Fools For Christ's Sake

 "See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise"  (Ephesians 5:15, KJV).  
"If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable [to be pitied]"  (1 Cor. 15:19, KJV).   
"We are fools for Christ's sake..." (1 Cor. 4:10, NKJV).
"If we are out of mind, it is for God; if we have a sound mind, it is for you"  (2 Cor. 5:13, HCSB).

This is a highly misconstrued proposition; namely, that we (should or have to) look like foolish bumpkins or buffoons for the sake of the gospel.  "Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools..." (1 Cor. 4:10, NLT).  This is not to be interpreted that we are fools in reality, but our hope of eternal life and the subsequent turning our back on what the world has to offer, in exchange for a heavenly prize and the belief in the supernatural and eternal soul makes us looks foolish to the appraisal of man.  Hosea 9:7 says that the prophets are crazy and the inspired men are fools (cf. NLT). When we seem foolish, it is only to bring glory to God.

This doesn't give us a license to be unwise or not to be savvy of the world's ways and have good common sense and wisdom.  The fool in the biblical sense is really one who doubts God's existence in his heart, not one only who is naive or a simpleton.  We are not to flaunt our faith (neither are we to privatize it either, for that matter), or to wear our religion on our sleeves in showy religiosity.  People are not to look at us and frown that we Christians are a kooky lot and fit for the asylum because of bizarre behavior.  We are not to become offensive Christians or have a bad testimony due to ignorance and stupidity, but the offense is to be in the cross per se, not us, the messengers of the good news. Christ is the true offensive Rock that makes them stumble, not us!  We need no pseudo-offensiveness, which we create our own to make false barriers to the truth.

This implies that we are wise men who seek the Lord, and not fools who act or live foolishly!  Our faith is what's so offensive and foolish, not our walk or manner of living. Paul said that if we are sane it's for their sake, if we are insane, it's for Christ's sake.  Fellow believers should never seem insane or foolish to our estimate or impression.  I'll give you a for instance:  we seem like party-poopers or people who don't want to join in on the fun of eating, drinking, and merry-making like the others (but seek to live in light of eternity and seek to please our God).  It seems foolish. to have such faith and give up what the world has to offer for a heavenly reward.  The natural man lives for the here and now, while we set our eyes on the prize for which Christ calls us.

In summation, we don't want to create false barriers and stumbling blocks for the seeker of truth by appearing to be fools in our behavior instead of godly wise.  For example, we don't write signs all over vehicles warning our fellow man to repent, but let God open doors!  WE ARE NOT CALLED TO BE CORNY OR ODDBALLS!   Soli Deo Gloria!  

Jesus Freak

"Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach ... Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil"  (1 Tim. 3:2,7, ESV, emphasis added with italics). 
"How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation..."  (Isaiah 52:7, NLT).
"The best measure of a spiritual life," says Oswald Chambers, "is not the ecstasies, but the obedience." [Don't go by feelings, they are as variable as a weather vane in a whirlwind!]

By way of definition, I define a Jesus freak as one who has sold out lock, stock, and barrel and serves God with reckless abandon, loving God with his full heart, mind, and will.   Being a so-called "Jesus freak" (note that respectable people are usually not freaks by definition), and it isn't something you advertise, by wearing attire to that effect (don't tell me or announce it, show me and prove it--don't toot your own horn or brag, let another do it for you!): it's something you demonstrate by your daily witness and share with your testimony.

Jesus didn't go around advertising or promoting the fact that He was the Son of God or even Son of David (a Messianic reference), but He didn't deny it either. Nicodemus, for example, recognized that God was with Him!  The prophet Daniel had the reputation of great integrity and piety in his faith, but he neither flaunted it nor privatized it.  We are never called to show off our faith or to look for trouble, but to look for open doors and in the process never to privatize our faith or hide it from the public either.  There comes a time to make a stand for Jesus and show our Christian colors, and there are times to keep it to yourself.  According to Isaiah 52:7 (quoted above),  even the feet are welcome of those who preach the gospel, and the key is that we are not to be offensive Christians, but only to bear the offense of the cross itself! I'm afraid they have a "zeal for God, but not according to knowledge" (cf. Romans 10:2).

If you are really a Jesus freak, you shouldn't have to tell someone, they should be able to discern it by your life's witness, whether you're a hypocrite or not.  It's not a good idea to put Christian lapels on and try to make airs that you're one of the few real Christians who aren't ashamed of Christ.  We must be sensitive to the One who opens doors no one can shut, and not strive to force them open by ourselves.  We don't shove our religion down people's throats or push our faith on others, whether they are willing to accept it or not.  The divine order is to pray to God about a person's salvation, before talking to that person and salvation about God!

Christians aren't called to be "freaks" in the common meaning of the term, but to have a sound mind and witness, and life that cannot be reprimanded or frowned upon.  One example I should bring up:  Putting Christian-promoting bumper stickers on your vehicle, when you have bad driving habits, bringing disrepute to Christ's name, which is really taking His name in vain. Now, all I'm saying is that we don't just tell our neighbor we're "Jesus freaks," but we become "Jesus freaks."  How would it sound if you went around saying, "Hi!  I'm a genius!"

Real Jesus freaks don't need to advertise--it's plain to be seen--there's evidence!  I hope by "freak" one doesn't mean eccentric or oddball, as this is never a good testimony (even though John the Baptist was), but just a fully-devoted, Spirit-filled follower of Christ!  If we really are, God will open the door and the Holy Spirit will anoint you, and it won't be you speaking, but God in you.  I've seen people trying to promote Christianity and have a glum or sullen countenance, and this is a poor advertisement for Christ and does more harm than good. "For the joy of the LORD is your strength" (cf. Neh. 8:10).

