New & Improved

1 Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people. 3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. – Titus 3:1-7 ESV

For the believers on Crete to live godly lives consistently, they needed to be constantly reminded of what that kind of life looked like. Their natural tendency was to fall back into old habits and live by the standards of this world. So Paul charged Titus with holding them accountable. Christ-likeness would not come naturally or without effort. The believers on Crete would not become more like Christ without a willing desire to put to death the habits associated with their old way of life. Their new position in Christ should result in a determination to be like Christ. That is why Paul gave the following stern advice to the believer in Colossae. 

So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. – Colossians 3:5 NLT

But Paul knew that the task of putting to death the old nature was impossible without the supernatural assistance of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. – Romans 8:13 ESV

The Holy Spirit provides the power, but the believer must cooperate with and submit to the Spirit’s influence. In his letter to the Galatian believers, Paul referred to this partnership as walking, living, and being led “by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16, 18, 26). This symbiotic relationship is built on dependence and reliance. The believer supplies the desire to put away the patterns and behaviors associated with their former lifestyle, and the Spirit provides the power to make it possible. It is impossible to overcome the sinful desires of the flesh without divine intervention; the Holy Spirit is indispensable for experiencing deliverance from the controlling power of sin.

But Paul also knew that man’s sinful nature was a powerful foe, capable of deluding, distracting, and keeping believers mired in spiritual mediocrity.  That is why he put such a high priority on behavior. It wasn’t that their actions could earn them favor with God or make them more acceptable in His sight; it was that the full hope of the gospel message was to be experienced in the Christian’s daily victory over sin. The power of the gospel was to be visibly manifested in life change, and that life change was to have both positive and negative expressions.

As Christians, they were to willingly submit to the authorities in their lives, including those within the Roman government. They were to live lives marked by obedience, not just to God, but to those whom God had placed over them. This would include Titus, the elders of the church, and all governmental authorities. They were to be constantly prepared to do the right thing, that which God would have them do. That is what it means to walk, live, and be led by the Spirit.

But godly behavior is also to be characterized by an absence of negative actions. Paul points to slander and quarreling as examples. Speaking ill of anyone, especially those in authority, was not acceptable behavior for the Christian.

Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. – Titus 3:2 NLT 

One important distinction Paul makes is that a lack of slander is not proof of gentleness or humility. The absence of quarreling in the life of a believer does not necessarily mean they are filled with love. Slander must be replaced with words of encouragement. The desire to quarrel, driven by the need to be right, must be superseded by the desire for unity, and the willingness to give up one’s rights.

Paul knew this call to righteous living was not easy, especially when surrounded by unbelievers motivated by their sinful natures. And Paul wanted the believers on Crete to know that the only thing that set them apart from their unbelieving neighbors was their relationship with Christ. Before coming to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, they had all been hopelessly lost and incapable of living up to the high standard to which Paul was calling them.

Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. – Titus 3:3 NLT

Their former, pre-salvation condition was not pretty, but something had happened. They had been miraculously transformed by the message of the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit.

But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us… – Titus 3:4-5 ESV

God saved them, and not because they had done anything to deserve or earn it. Their best deeds, done on their best day and with the best intentions, were nothing to God. No, God saved them “according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5 ESV). Their radical transformation was the gracious work of God, not some kind of payment or reward for their good behavior. Once enemies of God, they were now His children and heirs of His Kingdom. They had experienced the unbelievable miracle of redemption, made possible by Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross on their behalf.

Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. – Titus 3:7 NLT

That reality produced a visceral reaction in Paul. He couldn’t help but respond to the unbelievable truth of what God had done for him by doing everything in his power to live in grateful obedience to God’s expectations of him. He lived to please God and wanted his life to be a constant expression of his thankfulness for the priceless gift of salvation. Since God had graciously provided the gift of eternal life, the least Paul could do was live in grateful submission to God’s will in this life. This attitude of gratitude led Paul to declare his unwavering allegiance to God.

My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. – Galatians 2:20 NLT

Paul never got over the shock of what God had done for him. He wanted the believers on Crete to share his awe of God’s grace by living lives that demonstrated their gratefulness through Spirit-empowered acts of righteousness. God gave His Son so that sinful men and women might experience abundant life, not just in some future eternal state, but in their present lives. His Son died in order to pay the penalty for our sins. He was raised back to life to guarantee our future resurrection, but also as a sign that we have died to sin and have access to that same resurrection power through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

Paul was not calling the believers on Crete to do the impossible; Jesus had already done that. No, he was reminding them that God’s power to save them was also meant to sanctify them, to transform them into the likeness of His Son. They had been redeemed by Christ, and now they were expected to live like Christ.

