June 2, 2006

Hi

 

Thanks for joining us at the church growth, mission, and evangelism blog sponsored by www.thegreatcommissionchurch.org . It has been an incredible day with puffy clouds, and light breeze, and temps in the 80s. A great day for whatever you would like to do and a great day to gain peace with God.

Now that you have been born again-what’s next? It’s nearly impossible to live the Christian life alone. Most of us need help and fellowship. Everything is exciting and thrilling just after you have made your decision for Christ, but it is also natural to have doubts, problems, and temptations.

 

The first enemy is the devil. Even though he was beaten by Christ at the cross, he still has power to influence men for evil. The moment that you made your decision for Christ, Satan suffered a tremendous defeat. From now on he is going to tempt you and try to lead you into sin. He will do everything in his power to sow seeds of doubt in your mind. You cannot argue with him for he is the greatest debater of all time.

 

The moment of test has come with the first temptation. Remember to refuse any reliance on your feelings for they will change like the wind. He will try to make you feel proud and important. He will tempt you to say unkind and ungenerous things about other people. He will put hatred into your heart. He will put envy, discontent, and malice into your heart. He will do his best to make a liar out of you. If you are not careful, you may actually find yourself in the employ of the devil!

 

Remember that temptation is actually a sign that you are right with God. Satan’s power is made inoperative in the life of a Christian who fully trusts and yields to God. There are times when we simply must hide behind the person of Christ and ask Him to handle our problems.

 

Your second enemy is the world. The world has a tendency to lead us into sin. Many non-Christians accuse the Christian life as being a bunch of rules, but that is not true. You become so busy doing the work of Christ and become so satisfied doing the work of Christ that you do not have time for things of the world. Worldliness is probably one of the greatest difficulties for a young and inexperienced Christian.

 

The third enemy is the lust of the flesh. The Bible teaches us that the old nature with all its corruption is still there and that’s where these evil temptations come from. Neither the devil nor the world nor even our own heart can cause us to sin. It must come with our consent and will and it is at this point that our evil nature comes in with its awful power and possibility of evil.

 

The good news is that we don’t have to fight these battles alone. Remember that Jesus said that he would never leave us or forsake us. The Holy Spirit is the most powerful Being in the world today. The moment you accepted Christ as Savior the Holy Spirit took up residence in your heart. Accept the Spirit by faith as a fact. Disregard your feelings. He lives within you right now to help you live the Christian life.

 

When you give all that you know of yourself to all that you know of Christ, then you can accept by faith that you are filled with the Spirit of God. Commitment is actually surrender-total, absolute, unconditional, irreversible surrender.

 

It is only the consecrated, Spirit filled Christian who can have victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil. It is the Holy Spirit who will do the fighting for you. This is spiritual warfare. Don’t hold anything back from Christ. Let Him be completely the Lord and Master of your life. After you have given yourself completely to Christ in consecration, remember that God has accepted what you have presented.

 

One fruit of the Spirit is unself-consciousness. Another fruit is joy. The victory is yours. Claim it! The Savior goes with you no matter what the problem. The peace comes in the midst of problems and in spite of them.

See you again on Monday. Have a great, safe weekend. Please send your comments to me at: [e-mail] . Until then, thanks and God Bless.

Pastor Bob Emery