Scripture admonishes us not to practice our piety before men (cf. Matt. 6:1-2), to be seen by them and this means to let God open the door and trust Him for the opportunities and He'll make you a fisher of men!  There are certain "sound barriers" in witnessing, and we must be sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading, and be filled with the Spirit  (an example is the first mention of God, sin, salvation, faith, Christ, and finally the plan of salvation and the invitation as barriers to be broken down). Witnessing is to be natural, and not forced unto people when they're unwilling to hear the good news.

God absolutely must prepare a person's heart for the gospel to have any effect and it is only by His wooing that someone will come to Christ, not our persuasiveness or cleverness or gimmicks.  In short, we must earn the right to witness and it must not belie our testimony and conversation in life or lifestyle (we wait for God to open the door)--though there are exceptions to the rule, which only proves there is one.

In the strict sense of the word, all believers are freaks and this is not our home--our citizenship is in heaven (cf. Phil. 3:20)--for we are in the world, but not of it (cf. John 15:19).  The spiritual man is appraised by no natural man:  "The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man's judgment"  (1 Cor. 2:15, NIV).  The world is bound to even hate us (John 15:18, ESV, says, "If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.").  The world will reject you: "In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted"  (2 Tim. 3:12, NIV).

However, as we willingly and openly confess Christ, we don't wear our religion on our sleeves and display a sort of offensive religiosity or superstition--we aren't Jesus freaks by virtue of claiming to be one, we must walk the walk as well--and the world's observing!
Soli Deo Gloria!   

How Faith Is Caught

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation [offering it and making it available] for all people"  (Titus 2:11, ESV).  

Some Secular Humanists believe faith is caught much the way one catches a cold; i.e., by hanging around believers and becoming "infected." Richard Dawkins wrote The God Delusion to elucidate, expound, and articulate this premise, and he believed we must be cured of our so-called illness or "mind-virus" that only those naive enough fall prey to; which is just like Freud saying religion is either a neurosis, or even a psychosis that must be healed by therapy.

The Bible does say that walking with the wise makes you wise, but no one gets faith by osmosis or being in the right crowd (it doesn't just rub off on us!), and we certainly don't inherit it either; no one gets in automatically, as from heredity or lineage, but must go through a turnstile or individually, one by one! It isn't who you know that bears any weight with God!  God's open invitation to "[taste] and see that the LORD is good" (cf. Psalm 34:8) is valid for all who desire to know Him, and the proof of the pudding is in the eating! 

We aren't converting to a creed or adherents to a philosophy of life, but followers of a person we can have a relationship with and know individually--we are converted to Jesus!  Scripture says in Romans 10:17 (NIV) that "Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ."  Preaching is God's methodology of choice and the Word is His seed that He plants into our souls and causes us to grow into faith.  Preaching isn't the method of the madness but opens doors and we are born through the power of the Word (1 Thess. 2:13, ESV, says,  "And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers"). God opened Lydia's heart to respond to the gospel (cf. Acts 16:14).  God quickens faith within us and awakens us by regeneration to believe in Him and repent of our sins.  God opens our hearts (cf. Acts 14:27).  

The problem why some don't believe is that they refuse to repent:  they love their life too much to want change or transformation; i.e., they love sin, especially their pet sins and think the price is too high to get saved from them--the price for not repenting is higher! People don't have an intellectual problem but a moral one--that they don't want to live their lives for God!   You must have penitent faith (or believing repentance, if you will) to respond to the gospel message--you cannot come on your own terms!

It is true that believers encourage each other and can enable or build each other up by edification or a prophetic word, but God doesn't save groups or churches en masse, but only one by one!  The Bible challenges the skeptic to search for God; for God is no man's debtor (Matt. 7:7 says, "seek and you shall find") and God is always willing to authenticate Himself:  "Taste and see that the LORD is good..." (cf. Psalm 34:8);  Peter says in 1 Pet. 2:3 (NLT):  ".... now that you have had a taste of the Lord's kindness [goodness]," meaning God never disappoints anyone and no one will ever be put to shame because of Him, but God will make him a vessel of honor, doing His work.

Faith isn't something you have, it's something you do and see--our testimony must not be jeopardized! James would testify that you can see his faith by his works, while Paul said the flip side: "I'll show you my works by my faith!"   Faith is knowledge in action; it's not believing despite the evidence, but obeying in spite of the consequences, they say. It's important to have good role models during the formative years and to plant seeds in the youth, even if they aren't saved yet because God guarantees fruit if we don't give up (cf. Prov. 22:6). Parents are in the unique position as role models and authority figures to stand in the place of God or, in loco Dei, in Latin, and they can influence the character and attitude of their children most during their innocent (cf. Deut. 1:39 mentions an age of accountability by inference) and formative or impressionable years.

But the Bible makes it plain that faith is not rubbed off or caught like a fever, but the Holy Spirit opens our hearts to hear the Word of God as it's preached and expounded.  Again, faith isn't inherited, but parents in the unique position of having more direct and indirect influence, and leaving lasting impressions they'll never forget, even in old age!  For example, a child may recall:  "I remember how Grandma used to always say grace before meals and say a good-night prayer to bless everyone in the family!"

Someday conviction will catch up with them and the Hound of Heaven will come knocking at their door to be let in for salvation and fellowship.  The key to remember is that children are experts at spotting insincerity, acting, pretense, and hypocrisy--you cannot pass on a dubious faith as a lasting legacy!  The problem with most children is that they have grown up to be just like Dad, and that is not good news in some cases!

Every family needs its own Great Awakening and spiritual rebirth, regardless of whether parents are believers--only planting seeds of the Word are guaranteed fruit, not worldly wisdom or common sense.  Just like Socrates suddenly awoke from his dogmatic slumber, you never can tell the potential in a person who gives his life to Christ--and we all have unrealized potential that God sees in us as vessels of honor.

It all boils down to conviction of the Holy Spirit: "And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts"  (2 Pet. 1:19, NIV).  In the final analysis, it's not always how big your faith is, but how thorough your repentance.  Soli Deo Gloria!

