthians 1:2-3 (AMP) “Grace (favor and
spiritual blessing) to you and [heart] peace from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (the
Messiah, the Anointed One). Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of sympathy (pity and mercy) and the God [Who
is the Source] of every comfort (consolation and
encouragement) . . . ”
James 1:6-8 ESV "But but let him ask in faith, with
no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave
of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For
that person must not suppose that he will receive
anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man,
unstable in all his ways."
Today's quote-
Max Lucado- The Bible says, “If God were to withdraw his Spirit, all life would disappear and mankind would return again to dust” (Job 34:14-15). And Ephesians 1:13 says that the Holy Spirit enters the believer upon confession of faith. From that point forward the Christian has access to the very power and personality of God.
They begin to think the way God thinks, love the way God loves, and see the way God sees. And this power includes the gifts of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”
As our relationship with God is secured and unmarred by rebellion, sin, or stubborn behavior, we can expect a harvest of fruit! We need not force it, but we can expect it. It simply falls to us to stay connected. And because God’s promises are unbreakable our hope is unshakable!
"Promises from God covers people and promises from the Bible that Max Lucado explores in the adult book. Promises from God weaves the larger narrative of God's Faithfulness. Through the stories of Adam and Eve, Abraham, Joseph, Peter, Paul, and many more, children will learn about the character and nature of God and His unending love for His children. Recommended for ages 4 to 8 years."
Year-round Mask
Ron Hutchcraft- I saw the sign on the door of a convenience store. On Halloween. It said, "Please remove your mask before entering." That makes sense. Just in case a mask is meant to conceal someone who's there for more than candy.
Words of wisdom-
~ As we follow the Lord wholeheartedly, He'll change us more and more into the person He designed us to be. Let's trust Him to know what He's doing.
~ The difficult discipline of spending time with Jesus early each day, goes against the activity addiction of this age. We desperately need divine power to demolish our strongholds.
List of recent sermons of CFC ministers. CFC Potsdam NY church has a live service at 10 am Sunday's for shut-ins. If for some reason you can't make it to the church you usually attend, click on the above link, and still get fed!
Jean's blog (Click to see snippets of the 7 recent posts)
Helpful ways the Lord helped me in my marriage
Upcoming posts-
Passion for the Local Church
11/2nd- Saturday's post by Karen Friday#11 The Spirit of Wisdom
5th- Tuesday's post by Andrew Murray
#12 Obtaining the Power
7th- Thursday's post by Andrew Murray
Pursue Your Calling
9th- Saturday's post by Mary Southerland
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| A glorious scene with dusk producing a golden glow |
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