CHRISTIANS at WORK
THE BATTLE FOR LIFE - Perseverance 3
- Brian
Allenby from Christians at Work in the third and final part of his
look at the spiritual principle of walking by faith
"The
step of faith falls on to what we think is a void, but always finds
rock beneath"
Still in overdrive or are you slowing down just a little? Perhaps
more circumspect or dare I hope, driving forward in faith and maintaining
the faith? Well if you still need a little control over your actions
and excesses, here are the last two tests, which take you to the wire.
Test 4 - As I contemplate what I am proposing to do, do I have
peace and joy within?
Paul wrote, again to the Romans: "May the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace, as you trust in him, so that you may overflow
with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit".
Where there is true faith, the Holy Spirit is at work; he will produce
the fruit of hope, joy and peace. Having the peace of God in your
heart is one way of knowing that you are in the will of God. The peace
of Christ is supposed to rule in our hearts (Colossians 3:15) and
that word 'rule' literally means 'be the umpire'.
When you lose God's peace within, then you know that you have detoured
outside of his will.
You see we have to learn to distinguish between our own human and
self-centred emotions and the deeper work of God in our lives. So
many of us at times literally float across the top, justifying our
actions out of a misguided sense of faith that has been overruled
by our emotions!
God never denies us our emotions and he can use them to accomplish
his purposes. But so often we step out of faith, we experience human
fears and anxieties, but if we are walking by faith - true faith in
the God who can and will do the impossible, then we will be overcome
by a deeper joy and peace. This is the work of the Spirit of God in
response to our faith in God's Word.
Here’s the final test!
Test 5 - When we are dealing with one another this is what
motivates us, a desire to demonstrate grace and a visible testimony
that will bring honour and glory to the Lord Jesus Christ.
We must never allow the devil to build a beachhead in our lives or
in our fellowship. If we give in to any form of sinful disobedience
the devil will use it and he will build on it and our attitudes and
visible witness will fail.
Let us just read together from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians
Chapter 4 and verses 25 to 32:
"Therefore, put away lying, let each of you speak truth with
his neighbour, for we are members of one another. Be angry and do
not sin, do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place
to the devil. Let him who stole, steal no more, but rather let him
labour, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something
to give him who has need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your
mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart
grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by
whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness,
wrath, anger, clamour and evil speaking be put away from you, with
all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving
one another. Even as God, in Christ, forgave you."
If as a believer, we harbour anger, malice or bitterness in our hearts,
we are giving Satan one of his most effective opportunities and a
place to actually start the construction of his beachhead - remember,
the term beachhead is a military expression.
When the attacking forces land in the country of opposition they find
a place well inland where they can gather together all of their forces
to develop a beachhead from where they can systematically attack and
destroy the enemy forces and invade the land. Read the accounts of
the D-day landing, it was all about establishing beachheads along
a front several miles within France. Wrong attitudes will hinder and
quench the Spirit working in and through us and rob us of the power
we need to detect and defeat the devil. The old nature that lurks
within all of us is waiting to be revitalised - none of us is exempt;
Satan delights in breeding the poison that spoils us and nourishes
the old nature.
The only remedy is forgiveness. If someone wrongs you, forgive him
or her from your heart! Lip service will not avail!
The Lord Jesus Christ gave us three simple remedies in Matthew 18:15-17:
"Moreover, if your brother sins against you go and tell him his
fault, between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained
your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more,
that by the mouth of one or two witnesses every word may be established.
And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses
to even hear the church, let him be even to you like a heathen and
a tax collector."
Any sin that we harbour in our lives, especially if we know it is
there and yet refuse to acknowledge and confess it, will give Satan
the beachhead in our lives. This will give him the opportunity to
make more attacks.
Finally, we must not overlook that sin that appears to be what some
would call just a little thing. If it is something that the devil
can use against us it has to be dealt with and dealt with sooner rather
than later. We are trying to build the Church of Jesus Christ here
on earth. To do that we have to live by faith and if we sense that
something is spoiling our relationship with him or indeed with our
fellowship then we need to get rid of it immediately - the rules prescribed
in Matthew 18 15-17 are there to be used as formal discipline, if
we are not prepared to deal with it ourselves.
Brian Allenby
© Brian Allenby & Christians
at Work 2002
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