Fight the good fight of faith

[Cee]

How about you comment on the clarity of the Scripture I posted?

Here is what JP and easy believism teaches... source....Joseph Prince exposed, false teachings of Joseph Prince

Phrases like "just trust in the finished work of Christ" and "resting in Christ" and "Christianity is effortless" does not even hint of fighting a good fight, or warfare, or resisting temptation, or laboring, or enduring till the end. I saw an article the other day where JP does not even believe one can even bring their thoughts into the obedience of Christ, or get lustful thoughts under control. That's not of faith in what the power of God in Christ can do in a born again believer.

So they don't fight it, they just go with it and rest, and make excuses for sin.

 

[Grace777x70]

John 1:12 the Greek word is "authority". God gave them authority ( not power ) to those that believe on His name to become children of God. I believe that God's "authority" worked!

Fight the good fight of faith that we are now the children of God by His authority - not by our own D.I.Y works of self-righteousness/holiness. Jesus made us righteous and holy. 1 Cor 1:30

The son does remain forever in the house.


John 8:35-36 (NASB)
[SUP]35 [/SUP] "The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever.

[SUP]36 [/SUP] "So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Once we are in Christ - we become sons/daughters of God.

Galatians 3:26 (NASB)
[SUP]26 [/SUP] For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 4:6-7 (NASB)
[SUP]6 [/SUP] Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"

[SUP]7 [/SUP] Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.


1 John 3:1-2 (KJV)
[SUP]1 [/SUP] Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.

[SUP]2 [/SUP] Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

I encourage us to start to believe in the gospel of the grace of Christ. It is "good news".

If we see ourselves as children of God we will walk as children of our Father and our true nature in our new creation will transform our minds to reflect that nature outwardly in our behavior powered by the Spirit of God inside of us.

 

[Grandpa]

Poor kid.

Still thinks his works are saving him.

So what does he say when the evidence piles against him? Didn't I fight the lusts of the flesh and the ways of the world? Sure you did. But did you win? Each time, every time? No, you can't. The bible says if you say that you did, the truth is not in you. And then you just lied before the court.

So you are back, again. Just like us. Seeking mercy before the court.

Matthew 9:13 [FONT=&quot]But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.[/FONT]

 

[miknik5]

Some people may not understand the great spiritual battle that is, and has been ongoing for thousands of years now. But for each new individual believer and born again Christian there is a personal battle that is to be waged and won, if one is willing to fight the good fight of faith.


This battle between the mind of flesh and Spirit of God is the enmity that was shown in the very beginning, but this personal battle ground for each new believer takes place in the heart and mind after first being illuminated by the Spirit of God. It is written Hebrews 10:32 “But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;”


This battle against the saints by the Devil and his spirit is shown many times in scripture, and many of the saints were also prophesied to be overcome. Revelation 13:7 “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” But some also would hold fast and endure unto the end, and be overcomers by the power given to them by God, and by the faith of Jesus Christ.


This spiritual battle and war that wars against the soul is mentioned several times in scripture.


Ephesians 6:12 “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.


Romans 7:23 “But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”


James 4:1 “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?”


1 Peter 2:11 “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;


2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:[SUP]4 [/SUP](For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds)[SUP] 5 [/SUP]Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;”


When a person is born again of God’s Spirit we are empowered by God to be able to resist sin, resist the Devil, and resist the wicked ways of the world, and even to bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. But this war and battle takes some effort on each believer’s part, as personal sacrifices need be made to overcome all these things.

Remember….

1 Corinthians 10:13 “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”

1 Johm 5 is TRUTH
But so also is this expounding of what we must (do) to overcome

The problem is in the word "do"
Because it isn't an active "doing" as much as it is a passive "doing"

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

Notice Jesus did not say everyone had already overcome (like just resting and doing nothing) but enduring and keeping His works until the end.

Revelation 2:7 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Revelation 2:17 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”


Revelation 2:26 “And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:”


Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”

Matthew 10:22
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.