…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. – Romans 6:4 NLT

Father, Your promise of newness of life wasn’t meant to be an inspirational or aspirational bumper sticker slogan that Christians use to motivate themselves to do better. Yet, we oftentimes treat it that way. We talk a lot about our “new life in Christ,” but rarely exhibit the fruit that comes with it. We tend to live a slightly improved, totally self-produced brand of Christianity that looks like it came from the pages of a secular self-help book. But Your Son promised us abundant life, and provided the Holy Spirit to make it possible. As C. S. Lewis so eloquently put it, “We are half-hearted creatures fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered to us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is mmeant by the offer of a holiday t the sea. We are far too easily pleased” (C. S, Lews, The Weight of Glory, and Other Address). We settle for mediocre when Your Son promised something far more radical and life-changing. You have provided us with a supernatural resource, the indwelling presence of Your Spirit, and yet we keep relying on our own feeble strength. We grow weary, get frustrated, and lose hope, not because the new life is unachievable, but because our methods are inadequate. You saved us, regenerated us, and are in the process of transforming us into the likeness of Your Son. Our responsibility is to trust Your plan, rely on Your Spirit, and faithfully “do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life” (Ephesians 2:10 BSB). Amen. 

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Gift That Keeps On Giving

7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift. 8 Therefore it says,

“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
    and he gave gifts to men.”

9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. – Ephesians 4:7-14 ESV

Paul has encouraged the believers in Ephesus to live together in unity, recognizing their shared faith and common bond in Christ. God had called them and placed them in the body of Christ, and together, they were to bring glory and honor to God. Paul reminded them that God had given them gifts to make their unification possible. Paraphrasing from Psalm 68:18, Paul emphasized that when Jesus ascended back to heaven, He gave gifts to men. This was fulfilled with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. – Acts 2:1-4 NLT

Jesus’ departure guaranteed the arrival of the Holy Spirit. Just before His death, He told His disciples, “If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth” (John 14:15-17 NLT). He went on to prepare them for His pending death, but then assured them, “I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. Soon, the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live. When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you” (John 14:18-20 NLT).

The Holy Spirit’s arrival was a game-changer for the disciples. He empowered and equipped them for service. He provided them with the capacity to speak languages they didn’t know and perform supernatural miracles of healing. And Jesus had told them this would happen.

“I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.” – Luke 24:49 NLT

The gift of the Holy Spirit was not just for Jesus’ original disciples. He was to become a permanent fixture in the life of every believer. At the point of salvation, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in a believer, providing them with a gift, a supernatural enablement designed to build up the body of Christ. Paul described the nature of the gifts in his letter to the Corinthians.

A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages,[while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have. – 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 NLT

These gifts are God-ordained, Spirit-empowered, and not man-made. They are not talents or natural capabilities, and no one is born with these gifts.

But the Spirit’s indwelling presence and the gifts He provides are not all that God has given the church. Paul reminds the Ephesians that God has also provided godly leaders for the church. These are divinely appointed individuals whom God has chosen and equipped for the task of leading His people. Just as God chose and appointed Moses to lead the people of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, He also chose David to transform Israel from a kingdom of former slaves to prominence as one of the greatest nations in the world. In the same way, God provided the church with leaders.

Paul describes them as apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers. An apostle was literally a “sent one” or messenger. The original 11 disciples had been commissioned and sent by Jesus to take the gospel message to the world. Paul, though not one of the original 12 disciples chosen by Jesus, regarded himself as an apostle because he had been commissioned byJesus on the road to Damascus. The primary role of an apostle was to spread the gospel and establish churches throughout the known world.

Prophets were “forth-tellers” who had the divinely enabled ability to speak the truth of God. These individuals were responsible for building up the body of Christ, especially the local churches. Paul provides insight into their role in his letter to the Corinthian believers: “The one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation” (1 Corinthians 14:3 ESV). In the early days of the church, before most of the New Testament had even been written, the role of prophets was vital. These individuals were divinely empowered to discern and disseminate the truth of God in a time when false teachers and false gospels were prevalent. 

Evangelists were “heralds of salvation.” They were Spirit-empowered to share the gospel, and their role was essential. These itinerant preachers played a significant part in leading others to Christ. Some evangelists stayed close to home, ministering to their local communities, while others traveled from city to city to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles.

When Paul refers to pastors and teachers, he is likely speaking of a single function, not two. It could be translated as “pastor-teacher,” referring to one role within the church. Regardless of whether Paul was speaking of one or two gifts, these individuals were essential in shepherding and teaching the body of Christ. The term “pastor” literally means “shepherd,” one who ministers to the needs of the flock of Jesus Christ. He was to care for, protect, guide, and feed them. As a teacher, he was responsible for instructing the people of God in everything from the teachings of Jesus to sound doctrine. This particular role was essential to the church's well-being because of the growing problem of false teaching and divisive doctrine.

Together, these gifted individuals were to minister to God’s people, equipping them for the work of the ministry. It seems quite clear that Paul did not have in mind a professional clergy who did all the work of the ministry on behalf of God’s people. These were lay leaders who were specifically gifted as equippers and trainers, ensuring that the believers under their care were able to do the work of ministry in their local congregations.

