God Gave Us His Word - New Testament

Believing the New Testament is very logical and reasonable.

1 John 1:1-2 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 

2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.

In the previous post we saw that God gave us his word through the Old Testament so that when Jesus came into our world to be "God with us," we would be sure that he is really the promised Messiah. When someone makes a promise and then they come through, it helps you believe them even more when they make another promise to you, that's the main reason we can trust the Old Testament.

When you analyze the incredible amount of detail in the prophecies about who Jesus is, how he would come to be with us and what he came to do for us, it is easy to see that the Old Testament was telling us the truth.

Today we will see that God gave us his word in the writing of the books that would become the New Testament. The writers were so excited about Jesus life, death and resurrection that they wanted to share their experiences with everyone. But how could they possibly remember the events and the teaching of Jesus?

God's Word Inspired

John 14:25-26 I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. 26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative-that is, the Holy Spirit-he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

John 16:13-14 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.

Jesus told his disciples that when his ministry is finished and he returns to Heaven, the Father would send the third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit, to represent him. Jesus wanted the disciples to know that the Holy Spirit was going to come to be their helper for a task that they wouldn't be able to do. 

The Holy Spirit would help the disciples:

• Remember vividly the events that happened over the past 3 years
• Recall and quote relevant Old Testament scripture to explain their teaching
• Reveal the truth found in Jesus teaching that they didn't understand before

So much of what Jesus taught these guys didn't make any sense until after Jesus left them and God sent the Holy Spirit. Suddenly their wisdom and insight increased greatly as they seemed to have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:10-16)

God's Word Verified

John 19:35 This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe. 

John 20:30-31 The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.

We need truth to make informed choices about God, eyewitness accounts and John’s experiences support belief in God's word, making disbelief even harder. Since it was written while the eyewitnesses were still living to verify the content, we can be sure that the information is accurate and can be trusted.

Trusting God requires faith but God also provides reasoning to support belief in Jesus for eternal life. Thankfully God protected his written word so it can be analyzed and studied as part of verifying it. Imagine how devastating it would be if we only had a verbal record of what God wants us to know.

2 Peter 1:16-17 For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We saw his majestic splendor with our own eyes 17 when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, "This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy."

Peter agrees with John and firmly supports the compelling case for Christ. He brings up his profound experience with Jesus during the remarkable event of the transfiguration, a significant moment when he, along with John and James, had the unique opportunity to witness this extraordinary occurrence in which Jesus' divine glory was momentarily revealed to them.

It is likely that Jesus selected these three witnesses to fulfill the legal requirement for credible testimony. In the future, they would come to fully comprehend and appreciate this revelation of Jesus' glory only after Jesus' departure and only after the arrival of the Holy Spirit to guide and enlighten them.

2 Peter 3:15 And remember, our Lord's patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him.

Peter confirmed Paul’s writings by saying Paul received wisdom from God. Their agreement in theology supported their message as well as the message of at least seven men that wrote the New Testament.

The original Bible manuscript is lost, but many copies exist that show the scribes copied it accurately. Thousands of copies in various languages keep being discovered, and they are nearly identical. This should help us take the Bible seriously as God's word. (1 Thessalonians 2:13)

Thank you God for revealing yourself to your people, allowing us to know where we came from, why we need a Savior and what you did to save us. Help me to see your glory through your written word just as vividly as it is seen in Jesus. (John 1:14)

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The Challenge Of The Eternal City

Heaven is my destination for eternity and it is my motivation for this life.

Revelation 22:3-5 No longer will there be a curse upon anything. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and His servants will worship Him. 4 And they will see His face, and His name will be written on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no night there--no need for lamps or sun--for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever.

Titus 2:12-14 And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, 13 while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. 14 He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.

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At the end of the book of Revelation we see the ultimate end of our existence. We don't have to speculate or search Google to find the answer to the demise of humanity and our planet. Because we do know how it will end and we know that we will be answerable to God for this life we need to consider a few things.

