There is no magic formula to being filled with the Spirit--to having the Spirit so control you that your Christian walk becomes more and more spontaneous. Saturate your life with the Word--immerse yourself in God's letter to His people. Enrichment leads to an enriching life. The Word is His Sword, our light, the sanctifying power in our life, the foundation by which we try the spirits to see if what we are being told is indeed God's truth.
It's no wonder that the enemy tries to convince us that meditating on it is a waste of time--even a drudgery. Or to convince we old saints that we know it all--that there is nothing more for us to learn. Or to cast doubts upon its authority over our choices and behavior. Or to downplay and undermine that love for God is inseparable from obedience to its commands and principles. You can trace a culture's decline by its attitude toward God's Word and its authority. And woe to the Christian who in order to appease an unbelieving culture denies its teachings. How often in the guise of being loving do we disguise our fear of being called fools and deny His clear teaching?
And the daily loss is stifling. The song in my heart is drowned out by a cacophony of self-pity at my circumstances and daily struggles. My reverence for God--the fear of the Lord which is the source of all wisdom-becomes smothered by doubts and uncertainty. My submission to His will and my fellow believers becomes self-centered vain-glory. My life becomes all about me. Is there anyone uglier than a narcissistic Christian?
May God keep me rooted in His Word, keep its truths at the center of my thought-life, keep the Spirit empowered to control my every thought and action. Only by being saturated with His Word's wisdom, by being immersed in its faithful, unchanging truth can I be filled with the Spirit and reflect the loving beauty of Jesus to all around me.
It's no wonder that the enemy tries to convince us that meditating on it is a waste of time--even a drudgery. Or to convince we old saints that we know it all--that there is nothing more for us to learn. Or to cast doubts upon its authority over our choices and behavior. Or to downplay and undermine that love for God is inseparable from obedience to its commands and principles. You can trace a culture's decline by its attitude toward God's Word and its authority. And woe to the Christian who in order to appease an unbelieving culture denies its teachings. How often in the guise of being loving do we disguise our fear of being called fools and deny His clear teaching?
And the daily loss is stifling. The song in my heart is drowned out by a cacophony of self-pity at my circumstances and daily struggles. My reverence for God--the fear of the Lord which is the source of all wisdom-becomes smothered by doubts and uncertainty. My submission to His will and my fellow believers becomes self-centered vain-glory. My life becomes all about me. Is there anyone uglier than a narcissistic Christian?
May God keep me rooted in His Word, keep its truths at the center of my thought-life, keep the Spirit empowered to control my every thought and action. Only by being saturated with His Word's wisdom, by being immersed in its faithful, unchanging truth can I be filled with the Spirit and reflect the loving beauty of Jesus to all around me.
"Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee."
No comments:
Post a Comment