Stronger in Christ

Colossians 2:6-8, 2 Peter 3:15-18, 1 Corinthians 15:58

Freedom From Human Regulations Through Life With Christ
6So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

8See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

2 Peter 3:15-18

15Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

17Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.

1 Corinthians 15:58

58Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

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1. In order to be rooted in Christ, I need to beware of comments and teachings from unstable and ignorant people who twist God’s words to become deceptive words that are not true. Instead, we need to know God’s Word personally for ourselves. We should study it and be intimate withthe Lord. We must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lod and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 3:17-18)
2. To be aware and on guard so that I won’t be misled and deceived, I need to continue to follow Him despite others choosing not to. I need to let my roots grow down into Him and have my ife be establishd and built on Him. This is how my faith will grow “in the truth (I) was taught, and I will overflow with thankfulness.” I also will be able to discern what are “empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense,” and really, I need to recognize that it is nonsense and have the sense to stand firm on what is true. I should also work so others don’t fall for that nonsense. (Colossians 2:8)

Memory verse: “So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless (1 Corinthians 15:58).”

Living for Christ (4)

Matthew 5:21-26

Murder

21“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder,^[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother^[b]will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,^[c]‘ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

23“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.

25“Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.^[d]

1. I’m actually starting to reconcile any brokeness in any relationships with other people. What caused the breaks in the first place are oftentimes unresolved conflict that either one of the party kept inside for too long. Instead of facing and solving the conflict while it is fresh, sometimes we let it linger and allow time to make it go down a little deeper and when we pull it out it’s not as gently as we would have brought it out if it were still fresh.
2. To restore that relationship, I need to be reconciled again to that person.
3. The consequence of not restoring broken relationships is judgment.

Living for Christ (3)

1 Cor 9:19-27

1. The condition of my heart when facing peole around who don’t follow Christ wholeheartedly, is to be honest, sometimes I care and sometimes I don’t care as much. I would however, like to love them more and focus less on myself and more on God’s will for my life and for people who He loves. The above verses changed my heart though, because it makes me know that I need to put effort into not being selfish all the time and having God’s love in me and so that it becomes apparent in my life always.

2. To live my life with the purpose that God has determined and obtain victory, I need to “beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize (v.27).” I need to have self discipline and self control and focus.

Living for Christ (2)

Matthew 5:27-28
27″You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’[a] 28But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.

Matthew 18:7-9
7″Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

1 Corinthians 10:23-24, 31-33
The Believer’s Freedom
23″Everything is permissible”—but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible”—but not everything is constructive. 24Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

1. I try not to do anything that causes other people to fall, but I remember when I was small I used to curse a lot and my three year old little brother picked up on it (along with my anger tantrums I think X___X). That’s when I decided to stop, and praise the Lord by God’s grace I did, and my anger has ceased tremendously, lol.
2. To select the desires in me, and in selecting how I choose to behave so that I don’t become a “stumbling stone” for others is just to be conscious of their needs and in everything I do, seek to glorify the Lord. Do everything out of love to God and love to others and I think that will help steer my rudder to take a wise course (what a funny analogy).

a few more notes from the lesson…
Freedom is not an opportunity to sin, rebel and act carelessly. In fact, freedom is to having the liberty to perform righteousness. “Freedom is an opportunity to perform righteousness!”-Author

Fix your thoughts on Jesus (Hebrews 3:1)

Run from anything that gives you the evil thoughts . . . but stay close to anything that makes you want to do right. 2 Timothy 2:22 (LB)

A few quick notes.

From today’s devotions, I learned about the power of suggestion. When temptation comes, we should not think the negative of the action, but instead focus our attention elsewhere. Ignoring is the best option. The Bible tells us to “flee from fleshly desires.” For example, if you want to stop smoking, you shouldn’t say “I want to stop smoking, I want to stop smoking…” It will make you think about it all the time. Instead, we should preoccupy our minds with something else, focus our attention on someting that is better! “Fill your minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable” (Philippians 4:8 TEV).”