It was as individual believers were properly taught, trained, and equipped that they were able to minister to one another and build up the body of Christ. Just a few verses later in this chapter, Paul describes the outcome of a well-equipped church:

He [God] makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. – Ephesians 4:16 NLT

The goal is growth, and the objective is spiritual health and doctrinal soundness. Jesus did not leave His flock defenseless or alone. He provided us with the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit has given the church gifted individuals to lead, guide, and equip the body of Christ.

Paul has in mind not only the spiritual maturity of every believer but also the unity and well-being of the local body of Christ. There was no place for spiritual stagnation or immaturity. There was no excuse for disunity and discord. God expected His people to grow, and so did Paul. But it was to be a team effort. Each individual was expected to do his or her job, selflessly and sacrificially. And the commitment was for the long term.

This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. – Ephesians 4:13 NLT

Father, You have given us Your Spirit, equipped us with spiritual gifts, provided us with qualified leaders, and placed us into the body of Christ. In doing so, You have “given us everything we need for life and godliness” (2 Peter 1;3 BSB). We have no excuse. There is no reason we should struggle with uncertainty, disunity, or spiritual ignorance or apathy. Unless, of course, we choose to quench and grieve Your Spirit by refusing to hear His voice and heed His commands. As Paul made clear to the Galatians, we each have a daily choice to either live according to our selfish, sinful flesh or according to the Spirit. We can live empowered by the Spirit or enslaved to our sinful nature. Which is why Paul wrote, “let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves” (Galatians 5:16 NLT). That is the way I want to live, but I know I can’t do it on my own. That is why I am grateful for the gift of Your Spirit. You have given me all that I need and have surrounded me with other like-minded men and women who are Spirit-enabled, empowered, and committed to building up the body of Christ until Your Son returns. May we bring You glory and honor as we carry out Your will. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Talk Is Cheap

14 I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. 18 Some are arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power. 20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. 21 What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness? – 1 Corinthians 4:14-21 ESV

Paul wasn’t out to embarrass or demean the believers in Corinth; he simply wanted to lovingly expose the error of their way. He refers to himself as their “father in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (1 Corinthians 4:15b ESV). He calls them “my beloved children” (1 Corinthians 4:14b ESV). His use of this intimate, familial language was designed to remind them that it was he who had originally brought the good news of Jesus Christ to them and presented to them the life-altering message of reconciliation with God made possible through faith in His Son.

As each of them accepted Christ as their Savior, they received not only the forgiveness of their sins but the indwelling presence of God’s Spirit. Their salvation had been the work of God from beginning to end. It was only by His grace that they could claim to be His children, so there was no room for boasting, pride, or arrogance of any kind.

Over time, since accepting Christ, they had been privileged to have “countless guides.” Paul is referring to men like Cephas and Apollos, whom God had used to instruct and guide them in the faith. Paul uses the Greek word, παιδαγωγός (paidagōgos), which refers to a guardian of young children.

“…a tutor i.e. a guardian and guide of boys. Among the Greeks and the Romans the name was applied to trustworthy slaves who were charged with the duty of supervising the life and morals of boys belonging to the better class. The boys were not allowed so much as to step out of the house without them before arriving at the age of manhood.” (“G3807 - paidagōgos - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible).

Paul states that they have μυρίος (myrios) of these “guides,” a Greek word that can be translated as “ten thousand.” His point is that the Corinthians will have no shortage of willing teachers to instruct them in the ways of Christ. But these teachers and tutors were not the same as a father, who holds a special place in the lives of his children. Paul wanted the Corinthians to understand they owed their very existence to him. Like a loving father, he had helped “bring them into the world.” They were his spiritual offspring. But Paul is not bragging; he is simply stating the fact that had he not come to them with the message of the gospel, they would still be in their sins and separated from God. Paul is not asking for special recognition, and he is not expecting them to idolize him. He only wants them to stop their pointless arguing and prideful posturing. There was a spirit of arrogance that had begun to permeate the church in Corinth, and Paul wanted to put a stop to it.

Interestingly enough, Paul presents the Corinthians with a rather prideful-sounding challenge.

I urge you to imitate me. – 1 Corinthians 4:16 NLT.

Why doesn’t Paul invite them to imitate Christ? After all his efforts to minimize the importance of himself, Cephas, and Apollos, why does he suddenly make the focus personal? To answer these questions, one must consider what Paul is asking them to do. His was not a life of ease and comfort. He had a reputation for serving Christ in humility and obedience. He was the consummate servant, sacrificing even his health for the sake of the body of Christ. That is why he could say, “I urge you, then, be imitators of me” (1 Corinthians 4:16 ESV). His earlier words reflect the attitude he is inviting them to model.

When I first came to you, dear brothers and sisters, I didn’t use lofty words and impressive wisdom to tell you God’s secret plan. For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified. I came to you in weakness—timid and trembling. And my message and my preaching were very plain. Rather than using clever and persuasive speeches, I relied only on the power of the Holy Spirit. – 1 Corinthians 2:1-4 NLT

Because of his love for them, Paul longed to see them again. But because he could not be with them, he had sent Timothy to minister to them. 

