Q: What can Christians do to keep from sinning?
A: Trusting in and depending on God will keep you from sinning. The Bible says it is the grace of God that teaches us to say no to ungodliness (Titus 2). Our focus should not be on trying to keep from sinning. If we focus on keeping from sinning we have to live in accordance what is good and not in accordance to what is evil. That is the same lie of the devil that deceived Adam and Eve (Gen 3). Living that way means we have to put ourselves under law because we will have to define what is good and evil. And scripture is clear that the righteous live by faith (Rom 1) and that the power of sin is in the law (1 Cor 15). When we focus on sin we will keep sinning. Ultimately, we will be alienated from God in our minds because we will feel that our sins keep us separated from God. That, in turn, leads us into more sin because we will feel we have to perform a sacrifice, i.e. asking forgiveness, which God no longer requires or accepts (Heb 10). As long as we are in these fallen bodies sin will always be a struggle. But, the only way to avoid sin is to realize that God is not counting them against us (2 Cor 5) and that we have been reconciled to Him (2 Cor 5). Therefore, we can approach Him to see why we weren't trusting Him when we did sin (Heb 4). After all, anything that is not of faith is sin. And if you believe you have to live a life of avoiding sin you are not exercising faith in Christ that He has taken those sins away and wants to lead you from within.
Q: We hear rappers like lil Wayne, Kanye West, and Jay-Z say “I LIKE TO THANK JESUS CHRIST FOR HELPING ME WRITE MY MUSIC’”. The question is, did Jesus really encourage them to write these songs?
A: These individuals are a representation of a disturbing trend within the Body of Christ. it is the belief that faith in Jesus Christ is just a means to an end. That end being worldly gain. While everybody sees the entertainers and public figures who confess thankfulness to the Lord for their success, there are countless Christians that believe in the false teaching that godliness is a means to gain. How many Christians believe that God has promised them health, wealth, restored relationships, perfect jobs, smooth living, etc., for their "obedience"? Personally, I have my doubts about whether or not the Li'l' Wayne's of the world are truly born again. At best they are so immature in their faith that it is difficult to tell. These people have "grown up in the church." They know scripture, talk the talk and may even walk the walk to many who know them, but have never placed saving faith in the Lord. But, we can be thankful that regardless of their reasons for thanking the Lord, He is glorified. "But what does it matter. The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice (Phil. 1:18)."
Q: After we give our life to Christ what then is our ultimate "purpose"?
A: We don't have a life to give to Jesus. Salvation is accepting His life, the very life of God, restored to us as a free gift. It is in that life that we find unconditional love, acceptance and meaning and purpose to life. Our ultimate purpose is to be at home with the Father in Heaven. "For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now it is God who has MADE US FOR THIS VERY PURPOSE and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come (2 Cor 5:4-5)." It is the knowledge that God has given us Himself, in the form of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and an eternal inheritance that relieves us from the burdens of this life. We know that this world and the bodies we live in our only temporary. Therefore, we are compelled by God's love to share what we have with the world around us. God gave us Himself and the eternal inheritance that comes with it so we would trust completely in Him so He could live the life, only He could live, in and through us. We are Christ's ambassadors. We are of this world, but instead we are representatives of Heaven here to gather souls for the Kingdom. As the Apostle Paul said we can only do this in His strength. "We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. To this end I labor, STRUGGLING WITH ALL HIS ENERGY, which so powerfully works in me (Col 1:28-29)."
Q: Why is it important to "read" and "meditate" on God's word daily?
A: The purpose of reading and meditating on God's word is to know your God and Savior Jesus Christ. The Bible is a revelation of Him and God's plan of salvation for all mankind. For those in Christ we study to discover all we have in Him as an inheritance given to us through His death, burial and resurrection. Many Christians study and meditate on the word, but have no idea what it means because they do not realize that discernment only comes through the Holy Spirit teaching us. "The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14)." Through trusting in the Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth everything else in our life in Christ will fall into place. We know what we have in Him. We will be able to correctly divide and discern the scriptures. This allows us to test the Spirits to know if they are from God. And through a knowledge of who we are in Christ we will learn to trust and depend on Him live a life, only He can live, in and through us. The byproduct of which is experiencing the love of God, finding meaning and purpose to our lives and the desire to share with others what you have received from God.
No comments:
Post a Comment