Exemplary Life in Spirit
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October 31, 2010 |
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 "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." (1 Corinthians 11:1)
Here are so many people in the world, but just a few who are leading an exemplary life in the sight of God. The apostle Paul had dedicated himself to preaching the gospel with all his life, and finally died a martyred death. His life has been an excellently exemplary life in Christ. In the same way, to the extent that we believe and obey God, like the apostle Paul, we can receive the strength and grace from God and please Him. What then should we do in order to lead an exemplary life in Christ and lead many souls to the path to salvation?
1. We should get involved only in spiritual thoughts.
In whatever kind of difficulties, we should look at it with spiritual eyes and take actions with spiritual thoughts and heart. A maxim goes, "Everything depends on our mind." In the same situation, the prosperity of our affair depends on the choice of our mind. It is really true in faith, too. If we keep on setting our mind on spiritual thoughts, they are revealed into actions of the spirit, and we bear the fruits of the spirit and receive blessings. On the contrary, if we follow fleshly thoughts, we show fleshly actions and bear the fruits of the flesh.
Spiritual thoughts are operated in the truth. They lead us to think of everything with faith, hope and love, and cause us to give thanks and rejoice all the time and look at everything with goodness. Conversely, fleshly thoughts cause us to get involved in all kinds of untruths including hatred, ill-feelings, complaints, and grumbling. Doubting thoughts and negative thoughts also belong to fleshly thoughts.
Romans 8:6 reads, "For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace." With this Scripture, we have to examine what kind of thoughts cause us to be filled with the Holy Spirit and have comfort or cause us to feel distressed and burdened. If we continually involve ourselves in negative thoughts, is it possible that the current situation changes or we receive the strength to bear good fruits? Instead, we may have discomforts in heart and lose strength and enthusiasm. The things finally worsen.
In the same difficulty, we can think and act positively in faith. But people of the world have to overcome difficulties with their own strength and willpower if they want to think and act positively. God's children can be empowered with the strength of God, become filled with the hope for Heaven in faith, and even more conditions of thanksgiving than the people in the world. If we think of spiritual things and rely on God, His grace and blessing can come upon us.
2. We have to keep our heart and arm ourselves with the truth lest worldly things should break in.
If we always follow spiritual thoughts, we can keep our heart and abide in the truth so that we can have confidence before God. Instead, if we allow the worldly things to break in and we take them, spiritual confidence will immediately disappear. It is because we feel sorry and restless even if we may not be disciplined immediately. In order to cut off worldly things, we should neither look at nor listen to nor seek worldly things.
If anyone carelessly takes even the smallest things belonging to the world which is full of sins and evils, he may become imbued with fleshly things easily and quickly. Fleshly things worldly people enjoy begin to seem attractive to him, and he takes it little by little saying, "Is it wrong for me to take the things all others do?" Those things may not lead him to death immediately, but as he takes those fleshly things, he comes to desire more of them. In the end, he cannot exercise self-control about them. Even though he tries to cut them off saying, "I must not do them," he cannot listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit and becomes submerged in severer fleshly things. That's why we should never accept even a small thing from the beginning, if it is any temptation of the world.
God wants His beloved children to become sanctified. He wants them to fill their heart with the love for God, the hope for Heaven, the desire to glorify God by bearing fruits in their God-given duties, and longing heart for sanctification. If you find something that triggers you to seek worldly things, you have to acknowledge it is a work of Satan and then boldly drive it away in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. In a word, if you cut off the world and the worldly things and keep your heart with the truth, it is a shortcut to lead an exemplary life and fulfill your heart's desires.
3. We should cultivate faithfulness in everything to bear fruits.
The duty of men is to have a reverent fear of God. He who really fears God is not only faithful in his duties assigned by the church but also faithfully bears fruits in all aspects. Of course, he puts his God-given duties ahead of all other duties, but at the same time he performs the duties as a child, a parent, and a member of societies he belongs to. If you worship God in truth and spirit and pray to God with faith and love, you are surely guided to be faithful in all aspects by supervision of the Holy Spirit. And when you faithfully perform the duty of men and bear fruits, you can glorify God and become joy to the church.
For this, you have to spend each day and each hour in detailed plans and do everything with all your heart and sincerity. Above all, you have to attend the worship service and prayer meetings with a longing heart for the grace of God and godly heart. In addition, you have to be faithful in everything with clear purpose of glorification of God.
If you do your best to look at and listen to everything with the standard of truth and think of everything with the truth, God will give you wisdom, understanding, strength and good health, and fulfill your heart's desires.
Therefore, may you abide in the love of God and resemble the Lord more and more so that you can bear abundant fruits and glorify God, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ I pray!
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