My Utmost For His Highest Or Work Ethic

"And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart.  So he prospered'  (2 Chron. 31:21, NKJV). 
"... [F]or they have wholly followed the LORD" (Numbers 32:12, KJV).
"...[F]or the people had a mind to work" (Nehemiah 4:6, NKJV).
"...I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease...?'" (Neh. 6:3, NKJV).  
"The best use of a life is to invest it in something that will outlast it."  (William James, Psychologist, and Humanist) 

If anything is worth doing, it's worth doing right!  Scripture admonishes us to do our work heartily as unto the Lord and not as people-pleasers (cf. Col. 3:23).  We don't brown-nose our way into God's graces and ingratiate God; we are willing servants, or bond-servants, and do everything in the name of the Lord (i.e., for His glory and according to His will).  Paul says in 1 Cor. 10:31 that whatsoever we do, it should be to the glory of God.

Work is our basic calling in life and it is not a curse, but a blessing and virtue to show us the nature of God at work through us, using us as vessels of honor.  We should enjoy our work for this reason, that it's a gift of God to give fulfillment--but don't let your identity be tied to your job, because jobs don't last, only purposes do!  We can never gain the approbation of God, but are forever in debt (i.e., we cannot pay Him back, because grace is something we don't deserve, cannot earn, and can never repay).  

John 3:27, NLT, says that "God appoints each man's work"--we all have a calling to fulfill and some of us are called into special ministries, but He anoints us for the task at hand.  Work is worship (anytime we offer ourselves to God's service!), and all work is dignified if done in the right spirit.  It's not what you do, according to Mother Teresa, but how much love you put into it!

We all have different gifts and the same Spirit decides which one (cf. 1 Cor. 12:11), not us, and it's for the benefit of the body at large, but we all should have the same Spirit anointing us as we are united in the Lord to do His work--primarily to complete the Great Commission.  God isn't looking for halfhearted followers or lukewarm believers, nor even timid workers who are afraid to "get down and dirty with mankind" or to do the dirty work of serving (remember Jesus and the order of the towel in the Upper Room!).

It was said of Joshua and Caleb that they wholly followed the Lord!  "The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him..." (2 Chronicles 16:9, NLT).  Caleb says upon entering Canaan:  "... For my part, I wholeheartedly followed the LORD my God..." (cf. Joshua 14:9, NLT).  We need Christians with spunk and gusto, who will hustle for the Lord with all their might!  It was also said of Pete Rose, who was called "Mr. Hustle!"

It is important to realize the gravity of serving the Lord, and we must take it seriously and not do a halfhearted job:  "Cursed are those who refuse to do the LORD's work..." (Jer. 48:10, NLT); "Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD, with slackness..." (Jer. 48:10, ESV).  God hates laziness and we must endeavor to always do our best and not slack off or grow lax in the faith, enduring to the end of the race set before us.  He who is given much; much will be expected of him:  "... Everyone to whom much was given, of him, much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more" (Luke 12:48, ESV).

We are never to play the let's compare game and commend ourselves with ourselves, for we all have different responsibilities and no one is in a position to judge us except our Lord (2 Cor. 10:12, ESV, says, "... But they are only comparing themselves with each other, using themselves as the standard of measurement.  How ignorant!"

They say that attitude determines altitude and we all have the freedom and ability to choose our attitude toward our work:  either enjoy what you are doing or learn how to in the Spirit; not everyone has the liberty to engage in what they enjoy naturally, but we can find meaning in menial work as Bro. Lawrence, the seventeenth-century, Carmelite monk, endeavored to do and wrote The Practice of the Presence of God to prove this reality and possibility.

To conclude with a verse and word to the wise:  "I replied, 'But my work seems so useless!  I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the LORD's hand; I will trust God for my reward''  (Isaiah 49:4, NLT);   What's more, note:  FAITHFUL SERVANTS NEVER RETIRE FROM THE LORD'S WORK.
Soli Deo Gloria! 

Don't Tread On Me!

 NOTE HOW GOD ALONE IS ABLE TO MEDIATE OUR CASES BECAUSE HE ALONE KNOWS US INTIMATELY:  
Pertinent verses:  
"... Who shall bring any charge against God's elect?.." (Romans 8:33, ESV).  
"... If God is for us, who can be against us?"  (Rom. 8:31, ESV). 
 "Put Me in remembrance, let us argue our case together; state your cause, that you may be proved right"  (Isaiah 43:26, NASB).
"Consult together,  argue your case.  Get together and decide what to say..." (Isaiah 45:21, NLT). 
"I have refined you, but not as silver is refined.  Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering" (Isaiah 48:10, NLT).   
"... [T]hrough many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God"  (Acts 14:22, ESV).
"We hear that some of you are living an undisciplined life.  They aren't working, but they are meddling in other people's business"  (2 Thess. 3:11, CEV).  
"The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all his innermost parts"  (Prov. 20:27, ESV).   "The LORD's light penetrates the human spirit, exposing every hidden motive" (Ibid., NLT).  
"Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life"  (Prov. 4:23, NKJV). 
"... [F]or the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought..." (1 Chronicles 28:9, ESV).  
"O LORD, you have searched me and known me! . . . and are acquainted with all my ways"  (Psalm 139:1,3, ESV). 

Scripture teaches us to mind our own business and not to get on each other's case or become busybodies, "meddling in other people's business" (cf. 2 Thess. 3:11, CEV).   Just as Paul admonishes the saints at the Thessalonian church:  "Aim to live quietly, mind your own business, and earn your own living, just as I told you"  (1 Thess. 4:11, CEV).  In other words, get off your brother's case!  We all have unique situations and cannot judge by the outward appearance, for God looks on the heart (cf. 1 Sam. 16:7) and sees the motives:  "All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirit [motive]"  (Proverbs 16:2, ESV; cf. Prov. 21:2); Jesus also commanded us not to judge by appearance but with righteous judgment in John 7:24.  We are fruit inspectors, for we shall know them by their fruits (cf. Matt. 7:20):  "....for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh"  (Matt. 12:34, KJV).