First we looked at the idea that we should be excited to celebrate our final victory in Jesus and feel comfort in knowing that Heaven is in our future. We need to be encouraged to live joyfully so that other people will see the incredible hope and comfort that the world desperately needs.

Second we looked at the cause or the purpose of the eternal city and we learned that Heaven isn't supposed to be our great desire because we will get a more comfortable existence with a lot of great perks. My greatest desire should be to know God in a much more personal way.

Today I am looking at the third way that the reality of Heaven should affect our existence today. I should live a very different lifestyle with a new mindset because of wat has been done for me. I love to travel to other countries but it is always a tiny bit of anxiety while you wait to get through immigration. That anxiety is something that you don't need to have when you arrive at the eternal city.

I know that Heaven is a country where I could never get a visa without some serious help from somebody much better than myself. Since I have received such an awesome gift I should show my gratitude instead of acting like this life is all about me.

The king of the eternal city has a best selling book that tells us how to get through immigration and what is expected of the citizens of the eternal city. He wrote this book for our benefit yet there are many that have purchased the book and have never seriously thought about the author and what his intentions were for writing the book.

God's book makes it clear that the people that are looking forward to a better country are supposed to be patriotic representatives of the better country and it's King. These special people should live differently to promote our homeland and it's interest.

Romans 7:21-25 I have discovered this principle of life--that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22 I love God's law with all my heart. 23 But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.

24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? 25 Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God's law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin.

The challenge to live to please the king of our new country should create a tension between the new country and the country of birth. The new creation that I am in Jesus demands my loyalty but the fact that I am still stuck in this fallen world in my old carnal body is a conflict that I must deal with for now.

Titus 3:5-8 He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. 6 He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. 7 Because of His grace He declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life."

8 This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone.

Thankfully I do not have to master this conflict alone! Besides the best selling book that the king wrote I also have unbelievable power to live above the standards of this world because he also gave me the Holy Spirit. When I utilize the power found in the Bible and the Holy Spirit's power I can rise up to the challenge and live in victory.

Jesus knows that the citizens of his eternal city that take his instructions seriously will struggle against the culture and it's attitudes. That is why he gives us good news at the end of the book: “My reward is with Me.”

Will you be ready for great gain or will you suffer great loss? (! Corinthians 3:13-17)

The Advocate

Jesus is leaving but he isn't leaving us alone.

John 15:26-27 “But I will send you the Advocate, the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. And you must also testify about me because you have been with me from the beginning of my ministry.”

John 16:5-9 “But now I am going away to the one who sent Me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. 6 Instead, you grieve because of what I’ve told you. 7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come.”

“If I do go away, then I will send Him to you. 8 And when He comes, He will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world’s sin is that it refuses to believe in Me.”

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The Lord’s Supper has just been finished and Jesus knows that His time with His disciples is coming to an end. Jesus was always up front with his disciples, he knows that they will have a difficult time with the events that are going to happen very soon, he is much more concerned for them than they are for Him.

During His ministry Jesus has explained to them many times that they would have a difficult life because of their association with Him. Jesus knew that the hatred that came at Him will be directed at his disciples after He is gone.

The opposition will require some help from a source that the disciples don’t know much about. They knew they had a great friend in Jesus, so great that it is distressing to see him go after only three years, but Jesus tells them that there is a better relationship that will come about after he leaves.

The Holy Spirit doesn’t get mentioned very much, we shy away from Him, maybe it’s because the spirit world seems too scary or magical and there are a lot of wrong ideas in religious circles about Him. The Holy Spirit does not typically draw attention to Himself and put Himself in the spotlight, most of the time His work in your life is quiet and unassuming. Because of this we give the glory He deserves to someone or something else.

