- Joined
- Apr 25, 2006
- Messages
- 18,404
Look in the mirror (2)
'ONE WHO LOOKS INTENTLY AT THE PERFECT LAW...AND ABIDES BY IT...SHALL BE BLESSED IN WHAT HE DOES.' JAMES 1:25
Paul writes, 'We all...beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image...' (2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJ). A mirror is just a reflector. The more time you spend in God's Word and God's presence, the more you will reflect your Heavenly Father's likeness.
Now this is no overnight change, and it doesn't happen by just grabbing a Bible verse here and there, or skimming through a passage. No, it calls for soaking yourself in the Scriptures until the Holy Spirit connects with your spirit and produces the nature and ways of Christ in you.
If you've ever left dishes in a sink until the food has dried on, you know those dishes need to 'abide' in some hot, soapy water so that all the junk can be removed. We need to soak our minds in God's Word until the junk that James calls '...all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness...' (James 1:21 NAS) begins to melt away.
This is not just gross sin, but hardened inner attitudes that keep us from growing in grace. Our new nature has been 'programmed' to want to obey God in much the same way that a calculator is programmed to compute numbers. All you have to do is feed a calculator the right information to get the right response.
Your new nature has been set up to give you the right response when you feed it with the Word of God. That's why your enemy will do anything to keep you from spending time in God's Word. Don't let him do it!
'ONE WHO LOOKS INTENTLY AT THE PERFECT LAW...AND ABIDES BY IT...SHALL BE BLESSED IN WHAT HE DOES.' JAMES 1:25
Paul writes, 'We all...beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image...' (2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJ). A mirror is just a reflector. The more time you spend in God's Word and God's presence, the more you will reflect your Heavenly Father's likeness.
Now this is no overnight change, and it doesn't happen by just grabbing a Bible verse here and there, or skimming through a passage. No, it calls for soaking yourself in the Scriptures until the Holy Spirit connects with your spirit and produces the nature and ways of Christ in you.
If you've ever left dishes in a sink until the food has dried on, you know those dishes need to 'abide' in some hot, soapy water so that all the junk can be removed. We need to soak our minds in God's Word until the junk that James calls '...all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness...' (James 1:21 NAS) begins to melt away.
This is not just gross sin, but hardened inner attitudes that keep us from growing in grace. Our new nature has been 'programmed' to want to obey God in much the same way that a calculator is programmed to compute numbers. All you have to do is feed a calculator the right information to get the right response.
Your new nature has been set up to give you the right response when you feed it with the Word of God. That's why your enemy will do anything to keep you from spending time in God's Word. Don't let him do it!