I’m going to try this new strategy when it comes to fighting temptation…or rather not letting it get to me because I’m focused on important things. =]

Living for God (3)

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Philippians 3:13-14

13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

1. To win the race of faith, I need to run in such a way as to get the prize. This means that I focus and need to be alert. I shouldn’t be distracted but train and value every moment that I have so that it is to help accomplish the goal and is not just aimless. It also means that I have to “beat my body,” not literally, but sometimes our fleshly desires can lead us astray, so we need to bring it under submission of God’s Holy Spirit.

2. For those who reach the finish line and win, God will give us a “crown that will last forever (v.25).”

 

Living for the Lord (2)

Philippians 3:17-21-

17Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. 18For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. 20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
1. If people want to follow my example and lifestyle, I can give an example in living a lifestyle according to Biblical principals. I need to live a life that doesn’t serve my stomach or myself, but GOD.
2. In order to be an example to others, I need to put my mind on heavenly things and eagerly await the Lord. He will transform us to be more like Him.

Living for the Lord

Phil 3:7-14
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Pressing on Toward the Goal
12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

1. “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ (v.7) means that since we have a finite amount of time and a finite amount of things to choose from, if something were for my individual profit it would take away from whatever profit and glory would be for the Lord. This verse I feel can be made more clearly in my life. But it has some relevance still. For example, if before I considered it profit to be president of this and that, I now consider it loss if it takes away from me spending time with the Lord or in fellowship with His people. I guess as long as what I’m doing is led by the Spirit of God I’m good. I give thanks to Him though for His goodnes and guidance in my life.
2. To live according to the plan and will of God, I need to forget about what is behind and just look forward, pressing on to the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (v.13-14). I’ve definitely had past experiences that make me worried or confused and I want to confess it before the Lord and pray and declare verses 13-14.

To Know Suffering in Christ

Matthew 5:10-11
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11″Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

Matthew 11:6
6Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”

Luke 6:22
22Blessed are you when men hate you,
when they exclude you and insult you
and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.

1 Peter 4:14
14If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.

1. I’m not sure if I would say “happy” per se when we are suffering, but I think that we can be assured at the fact that God sees our suffering and perseverance to continue to follow Him when we are persececuted and mocked for His sake, and that He will bless us! For example, if a friend invites us to sin, we should boldly say no with the confidence that God is on our side and will not let us down but instead will bless us.
2. The attitude I should have every time I suffer because of righteousness is one of gratefulness to God for being with me and thanking Him for what He is doing in my life and for allowing me to be a witness for Him. Also the attitude we should have when this happens is to draw even nearer to God!!! Maybe He is allowing it to happen because He loves us and instead of wanting us to stay in our comfort zone, wants to draw us nearer to Him through these experiences. So we should always give thanks. It also shows that we are blessed because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on us (1 Peter 4:14).

The Meaning of Following Christ – 2

Luke 18:18-30

The Rich Ruler
18A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

19″Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 20You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’[a]“

21″All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said.

22When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

23When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was a man of great wealth. 24Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

26Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?”

27Jesus replied, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”

28Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”

29″I tell you the truth,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30will fail to receive many times as much in this age and, in the age to come, eternal life.”

1. Money, selfishness, distrust in the Lord and unwillingness to leave behind the current riches can prevent people from living earnestly for Christ. That’s also the reason why it can be difficult for a wealthy man to enter into the kingdom of God.
2. Some things that perhaps I need to work on to to be able to live a life that is more fully for the Lord are perhaps unwillingness to put more effort into being more disciplined and diligent. But I want to learn and be disciplined and diligent and better with people. I want to strive towards self-improvement so that Christ can more fully work in me.
3. If I am willing to give up all I have and all I am to follow Christ then I will be repaid many times over in this life and have eternal life in the world to come. Sweet . But we have to be patient and be able to endure. We are not doing this for the prize; however, if we seek out God’s will, then without us even really seeking out after it, we’ll be blessed abundantly.