The prominence of the Holy Spirit in the human life of Jesus is very noticeable. He was born of the Spirit-"mingled with oil" (Luk 1:35). He was baptized of the Spirit-"oil upon it" (Mat 3:16-17). He was led of the Spirit-"pour oil thereon" (Mar 1:12). He taught, performed miracles, and offered Himself in the power of the Holy Spirit-"with oil" (Joh 3:34; Mat 12:28).

-Thru The Bible Commentary

The Holy Spirit was there with the Father and Son at creation (Genesis 1:2). He was there when Jesus was conceived, and there at His baptism and temptation (Luke 1: 35, 3:22, 4:1–2). The Bible tells us that Jesus performed his miracles through the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:14–19).

When Jesus’s closest earthly companions betrayed him, denied him, and scattered, the Spirit walked with him all the way to His death, empowering him to offer himself freely (Hebrews 9:14). And the Spirit was there on Easter Sunday to raise him in power (Romans 1:4).

What as amazing and powerful companion He is, we are privileged to have him, He assisted Jesus in his ministry and we can also enjoy the benefit of his power in our ministry as well.

The Holy Spirit gives us gifts and helps us to use them properly. It is tempting to use our gifts for our own interest or to just say that we are naturally talented in a certain area and ignore the source of that talent. It is an ugly thing to see a gift being used in a self-serving or unloving manner.

The Holy Spirit strengthens us in the face of suffering and persecution, enabling us to confront a hating world and a supernatural enemy with all of his demonic helpers, such a powerful foe would be impossible to defeat without the power that Jesus told his disciples to wait for. (Acts 1:8)

The Holy Spirit guides us towards obedience, it is easy to believe that being more like Christ is a product of our own efforts but really it isn’t us at all, the ability to change comes about by the Spirit’s power within us.

I need to be sure that I am relying on the Holy Spirit in my life everyday. With Him I will be powerful in ministry, I will be more obedient to become like my Savior and I will use my gifts to serve others. I need to be in the word each day and praying for the Holy Spirit’s direction in every detail of my life and then I need to give him the credit for my gifts and abilities.

My Closest Companion

The Holy Spirit is a powerful friend that the believer is privileged to have.

 

John 15:26-27  “But I will send you the Advocate, the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. And you must also testify about me because you have been with me from the beginning of my ministry."

John 16:5-9 "But now I am going away to the one who sent Me, and not one of you is asking where I am going. 6 Instead, you grieve because of what I've told you. 7 But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Advocate won't come."

"If I do go away, then I will send Him to you. 8 And when He comes, He will convict the world of its sin, and of God's righteousness, and of the coming judgment. 9 The world's sin is that it refuses to believe in Me."

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In the previous post on the book of John, Jesus was teaching his disciples that "God's Children Are Hated," we saw that the hatred that came at Jesus will be directed at his children after he is gone. We have to remember how incredible and huge the love of God is toward us because the world's hatred of us is almost the same size.

The opposition that they will face requires some help from a source that the disciples have never heard of. They knew they had a great friend in Jesus, so great that it is distressing to see him go after only three years, but Jesus tells them that there is a better relationship that will come about after he leaves.

The Holy Spirit doesn't get mentioned very much, we shy away from him, maybe it's because the spirit world seems too scary or magical and there are a lot of wrong ideas in religious circles about him. He does not typically draw attention to himself and put himself in the spotlight, most of the time the Holy Spirit’s work in your life is quiet and unassuming. His work is subtle and many times we give the glory he deserves to someone or something else.

Each member of the trinity performs their role with the full cooperation of the other members, God the Father creates, the Son redeems us, and the Holy Spirit sets us apart.

"The Holy Spirit: Jesus’ Closest Companion"
Pastor and theologian Sinclair Ferguson

Not only has the Holy Spirit been the Son’s eternal partner in the uncreated fellowship of the Trinity, but the Spirit was there with the Father and Son at creation (Genesis 1:2). He was there overshadowing Jesus’s conception (Luke 1:35), and there at his baptism (Luke 3:22) and temptation (Luke 4:1–2). Jesus performed his miracles through the power of the Spirit (Luke 4:14–19).