Matthew 24:13
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Mark 13:13
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

James 1:12
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

 

[miknik5]

In revelation Christ forewarns HIS BODY to overcome because of what is coming

You see, it is very easy to have faith when all things are peaceful and easy. Another thing to remain faithful to HIM when things are not peaceful and in fact are very very difficult

That is when "fighting" the good fight of faith will be made manifest

If we have remained faithful to HIM, have not gone out from HIM, but have held to THE TESTIMONY of JESUS in word and in action

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

Poor kid.
Still thinks his works are saving him.

Straw man attempt.....and a fail!

 

[Cee]

Okay so let's address this "battle in the mind"...

This is the Scripture you are probably thinking about:

Romans 8:6For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Paul says the mind set on the flesh is "hostile" or enmity with God. And in fact Paul says IT CAN NOT submit to the will of God. So there goes that battle. It can't actually win.

But there's good news because the NEXT verse in this passage gives us this promise:

9You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

You're not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. And if you're in the flesh still, you don't belong to Christ.

Why is this? Because the body is dead because of sin.

10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

The "battle" we fight is EVERY logical argument, speculation, and lofty idea that exalts itself above the KNOWLEDGE of Christ in you. And this our promised rest. Christ is our Sabbath rest.

Matt 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

C.

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

not by our own D.I.Y works of self-righteousness

There is another swing and a miss!

 

[Cee]

1 John 4:4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

1 John 2:I3 am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.

1 John 5:4 because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.

These 3 Scriptures says we have overcome through our faith in Christ.

Revelation is written to explain that we do need to overcome, but we overcome because of our faith in Him. Not because of our works. Those that don't overcome, He never knew.

Notice Jesus did not say everyone had already overcome (like just resting and doing nothing) but enduring and keeping His works until the end.

Revelation 2:7 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Revelation 2:17 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”


Revelation 2:26 “And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:”


Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”

Matthew 10:22
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.


Matthew 24:13
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Mark 13:13
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

James 1:12
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

 

[miknik5]

Notice Jesus did not say everyone had already overcome (like just resting and doing nothing) but enduring and keeping His works until the end.

Revelation 2:7 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

Revelation 2:17 “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.”


Revelation 2:26 “And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:”


Revelation 3:21 “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.”

Matthew 10:22
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.


Matthew 24:13
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Mark 13:13
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

James 1:12
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

In the time of evil we are going to have to very much "rest" in the sense that it won't be by power or by might but by HIS SPIRIT

And in the time of evil many will make manifest by what they do whether they truly knew of whose SPIRIT they claimed themselves to be of

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

We don't do to become His child.
We do because we are His child.

We don't do things to BE saved.
We do things because we ARE saved.

Never suggested as much.

Again, another straw man attempt to misrepresent my posts, nice try but a fail.

 

[miknik5]

Isaiah 40:29

29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:

31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

The key is to wait and to not go out by our own power or might

For when we are "weak" than we are STRONG

Not by power or by might Sayeth the LORD but by MY SPIRIT

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

1 John 4:4 Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

1 John 2:I3 am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.

1 John 5:4 because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.

These 3 Scriptures says we have overcome through our faith in Christ.

Revelation is written to explain that we do need to overcome, but we overcome because of our faith in Him. Not because of our works. Those that don't overcome, He never knew.

Some will in fact overcome by Christ working in them yes, but if you read my OP many of the saints were to be overcome and fall away from the faith. So no, not all overcame, but some fell away from the faith and were overcome.

And again, I did not say it was "our own works" but the works of God working in us to do His will.

Ephesians 2:10
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.


2 Timothy 1:9
Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

 

[Grace777x70]

Here is a great resource concerning the letters to the churches as it talks about "overcoming" in light of the finished work of Christ.

Just who is Jesus talking about in when He talks about "overcoming"?

Here are some grace based teachings on the churches in Revelation. We must always look at all obscure scripture through the very clear scriptures.

I wonder if there were unbelievers in the churches just like there are today and have been throughout eternity? Jesus did say that the tares and the wheat would be together.

Is it possible that Jesus was addressing this group of people that have not really received Christ yet and He was telling them to overcome by believing in Him?

