Each Of Us Has A Divine Purpose On Earth

“I brought glory to You here on earth by completing the work You gave Me to do. Now, Father, bring Me into the glory We shared before the world began. ” John 17:4-5

I just recently finished reading through the book of John again. When I got to verse four above I had to stop and really reflect. You see at this point in the book Jesus had been betrayed and his accusers were on their way to arrest him. He knew that they were going to kill him. The final hours of His life had come and He knew that He was completing the work that He had come to this earth to do. Facing the end of His life He could confidently say to our Heavenly Father,

“I brought glory to You here on earth by completing the work You gave Me to do.”

This made me think, will we be able to say the same thing when our lives’ are nearing its end? Will we be able to say that we have brought Jesus glory in this world, in our families, in our communities, in our work places, and in our schools? Will we be able to say that we have completed the work He gave us to do?

I Want To Do What Is Right, But I Can’t

“And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.” Romans 7:18-21

Recently a sister wrote into to WeUsed2bu.com who was born again about a year ago. Her concern was that she did not feel like a new creation because she was still having a lot struggles with sin. She said that like Paul in Romans chapter seven, she wants to do right but can’t seem to. She keeps doing what she does not want to do. I am sure that we can all relate to what this sister is going through because all though we are saved we still battle the sin nature that lives in us. So I wanted to take some time and share what the Lord has laid on my heart about this. More importantly I want to share what His Word says about our struggle with sin and how to overcome it.

Let me begin by first addressing the first part of this sisters comment, “not feeling like a new creation”. She is referring to 2 Corinthians 5:17 which says, “Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun.” I believe to get a better understanding of this verse we need to go back up a couple verses to 14 & 15.

“Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.”

When we believe in Jesus we are born again in our spirit man, but our mind doesn’t automatically become new. We still have to go through a process of dying to our old life. We have to CHOOSE to no longer live for our own selfish desires and sinful nature. We have to CHOOSE instead to live for Christ Jesus who died for us.

“Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you CHOOSE to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can CHOOSE to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey his teachings we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.” (Romans 6:16-18)

We have a choice to submit to our sinful desires or to submit and obey the leading of the Holy Spirit. It is in our obedience to the Word that we find freedom from our slavery to sin. It is our love for Him that moves us to give up our old life and selfish ways to follow Him and live a new life in Christ. I am reminded of when our Lord said to His disciples,

“If any of you wants to be My follower, you MUST turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow Me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake, you will save it.” (Matthew 16:24-25)

Your Not The Same Anymore

October 17th, 2009 It’s 5:16 am and I can’t sleep, because the Holy Spirit has given me a Word for you. You the ex-prostitute, ex-con, ex-drug dealer, ex-masturbator, ex-liar, ex-thief, ex-porn addict, ex-gang banger, ex-drug addict and ex-alcoholic. You whom the world and even the church will often time criticize and judge. Our Lord wants you to know that you are not the same anymore! You are His now and forever more. He has waited for you to humble yourself at His feet and realize your need for Him as your Savior. He has waited for you to come to Him with a broken and contrite spirit. When you did He accepted you and cleansed you and made you new in Him. You are a new creation! Do not let the world or even the church make you feel that you are not. (2 Corinthians 5:17-21, Psalm 51:17)

The Lord is doing a new thing in your life. He wants you to forget the former things of old. Don’t meditate on who you were and what you did. You have entered a new life with new ways, and a new Spirit. He has given you a new heart, one that longs to please Him. He is about to do something new in you. He has already begun! Do you not see it? There will be those that the enemy will use to try to get you to look and turn back to your old ways, but you cannot go there anymore because you are not the same. That person no longer lives. It is Christ that lives in you now. You are a child of the Most High God. You are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Focus on who you are now. Focus on forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. Press forward to what Jesus is calling you to do in this new season of your life. (Isaiah 43:18, Galatians 2:20, 1 John 3:1, 1 Corinthians 6:19, Philippians 3:13)