That’s why I have sent Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of how I follow Christ Jesus, just as I teach in all the churches wherever I go. – 1 Corinthians 4:17 NLT

Paul wasn’t just interested in promoting the teachings of Christ; he wanted to model them. He desired that his life and conduct would demonstrate what Christ-likeness really looked like. Paul insisted that “the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power” (1 Corinthians 4:20 ESV). Anyone can teach and talk a good game, but if what they teach does not show up in their day-to-day life, their words lack power. The pastor who can craft a good message and wow the audience with his rhetorical skills, but who does not live out the power of the gospel in his life, is all talk, no action.

Later on in this letter, Paul challenges the Corinthians to “be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1 ESV). Paul was not making this stuff up. He wasn’t encouraging them to ”do as I say,” but to “do what I do” because he was following the example of Christ.

How many of us could issue that same challenge with confidence? Are our lives a reflection of the life of Christ? Are we following His example? Or are we all talk, no action? They say talk is cheap. I can know all that Christ taught, but if I don’t put it into action, it means nothing. Paul was fully confident that his life was worthy of emulation because he modeled his life after Christ. He was not claiming perfection or sinlessness. He was not presenting himself as an icon of virtue or moral excellence. He was a work in progress and was continually being molded into the likeness of Christ.

He told the believers in Philippi, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me” (Philippians 3:12 NLT). At one point, Paul told his young protegé Timothy, “This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’ — and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life” (1 Timothy 1:15-16 NLT).

Paul was a living example of God’s patience and mercy. He had not deserved salvation, but God had graciously extended it to him. His life demonstrated the mercy and grace of God, but also the presence of the Holy Spirit as His sanctifying power continued to change his life. Paul was so passionate about this issue that he threatened to show up like a father ready to discipline his wayward children. He loved them too much to watch them live their lives in arrogant pride rather than in humble submission to God’s divine will for them.

The time for talk was over. It was a time for action and for the life-altering power of the Spirit to show up in their daily behavior.

Father, we talk a good game, but so often, our words don’t produce life change. We can quote verses from the Bible and parrot the words of Jesus, but our biblical knowledge doesn’t seem to change our behavior. We pride ourselves in our understanding of the Scriptures but the way we conduct our lives doesn’t always reflect the power of Your Word. You have given us the Spirit to guide, convict, and transform us. He alone can bring the Word to life and use it to transform us from the inside out. There will always be those who are gifted to teach and train us. But if their lives don’t imitate Christ, their words are empty. If their behavior doesn’t demonstrate the life-changing power of the Spirit of God, they are to be avoided at all costs. Give us a desire to follow those whose lives look like Christ. And may we be the kind of teachers who can say, “You should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1 NLT). Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Time to Sow

6 Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. 7 Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8 For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. – Galatians 6:6-10 ESV

For the apostle Paul, the body of Christ was to operate in a spirit of mutual love and reciprocity. There was no place for selfishness or a what’s-in-it-for-me attitude. The model Christ left us was one of selfless sacrifice and love for others. Paul has already talked about coming alongside a fellow believer who has been caught up in sin. He has encouraged that they pursue restoration, rather than practice exclusion. No one was to practice a kind of spiritual elitism, considering themselves better than anyone else. The Christian life was to be marked by a sense of interdependence and a desire to put the needs of others ahead of their own.

This spirit of harmony and communal care was to influence every area of the Galatian’s lives, including the way they provided for the needs of those who taught them the Word of God.

Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. – Galatians 6:6 ESV

This wasn’t Paul’s way of lining his own pocket; he was simply encouraging the Galatians to properly provide for those through whom God had shared the good news of Jesus Christ. In those days, pastors and teachers like Paul were not on the payroll of the local church, so their livelihood was dependent upon the gracious, free-will gifts of the congregation to whom they ministered. As an itinerant evangelist and minister, Paul knew firsthand how difficult it was to survive without a steady source of income. which led him to bring up this topic repeatedly in his letters.

Elders who do their work well should be respected and paid well, especially those who work hard at both preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.” And in another place, “Those who work deserve their pay!” – 1 Timothy 5:17-18 NLT

Since we have planted spiritual seed among you, aren’t we entitled to a harvest of physical food and drink?…Don’t you realize that those who work in the temple get their meals from the offerings brought to the temple? And those who serve at the altar get a share of the sacrificial offerings. In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. – 1 Corinthians 9:11, 13-14 NLT

Paul’s point is that the body of Christ has been equipped by God to care for itself. In his letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul emphasized God’s divine design for the spiritual well-being of the family of faith.

And he [God] gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. – Ephesians 4:11-13 ESV

There are roles and responsibilities within the church that are designed to provide for the well-being of those who make up each local fellowship. Paul says that those who have received the word of God should be willing to share what they have with those who taught it to them. In that day and age, those who served as apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers, often did so without any form of financial remuneration. Some even became itinerant teachers, traveling from city to city, to minister the word of God to local congregations. Paul, as one such individual, encouraged believers to provide for the needs of these people.

In his letter to the church in Corinth, Paul elaborated on the common expectation among believers to care for those who taught them.