The "soiling of the garments" is answered in Incomplete Deeds: The Zombie Church of Sardis (Rev 3:1-6)"

I like to use this site sometimes as it answers the tough contradictory scriptures in light of the finished work of Christ which is very clearly outlined in scriptures. It also has at the bottom of the article a place where people have asked questions. Sometimes I learn a lot from that area too.

There are a number of articles about the people in Revelation 2 and 3..:

Strike Her Children Dead (Revelation 2:23) ( Jezebel one )

https://escapetoreality.org/2015/06/...velation-2v23/


This one is all about the Laodicean church.

https://escapetoreality.org/category/laodicean-church/

This one is about " Incomplete Deeds: The Zombie Church of Sardis (Rev 3:1-6)"

https://escapetoreality.org/2010/04/...rdis-rev-31-6/

Here is one about." Forsaking Your First Love: What Was the Ephesians’ Problem? (Rev 2:1-7)"

https://escapetoreality.org/2010/04/...blem-rev-21-7/

Here is one about " Holding Fast in Thyatira: The Seductress versus the Savior (Rev 2:18-29)

https://escapetoreality.org/2010/04/...or-rev-218-29/

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

Okay so let's address this "battle in the mind"...

This is the Scripture you are probably thinking about:

Romans 8:6For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Paul says the mind set on the flesh is "hostile" or enmity with God. And in fact Paul says IT CAN NOT submit to the will of God. So there goes that battle. It can't actually win.

But there's good news because the NEXT verse in this passage gives us this promise:

9You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

You're not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. And if you're in the flesh still, you don't belong to Christ.

Why is this? Because the body is dead because of sin.

10But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

The "battle" we fight is EVERY logical argument, speculation, and lofty idea that exalts itself above the KNOWLEDGE of Christ in you. And this our promised rest. Christ is our Sabbath rest.

Matt 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

C.

That's why we have to put to death the deeds of the flesh and be renewed in the spirit of our mind. But putting to death sin in your members is also us removing sin in our lives. Jesus showed this here in the parable of the body and sin being like members of the body, just like Paul spoke of. Their worm Jesus speaks of here is their sin.

Mark 9:43-48

[SUP]43 [/SUP]And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:

[SUP]44 [/SUP]Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
[SUP]45 [/SUP]And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:

[SUP]46 [/SUP]Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
[SUP]47 [/SUP]And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:

[SUP]48 [/SUP]Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."

So Jesus is showing the importance of removing and putting to death sin that is working in our members (figuratively speaking) or putting to death the works of the flesh= sin.

I have to leave for awhile, but I'll be back later, Lord willing of course.

 

[InSpiritInTruth]

How about you comment on the clarity of the Scripture I posted?

Look at post #25

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

God's prescribed order of victory for the born again Believer is the "Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:2)." Which simply means to have faith in Christ and his Finished Work, i.e., The Cross, i.e., The Blood of Jesus. By doing so this gives the Holy Spirit the legal means to help the Believer in every capacity of life. This gives the Believer guaranteed victory over sin, the world, the flesh, and the Devil.

This is called fighting the good fight of faith and the only fight a Believer should fight. The Believer must renew their minds and labor to rest in this Finished Work daily.

 

[FreeNChrist]

Yep that's it, fight the good fight OF FAITH.

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

God's prescribed order of victory for the born again Believer is the "Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:2)." Which simply means to have faith in Christ and his Finished Work, i.e., The Cross, i.e., The Blood of Jesus. By doing so this gives the Holy Spirit the legal means to help the Believer in every capacity of life. This gives the Believer guaranteed victory over sin, the world, the flesh, and the Devil.

This is called fighting the good fight of faith and the only fight a Believer should fight. The Believer must renew their minds and labor to rest in this Finished Work daily.

Reason deals with facts, faith deals with truth. You must consider only one thing, the Word of God (Luke 10:38-42 NKJV). Root yourself in faith and only trust the Word of God! When a Believer faith is maintained exclusively in Christ and the Cross, faith takes truth and superimposes it over fact.

A seed of humility yields a harvest of Honor! "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time." 1 Peter 5:6