August 25, 2018 THE PROOF
I John 2:3-6: “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in Him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.
In the last blog, we learned that as believers, we have been made new and that we have been set free from the power of sin. Our part in not sinning is to reckon our old self, our old nature, as being crucified, and being alive in Christ. The absolutely crucial question for each of us is whether or not we have made the connection, ‘connected the dots,’ in understanding the implications of being made new creations, and of reckoning our old self being crucified. The most amazing and life changing truth is that “we can walk in the same manner as He walked.” Even though we are flesh and bone and though we live in a fallen world, we can actually live in such a way that our life resembles the life that Jesus lived on earth. Of course, we cannot do this in our own strength, but because the Spirit of God lives in us, we can indeed live in such a way. One of the central truths of the word of God is that of believers being transformed into the image of God, and the transformation starts at the point of salvation where we are given the Holy Spirit of God to indwell us. The presence of the Spirit of God living in us actually means that we can live super-natural lives! The important thing for us to be aware of is that God has given us a part to play in the transformation process, and that part is to ‘work with Him as He works in us.’ As believers, we have been given a new mind, a new spirit, and a new heart, but we must choose to walk in this newness-or as the scripture says, by the Spirit. In fact, we have only two choices; either we walk according to the Spirit, or according to our flesh (self). The core evidence of our truly knowing Him and abiding in Him is that we do “walk in the same manner as He walked,” doing the things that are pleasing in His sight. Another important facet of these verses is that knowing and receiving the love of God results in the keeping of His word! The obvious implication is that if one is not keeping His word, he has not yet known and experienced the love of God to the extent that God desires. To clarify, to keep His word does not mean that we are perfect, never having a wrong thought or wrong action, but it does meant that we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s voice within and we are quick to obey His voice. So, even repenting when we are wrong is a way of keeping His word. The powerful truth is that the love of God, when received and experienced, changes us at the core, causing us to want to please Him in all we do.
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
Colossians 1:10 “So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
Blessings,
Buddy
I John 2:3-6: “And by this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, ‘I have come to know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in Him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.
In the last blog, we learned that as believers, we have been made new and that we have been set free from the power of sin. Our part in not sinning is to reckon our old self, our old nature, as being crucified, and being alive in Christ. The absolutely crucial question for each of us is whether or not we have made the connection, ‘connected the dots,’ in understanding the implications of being made new creations, and of reckoning our old self being crucified. The most amazing and life changing truth is that “we can walk in the same manner as He walked.” Even though we are flesh and bone and though we live in a fallen world, we can actually live in such a way that our life resembles the life that Jesus lived on earth. Of course, we cannot do this in our own strength, but because the Spirit of God lives in us, we can indeed live in such a way. One of the central truths of the word of God is that of believers being transformed into the image of God, and the transformation starts at the point of salvation where we are given the Holy Spirit of God to indwell us. The presence of the Spirit of God living in us actually means that we can live super-natural lives! The important thing for us to be aware of is that God has given us a part to play in the transformation process, and that part is to ‘work with Him as He works in us.’ As believers, we have been given a new mind, a new spirit, and a new heart, but we must choose to walk in this newness-or as the scripture says, by the Spirit. In fact, we have only two choices; either we walk according to the Spirit, or according to our flesh (self). The core evidence of our truly knowing Him and abiding in Him is that we do “walk in the same manner as He walked,” doing the things that are pleasing in His sight. Another important facet of these verses is that knowing and receiving the love of God results in the keeping of His word! The obvious implication is that if one is not keeping His word, he has not yet known and experienced the love of God to the extent that God desires. To clarify, to keep His word does not mean that we are perfect, never having a wrong thought or wrong action, but it does meant that we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s voice within and we are quick to obey His voice. So, even repenting when we are wrong is a way of keeping His word. The powerful truth is that the love of God, when received and experienced, changes us at the core, causing us to want to please Him in all we do.
Ephesians 5:1-2 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
Colossians 1:10 “So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”
Blessings,
Buddy
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