When Jesus’s closest earthly companions betrayed him, denied him, and scattered, the Spirit walked with him all the way into the jaws of death, empowering him to offer himself freely (Hebrews 9:14). And the Spirit was there on Easter Sunday to raise him in power (Romans 1:4). Indeed, what a companion he is.

Jesus closest companion can be mine as well

The Holy Spirit is often neglected and we avoid talking about him but we need to remember that he is a powerful friend that the believer is privileged to have. He assisted Jesus in his ministry and we can enjoy the benefit of his power in our ministry as well.

The Holy Spirit draws us to Jesus for salvation, he makes the gospel clear and gives us faith to believe. We have such a tendency toward being self-sufficient that makes it so difficult to think that we can't even believe without help.

The Holy Spirit gives us gifts and helps us to use them properly. It is tempting to use our gifts for our own interest or to just say that we are naturally talented in a certain area and ignore the source of that talent. It is an ugly thing to see a gift being used in a self-serving or unloving manner.

The Holy Spirit strengthens us in the face of suffering and persecution, enabling us to confront a hating world and a supernatural enemy with all of his demonic helpers, such a powerful foe would be impossible to defeat without the power that Jesus told his disciples to wait for. (Acts 1:8)

The Spirit guides me toward being obedient, it is easy to believe that being more like Christ is a product of our own efforts but really it isn't us at all, the ability to change comes about by the Spirit's power within us.

I need to be sure that I am as powerful as I can be by staying in the word each day and praying for the Holy Spirit's direction in every detail of my life. I need to give him credit for my abilities and use those abilities to glorify God.

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God's Children Are Hated

Jesus prophesied that the world will hate his people.

John 15:18-20   “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.  19 The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.  20 Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’

John 16:1-3  "I have told you these things so that you won't abandon your faith.  2  For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God.  3  This is because they have never known the Father or Me.

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Jesus has been preparing his disciples for his death by teaching them one more time, he has taught them to serve and love each other, he has assured them that he is in control of the events that are about to take place and he has attempted to strengthen their faith for the difficulties ahead. Now he talks to them about the hatred that they will soon experience.

Hate is a strong word, there probably are not very many people that I know that would say that they hate Jesus, they would point to his good deeds and morality and say nice things about him. If you asked the same group of people if they follow the devil they would probably say that they would never do that.

These people really are not followers of Jesus but they don't have any idea that they are actually following the devil. There are only two possible states that you can be in, Jesus doesn't give you the option to be neutral, he says that if you are not for him then you are against him and you either love the light or you love the dark. (Matthew 12:30 / John 3:19-21 / 1 Thessalonians 5:5)

Looking back at the history of the world it doesn't take long to realize that Jesus prophecy about the persecution of his followers would be proven to be true. The same persecution that killed Jesus begins in Acts 3 to come against Peter when he begins to preach the gospel and the persecution is not going to stop until he returns.

Why does the world hate us so much?

✔  Because we are not part of their system

"I chose you to come out of the world"

We do not blend in with the rest of society, we act different, we talk different and we refuse to be a part of things that don't please God. The ways of the world and the things that they accept are not acceptable to us.

In the Old Testament God had a people, their diet, clothes and religion were all different from the rest of the culture. In the church age God still has a people, they don't have to maintain the differences of his Old Testament people, but they are still different.

The world cannot stand it! You don't love what they love, you don't live for pleasures, achievements and possessions and you have been moved to a new kingdom. (Colossians 1:13-14 / 1 John 2:15-16)

✔  Because they hated our leader

"They will do all this to you because of Me"

Jesus made it clear that the world is going to treat us like they treated him, from the time he was born and the king set out to get him by killing every baby, to the day he was tortured to death. Christians are the most loved of all people by God and they are the most hated of all people by Satan.

