“To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.” Romans 2:7-8 NIV
Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.
What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”
We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?
If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!
“To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.” Romans 2:7-8 NIV
Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.
What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”
We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?
If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!
“To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.” Romans 2:7-8 NIV
Our actions are a reflection of what is in our hearts. If our hearts are polluted by preoccupation with ourselves, we will be “self-seeking.” If our hearts are polluted by embracing the lies of the enemy, our hearts are polluted by rejection of the truth and following evil. But if our hearts are seeking God’s approval, our hearts are full of the desire to glorify Him. If our hearts desire to reflect His character to those around us, our hearts are full of desiring to honor Him.
What I am seeking reflects what is truly in my heart. Seeking God and His ways brings great reward to our lives — “eternal life!” Seeking after “self” will lead us in paths of death, darkness, and destruction — “wrath and fury.”
We need to ask ourselves: What am I experiencing in my life? Does it reflect what I am seeking?
If I am seeking God first, He assures me that I will find Him and experience Him — life!
“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.” Romans 1:21 NIV
Today we read Romans 1.
You and I were born with a heart defect! Before you object and try to tell me that your “ticker” is working just fine, let me clarify. This defect is within our spiritual hearts. This defect is serious, and many of us do not even know we have it, much less that our spiritual hearts exist.
However, we need to understand that not only do we have a spiritual heart, it is the MOST important thing about us. This heart is where we are able to experience the very thing we were created for, relationship with God or oneness with Him. It is comprised of our mind (the thinker), will (the doer), and emotions (the feeler).
The defect of this heart is that we are born with it being darkened. To be darkened is to be made black, obscure, or destitute of light. We come into this world with a spiritual heart that is inclined towards sin. Our thoughts are “futile” — sinful; acting without regard to the divine law and glory, or to one’s own eternal happiness. (Webster’s 1828) Our actions are motivated by “dishonorable passions.” (Verse 26 ESV) We believe our self centered actions are wise, but in truth it is foolishness. (Verse 22). This is because we worship ourselves (a me centered life) and the things we have created (our jobs, our homes, our hobbies, our phones, etc.) instead of worshiping God. We don’t accept His truth that we hear in His Word. Instead we would rather believe a more convenient lie (Verse 25) about the things we want when and how we want it.
God will not force Himself on us to correct this defect. BUT, He does offer us the cure! A NEW Heart!
“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.” Ezekiel 36:26-27 NIV
We must choose…
Is what you are doing in your life not working? Has sin (knowing what is good to do, but not doing it) been a struggle? God offers us transformation from what we are to what He intended us to be all along – a reflection of Him full of His peace, joy, love, etc. We can walk in truth, live with purpose, be full of His wisdom, and experience His life. It all starts with asking God to give you a new spiritual heart. Ask Him to transform the way you think, and to align your feelings with His truth in His Word. Ask Him to help your actions to flow from a new pure heart inside of you.
We do not have to live with a darkened heart any more. We can have a new spiritual heart and experience relationship with God!
About a year ago, God pointed out to me my phone addiction… God: “Janet, what do you do when you first wake up?” Me: “Uh…grab my phone and check Facebook… then the weather.”
I wasn’t exactly walking in obedience to what Jesus said…
“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33 NIV
I came across this video last night and it has been very impactful to me. Take few moments and watch.
Jesus told us:
““Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more.” Mark 4:24 NIV
We are to pay attention to the Word. “Consider carefully.” Relationship with God doesn’t just happen. If we want to be close to God and experience Him in a close friendship. We have to invest our TIME! The measure of the time we spend seeking Him. Is what we receive. If we are investing in our relationship we will receive from Him and then some!
He’s waiting on us to respond to His invitation to “Know Him.”
This is where true life is!
“Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:3 NIV
What are we seeking first, to KNOW Him or to KNOW our social media feed…? Only one option gives eternal life!
“Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days… You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.” James 5:2-6 NIV
“He who dies with the most toys wins.” (attributed to Malcom Forbes.) Is this true?
James warns against living in “luxury and self indulgence.” There is danger in pursuing “stuff” over pursuing Jesus! When we believe what we possess materially is of more importance than what we possess spiritually, we are in deep trouble. The love of money will produce evil in our lives.
It is not wrong to possess wealth, but we must keep it in the correct position in our lives. What we own is not ours. All that we have and all that we are belongs to God. If we are blessed with possessions, we are to use those possessions to bless others.
The pursuit of wealth over the pursuit of God will lead to emptiness. In the end, what we have owned here will not follow us into eternity. Wealth will rot… Only one thing is eternal and will matter when we die — Jesus! When it is all done our goal should be to hear Him say, “Well done.”
