Reassurance

 

The Bible version I borrowed this from titled this passaged: "Life in the Spirit." I've read it over and over this morning and felt a sense of peace and reassurance. How awesome is our God? Would the god or gods of other religions have done anything close to this? No. The answer is most definitely, "no!" That's because our God is the one, true, living God. Our Creator. Our Father. He loves us. He saved us.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Romans 8:1-8 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for God to show each of us our sin. Then, ask for His wisdom and guidance to overcome that sin. Pray that He humbles us to acknowledge our sinful nature and our shortcomings, so that we can become more Christlike and better image-bearers to those God brings into our lives. Finally, let's pray that we have open hearts, softened hearts in order to not condemn others. Ask God how you can help others instead of judging and walking away.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @archadia27
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #sin #condemnation #reassurance #blessing #love #salvation

Are you fooling yourself?

 

Someone shared this video with me and it fits perfectly with what we're praying about this week. I personally spend a lot of time in self-reflection, asking God questions. Sometimes I'm filled with doubt, but still, I feel secure in my relationship with Christ Jesus. Being saved isn't about having a warm fuzzy, feeling. You can't just pray the prayer and then go on living the life you were living. There are some preachers who would have you believe that, though.
     There are many hard truths in the bible that don't fit in with our sinful natures. We can't just ignore them because they make us feel bad about ourselves. We can't change God's word to fit our lives; we need to change our lives to fit God's word.

For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

1 John 3:20 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for God to show each of us our sin. Then, ask for His wisdom and guidance to overcome that sin. Pray that He humbles us to acknowledge our sinful nature and our shortcomings, so that we can become more Christlike and better image-bearers to those God brings into our lives. Finally, let's pray that we have open hearts, softened hearts in order to not condemn others. Ask God how you can help others instead of judging and walking away.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @archadia27
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #sin #condemnation #guilt #shame #love #salvation

Self-condemnation

 

How did it go yesterday? For me it was really difficult. I posted an update...in case you didn't see it:

I realized after praying this and God answering, that my next prayer was "How do I overcome this sin?" followed by, "Lord, please give me the wisdom and the heart to let go of this sin. Please guide me and free me of it."

     That helped a lot. Still, it was a day of looking inward and trying to work on my sinful nature which is difficult to face and own up to. Before that prayer, I was getting swallowed up in the shame and guilt. It was pulling me down a path that I didn't need to be on, one that (more than likely) was Satan using that opportunity to make me feel helpless and unable to overcome my sin (thus, the photo above).

     My personal opinion is that God doesn't want us to dwell on our sin or feel guilty or shameful. He wants us to come to Him with it, ask forgiveness, ask for help to overcome it.

 

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, 

but in order that the world might be saved through him.

John 3:17 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for God to show each of us our sin. Then, ask for His wisdom and guidance to overcome that sin. Pray that He humbles us to acknowledge our sinful nature and our shortcomings, so that we can become more Christlike and better image-bearers to those God brings into our lives. Finally, let's pray that we have open hearts, softened hearts in order to not condemn others. Ask God how you can help others instead of judging and walking away.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @archadia27
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #sin #condemnation #guilt #shame #love

Show me my sin

 

One of my favorite events in the Bible is this:

Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”

She said, “No one, Lord.”

And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

John 8:2-11 NKJV

People are all too quick to condemn others but have absolutely no trouble turning a blind eye to their own sin. I love this event because Jesus made the crowd think of their own sin before casting judgment on another. If we all did that, can you imagine the difference in our world? I also just realized, Jesus didn't condemn them, He simply had them look within. 

     A Pastor once said (I'm paraphrasing) that when we pray and ask for forgiveness, we should ask forgiveness for our specific sins. He challenged us to identify our daily sins. For the life of me, I couldn't think of any. I don't say that to be pious, but to confess. So many people I talk to, and myself included, tend to think 'I'm keeping the Ten Commandments, except for keeping the Sabbath, so I'm good.' (Remember Mark 10:20?) However, we know that Jesus expanded on what is really involved in order to keep those commandments during the Sermon on the Mount. (See Matthew 5-7). Have you ever been angry with someone? You've committed murder in your heart. Have you ever lusted after another person? You've committed adultery, etc. I have a lot of trouble with anger toward certain people. I may not show it, but that's irrelevant. It's in my heart, and God knows it's there.

     Yesterday, during the sermon, our Pastor encouraged us to pray and ask God to show us our sin. I've done this before and all I can say is, be prepared to be humbled. I'm going to do this again, throughout the week and hopefully make it a daily prayer. It's important. We're to be Christlike, but what do other's see in us? So, I challenge you to join me in this. It will change us.

Update:

I realized after praying this and God answering, that my next prayer was "How do I overcome this sin?" followed by, "Lord, please give me the wisdom and the heart to let go of this sin. Please guide me and free me of it."

P.S. I'm bothered they were ready to stone the woman, but not the man who must have participated in the adulterous situation. I realize it was a different culture back then, but still.

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Please join me this week in praying for God to show each of us our sins. Pray that He humbles us to acknowledge our sinful nature and our shortcomings so that we can become more Christlike and better image-bearers to those God brings into our lives. Finally, let's pray that we have open hearts, softened hearts in order to not condemn others. Ask God how you can help others instead of judging and walking away.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @archadia27
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #sin #condemnation #judgment #love

Do not judge

     A middle-aged couple who were recently saved attended our last church. During Sunday School someone asked them what their perception of Christians was before they were saved. Their answer was that Christians were judgmental. I wasn't surprised and often see us (as a whole) as being judgmental and self-righteous. 

     Don't be offended. I'm not saying that each of us is like that, but there are times when I do see a bit of the Pharisee mentality rear its ugly head. Most of the time it's when we mix "values" with politics. It's on both sides, too. I won't go into the issues. I just want to suggest that we need to look at ourselves from a non-believer's standpoint once in a while to see if we are being Christlike in our own lives while we're eagerly pointing out the sins of others.  As Jesus said, "Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye." Matthew 7:5 NKJV

     Personally, to help keep myself from being (overly) judgmental, I remind myself of John 8:7...“He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” It's really difficult not to pass judgment on people who are different than us, and it's really easy to get angry and hold a grudge. However, as Christians, we're called to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. (paraphrased; Mark 12:31)

     Today's Daily Bible Verse made me think about all of this.

“Judge not, and you shall not be judged. 

Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. 

Forgive, and you will be forgiven."

Luke 6:37 NKJV