Do we not have the right to eat and drink? Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living? Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk? – 1 Corinthians 9:4-7 ESV

Paul went on to ask them the question, “If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you?” (1 Corinthians 9:11 ESV). Even though Paul claimed to have never demanded this God-given right to provision from the churches to whom he ministered, he said, “…those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14 ESV).

For Paul, this all seemed to boil down to the unique, God-ordained nature of the body of Christ. There was to be no lack and no need unmet. God would graciously provide teachers to proclaim His Word and bless the hearers so they could provide for their physical needs.

But Paul warns against cultivating a selfish mindset that might disrupt this God-ordained plan of provision. He uses the agricultural metaphor of sowing and reaping, describing someone who “sows to his own flesh” (Galatians 6:8 ESV). This was Paul’s way of warning against giving in to one’s sinful nature and allowing the desires of the flesh to override the will of the Holy Spirit. This kind of attitude would produce negative consequences, with the sower reaping corruption rather than blessings. Paul bluntly states, “You will always harvest what you plant” (Galatians 6:7 NLT).

It would have been easy for the Galatians to view the prophets, evangelists, and teachers as lazy because they “refused” to work. They could have viewed these individuals as freeloaders and withheld any form of compensation for their efforts. Others could have taken the attitude “what is mine, is mine.”

In some of these communities, people had a hard enough time just making ends meet. The thought of having to give away your money or food to someone else would have been a difficult burden to bear. But Paul encouraged them to “not grow weary of doing good” (Galatians 6:9 ESV). Man’s sinful nature will always encourage selfishness and self-centeredness. Isolation and independence are normal human inclinations, but Paul knew that the success of the church was dependent upon its members sowing to the Spirit. In other words, they were to invest their time, energy, and talents into those things the Spirit was directing them to do. If they did, they would reap the kind of fruit only the Spirit can produce: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Living according to the Spirit is unnatural. It is a supernatural, divine enablement that is in direct conflict with our old natures. There will always be a part of us that will resist obeying what the Spirit tells us to do. We won’t want to give or share what we have with others. Our natural inclination will be to hoard and protect what we have. The normal response of the flesh will be to resist putting the needs of others ahead of our own.

But Paul tells us, “…as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10 ESV). As long as we live on this planet, we will have opportunities to do good. It is in the here and now that our generosity, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control are needed. There will be no need for patience when Christ establishes His Kingdom on earth. In the eternal state, there will be no one with unmet needs. There will be no sin, so it will be unnecessary for us to respond to hatred with love. We will not be required to return harsh words with words of kindness, anger with gentleness, or temptation with self-control.

But as long as the Lord delays His return and we remain in this life, we will have untold opportunities to live out our faith and display the fruit of the Spirit for the benefit of all those around us. We must sow while the season is right but what we sow is of utmost importance. If we sow fleshly, self-centered desires, we will reap the deeds of the flesh. But if we sow the spiritual seed of the Spirit of God, living according to His power and in submission to His will, we will reap the fruit of the Spirit. And one day, we will reap the final reward that comes from a life lived in faith.

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. – Romans 6:22 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Better Off Without Him.

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. – John 16:7 ESV

Author J. D. Greear draws an interesting and potentially life-altering conclusion from the verse above. Jesus had been dropping bomb shells of information on His disciples as He attempted to prepare them for His death. He told them that the world was going to hate them, just as it hated Him. He broke the news that they would soon find themselves thrown out of the synagogues and even killed for claiming to serve Him. Then He told them, “it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you” (John 16:7 ESV). This is where J. D. Greear concludes: “…something was so important about the Holy Spirit that Jesus told his disciples it was to their advantage that he go away – if his departure meant the Spirit came. The Spirit's presence inside them, he said, would be better than himself beside them” (J. D. Greear, Jesus, Continued…). The New Living Translation puts it verse seven this way: “it is best for you that I go away.”

Think about what Jesus is saying. Consider the impact it had on His disciples. They had spent more than three years of their lives with Jesus, looking on Him as their Messiah, master, Rabbi, Lord and friend. He had been their mentor. Now they were having to listen to Him say that they would be better off without Him. How could that be? That didn't even make sense to them at the time. The concept of no Jesus was unacceptable to them. Without Him, they would have no hope. It's the reason they all went into hiding and mourning after He was crucified. The two who were walking along the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus put words to their pain. “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel” (Luke 24:19-21 ESV).

Yet here was Jesus telling His followers that they would be better off without Him. It would be to their advantage that He leave them. How? Why? Because Jesus was going to send His Spirit, the one He described as the Helper. “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me” (John 15:26 ESV). When Jesus left, He was going to send the Spirit, who would act as their helper. And the major difference would be that the Spirit of God would indwell them, not just dwell with them. They had enjoyed the companionship of Jesus, but they would experience an even more intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. Rather than having the Messiah walk among them, they would have the Spirit of God residing within them. Thatamazing thought was not fully comprehend by the disciples until they were filled with the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. When the Spirit came and took up residence in them, they were immediately transformed from fearful, timid, hopeless, former followers of Jesus Christ into bold, passionate, fearless messengers of the good news regarding Jesus and His resurrection.