We don't have the wisdom to label people and labeling is wrong, as an amateur diagnosis or prognosis--what's more, it's judging!   What would you take a man for who constantly psychoanalyzed you and tried to peg you or label you?  We shouldn't put our friends and neighbors into boxes and think we have them figured out, for only God sees the heart.  We cannot judge simply because we don't have access to all the facts and we are inherently biased.

But there comes a time to intercede for someone and to come to his aid by taking up his case and giving him all the aid we can accommodate.  'You have taken up my cause, O Lord; you have redeemed my life.  You have seen the wrong done to me, O LORD;  judge my cause"  (Lam. 3:58-59, ESV).  God is in the position and has all the authority to come to our aid in our time of need. We are likewise to become a Good Samaritan and see the needs of others in their time of crisis and do all we can muster of our God-given resources.

Job thought he had a case against God and relied on his own righteousness; the flaw of his character was self-righteousness, though. Keep the faith!  "[F]or he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men" (Lamentations 3:33, ESV).  They say:  God is too wise to make a mistake, too kind to be cruel, and too deep to explain Himself--so we never have a case against God, and He doesn't owe us an explanation for anything He allows to happen by His sovereignty in our lives.  "No one can tell him what to do, or say to him, 'You have done wrong'"  (Job 36:23, NLT).

God is all ears if we want to come to him in sincerity and seek truth and an honest dialogue:   "Let us review the situation together, and you can present your case to prove your innocence"  (Isaiah 43:26, NLT).  Let me end with one more verse:  "For we must all appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil'  (2 Cor. 5:10, ESV).
Soli Deo Gloria!

As A Man Thinks

"For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..."  (Proverbs 23:7, KJV).  

"Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life"  (Prov. 4:23, KJV).

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Phil. 4:8, ESV).  

"Therefore gird up the loins of your mind [muster all your intellectual resources]..." (1 Pet. 1:13, NKJV).

"Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established" (Prov. 16:3, KJV). 

"A man is what he thinks about all day long." (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

"The most important things in life are the thoughts you choose to think." --(Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and Stoic writer)

The most important aspect of our personality is the thoughts we allow and choose to occupy our time and mind; we can't always control what enters our minds, but we don't have to entertain and meditate on the wrong ideas.  The computer principle of GIGO applies garbage in equals garbage out! Mark 7:21, ESV, says, "For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts...." The  Word is a judge of thoughts and the intents of our hearts (cf. Heb. 4:12).

David prayed in Psalm 19:14 that the words of his mouth and meditations of his heart would be acceptable to God.  They say that we aren't what we think we are, but we are what we think!  When we fill our minds with holy thoughts, the feedback is holy and we reap what we sow! Our mouths betray what's on our minds and in our hearts! Our own thoughts either excuse us or blame us by virtue of our conscience (cf. Rom. 2:15).

We make the decision not to offend with our tongue--to use expletives or take God's name in vain--no matter how commonplace.  New Agers fill their minds with mantras (a name of a Hindu deity), yoga (union with God), or TM (transcendental meditation), and these seem to work for them, as their nomenclature for meditation is not what God instituted, and biblical meditation or thought digestion (on the Word) is the lost art of Christians.  New Agers say that it relaxes them and puts them in a good mood, to empty their minds, but real meditation is focused thinking with a purpose on something, not just letting random thoughts preoccupy our minds.

We don't fool God with our veneer, for He sees through the facade and demands an ingenious, sincere, humble, reverent, and honest prayer life.  We are to pray without ceasing, which means we can be in a quasi-meditation all day long, as we enjoy fellowship with the Godhead, walking in the Spirit.

Our minds are like gardens that are either well-cultivated and conducive to good fruit or run wild and full of weeds, bearing only foliage.  The presence of fruit indicates the presence of a fruit tree, bush, or vine, and God is constantly pruning us, that we would produce more.  The branches that are unproductive, or fruitless, are cut down and thrown into the fire, so to speak.  Cf. Jeremiah 17:9 which says, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked, who can know it?"  Yes, we shall know them by their fruits (cf. Matt. 7:14), and Jesus was right on when he said that evil thoughts proceed from the heart of man (Matt. 12:34, KJV, says, "...for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh")--nevertheless, think no evil (cf. 1 Cor. 13:5).

"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually"  (Gen. 6:5, KJV).  Cf. Proverbs 4:23, which says, "Guard your heart with all diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life."  Paul exhorts us to "let the word of Christ dwell" in us richly--part of the process of learning to think godly thoughts, and most importantly to "take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ," as Paul commands in 2 Cor. 10:5.  Being spiritually mature implies thinking with a divine attitude, worldview, and viewpoint--thinking godly thoughts per 2 Cor. 10:5, ESV, which says, "We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ."

We are to be "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (cf. Rom. 12:2) and to "be renewed in the spirit of [our] mind"  (Eph. 4:23, NKJV).  Paul tells us what sort of things to entertain our minds within Phil. 4:9, basically to "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus"  (Phil. 2:5, NKJV).  We also need to constantly gird up the loins of our minds, or get into gear and stay focused and the result will be a sound mind per 2 Tim. 1:7. and set our minds on things above (cf.. Col. 3:2), not of the worldly realm or domain of Satan. 

God gives us a new mind, as well as spirit, emotions, and will upon salvation--the flesh profits nothing though, and it will be redeemed in heaven into glory! I am a firm believer in positive thinking and trying to see the bright side or the light side of a crisis and that we can rejoice in all circumstances, because of our filling in the Spirit and we are never alone.

