Inside Out Living! - Eph. 4:23-24
"22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. 29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."
Eph. 4:22-32
Have you ever heard of the term "easy-believism"? Its a term used in theological circles that describe a belief that all a person has to do is accept what Jesus did on the cross for their sin and they will be saved. It sounds really good at face value, but I think that it is not honest with the Scriptures. I believe that the gospel is clear, that when we come to Jesus, we are committing ourselves to the person of Jesus Christ and when we do that, several things happen.
First of all, our sins are forgiven because of what Jesus did on the cross. This is the act of redemption... God purchased us with the blood of Jesus.
Secondly, the Holy Spirit makes us a new creation in Christ. Because of this work, God sees us as righteous (positional sanctification) though practically we are not even close; however, one of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to move our practice towards our position. Paul tells us in Philippians 1:6 that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion..." Galatians even describes characteristics that we should have as believers called "the fruit of the Spirit". Galatians also tells us that "if we live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nation." All of this gives evidence toward the work of the Spirit in our lives moving us toward Christ-likeness. I could go on, but that is not my main point. The point is, that when we come to Jesus, we consciously choose to believe in who He is (surrender our lives to Him), and this WILL produce fruit because the Holy Spirit demands it!
The Holy Spirit works inside of the believer to conform him/her to Christ! So, in Eph. 4:22-the rest of the book, Paul is describing the change of behavior that a believer should demonstrate as a result of "being made new in the attitude of our minds."
I will blog about these things in the coming days, but know that God is not interested in changed behavior, He is interested in a changed heart as a result of the Spirit's work that will produce a change in behavior. The behavior is not what God is working on! He is not looking down on us and thinking, "If only those people would act right!" Rather, He is working on the core of who we are... our heart, our soul, our mind, and our will (strength). Maybe that is why He commands us to love Him with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength... It's about what is on the inside!
Allow God to change you from the inside out. Put yourself in environments that make it easier for you to discern what the Spirit of God is saying to you. Those environments for me are...
1. Quiet time... just me and God! I am consciously asking God to speak to me through His Word!
2. Small Group... Just a small group of people who are committed to growing together!
3. Church... There is something about the body of Christ that helps me move toward Christ-likeness.
Make an effort to find those environments for yourself!
First of all, our sins are forgiven because of what Jesus did on the cross. This is the act of redemption... God purchased us with the blood of Jesus.
Secondly, the Holy Spirit makes us a new creation in Christ. Because of this work, God sees us as righteous (positional sanctification) though practically we are not even close; however, one of the ministries of the Holy Spirit is to move our practice towards our position. Paul tells us in Philippians 1:6 that "He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion..." Galatians even describes characteristics that we should have as believers called "the fruit of the Spirit". Galatians also tells us that "if we live by the Spirit, we will not gratify the desires of the sinful nation." All of this gives evidence toward the work of the Spirit in our lives moving us toward Christ-likeness. I could go on, but that is not my main point. The point is, that when we come to Jesus, we consciously choose to believe in who He is (surrender our lives to Him), and this WILL produce fruit because the Holy Spirit demands it!
The Holy Spirit works inside of the believer to conform him/her to Christ! So, in Eph. 4:22-the rest of the book, Paul is describing the change of behavior that a believer should demonstrate as a result of "being made new in the attitude of our minds."
I will blog about these things in the coming days, but know that God is not interested in changed behavior, He is interested in a changed heart as a result of the Spirit's work that will produce a change in behavior. The behavior is not what God is working on! He is not looking down on us and thinking, "If only those people would act right!" Rather, He is working on the core of who we are... our heart, our soul, our mind, and our will (strength). Maybe that is why He commands us to love Him with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength... It's about what is on the inside!
Allow God to change you from the inside out. Put yourself in environments that make it easier for you to discern what the Spirit of God is saying to you. Those environments for me are...
1. Quiet time... just me and God! I am consciously asking God to speak to me through His Word!
2. Small Group... Just a small group of people who are committed to growing together!
3. Church... There is something about the body of Christ that helps me move toward Christ-likeness.
Make an effort to find those environments for yourself!
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