Jesus had told His disciples, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12 ESV). When Jesus was on this earth, He was limited because of His humanity. He could only be one place at one time. He grew tired. He was restricted to a 24-hour day just like the rest of us. He could perform only so many miracles in a given day. He could travel only so far during a 24-hour period. But when He died and ascended back to the side of His Father in heaven, He sent the Spirit. He didn't send the JV or the B-team. He sent the third person of the Trinity, the Spirit of God. And the Spirit came to dwell within each and every believer, providing them with a power they had never known before. He imparted to them an intimacy with God that no one except Jesus had ever known before. Jesus was called Immanuel, which means “God with us”, but the Spirit would be God IN us. Even in the Old Testament, God dwelt among the people, but He didn't take up residence within them. Occasionally, men like David would be filled with the Spirit, but it was not a permanent condition. But with Jesus’ departure, the Spirit became a permanent part of the life of every single one of His followers. That includes you, if you have accepted Jesus as your Savior. You have the Spirit of God living within you. And according to Jesus, you are better off with the Spirit inside you, than if the Messiah was walking beside you. The disciples of Jesus spent most of their time watching Jesus do miracles. They were spectators of God's power. But once the Spirit came they went from observing to doing. Rather than watching the power of God displayed in the life of Jesus, they were experiencing that power as it flowed out of their own lives. And we have that very same power available to us as followers of Jesus Christ. God isn't some ethereal force existing somewhere in the universe. He is living right inside of us in the form of His own Spirit. We have the power of God residing in us and available to us – 24/7. And we need to take Jesus at His word when He tells us that we are better off without Him. Not because He is gone, but because His Spirit has come – and is here to stay – providing us with everything we need to live powerful, bold, hopeful, joyful, content and godly lives.

Trust in God.

2 Kings 17-18, Galatians 5

On what do you rest this trust of yours? – 2 Kings 18:19 ESV

When everything seems to be falling apart around you, where do you place your trust? Where do turn to for help and hope? It is in the darkest moments of our lives that we truly discover where our trust really lies. And it is in those moments that the enemy surrounds us and taunts us to give up. He tries to cause us to despair and dismiss any notion we may have of rescue by the hand of God as ill-placed and unfounded. Hezekiah, the king of Judah, found himself facing just such a circumstance. The northern kingdom of Israel had already fallen, with the people of Israel having been taken captive and exiled to the land of Assyria. Now King Sennacharib's armies stood outside the walls of Jerusalem demanding that the nation of Judah surrender. King Hezekiah was a good king who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that David his father had done” (2 Kings 18:3 ESV). “He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him, not among those who were before him. For he held fast to the Lord” (2 Kings 18:5-6 ESV). Hezekiah enjoyed the favor of God and his reign was marked by success. But the day came when the enemy came against him. The same mighty army of Assyria that had defeated Israel was not outside his walls demanding tribute. Hezekiahttp://www.ccbcfamily.org/wp-admin/post-new.phph would respond by ransacking the temple, even stripping the gold from the doors, in an attempt to appease Sennacharib and buy himself some time. But the Assyrians were not satisfied. They wanted surrender. So Sennacharib sent emissaries to demand the complete capitulation of Judah. Their message to the people of Judah has a familiar ring to it. It is the same one we hear whispered in our ears by the enemy as we face the dark moments of our own lives.

“Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you out of my hand. Do not let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord by saying, ‘The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’ Do not listen to Hezekiah, for thus says the king of Assyria: ‘Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then each one of you will eat of his own vine, and each one of his own fig tree, and each one of you will drink the water of his own cistern, until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, that you may live, and not die. And do not listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you by saying, “The Lord will deliver us.” Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? Who among all the gods of the lands have delivered their lands out of my hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’” (2 Kings 18:29-35 ESV).

What does this passage reveal about God?

It's that old familiar refrain: Will God really deliver you? Hezekiah's enemy taunted him and mocked him, even speaking directly to the people, demanding that they look at their circumstances realistically. Had any other nation's gods been able to stop the army of Assyria. Hadn't they seen what had happened to their brothers in Israel? What chance did they have against the power of King Sennacharib? Their fate was sealed. The outcome was obvious. The best thing to do was surrender and make peace with the enemy. They even promised “a land of grain and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, that you may live, and not die” (2 Kings 18:32 ESV). All they had to do was refuse to trust God and make peace with the enemy, and their lives would be dramatically better off, their circumstances would dramatically improve overnight. But chapter 18 starts off with the reminder that Hezekiah trusted God. He held fast to the Lord. Now that trust was being tested. His grip on God was going to be strained as the forces of evil pulled against him, attempting to let go and give in to what appeared to be the inevitable. The enemy was taunting Hezekiah. Now he had to make a decision as to what he would do. How would he respond? The circumstances could not have been any worse. The situation facing Hezekiah could not have been bleaker. But his God had not changed. His source of strength and power had not left him. God was still in control. He was still present, even though things looked dark and desperate.