Rene Descartes said, "I think, therefore I am!"  He should've started with God in the picture, not himself--he's being introspective and making himself the center of his world.  He is really saying that we have the innate ability to arrive at knowledge apart from God, whereas we wouldn't know anything apart from the revelation of God and that He chose to reveal.  Thinking requires a thinker, ergo entities!

It makes more sense to use the biblical concept:  "In the beginning God...."  The only system of thought that Christ will fit into, according to church father Athanasius, is the one where Christ is its beginning premise or the beginning presupposition!  When you rule God out of the equation, you enter the sphere of chaos, for, without logos, there can be no cosmos or orderly universe with a purpose, and science wouldn't be possible with the laws of the universe and make any sense (cf. Job 38:33).

This is why Secularists deny the supernatural: a Creator-god, a Lawgiver, and a Judge--they don't want accountability or to let a Divine Foot in the door, trying to desperately explain everything without God in the picture, no matter how bleak an outlook it is.  Communists go so far as to declare:  God does not, cannot, and must not exist!  Indeed, it's atheism that's the primary handicap and problem of Marxism.

In summation, it is vital to get our thinking straightened out and to learn how to think with a divine viewpoint the way God would--i.e., biblically sound thinking!  Christianity applies to all of academia and to every discipline and the problem is that Christians are losing the war of ideas and isms by default--they succumb to pressure and don't realize their position is defensible. All in all, in the final analysis, "[Be] careful how [we] think; [our] life is shaped by [our] thoughts"  (Prov. 4:23, GNT).
Soli Deo Gloria! 

Finding Purpose In Life

"Unless you assume a God, the question of life's purpose is meaningless."  (Bertrand Russell, philosopher and mathematician and noteworthy atheist)

"The LORD has made everything for his own purposes..."  (Proverbs 16:4, NLT). 

"Think constantly of him enduring all that sinful men could say against him and you will not lose your purpose or your courage"  (Heb. 12:3, J. B. Phillips). 

"For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep...." (Acts 13:36, ESV). 


"It is suicidal to live for yourself and to know no scheme or interest larger than your own little world--we must think outside the box and have a purpose in life.  We can become very busy with no aim in mind, but it will be futile.  We can become a success in the eyes of the world, achieving the so-called American dream and be a failure spiritually.  Every note we strike in this life makes up a chord that will vibrate for all eternity--we don't live for ourselves, but have an effect on others; i.e., no one lives nor dies unto himself, but has an impact and leaves a legacy, good or evil. Life is only a trust, a staging area, a rehearsal, a test or tryout to set us up for eternity; we fit into God's scheme uniquely. We should all seek to leave a legacy larger than life and bigger than ourselves that will have importance and impact in the future.

The point in life is not to have fun, win a lottery of life, become successful, but to contribute something back to society and leave your mark or lasting influence felt.  Einstein said that we shouldn't strive to be a man of success, but a man of value.  No one wants to be forgotten as if they never lived:  the trouble with most is that they live like they'll never die, and die as if they never lived!   We must live each day as if it were our last and always be prepared to meet the Lord of glory in glory!  We should have no unfinished business leftover, and leave no loose ends to tie up.  When we wake up we should say, "Lord, will today be the big day?"  You really aren't ready to live, till you're ready to die and you aren't really living if there's nothing or no one you would die for.  Greater love has no man than he lay down his life for his friends, according to our Lord.

Everything in the universe was created teleologically (by the intelligent design of a wise Creator),  or with purpose-orientation.  There is a reason for everything in creation, and God doesn't make junk or anything in vain.  That includes you and me and Proverbs 16:4 says God made everything for His purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil!  We should have the conviction that God will fulfill His purpose for us in real time (cf. Psalm 57:2; 138:8, ESV, which says, "The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me...."

The very words teleology, purpose, and design are forbidden concepts to secularists who deny there is any rhyme or reason behind creation because these words imply a Designer or Creator.  But you don't have cosmos without logos (the expression or revelation of God: logic)!  If we had no purpose in our cosmos there would be chaos, the enemy of science--but we have laws of the universe to depend on (cf. Job 38:33, ESV, which says, "Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?  Can you establish their rule on the earth?") that we can know and manipulate to serve us, and science would be impossible without these laws, which implies a Lawgiver.

Colossians 1:16, MSG, says that everything "finds its purpose in him."  We are like that:  knowing God gives us purpose and meaning, an abundant and fulfilling life with meaning and direction, not chaos.  We are designed to know God and the God-shaped blank in us is only fulfilled by a personal relationship.  If we don't surrender the ownership of our lives to God, it will be chaotic, and not beautiful.  God does have a plan for us according to Jer. 29:11 and we can relinquish our lives to His lordship and behold the new life unfold.  

For He doesn't just change our lives but transforms them.  We become new from the inside out!  "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away, behold, the new has come" (2 Cor. 5:17, ESV).  A full life involves living with a purpose or on purpose, and seeing your mission and finding some ministry to be used by God in service, for we are all servants of Christ in the final analysis.  We live for Christ, not for ourselves and this is the secret of happiness, to get our eyes off ourselves and realize it's not about us!

Nothing in life is haphazard or a fluke (we're no freak accident of nature!)--we are part of an intricate plan and we fit in somewhere because there's no one who doesn't have some special and unique purpose from God.  One noteworthy astronomer has compared the cosmos as one gigantic mathematical equation from the mind of a Great Mathematician!  As Christians, we are vessels of honor, not dishonor or wrath, and rejoice when God uses us to His glory!  

Don't worship at the altar of Almighty Chance and believe in impersonal forces such as fate, chance, luck, nor fortune.  They are all contradictions of God's attributes.  Fate is impersonal, while God is personal and knows us; chance is a nonentity and mathematical odd, while God is a certainty and sure thing; luck is dumb, while God is omniscient; fortune if blind, while God is all-seeing and knows all (Prov. 15:3, ESV, says, "The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.").

