We need to be willing and ready to experience any crisis God brings, with joy (3) that will help us to learn perseverance that will help us to deny our self-will, our self-righteousness, our self-sufficiency, our self-authority, our unforgiveness etc. By exposing our weaknesses we can call on Christ within, and learn to overcome by His strength.
We can only rise up and follow Christ as a true disciple when we can freely admit we can do nothing in our own strength, we cannot overcome sin through our own will power, our temptations cannot be overcome by our self efforts alone, we cannot work things out by our own intellect – we need Christ.
God is about the completeness of Christ in us and the elimination of self interest and concern of self.
If we have parents, we must honour and respect them, then it will go well with us (4) and it pleases the Lord.(5) Dishonouring and disrespecting them and things will NOT go well with us and it displeases the Lord.
The Apostle Peter’s concerns in his writings are with the condition of the testimony, the fullness of Christ of believers, not the condition or extent of the darkness. God is looking for a crucified body of believers. God is interested in the calibre of discipleship, not the state of society.
As we grow in the fullness of Christ, we become more Christ like, and Christ becomes more visible to those who need to see Him. Light will shine brightest in darkness.
Power, the work of the Holy Spirit, is never given as an endorsement of any person or their message. Power is only demonstrated to testify of Christ.
We need to refuse to worship at the shrine of success, where position, popularity and earthly possession possess us. We must keep well clear of the gods of worldly wisdom which can appear so reasonable, carnal self confidence which makes man feel that he controls his own destiny and self expression that tolerates uncleanness in thought or action. All our self importance must go.
All our desire for recognition must vanish. We must remember that friendship with the world is hatred towards God.(6) These things are idols to our self life.(7) We must not have selfish ambitions or be envious for these lead to disorder and every evil practice.(8) “He (Christ) made Himself of no reputation” (KJV) “He made Himself nothing” (NIV)(9) Seek Christ alone.
Last, but not least, we need to be favourably disposed towards the Jewish people, for God has said He will bless those who bless them and curse those who curse them.(10) This promise is part of the Abrahamic Covenant which still stands today.
(1) Isaiah 64:8; 29:16 (2) Colossians 3:23 (3) James 1:2 (4) Ephesians 6:2,3 (5) Colossians 3:20 (6) Titus 2:12; James 4:4; 1 John 1: 27; 2:15 (7) 1 John 5:21 (8) James 3:14-16 (9) Philippians 2:7 (10) Genesis 12:3.
Post published in: Faith