What does this passage reveal about man?

Hezekiah was a rare breed in those days. He was a king of Judah who actually loved and obeyed his God. He was faithful and obedient. He was God-fearing and law-abiding. But he still had enemies. He still had to face difficult circumstances. Hezekiah still had to fight against the likes of the Assyrians and the Philistines. He had to sit back and watch as the Assyrians besieged Samaria for three years and then finally defeated the nation of Israel, sending the people of God into permanent exile. He had to wonder about his own fate. He knew the people of Judah had a long history of unfaithfulness and disobedience to God. He was well aware that of their track record of idolatry and spiritual infidelity. There was the constant temptation to take matters into his own hands and solve his problems his own way. There was always the option to turn to another nation like Egypt for help. Even the Assyrians knew about this potential plan B, and warned Hezekiah, “Behold, you are trusting now in Egypt, that broken reed of a staff, which will pierce the hand of any man who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him” (2 Kings 18:21 ESV). There will always be seemingly viable options to whatever predicament we face. But the real test is whether or not we will trust God. Even Hezekiah panicked and turned to the treasury of the temple to provide him with a solution to his problem. Rather than trust the God who dwelt in the temple, he turned to the gold and silver that adorned the temple. But at the end of the day, the question remained the same, “On what do you rest this trust of yours?” Hezekiah was going to have to make a choice. He was going to have to trust in God or place his trust in something or someone else. Or he was going to have to listen to the lies of the enemy and assume that he would be better off giving up than holding on to God.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

This scenario goes on regularly in the life of every believer. Our situation may not be as dark and foreboding, but the reality is that every one of us faces times in which we have to decide “On what do you rest this trust of yours?” Paul reminds us that it is at those times a battle rages inside us. “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Galatians 5:17 ESV). In times of difficulty, the Spirit will speak to our hearts, reminding us of the love, power and abiding presence of God. He will attempt to restore our faith in God and fill us with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. But our flesh will rise up inside us, causing us to doubt the goodness and greatness of God. Our sin nature will speak to us much as the emissaries of Sennacharib did, tempting us to doubt God's faithfulness. But if we listen to our flesh, the results will always be devastatingly destructive. Paul tells us, “the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,envy,drunkenness, orgies, and things like these” (Galatians 5:19-21 ESV). If we let our sin nature make our decisions for us, we will place our trust in the wrong thing. We will lose our grip on God and miss out on an opportunity to watch Him work in our lives. Hezekiah was faced with a choice. Perhaps you are faced with a similar choice today. Maybe you need to ask yourself the question, “On what do you rest this trust of yours?” Is your God big enough? Is your grip on Him tight enough? Is your trust in Him solid enough? The problem lies not with God, but with us.

Father, I want to trust You more. You have never given me a reason NOT to trust You. The fact that I sometimes face difficult situations is not an indication of Your weakness or absence in my life. You are there. You're always there. My circumstances are simply opportunities to watch You work and to test the strength of my trust in You. May I always be able to answer the question, “On what do you rest this trust of yours?” with the simple words, “My God!”åç Amen

Rooted In Love.

Ephesians 3:14-21

Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. – Ephesians 3:17 NLT

When Paul thinks about the mysterious plan of God for the church – the blending together of a wide variety and cross-section of humanity through the redemptive work of Christ – he can't help but fall to his knees in prayer to the Father. He understands that it was God who made it all possible. It was God who sent His Son to die in the place of sinners. It was God who expressed His own love to us while we were sinners, not after we got our spiritual act together. It was God who came up with the idea of the Church. It was God who sent His Spirit to reside within His people, empowering and enlightening them. It was ALL God.

So Paul prays that this very same God, who created everything in heaven and earth, would use the same unlimited resources He used to create the universe to empower His children with inner strength through His Spirit. He is praying for an intimate and intense relationship between God and His Church. Paul longs for them to experience in full what God has made possible through His Son. It is the life Jesus promised – life more abundant and full (John 10:10). The key word in Paul's prayer is "trust." As believers trust and put their faith in God, their roots will grow down into God's love and keep them strong. It is as we trust in Christ daily, that we learn just how much God loves us. We develop and experiential knowledge that is far better than simply academic knowledge. Reading about the love of God is one thing. Experiencing it is another. Reading about the power of God can be helpful. But experiencing it firsthand can be life-changing and faith-building.

Understanding the incredible depth of God's love is essential for the believer. To know God is to know His love, because God is love. The better we come to know Him, the greater we will come to appreciate His love for us. Trusting in Christ has a direct impact on our ability to know and experience God's love. God's greatest expression of His love for mankind came through His own Son and His death on the cross. And as we learn to trust in Christ, living our lives in keeping with His commands and according to His example, our spiritual roots will grow deeper and deeper into God's love – the very thing we need to sustain our lives on this planet. Paul prayed that they would understand the magnitude of God's love for them. But he also prayed that they would experience the love of Christ for them. The result would be spiritual maturity that manifests itself in fullness of life and power.