Life is not a game so it isn't all about winning, neither is it a race, that speed is of the essence, and neither is it a marathon, and so endurance and longevity aren't the only factors (we all have an individual race to run tailored for us), it isn't a party either, and therefore having fun is not where it's at, as the main objective; and life isn't a puzzle to figure out and that God is hiding its secrets from us, and only those "in the know" can succeed in life!  Life's secret is in Jesus ("in him was life, and the life was the light of men").

God makes us all good at something and gifted in our own way so that we are suited to do His will and glorify Him:  "The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever," according to The Westminster Shorter Catechism!  Let me add that God has no backup plan or Plan B, we need to get with the program and be obedient to the heavenly calling or vision! If you aim for nothing, you will get nowhere!   In conclusion, let's note what Job concluded when God didn't answer his questions about his suffering:  "... 'I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted'"  (Job 42:1, ESV).

In summation, let me quote Isaiah 49:4 (NLT):  "I replied, 'But my work seems so useless!  I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the LORD's hand.  I will trust God for my reward."   Soli Deo Gloria! 

O.J.T. In The Real World

"[B]ut man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward"  (Job 5:7, ESV).

"Many are the afflictions of the righteous:  but the LORD delivereth him out of them all"  (Psalm 34:19, KJV). 

"But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold"  (Job 23:10, ESV).  

"For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him"  (Philippians 1:29, NIV). 

"More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance character..." (Romans 5:3-4, ESV). 

"For he does not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow [" for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men," ESV]"  (Lamentations 3:33, NLT).

"... Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad? ..." (Job 2:10, NLT).

"Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty"  (Job 5:17, NIV).

"Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O LORD, and whom you teach out of your law"  (Psalm 94:2, ESV).

"I create the light and make the darkness.  I send good times and bad times..."  (Isaiah 45:7,
NLT).


Christians would be wise to heed the Word of God and pay attention to their elders and teachers, much more their parents as children, because they stand in loco Dei [in the place of God]!  We learn to rebel and question authority at a very young age and we all lose faith at some time in those that deserve our respect.  If we don't learn our lessons the easy way from Scripture, we will learn the hard way in the school of hard knocks!  We all do need backup training in the on-the-job-training (OJT) of real-life--this may be the dog-eat-dog world, the rat race, or the law of the jungle with the survival of the fittest, but we should be assured that when we go through the fire we will not be overwhelmed according to Isaiah 43:2, ESV:  "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you."

"God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks to us in our conscience [and the Word, of course], but shouts to us in our pains," C.  S.. Lewis has said.  There are no shortcuts, easy paths, nor simple formulae to follow to maturity--no magic formula or Eightfold Path [of Enlightenment] either like Buddha taught.  No matter how many noble truths we think of we cannot save ourselves nor find the truth.  We all learn by discipline as God is putting us through the crucible of life as one does a piece of silver, refining it till one sees himself in the reflection.

Experience is not what happens to you, but in you, it has been said, but note that the same sun melts the butter, hardens the clay, some people become bitter, and some better because of the same event--God knows what is best for us and what we can handle. Christ didn't exempt Himself from suffering and our crosses pale in comparison--He doesn't expect anything of us He didn't accomplish or endure; suffering, trials, temptations, adversity, trouble, and discipline are inevitable!  This is par for the course!

There are pitfalls to life and God doesn't promise us a bed of roses or a rose garden.  We learn from our mistakes and hardships, not our successes and prosperity.  Trials are a learning experience that we should welcome as friends that teach us the basics of life--the facts of life.  If we don't learn from the Bible, we will learn one way or another, probably by our mistakes and failures.  We will learn that making plans without God in them is vain and futile.  We don't bring our plans to God for His approval but seek His will in all we do.

Our life is but a pilgrimage or spiritual journey that is meant to glorify God and mold us in the image of Christ.  Just like a sculptor makes a horse from a slab of marble by taking away everything that doesn't resemble the horse, God is taking away everything that doesn't look like Jesus!  There comes a time to apply what we know and get our heads out of the books and step into the real world and learn by trial and error, if not by heeding the Word,  how to obey Christ, and abide in His will.


We have matriculated in the school of Christ and discipleship is largely discipline, accountability, and acceptance of authority.  God is determined to make us Christlike--it comes with the territory! We cannot opt-out of discipline--it's a mandatory course and a requisite--"for whom the Lord loves He chastens," and Christians don't get away with anything and God oversees everything--the good news is that everything is Father-filtered, and nothing happens outside His will for our lives.  (Note Lam. 3:37, NLT, "Who can command things to happen without the Lord's permission?")   

We must not disdain the Lord's corrective discipline:   "But consider the joy of those corrected by God!  Do not despise the discipline of the Almighty when you sin"  (Job 5:17, NLT); "Then why should we, mere humans, complain when we are punished for our sins?" (Lam. 3:39, NLT).  Christ exhorted us to "count the cost"--don't be surprised that your faith must be tested!  We will find out by experience that the Christian life is not hard, it's impossible!

One can endure any suffering if one sees purpose and meaning in it--Christianity alone offers this--and we can be assured of what we signed up for:  no cross, no crown!  God places nothing in our path we cannot handle and cannot learn from.  Trials are a vote of confidence from God that He deems us worthy of being tested--if the Lord got you to it, He'll see you through it!  

Jesus wasn't afraid to get His hands dirty doing the Father's work, He joyfully got down and dirty with the so-called scum and outcasts.  In summation, when Christ makes the final audit of our lives at the Bema, Tribunal, or Judgment Seat, of Christ will we have accomplished His will for our lives and glorified Him with all our resources, talents, skills, money, opportunities, gifts, relationships, and time management?
Soli Deo Gloria!  

Where Is The Word Of The LORD?

