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“Is our experience of the Holy Spirit any less urgent or less vivid today than it was in the days of the apostles?”
I read that quote this week, and immediately I knew that was the question that we as a church need to be asking and answering.
Last week we laid out a plan for the future. But in order for that plan to be a success in God’s eyes it must be accomplished in and by the power of the Holy Spirit.
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“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise.” Ephesians 5:15-17
Nobody likes to be known as a fool. To be foolish is not something to be proud of. What is the opposite of being a fool or being foolish?
The opposite would be wisdom. The opposite of a foolish person is a wise person. As a believer my lifestyle is to be characterized by wisdom. That is the message that Paul has written to not only the believers in Ephesus but to all believers at all places at all times. Read More→
“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.
As I began to prepare for this morning I did a quick search for the term “life coach”. More and more you hear about people needing a life coach, so I wanted to see what I would find.
Well it must be a pretty popular subject, because my search returned 314,000,000 results for the phrase “life coach”. In fact if you wanted to you could become a certified life coach in 16 hours for only $397.00.
The reason I have just given you that seemingly useless bit of information is because there are a whole lot of people who are looking for some kind of guidance in helping them learn how to live or seeking out someone to provide them with some kind of direction for their lives. In other words they are looking for help in trying to achieve what they believe is the right kind of lifestyle for them.
The essence of the Christian faith, is understanding what God the Father has done for us through His Son Jesus Christ. Never forget that, meditate on that, find your joy, your strength in that reality.
A key phrase is what God has already done for us.
As we’ve previously seen Paul has made reference to actions that have taken place in the past. Specifically the completed actions of putting off and putting on. We have put off the old man as Paul describes it and we have put on the new man which Paul described as being created in true righteousness and holiness. These actions took place when God redeemed us.
When God brought us to faith in Christ several wonderful changes immediately take place. One of the changes that God effects in our lives is He removes our old nature and replaces it with a new nature. He puts off the old man and replaces him with the new man which was created in true righteousness and holiness.
It’s imperative that we understand that. Why is that so? Understanding that Paul is referring to completed actions makes the “therefore” of verse 25 make sense.
In other words as a result of what has already happened to you therefore this is not only what you should be able to do, you are now able to do them.
Because the old man has been put off, you can now begin to act like the new man that you truly are.
We all know how difficult it can be to change.
Stop and think for a moment to something that you would like to change, or you’ve tried to change in the past. How much effort did it take you? How difficult was it for you to change? Were you successful in bringing about the change you desired?
Many times we know that we need to change and still we struggle with bringing about the change that we desperately need.
How do you do that? By not just learning about Christ, but actually learning Christ! Read More→