Reign

Romans 6:12, "Do not let sin reign in your body."

The word reign can be understood in two different ways:
1. to rule over, make all decisions for (sovereign)
2. that which advises the decision maker

At royal court, there are varying degrees of authority. The King or Queen is the most powerful, but they have advisers that temper that power. If at any time one of the people they have at court is known to be a traitor to the crown, action is taken to remove that person and all of his influence at court as to prevent a threat to the royal family, the palace, or the nation.

When sin is allowed to stay at court in your heart or mind, it causes a traitorous uprising amongst them. It begins subtly taking control of your thoughts and actions, and you don't even realize how easily you hand over your power and authority. Soon, it is no longer you that is truly making your decisions, but rather the clouded judgment that sin has brought in. Sin is a traitor - it doesn't want what is best for you. It just looks enticing and friendly in the moment to get you to look away as the Enemy steals from you and attacks your palace.

So, how do we stop this? We are choice-makers. We have the ability to choose whether sin is allowed to stay at court or we take action against the traitor and all its influence. When sin tries to re-enter and advise us on our decisions, we have the power of Christ to make it leave and never come back. One work from us in Jesus's name makes the order final, just like when a king's seal is placed on an order to his people. There is no questioning the king's order, no trying to convince him otherwise. Once you've ordered sin out of your court, nothing and no one should be able to change your mind. Remind yourself of sin's traitorous nature and the harm it wants to cause in your life. Stick to your order and ask the Holy Spirit - your right-hand adviser - to help you. When the temptation comes to let sin back in, the Holy Spirit can be there to remind you of why you ordered sin out of your court and the havoc it was causing.

Royalty and the royal guard never lose their vigilance in protecting their court from the enemy. They know that if they do, the life of the king or the entire nation is at dire risk. they take all threats against the king seriously and protect him to the fullest extent. The same goes for the Holy Spirit and angels in the Christian's life. If we step into a danger zone, there is only so much the Holy Spirit can do to keep us alive and well - He cannot defy our free will to choose danger. We have to be vigilant at all times - it's when we get lax that sin can easily re-enter and destroy us.

Freedom Isn't Free

Romans 6

Baptism is representative of one dying to sin, sickness, and depression with Jesus Christ on the cross, and being resurrected with Him in the same power that gave Him new life. When we go back to the things that have died and let them have a place in our lives, it is like we are denying the death and resurrection of Christ. We were resurrected with Christ and have the power to overcome sin and death. It is our choice whether we do overcome. Why would a man freed from slavery and given power over the slave master go back to him and ask to be his slave again? People who have gained their freedom stand on that freedom and fight to protect it. They do all they can not to go back to slavery. It is a fight, though, to stay free - often the way of life in slavery was easier, less demanding, even so filled with a lot of pain and punishment. Some people give up the fight and go back because life there seemed easier - you just do what you're told to do, you make no hard choices.

We have to remind ourselves every day why we chose to leave slavery and what we are chasing after, fighting for. Freedom from sin comes with a price, but it also comes with a great reward.

When temptation to sin comes:

• Rebuke it and the devil the Jesus's name
• Take the thought captive in Jesus's name
• Plead the blood of Jesus over your mind, will, and emotions
• Do the righteous opposite of what the temptation is telling you to do

When you catch yourself in sin:

• Repent to God and to the person you sinned against (if possible)
• Forgive yourself as Christ forgave you
• Do whatever is necessary and possible to repair the damage
• Plead the blood of Jesus over your mind, will, and emotions
• Remain vigilant, guarding your heart from attacks of the enemy

At the end of the day:

• Ask God to reveal to you any sin that you still need to repent of
• Be willing to hear and acknowledge it with humility
• Do what must and can be done to repair it, involving the other person if possible
• Praise, worship, recommit to being vigilant of sin
• Plead the blood of Jesus over your mind, will, and emotions
• Command the devil to flee in Jesus's name and have no dominion over your thoughts and actions

At all times: CONFESSIONS, PRAISE AND WORSHIP

How would Jesus respond to marriage equality?

When the Supreme Court ruling came out in support of marriage equality, social media blew up. We all saw it and many of us probably responded in one way or another. I purposely avoided responding to anything related to it because I wanted the time to really seek God's heart on this issue. Not just on how to treat those who live a different lifestyle than I do, but how to move forward as a Christian in a world that increasingly doesn't want Him. I spent some time in the book of John, exploring every interaction Jesus had with non-believers, and I came up with this image of Christ's response to the world around Him.

• His heart breaks with love for the sinner (John 3)
• He would treat them better than anyone else does - something they wouldn't expect from a Christian (John 4)
• He knows that the dead (physically and spiritually) will hear the voice of God and live (John 5)
• He would not pick and choose who can receive from Him (ex: feeding the 5,000 - He fed everyone in attendance) (John 6)
• He would be rejected by His family and friends who disagree with His teaching (John 6 & 7)
• He would NOT condemn them but tell them to "go and sin no more" (John 8)
• He would NOT force them to believe or live according to His Word. He knows the truth and the freedom it provides, but He also knows that judgment will get Him nowhere (John 8)
• He is a shepherd: a gentle leader, protector, and healer. He searches for the lost, broken, and hurting and knows what they need. He offers to meet those needs and endures their stubbornness. They follow Him because they know he'll provide for them and keep them safe. (John 10)
• He would NOT judge those who don't believe (John 12)
• He would disregard what others think of Him and follow the lead of the Holy Spirit (John 12)
• He would love them with agape (unconditional) love. Love is a choice to give up one's own needs or wants, not based on feelings, beliefs, or "chemistry" (John 13)
• He would be hated and persecuted by the world, and He would give His life for them anyway (John 15)
• He would rely on the Holy Spirit to grow in agape love, endure persecution, and be confident in who He is to God (John 15 & 16)
• He would PRAY (John 17)
• He would die so they can live (John 19 & 20)