"Behold, they say to me, 'Where is the word of the LORD?  Let it come!'" (Jer. 17:15, ESV).
"And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle?"  (1 Cor. 14:8, ESV).
"... When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation.  Let all things be done for building up"  (1 Cor. 14:26, ESV).
 
NOTE TYPES OF PROPHET CALLS
Micah's commission:  "But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of the LORD, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin"  (Micah 3:8, ESV).
Jeremiah"s ordination:  "... 'Look, I have put my words in your mouth!'" (Jer. 1:9, NLT).
Jonah's call:  "'Get up and go to the great a city of Nineveh.  Announce my judgment against it because I have seen how wicked its people are'"  (Jonah 1:2, NLT).  
Isaiah's dedication:  "The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary"  (Isaiah 50:4, NKJV).   
Amos's conscription:  "But Amos replied, 'I'm not a professional prophet, and I was never trained to be one.  I'm just a shepherd, and I take care of sycamore-fig trees.  But the LORD called me away from my flock and told me, 'God and prophesy to my people in Israel'"  (Amos 7:14-15, NLT).  
Admonition:  "Don't be like your ancestors who would not listen or pay attention when the earlier prophets said to them, 'This is what the LORD of Heavens Armies says:  Turn from all your evil ways, and stop all your evil practices" (Zechariah 1:4, NLT).  

Amos prophesies of a coming time when men will thirst for a word from the LORD and not be satisfied:  "... they shall run to and fro, to seek the word of the LORD, but they shall not find it"  (Amos 8:12, ESV).  Yes, there shall be a famine in the land, but not for food, but for the hearing of the Word of God (cf. Amos 8:11), because there will no prophets to warn the people of their sin and denounce it. Ezekiel says:  "... for they hear what you say, but they will not do it.  When this comes--and come it will!--then they will know that a prophet has been among them"  (Ezek. 33:32-33, ESV).  Truly, "... a people without understanding will come to ruin"  (cf. Hosea 4:14, ESV).

When we pass on what we hear from God He reveals more and we must keep the channel turned on to His frequency; i.e., keep in touch and stay in fellowship--abiding in Christ!  Actually, with the rise of prophets, we see the light and there is also the rise of false prophets, saying just what the people of God want to hear with their itching ears.  Lack of prophets in the land can be a sign of judgment, and even in the church we have those who prophesy in the Spirit, edifying the body, lifting up the Lord and speaking forth the Word; for prophets don't just foretell the future, but they forth-tell the Word to edification (i.e., building up--telling it like it is!), even denouncing sin and afflicting the comforted in Zion (those with complacency), while comforting the afflicted (those who see their need per Isa. 40:1)) with the good news from the Lord.  "Do not my words do good to him who walks uprightly?"  (Micah 2:7, ESV).

We all need to be built up in the faith and the prophet can interpret the times and often warns the body, able to discern truth (note 1 Chronicles 12:32, NKJV, which says, "of the sons of Issachar who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, their chiefs were 200....").  The official office of prophet was instituted by Samuel, the first of the prophets and last of the judges, as it were, and the primary task they had or job description, was to speak to the people on behalf of God, while the priest primarily spoke to God on behalf of the people, often interceding and offering corporate confession for Israel or Judah.  We don't have the office of prophet in the church or body of Christ, but we have the gift to prophesy in the name of the Lord to edification.

The prophets had a thankless job that was to tell news no one wanted to hear, it was rarely good, but pronouncements of judgments and sometimes they were even known as doomsayers.  If the prophet spoke against Jerusalem it was considered unpatriotic, like what happened to brave Jeremiah, who was subsequently thrown into a pit. The Israelites and Jews rejected the prophets, they killed most of them, and Jesus was their last chance to respond (cf. Deut. 18:18), and they rejected Him.

The fourfold purpose and calling of a prophet was to expose sin, call people back to God, warn of impending judgment, anticipate the Messiah (prophecies had present and future implications and interpretations).  The church doesn't have the office of prophet per se, but the gift of prophecy to edify and interpret the times is still available and valid. If you have heard of the time-interpreting expository preaching of Charles Colson, you'll realize what a modern-day prophet he was. 

Hosea says, "... the prophet is a fool; the man of the spirit is mad"  (Hosea 9:7, ESV).  You may have heard that in a mad world, only the mad are sane--well, the prophet was the only one who was right, and the whole nation was often in rebellion--God challenged Jeremiah to find just one just man in Jerusalem!  The end result is that the rebels won't find the Lord:  "... they shall go to seek the LORD, but they will not find him; he has withdrawn from them"  (Hosea 5:6, ESV).  We get the prophets, teachers, and leaders we deserve, according to Micah 2:11!  The principle lesson to heed is that, when light is ignored or refused, it's taken away!   Soli Deo Gloria!  Hallelujah!  Amen!

By Nature Children Of Wrath

VERSES FOR PONDERING AND MEDIATION REGARDING DEPRAVITY: 


"The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually"  (Gen. 6:5, ESV, emphasis mine). 

"They have gone deep in depravity ...  He will remember their iniquity, He will punish their sins"  (Hosea 9:9, NASB). 

"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?"  (Jerimiah 17:9, ESV, emphasis mine).

"Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart"  (Prov. 21:2, ESV, emphasis mine).  

"No man can justify himself before God by a perfect performance of the Law's demands--indeed it is the straight-edge of the Law that shows us how crooked we are" (Rom. 3:20, J. B. Phillips, emphasis mine).

"The LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts"  (cf. 1 Chronicles 28:9). 

"... God withdrew from Hezekiah to see what was really in his heart"  (cf. 2 Chronicles 32:21).

"... God left him [Hezekiah] to himself, in order to test him and to know all that was in his heart"  (2 Chron. 32:31, ESV).  

"Being made then free from [the power of] sin, ye became the servants of righteousness [Christ]"  (Rom. 6:18, KJV).

