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Everyday!
by Steve Countryman We all live in this world everyday. It is our natural state of existence. Our senses along with the influences of this world on our surroundings help to form our attitudes, opinions, beliefs and how we think about things. Because we live here in this non-perfect, corrupted and contaminated world we are not in a sterile environment. Being a Christian you too are contaminated by it. Because of the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ, you are not corrupted from it! It is like being a strawberry in a basket of strawberries. One of the strawberries is starting to mold. Because of it all of the other strawberries are now contaminated. Now it is only a matter of time before all of the strawberries will be corrupted and begin to mold. That is the affect that this contaminated world has on you. The sinful world is contaminated. Sin itself contaminates and corrupts. You live in a contaminated world that sin will corrupt and destroy you as mold destroys a strawberry. But Christians have a hope and a promise and His name is Jesus. Because the blood of Christ was shed on the cross for our sins, believers have a heavenly protective coating on them that is corruption free. God preserves you through the blood of Jesus. We are made in the image of God. In fact we are the only part of Gods creation that is made in His likeness. God created us that way so He could commune with us and enjoy His creation everyday. We serve an intimate God. God had intimacy and closeness with man back in the garden. That all changed when man sinned and the closeness with God was severed. Sin started with mankind on earth and it is on earth that God dealt with sin. God couldnt atone for our sin in heaven because sin isnt allowed in heaven. God sent Jesus, His Son, to deal with sin here on earth and to be our example while He was here. This was all part of Gods plan to restore the closeness and intimacy that once existed between God and man. In the Old Testament mankind had to go to the temple of the Lord to reach God. Gods glory filled the temple. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him. An angel of the Lord appeared. These are examples used in the Old Testament representing Gods presence to His people. That isnt the intimacy that God had in mind. John 16:5-7 5"Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, 'Where are you going?' 6Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. 7But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. The Counselor, the Holy Spirit could only come after Jesus died for our sins and rose again. Payment for all sin for mankind was completed by Jesus which opened the door for the Holy Spirit to come. This is Gods plan for restoration. To take a part of Himself and place it in each one of His children. By doing so God restored some the intimacy that was stolen in the garden. You now have God in you and with you always. No longer do you have to go to the temple of the Lord to experience God. God has made Himself available to you 24/7 in His temple your body. You dont have to wait to go to heaven to experience Jesus. God wants and desires intimacy and a close relationship with you here and now not just later in heaven. Hosea 4:6 my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. We serve a loving and caring intimate God. God who has numbered the hairs of your head cares greatly about you. God is Jehovah jireh, your God who provides ALL of your needs. Everything that you need has already been provided for you. Before you even thought to cry out for it, God provided. Part of the intimacy that God provided also carries part of Him in you, the Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit you are fully equipped, armed, stocked up, loaded down, power and authority imparted and over flowing. You lack for nothing! Preparedness and readiness are the only two things that are dependant on you. God will help you to be ready and prepared but it takes your willingness and participation to arrive at that point. Are you in need of milk of the Word or the meat of the Word? A baby cries out for its needs, a grown up gets its needs. Too often Christians stay in the crying out stage and miss out on being ready and prepared. Like a blind man who cries out for food. The food is abundant, fresh and available but it is all just out of his reach. He doesnt even know it is there because he wont move to find it. He wants someone to hear his cries and feed him. Because he wont move, if no one is around, he will die of starvation. God provides ALL of your needs but you must be willing to move and find them for yourself, God wont force feed you. By finding out who Jesus is in you will you begin to understand who you are in Christ. There are a lot of so-called Christians who know the Bible and can quote scripture by book and verse but who dont know who Jesus is in them. All that you need is already provided for you everyday. You must rely and trust God to take care of your needs of the external, internal and eternal! Article Source: http://www.faithwriters.com |