In the wake of all that has been happening in America, from war to violence to denial of scripture, my mind has raced and my heart has struggled to know how a Christian should respond. How do you love someone unconditionally without saying their sin is okay? This is what the Holy Spirit showed me:

• Spend time with them, get to know them and their heart, build a relationship
• Spend time with Jesus. Maintain your own Christian walk and grow intimate with Christ
• Get to a place in Christ where they can see that you're different and want what you have
• When that door opens, teach and challenge them in the love of Christ

God loves us too much to let us live in sin because He knows that sin leads to death BUT He accepts us as we are now and gives us the love and support to become the person He created and designed us to be.

When a designer is putting together a project, they spend a lot of time planning, looking at ideas and options, deciding the best way that they want to present their image or message. They try various looks and characteristics together, play with fonts, colors, and graphics until it is just right. All of the trials along the way may be good, attractive, and appealing; but the designer has a vision in mind of what he or she wants the end product to look like. Only the designer knows perfection. When God designed each of us, He had a purpose and intention for our life. He knew which characteristics would best fit together to serve that purpose. To anyone else we might just seem "good," "attractive," or "appealing," but to the Designer we are perfect because He knows the exact purpose, image, and message for which we were created. His love and pride for His creation never fails, even if the creation fails to live up to its purpose. God doesn't cast us off and leave us to be ruined. Instead He comes and makes little changes to our character to restore us to His original vision. 

God loves us exactly the way we are but loves us too much to leave us that way.

How Do We Walk in the Light?

I sat down to read 1 John 1 - 2 (NIV) last night for the second time and I was struck by a question as I was getting to verses 5-7. This is something that I've read and heard many times, being raised in a Christian home; but as I looked at it, I realized that I wasn't totally sure about what it means to actually "walk in the light" in everyday life. I did a closer study on these two chapters, and this is what I came up with:

Ch 1:
                  darkness = sin (v 6)                                        light = God (v 5)
       *So to walk in the light means to walk in God - it doesn't mean we deny our sins (v 8) but instead acknowledge them, confess them to God, and ask Him for forgiveness (v 9). When we do this we are promised forgiveness and cleansing.
                  forgiveness: to grant pardon for or remission of; absolve; to cancel any debt
                  cleanse: to remove guilt from
       *Doesn't take away the consequences of sin, but brings complete restoration and takes away the residue of sin: the guilt, shame, fear, etc.

I often find I hide my sin out of fear of the pain involved in changing the way I live.      

Analogy Time:    
      *The forgiveness isn't the painful part - the cleansing can be. When we humble ourselves to God, take His hand, and let Him pull us out of our heap of shame, the act of being pulled up doesn't hurt us(forgiveness) because we are letting God do all the work. What hurts is when the shame tries to keep it's grip on us (our struggle or the flesh not wanting to let go or give in to the Spirit) as we are being pulled away. It can rip pieces of us away with it and cause open sores; but when we are pulled all the way out, God wraps His arms around us and His embrace covers us with a healing love that repairs the places where hurt ans hame have had their way with us.

If we deny sin we deny grace and ultimately reject Him altogether. (v 10)

Ch 2:

                  Jesus Christ = Advocate (v 1) and Propitiation (v 2)

       I've met and discussed with many people who have a hard time with the word 'propitiation' and I really don't blame them. Until now, I really didn't have a decent way of explaining what it means for Jesus to be the propitiation for our sins without mudding the waters even more. Take a look at this:

                  propitiate: to bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment; to reconcile -->

                  reconcile: to bring into harmony

How do we know that we know Him?

•  If we keep His commandments, God's love is perfected in us - brought to maturity (v 3)
• Walk just as He walked - in love (v 6)

       *The word from the beginning (referenced over and over in John's 3 epistles) is to love one another (1 John 3:11, Deuteronomy 10:12) (v 7)
       *The same commandment of love is also new as it is continually reapplied in our lives (John 15:9-13) (v 8)

                  Hatred = Darkness (v 9, 11)                                     Love = Light = God (v 10)
       *So, to walk in the light literally means to walk in love, and since God IS love, walking in the light is the same as walking in God

The mark or evidence of a true Christian is love.

How do we overcome darkness?

• Don't love the world or the things of the world (v 15)

       This doesn't mean we don't love the people in the world - we can love them while hating their sin

• Love one another - you'll abide in Him and will be given eternal life (v 24)

       True believers love one another and even love their enemies

                  Enemy: anyone who does not agree with the entire message of grace and redemption in

                  Christ Jesus

Evidence of Faith:

• Walk in obedience and love
• Deny our own interests on behalf of others
• Love one another with the love of Christ
• Pray for those who are living in sin

Now it's you're turn! Leave comments of practical ways that you have found to walk in the light, or walk in love, in your everyday life.