We’ve been looking at how having the mind of Christ means we should have His attitude. This devotional reading looks at how we should engage our strength.
Nuggets
- We utilize and gain strength in our new life in Christ as we walk more closely with the Spirit.
- Our walk should always be about listening to the Holy Spirit in order to be obedient to God.
We are to imitate Jesus. - The walking would mean nothing if it didn’t include abiding in Him.
- We have no doubts about our relationship with God when we are imitating Jesus.
Sorry I couldn’t get the last devotion posted because of website problems. I kept waiting to get on, but I never could.
But then part of me said, “Oh, good.” It gave me a couple of days to get this devotion figured out. I kept thinking, “Where in the world are you going with this one?”
Luckily, I had put a sermon I found when doing another devotion in this series in the draft file. It tells us the areas in which we need to be strong.
Let's Put It into Context
To read devotions in the Habitual Holiness of Heart and Life theme, click the button below.
Here is a running list of nuggets for the theme.
Devotions in the Commit to Grow Our Habits study
Here is a running list of nuggets for the study.
The foundation of this devotion is from Clifford’s sermon.
Resource
The headings are Clifford’s words.
From a New and Full Life, a Heart Quick in Sympathy and Strong in the Spirit
“… By this we may know that we are in him: Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (I Jn. 2: 5-6 ESV)
We utilize and gain strength in our new life in Christ as we walk more closely with the Spirit.
From a New and Full Life
Being a creature of God isn’t enough to make us children of God. Nor is based on being made in His image.
Being made children of God occurs through regeneration and adoption. In order to become children of God, we have to accept salvation through Jesus – that is how we become to be in Christ.
Regeneration is being changed from spiritually dead to spiritually alive and the internal new birth and requickening that God brings about through the work of the Holy Spirit.
- Spiritual death is the separation from God that occurred as a consequence of Adam and Eve’s original sin.
- The spiritually alive are those who have ABCDed, so they are no longer separated from God.
Adoption is the gift of acceptance into God’s family when Jesus redeems us and changed to be spiritually alive like God.
Salvation is the gift of life through the deliverance from condemnation and sin to acceptance and holiness and changes us from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive.
- Sin is not believing that Jesus is our Savior to save us from our actions by humans that disobey God and break one of His reasonable, holy, and righteous laws and commandments, goes against a purpose He has for us, or follows Satan’s promptings.
- Holy means to be set apart — because of our devotion to God — to become perfect, and morally pure while possessing all virtues and to serve and worship God.
- Perfection means we reach a state of maturity because the combination of the spiritual graces form, when all are present, spiritual wholeness or completeness — holy, sanctified, and righteous.
- Spiritual graces are worldly morals that have been submitted to God to further His kingdom instead of enhancing this world.
- Sanctified means to be set free from sin.
- Righteous means we are free from sin because we are following God’s moral laws.
- Pure means not being sinful or having the stain of sin.
- Virtues are standards of moral excellence.
- Perfection means we reach a state of maturity because the combination of the spiritual graces form, when all are present, spiritual wholeness or completeness — holy, sanctified, and righteous.
- Holiness is the transcendent excellence of His nature that includes elements of purity, dedication, and commitment that lead to being set apart.
- Purity means possessing God’s moral character, having eliminated the stain of sin.
- Holy means to be set apart — because of our devotion to God — to become perfect, and morally pure while possessing all virtues and to serve and worship God.
Once we are in Christ, we are made a new creation. Yes, we are still in our earthly bodies.
We still have our sinful nature. But as new creations, we receive a new disposition. We receive a new character upon conversion. Conversion is the product of repentance, when we turn away from our sins and return to God, that secures salvation.
- Repentance is acknowledging our separation from God and expressing sorrow for breaking God’s laws and commandments by making the commitment to change our sinful ways to ways of righteousness through obedience.
- Obedience means submitting ourselves to the will of God as it is presented to us and living our lives accordingly.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Glossary
This change has to be a complete change — body, mind, and soul. We have new views and new affections. We have to have new boundaries.
Regeneration can be seen as renewing our minds. But God doesn’t just flip a switch, and we are that new creation. It takes work on our part. That work is done as we learn Who God is and what He wants us to be.
Knowing of Jesus isn’t enough. He has to change us. We need to divest ourselves of what used to be.
God will show us what needs to be changed. No, God won’t bop us over the head — unless we need it. He will correct us through love.
I like what Spurgeon had to say. He wrote, “We cannot be Christians unless we are in Christ; and we are not truly in Christ unless the life of Christ is lived over again by us according to our measure.”
Resource
The concept of walking is used in several ways to teach us how we are to show we are to be in Christ.
A Heart Quick in Sympathy and Strong in the Spirit
Our walk should always be about listening to the Holy Spirit in order to be obedient to God.
We usually start at the first of the verse and work our way through it. This time, we are going to start at the end and head to the beginning.
Usually, when we think about walking in the Spirit as a little more than physically putting one foot in front of the other. Walking in the Spirit means we follow God instead of human nature.
We are to submit to His Will and live our lives to glorify Him.
That means we obey God’s laws and commandments. We don’t try to rewrite them because we think they should have evolved by now. We can’t think we can pick and choose which we will or won’t follow.
We must fully submit to God.
That also means we are content in our lives. I know, that is hard — especially when trials are swirling and things just don’t go as we’ve planned.