Paul's prayer conveys the idea of ever-increasing knowledge of God's love and an ever-growing understanding of all that God has made available to us through Christ's death and resurrection. In Paul's mind, there is no standing still, no status quo. We are to keep moving on in our relationship with Christ, growing in our understanding of His love as we trust in Him more and more. Salvation is just the start. We trusted Him for our forgiveness and redemption, but we must also trust Him for our ongoing sanctification and spiritual maturity. And Paul reminds us that, ultimately, God will get the glory because it is His power at work within us, that will accomplish His finished work in our lives – a transformation far more significant than we could ever hope or imagine.

Father, Your love for me is beyond comprehension at times. I can't fathom why You would love someone like me, but You did and You do. In love, You sent Your Son to die for me. You have lovingly placed Your Spirit within me. Your love placed me in Your family, the Church. Your love empowers me and protects me. Your love surrounds me. But at times, I still struggle with the feeling that I am unloved because I am unlovable. Help me understand how wide, how long, and how deep Your love really is. Amen.

The Solution to Sin.

Romans 7:14-25

Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. – Romans 7:24-25 NLT

I have always taken comfort from this passage. Here is Paul, the great apostle and a veritable icon of spiritual virtue and Christian integrity, wrestling with the very same issues that plague me as a believer. Even as a great man of God and powerful spokesperson for the cause of Christ, Paul still struggled with the effects of sin in his life. Like me, Paul still had a sin nature. There was that part of him that was still susceptible to falling back into slavery to sin – even though he had been set free by Christ. Remember what he wrote in chapter six? "Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living" (Romans 6:16 NLT). It's a simple matter of choice. You can choose to obey God or you can choose to obey sin. And it results in a daily struggle for most of us. Paul said, "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate" (Romans 7:15 NLT). In other words, in his heart he desires to do the right thing, but his sin nature leads him to do just the opposite. The problem with Paul is the same one that we face. He had an active sin nature. "And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature" (Romans 7:18 NLT).

Paul describes in simple, yet stark, terms, the all-too-common theme of my life. "I want to do what is right, but I can't. I want to do what is good, but I don't" (Romans 7:18-19 NLT) The important thing to remember in reading these verses is that Paul is pointing out our inability to conquer the presence of indwelling sin through self effort. We may desire to do what is right with all our heart, but our flesh is inherently sinful and incapable of living up to the righteous standards of God. Which Paul describes as a principle of life that manifests in the following way in each of our lives. "…that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong" (Romans 7:21 NLT). It is as if there are two persons living in the same body. One wants to do the will of God, while the other seeks to resist that will and pursue a life of sin. It reminds me of the image of the demon and the angel, sitting on opposite shoulders of an individual – alternately whispering into the poor person's ears, providing contradictory counsel about what to do in a given situation. Paul describes it as "another power within me that is at war with my mind" (Romans 7:23 NLT). The result for Paul was misery, which caused him to call out for deliverance from this daily, ongoing battle with sin in his life.

Paul knew that he had been set free from slavery to sin by the death of Jesus on the cross. He knew he was a new creature and a new creation. But he also knew, from experience, that he still had a formidable sin nature that waged ongoing war with his new nature. As long as we live on this earth and in these bodies, we will do battle with sin. Jesus' death did not eradicate sin. He simply ended its strangle hold on our lives. We no longer have to live as unwilling slaves to its influence, obeying its every command and fulfilling its every wish. We have been set free. But sin still remains. And if we try to conquer sin on our own, we will always fail. If we attempt to rely on our own strength, we will always come up short and unsuccessful. Which is why Paul exclaims, "Thank God! The answer is Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 7:25 NLT). Jesus is the answer for not only our salvation, but our ongoing sanctification. It is He who gave us victory over sin and death, providing us with a way to made right with God. And He continues to do it throughout our lifetimes. He gives me the strength to say no to sin. He has provided me with the Holy Spirit, as a powerful ally in my daily struggle with sin. I need to recognize that it is Jesus who saved me, but who continues to save me from the effects of sin on my life. He alone can deliver me from a life dominated by sin and death. The presence of sin in and around me, should drive me to a greater and greater dependence on Christ and His Spirit within me. I should know from experience that my flesh is weak and incapable of winning the battle alone. But I have Christ on my side and the Holy Spirit within me. I have a resource that provides me with the capacity to do what my heart desires. Paul goes on to describe this capacity as "the power of the life-giving Spirit" who has "freed you from the power of sin that leads to death" (Romans 8:2 NLT). Jesus has provided us with eternal life. The Spirit provides us with the ability to live righteously in our daily lives – here and now. Thank God!

Father, there is a daily battle going on in my life that I far too often fail, because I am attempting to do it all on my own. Continue to show me my daily need for Your Son's saving power. He didn't just save me and then leave me on my own, but He gave me His Spirit. I just need to learn to rely more and more on the Spirit's power and less and less on my own. As I grow increasingly aware of my sin nature, drive me to Your Son and Your Spirit's indwelling presence in my life. I have the power to live the life You've called me to live, and it comes from You, not me. Amen.