His followers in the early church made huge sacrifices because of their faith. In the United States we have been blessed with the best treatment that a followers of Jesus has ever enjoyed. While Christian brothers and sisters around the world are persecuted we live with comfort and pleasures that are unthinkable to them.

It is very tempting to stay away from persecution by telling people the stuff about our faith that doesn't offend, prayer and faith are okay but if you cross the line and talk about the reality of death, and judgment, and hell then the ability to be friends with the world starts to fade.

✔  Because they don't know God

"they have rejected the one who sent me" 

Think about the audience that Jesus was speaking to when he said that they do not know God. The religious leaders were paid professionals that should have known God better than anyone.

They should have known God, they had the Torah, the teachings of the Rabbis and the prophets but with all of that evidence God still wasn't well known. (John 7:28-29, 8:19, 54-55, 16:3, 17:25 / 1 John 2:3-4)

Overcome The Hate
John 15:26-27  “But I will send you the Advocate, the Spirit of truth. He will come to you from the Father and will testify all about me. And you must also testify about me because you have been with me from the beginning of my ministry.

All of this bad news was difficult to handle, the disciples had abandoned all for Jesus, he didn't want to leave them without hope. If they decided to give up and walk away from everything that Jesus had taught them then the Christian faith wouldn't get beyond Ancient Palestine.

He tells them that he will not leave them as orphans but instead he would send them help that would be through his power living inside of each of them so that they could endure the hate that they would face.

How to treat your enemy

(Exodus 23:4-5 / 2 Kings 6:22 / Proverbs 25:21-22 / Luke 6:27-28, 6:34-35, 23:34 / Acts 7:60 / 1 Corinthians 4:12-13, 13:4-8 / 1 Peter 2:23, 3:9)

Romans 12:17-21  Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable.  18  Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.  19  Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, "I will take revenge; I will pay them back," says the LORD.  20  Instead, "If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads."  21  Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

The Bible has a lot to say about treating our enemies much better than they deserve. We were all enemies of the King but God so loved the world that he came to love us anyway. The extravagant love of Jesus demands that I treat people the same way and the Holy Spirit is my help so that I can do it.

The Holy Spirit will always be with us helping us through this evil world, the promise that we have is that we will never be alone, the Holy Spirit will be with us even when our faith and obedience takes us to places that are not safe to love people that are not very lovable by the world's standards.

I need to be ready to follow Jesus anywhere he ask me to go, beyond where it is safe and easy, I need to be ready to forgive, pray for and do good to anyone that wants to treat me wrongly because of my faith.

Dear Jesus, I pray for believers around the world that are taking a stand for you, I pray that they will stand strong, I pray that you will change the hearts of those that are persecuting them and I pray that the gospel will continue to spread.

International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church - November 6, 2016

Found: God's Will

Finding the direction and purpose that God has for your life.

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  6  Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.

Matthew 12:48-50  Jesus asked, "Who is My mother? Who are My brothers?"  49  Then He pointed to His disciples and said, "Look, these are My mother and brothers.  50  Anyone who does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother!"

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Most of us acknowledge that God has a plan for the life of every believer but with all of the different possible directions that you could go in life you may think to yourself, how can I possibly know which way God wants me to go?

There are a lot of blog post, books and sermons about this topic yet we don't seem to know what it is most of the time. It is as if God has made it really hard to know what he wants, his will seems to be hidden from us, but if he is really interested in me doing his will then why would he make it so difficult?

Some of us expect God to throw his will in our face and make it really obvious through a dramatic experience or worse yet we fear that he will speak to us through a tragic event. We don't ask because we are scared of how he will answer, and not only that but he may answer by telling us to do something we don't even like to do.

Jesus told us that the people that have the closest relationship with him, the people that are his mother, sisters and brothers are the people that do his will. That should be great incentive to be in the center of his will.

John MacArthur tells us in his book, "Found: God's Will," that God will make his will clear to his people if they are living for him.

Five things that you must be in order to know the will of God.