Whatever our financial status may be, abundantly rich or just scraping by, a life lived after “self- indulgence” will end in death. Once again, life is not about me and what I possess. It is all about Jesus.
“As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.” James 2:26
Faith is the assent of the mind or understanding to the truth of what God has revealed. (Webster’s 1828) It is receiving and believing the truth. Faith requires action! If we believe something is true we will act upon it.
In verse 25 of chapter 2, James refers to the account in the Old Testament of Rahab. She had HEARD of the great miracles that God performed for Israel in delivering them from Egypt. When she heard the truth, she BELIEVED that God was, “God in Heaven above and on the earth below.” (Joshua 2:11) She wanted to be on the right side when God gave the Israelites victory over Jericho. So she ACTED. She hid the Israelite spies. Her faith in what she had heard was alive!
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17 ESV
God has given each of us a measure of faith. (Romans 12:3) We all have the ability to believe. The Word that is alive and active comes to us. The choice is ours. Do we receive the Word and act upon it with our obedience? If we do, we will experience life. But if we hear the truth in the Word and reject it by choosing to do our own thing, we will live in spiritual death.
If Rahab had heard the testimonies of what God was doing for the Israelites and continued doing what she always did, she would not have acted upon what she heard by hiding the Israelites spies. She and her family would have died with the rest of the people in Jericho who did not believe in God and act upon what they had heard about Him.
God’s word is inspired. Which means it is God-breathed. God’s breath of life is in His Word. When we receive His life being breathed into us through His Word, we will come alive and our actions will display the life of God within us.
Is your faith alive? Or is it dead? Do you hear the Word of God and obey it?
“When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” James 1:13-15 NIV
Sin is a choice. It doesn’t just happen. We know the good we should do, but we don’t do it. (James 4:17) There is a progression towards sin and death.
Evil desire — i.e. lust. Longing for what we know is wrong.
Enticement — temptation. Baited. Satan schemes against us. He looks for ways to get us to fall into his sinful traps. He places these lures before us with the desire for us to go after them.
Sin — a voluntary turning from what is right.
Death — Sin separates us from God. God is life. Sin keeps us from His life.
The truth is what we decide to listen to matters. Our evil desires/ lusts are fed by our selfish choices. Our selfish choices are fed by our thoughts.
In Jesus we can live victoriously over sin. He gives us a new heart that desires to follow Him and obey. He has given us His Word that renews our mind to think His thoughts.
“How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.” Psalms 119:9 NIV
God has created us to desire. He wants to be our one desire!
Don’t be “dragged away” by choosing to listen to the old lustful desires of your self life. Focus on Jesus and His Word. Let Him be the One Thing you long for!
Every time I read the account of the crucifixion, I feel a sense of sadness. To think of the accusations, the false trial, the mocking, the beatings, the carrying of the cross up the hill of Golgotha, the nails being driven into Jesus, and Him being lifted up on the cross… such sadness.
But Praise God the story does not end in death.
Jesus came to show us life! Not only show us, but to make the way for us to experience His life. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life…” We experience Life when we experience Him! He and the Father are one. Our Heavenly Father is life!
From the moment of creation, when Our Heavenly Father breathed life into every living being, until now. He is the ultimate source of life. The very breath of life we experience in our lungs comes straight from Him. However there will be a day when that breathing will cease in each one of us… What then?
Jesus showed us on resurrection Sunday what God’s good plan for us is — resurrection life! Eternal life!
We do not have to fear death. Our Heavenly Father desires for us to experience His eternal life. Sin brought death into our world, but we do not have to experience an eternity of the separation of death.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” John 3:16-18 NIV
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”” John 11:25-26 NIV
“Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your labor under the sun.” Ecclesiastes 9:9 Berean Study Bible
When Rich and I were dating we exchanged love letters via mail since long distance phone bills were a thing back then. In one of the letters I wrote “When we get married, we need to get a couch and a big TV. So we can talk through the commercials and kiss through the show.” Young love… ☺️ It turns out we have two recliners that sit side by side. Most evenings you will find us there.
I went out to have my time with Jesus this morning and these two doves sat there on my roof, for the longest time, just hanging out. It made me think of us.
Time has flown by. It was 32 years ago that I made the suggestion for our couch and TV in that letter I sent. Solomon was right when he wrote that life was “fleeting”. Time has went by fast.
There are times I don’t show how much I appreciate just hanging out like these two Doves/ lovebirds did this morning. But I truly do.
Rich and I had a whirlwind romance that was mainly in the summer of 92 or as we like to call it our “Summer of Love”. It was one of the happiest times of all. But I’m thankful for the 32 years of a “Life of Love” that we have had hanging out “Enjoying life” together. God has given us a very good “portion in life”. Love you Baby! 😘
Your Love 