Being content in the rough patches shows our true faith in God. Faith is a gift from God and a work of the Spirit that enhances the conviction that the doctrines revealed in God’s Word are true, even if we do not understand all aspects of them, a belief which impacts our lives and distinguishes us from others.
Glossary
Walk in the Same Way in which He Walked
We are to imitate Jesus.
How did Jesus get around from mission field to mission field? He walked.
No, this doesn’t mean we have to give up our vehicles. Neither does it mean we have to go back to horse and buggy days.
Walking is the term used to describe how we live our lives, specifically our habitual state of mind, behavior, and manners. (Remember, our theme this year is habitual holiness.)
Walking as Jesus walked doesn’t mean an occasional stroll. Instead, our lives are to mirror the life Jesus lived. We have to be holy and righteous as He was.
We have to imitate Jesus while we walk. That is the way we worship Him. We show we love Him.
Think about it this way. When we imitate Jesus, Maclaren reminded us that we are following Him where He has already gone.
Resource
Jesus calls us to be holy.
Whoever Says He Abides in Him
The walking would mean nothing if it didn’t include abiding in Him.
Abiding in Christ means to permanently be in God in mind, spirit, and heart; resting in Him; and completing His purpose for our lives. Candlish explained what that looked like.
He wrote, “While His [Jesus’] feet were busy walking, His soul was resting in God. Outward movement, inward repose; the whole man Christ Jesus — mind, spirit, heart, all bent upon the road; and yet ever, at the same time, the whole man Christ Jesus dwelling in the Father’s bosom, as calmly as in that unbroken eternity, ere He became man, He had been wont to dwell there: so he walked, abiding in God.”
Resource
This is more than just what we’ve been saying: the outward walk means nothing without the inward transformation. This tells us what the inward becomes.
The inward is calm. It is trusting in God to provide and protect.
We get peace because we know that God has forgiven us, that Jesus has redeemed us, and we are following Him.
By This We May Know that We Are in Him
We have no doubts about our relationship with God when we are imitating Jesus.
Barrow nailed it. He has a sermon entitled Abiding in Christ to be Demonstrated by Walking as Christ Did.
Resource
We know we are “… in him …” (I Jn. 2: 5 ESV) when we are focused mind, spirit, and heart on Him. We see God in everything — all the way from finding a parking space to finding a new home or job.
It is shown by the depth of our faith, love, and reverence for Him.
In other words, we are in God when we are walking with Him. Walking with God means we are humble, reverent, teachable servants of God.
It is no coincidence that this is the way that Jesus walked. We are to deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Him (Lk. 9: 23).
I see you jumping up and down over there. That makes it seem like an obligation.
Not really.
It begins with a choice. Are we going to ask Jesus to be our Savior and Redeemer or not?
The choice is totally up to us.
True, when we choose Jesus, we do have to become like Him.
“And he said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me’” (Lk. 9: 23 ESV). That can be seen as an obligation.
But it is still a choice. Let’s really look at the Luke verse. It says we have to choose daily.
We need to keep ourselves pure and holy. Resist the temptation to sin. Ask forgiveness when we don’t.
We have to make that choice daily. Obligation, yes. Choice, yes.
So, what is abiding in Him in a nutshell?
- We know we are sinners.
- We know Jesus can save us.
- We’ve become a new creation because we genuinely asked Jesus to save us.
- We choose daily to become more like Him.
Isn’t that what we are going for in sanctification? Sanctification is the transformational process of the mind, body, and soul, which begins with regeneration; gradually changes our nature and morals through the promptings of the Holy Spirit; and ends with perfected state of spiritual wholeness or completeness.
Glossary
We are striving to grow the spiritual graces within us. This is how we mature and become perfected.
Making the Connections #1
Here is the full quote from Clifford that I stored in the drafts folder. He wrote, “Who will not seek for the strength which comes(1) from a new and full life, a heart quick in sympathy and strong in the Spirit;(2) from the conviction that we are living in a world of persons spiritually related to the Father, and immediately responsible to His judgment; and(3) from the assurance that the love of God is a real gospel for each human soul — so that he may proclaim the faithful saying, that God is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe?”
Resource
The whole purpose of the strength is to grow faith. We use the strength to walk in the Spirit and resist temptation.
But is we look at the very first nugget, we said that we utilize and gain strength in our new life in Christ as we walk more closely with the Spirit.
Yes, we gain strength as we are sanctified, but the strength always comes from God. Human strength alone is not strong. In fact, it is weak.
Strength only comes from and through God.
Making the Connections #2
You know, I think I have the two definitions switched. They should be:
Walking is the term used to describe how we live our lives.
Walking in the Spirit means we follow God instead of human nature, specifically our habitual state of mind, behavior, and manners as we follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
Making the Connections #3
We can’t miss the big small word. It is implied when the verse says we ought to abide in Christ. We may take that as meaning we should.
Really, it means if we do. The choice is ours.
If we do, we are children of God. If we don’t, we are still following Satan. There are consequences for that.
We can only walk as Christ walked when we have ABCDed.
How Do We Apply This?
- See God’s hand in all things.
- Commit ourselves to Him.
- Love as He loves.
- Be one with God.
- Diligently work as God calls us.
- Humbly serve God, giving compassion to others.
- Be quick to forgive others.
- Love as Jesus did.
- Be content in all things.
- Open our hearts to the Holy Spirit.
- Resolve to walk the way God calls.
- Pray continually.
Resources
Father God. We choose to imitate Jesus in all we do. Help us to listen to the Holy Spirit, so that we can walk with You daily. Amen.
What do you think?
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