BE SAVED

Romans 8:7-8 For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

The crucial first step, without this you can never know how to please God, you must be saved. It is the most important thing that you need to know about God's will. In our own natural state that we were born in we can never please God and we will never really care about pleasing God therefore we won't know anything about his will or place any value on it.

God loves everybody in the world so much that he had a plan that would keep them from his wrath. He made all of us and wants to be involved in our life in a greater way than we can be without his Son. (John 3:16, Acts 17:26-28)

Jesus sheep know his voice and after he gathers them together he walks ahead of them so that they can know where they should go. (John 10:4)

BE SPIRIT FILLED

Ephesians 5:17-18 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit. 2 Peter 1:3 By His divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know Him.

It sounds harsh but Paul says that if you do not understand what God's will is then you are foolish. If you think about it it would be crazy to life your life without understanding what you were created for. God didn't create anything without purpose and if you decide that you don't care what that purpose is then your life will be a waste.

The spirit filled life: Living each moment as if you were in the presence of Jesus. With the same power as if Jesus was standing next to you. - John MacArthur

Being spirit filled and allowing him to be in charge is a basic of God’s will, it is the source of power and the good news is that you already have him in you. Isn't it crazy to ask God for what you already have? (Acts 1:8, Romans 8:9, 1 Corinthians 6:19)

BE SANCTIFIED

1 Thessalonians 4:3-7 God's will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. 4 Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor-- 5 not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and His ways. 6 Never harm or cheat a Christian brother in this matter by violating his wife, for the Lord avenges all such sins, as we have solemnly warned you before. 7 God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives. 8 Therefore, anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching but is rejecting God, who gives His Holy Spirit to you.

Paul gives us four principles:

✔  Sanctification - You shouldn't expect God to answer your prayers asking to know his will if you are living in sin.

✔  Control your body - Sexual sin is obvious but what about gluttony? What about your tongue?

✔  Subdue your passions - Christianity picks you up from the gutter it lifts you up so stay up! Don’t let sin drag you back down.

✔  Treat others fairly - Don’t harm anyone, don't cheat, and don’t use people sexually or in business or any other way.

BE SUBMISSIVE

1 Peter 2:12-15 Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when He judges the world. 13 For the Lord's sake, respect all human authority--whether the king as head of state, 14 or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right. 15 It is God's will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you.

God's will for all of us is to be salt and light and as such we should be the best citizens of our community and the best employees where we work. You know that a follower of Jesus is usually in the spotlight and the world is looking for an opportunity to point out our flaws.

BE SUFFERING

Romans 8:23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as His adopted children, including the new bodies He has promised us.

Living a Godly life will bring suffering, despite what Joel Osteen tells you, God isn't interested in making you comfortable and fulfilling all of your dreams. The Bible never shows God's people living a life of ease for very long.

If God's people would have refused to face trials and suffering then the gospel would have never gone beyond the Holy Land. One of the problems of evangelism today is that we are not bold enough to push through to the presentation of the gospel, we are okay with people knowing that we go to church but we don't go all the way in presenting the gospel because we don't want to offend anyone.

Be Yourself

Romans 12:1-2  And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice--the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

The point of John MacArthur's book is that if you are saved, spirit filled, sanctified, submissive and suffering then God’s will is going to be very clear to you. If all five of these are evident in your life then you can do anything that you want to do since the person that is really in control of your life and your desires is Jesus.

The Bible says that God will give you the desire of your heart but that isn't a blank check that any person that claims to be a Christian can cash. We like to ignore the fact that God gives generously to the people that delight in him. As Paul says in Romans it is the people that have become a living and holy sacrifice, the people that God has transformed, those are the people that are going to know God's good and pleasing and perfect will. (Psalm 37:4)

If you are the right you, then you can follow your desires and you will fulfill his will, you will be able to make the right choices without hesitation.

This blog is completely not for profit and as such I do not receive any compensation for a favorable review of John MacArthur's book.