NOTE THAT WE ARE SINNERS BY NATURE, BY BIRTH, AND BY CHOICE! Augustine said we are, in Latin, non posse non peccare, or we're unable not to sin--all we can do is sin!

WE ARE SINNERS NOT BECAUSE WE SIN.  RATHER, WE SIN BECAUSE WE ARE SINNERS, ACCORDING TO A FAMOUS THEOLOGICAL AXIOM.

Paul said in 1 Cor. 15:10, ESV,   "But by the grace of God I am what I am...."  We are what we are by nature, just like a pig is only acting according to its nature when it wallows in the mud after cleaned, we act consistently with the nature God gave us:  whether we are sanguine, choleric, melancholy, temperamental, even easy-going, or happy-go-lucky!  The good news is that our God always acts according to His nature and that means He acts perfectly according to a perfect nature, and He cannot act contrary to it.

"See,  this alone, I found, that God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes"  (Eccl. 7:29, ESV).  For all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory (cf. Rom. 3:23)!  If sin were a color like red, we'd be all red--you cannot be only a little depraved, no more than a little pregnant. We are radically corrupt, with no peripheral goodness to boast of in God's presence--our righteousness is as filthy rags and His gift to us, not our gift to Him. We are as bad off as we can be with our hearts totally evil and corrupt, that includes our will, mind, and affections.  They say we are totally depraved, but not utterly depraved--we're not as bad as we can possibly be, but as bad off.

We soon find out in life that we all have feet of clay and the adage that to err is human and that no body's perfect.  But we tend to compare ourselves with others and the run-of-the-mill sinner seems to estimate himself a saint compared to the likes of Hitler, the paradigm of evil in our times.  We have solidarity in Adam, sharing original sin and the effect of that sin in the perfect environment of the Garden of Eden.

Depravity is God's estimation of man, not our own self-estimation!  Some people indeed think they're okay in their estimation and don't even think they've sinned.  However, man is not basically good, but inherently evil and our sin permeates our very core of being.  The complete heart is depraved: the emotions in Psalm 37:4; the will in Exodus 7:20; and the intellect in Matt. 15:19.  In other words: Sin permeates our very being and our reasoning power is dead (cf. Rom. 8:7); our conscience is corrupt (cf. Tit. 1:5); our will is stubborn (cf. Rom.1:32); our desires are selfish and base (cf. Col. 3:5); and our thoughts are evil (cf. Gen 6:5).  Our minds, wills, bodies, and spirits are corrupt--our total soul and being.  We must expose the dark side to see ourselves for what we are--fallen creatures!   We have no intrinsic goodness nor intrinsic merit nor value nor dignity, but only extrinsic worth and dignity because we are in the image of God and are clay in the Potter's hands.

The trouble, someone has said, is that most people don't see how bad they are, and the catch-22 is that we must see how bad we are to be good and qualify for goodness, and we don't know that till we've tried to be good and seen the futility of the attempt without God.  Man never ceased to be man with the power of choice, but ceased to be good!   Indeed we are bad, but the good news is that we are not too bad to be saved, if we will only confess it and confession or homologeo in Greek means to say the same thing as we need to agree with God and come clean with Him.  Man's basic problem in thinking he's good is that he thinks he does good deeds (Isa. 64:6 says they are filthy rags!), and God says no one does good, no not one!  He is delusional in his self-estimation and is only being self-righteous.

"Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?  Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil"  (Jer. 13:23, ESV).   None of us even lives up to our own standards and perfectly obeys his own conscience:  Ovid said, "I see the better things and approve them, but I follow the worst."  All you have to do is read Romans 7:24, ESV, which emphatically says: Wretched man that I am!  Who will deliver me from this body of death?") to see Paul's struggle with evil within.  We are great sinners, but there is a Great Savior!

The point in salvation is that we cannot clean up our act and that Jesus sees through and penetrates our veneer or masquerade.  We must realize that we are never good enough to be saved, but bad enough to need salvation by grace with nothing we can do to contribute to God's accomplishment on our behalf.  We assume God grades on a curve, but we are all in the same boat known as the universality of sin and all have fallen short of the ideal standard set by God through His Son.  We can't play games with God or fool Him!  God judges our motives, and even good deeds can be done for selfish reasons or evil motive, even to gain the approbation of God.  "And he [Amaziah] did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart"  (cf. 2 Chronicles 25:2).  Our solidarity in Adam always gives us away!

God sometimes lets man go his own way:  "But they say, 'That is in vain!  We will follow our own plans, and everyone act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart'"  (Jer. 18:12, ESV);  "'But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me.  So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts, to follow their own counsels"  (Psalm 81:12, ESV).

The reality, which is a paradox, is that man is not born free, but born a slave and in bondage to sin and the old sin nature; "... People are slaves to whatever has mastered them" ["... For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved"  (2 Pet. 2:10, ESV)]  (cf. 2 Pet. 2:19);  "... You belong to the power you choose to obey" [... "you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness" (Rom. 6:16, ESV)] (cf. Rom. 6:16). We "by nature children of wrath," according to Ephesians 2:3.

We need to be set free from our own wickedness and nature, and this can only be done by the power of Christ transforming our souls upon salvation.  "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36, ESV).   Paul says, "For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace"  (Romans 6:14, ESV).

However, the problem of man is that he doesn't see his own sin and must be convicted (only the Holy Spirit can do this too), because man instinctively justifies his own sin and fails to see his shortcomings, but tends to think too highly of himself, in the best possible light, and that he is basically good, and not inherently evil through and through with no inherent goodness intact.

As Christians, we have been set free from bondage to Satan and our sin nature and don't have to obey sin or be its slave.  "... [A]nd let no iniquity get dominion over me"  (Psalm 119:133, ESV).  "Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me!"  (Psalm 19:13, ESV).    Soli Deo Gloria!