Don’t listen to the taunting and accusations of those whom the enemy sends your way. You have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. He is your Righteous Judge who has found you not guilty because Jesus paid the price for all of your sins. Be free in Christ Jesus. It’s time to live the rich and satisfying life that He came to give you. Don’t allow the enemy to kill, steal, and destroy your faith, peace, and hope. Stand on the Rock, the Word of God, it will be your source of strength. (1 Peter 1:18-20, Acts 10:42, Romans 3:25-26, John 10:10, Matthew 7:24-27)

There will be times of testing. This testing is vital for your faith to grow, to humble you, purify your heart, develop godly character, and to teach you to obey the Lord’s commands. Don’t despise this season. You will feel at times like you are in the wilderness all alone. But do not be lead by your emotions or deceived by the enemy. Our Good Shepherd will never leave you alone. You can be sure that He will be walking with you, making a path for you through the wilderness. He will create rivers in the dry and wasteland. Just keep your eyes on Him! Do not turn to the left or to the right. Stay on the narrow road it will always lead to life and favor with Him. Stay off that broad road that is commonly taken not only by the world, but by some who claim the name of Christ. It is the road of compromise, justification, and less resistance which leads to death and the judgment of God. (Isaiah 43:19, Deuteronomy 8:1-5, James 1:2-4, Proverbs 4:27, Matthew 7:13-14)

Draw close to Him in His Word so that you will learn to recognize His voice and you will not be deceived by those that claim to come in His name but only prey on the weak, easily influenced, babes in Christ young in their faith. Fill yourself with the knowledge of the Lord and you will not be lead astray by wishy washy religion and faith that has been dipped in the world. The Word must be the final authority in your life, not the teachings of man or their philosophies. Allow the Holy Spirit to be your teacher. Meditate on the Word day and night so that you will learn what it is that our Lord wants you to do. Do not let His Word depart from your eyes, mind, and heart. The Word will be a light to your feet, directing your path all the days of your life. (James 4:8, John 10:4-5, Proverbs 2:1-5, Colossians 2:8, Luke 12:12,Joshua 1:8, Proverbs 4:20-21, Psalm 119:05)

A warning..temptation to compromise and sin will most assuredly come, so do not be surprised. If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall. Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power, never rely on your own strength. Stay alert and persistent in your prayers, do not forsake fellowship with the Lord by spending time in His Word, and do not forsake fellowship with your brothers and sisters in Christ. Our Lord will use them to help hold you up in your times of trouble and weakness. Do not hide from them. Confess your temptations and sins to those that He has placed in your life that have a true heart for Him. They will pray and intercede on your behalf. They will stand in the gap for you and your family. Remember that the temptations in your life are no different from what others experience so do not be ashamed or allow condemnation to torment you. Our Lord has promised and is faithful to not allow the temptations in our lives to be more than we can stand. When we are tempted He will show us a way out so that we can endure. Be sure to take the way out, do not ignore it. (Ephesians 6:10, Zachariah 4:6, Hebrews 10:25,James 5:16, 1 Corinthians 10:13)

Be encouraged brothers and sisters because of all that the Lord is doing in you and through you. Your life will be a testimony to others of God’s redeeming power and faithfulness to save and transform lives. Sit as His feet and allow Him to teach you, to train you up for battle. Once you served in the enemy’s camp and now you will serve the Lord on the front lines. It will be by the word of your testimony and the blood of the Lamb that the Lord will use you to defeat spirits and principalities wherever He sends you. Therefore you must not be afraid to tell of the wonderful things the Lord has done in your life. Speak with boldness and assurance of who you are today in Him. Glorify the Lord not only with your words but with actions. Be lead of the Spirit and walk in love. (Psalm 40:3, Revelation 12:11, Romans 8:14, Ephesians 5:2)

May our God fill you will peace, love, and encouragement as you press forward to all that He has for you today. Be confident of who you are in Him. Blessings to you in Christ Jesus name..