shalom everyone, I hope all who read are blessed and encouraged...
There are many voices in this day and age, calling us away from the path, all are not in and of themselves bad, or in any way in opposition to our relationship with our Beloved Savior and King, but they serve to distract us from a growing and living relationship with our Creator.
In Genesis 6:5 we find this text:Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
How did it get to this point? yes many will rightfully say "because they refused to follow the father and did what they thought was right" this is true but any action is proceeded by a thought, the above text says the wickedness of man was great in the earth, is it like that now? in many ways yes, but not to the fullest extent that it is now headed to, we as believers know that everyday we battle the forces of evil, if we are not fighting then we are giving ground, this battle starts in our minds, our thought life is where we need to do battle, this is the area where the enemy, if successful will gain a foothold , you see the enemy wants the heart to turn from its source of life and strength and turn inward. The heart as mentioned in the bible is the center of our being, the heart is the place where salvation starts after all, the text in psalm 10:4 is an illustration of the root cause of all the mess in Genesis 6:5.
The good news is He has not only provided the way to life but wants to lead each one in it, the solution to the problem is contained in this text: Psa 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
we all know that the Father already knows our heart right? He knows our thoughts as well, however the key is willingly surrendering ourselves to Him, by inviting and entreating Him to search us, submit ourselves to His mercy and boundless love so we can be truly free, and in our hearts and minds to serve Him more fully, the bible as you know, has a great deal to say about the heart, our Savor spoke these words when faced with folks who choose to attempt to establish their own righteousness:Mat 12:35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
Doesn't the bible say the heart is wicked and who can know it? (jer. 17:9) how then can a man have good treasure in his heart? the answer of course is found here, Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
As we submit everyday. our Savior empowers each of us to not simply to overcome our propensity toward evil but He does something amazing and more effective, he gives us a new heart! we still must struggle against the habits and ways in our minds, this is why we all must trust Him by telling Him ALL our struggles and failures, this is where the real change occurs, we cannot very well put on the full armor of God (Eph. 6:13-18) if we have not surrendered all to Him otherwise, what we have inside us becomes the enemy.
Our beloved Savior has provided all we need to truly overcome and stand on His promises, all we need do, is truly and fully submit all we are to His loving care, however we must do this everyday, our part is so small, (simply come to Him and trust) His part is so much more, all the goodness of heaven was given for us, the greatest gift in the whole of creation was not withheld from us, lets embrace this gift with full assurance and trust in the One who gives it. blessings ......
There are many voices in this day and age, calling us away from the path, all are not in and of themselves bad, or in any way in opposition to our relationship with our Beloved Savior and King, but they serve to distract us from a growing and living relationship with our Creator.
In Genesis 6:5 we find this text:Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
How did it get to this point? yes many will rightfully say "because they refused to follow the father and did what they thought was right" this is true but any action is proceeded by a thought, the above text says the wickedness of man was great in the earth, is it like that now? in many ways yes, but not to the fullest extent that it is now headed to, we as believers know that everyday we battle the forces of evil, if we are not fighting then we are giving ground, this battle starts in our minds, our thought life is where we need to do battle, this is the area where the enemy, if successful will gain a foothold , you see the enemy wants the heart to turn from its source of life and strength and turn inward. The heart as mentioned in the bible is the center of our being, the heart is the place where salvation starts after all, the text in psalm 10:4 is an illustration of the root cause of all the mess in Genesis 6:5.
The good news is He has not only provided the way to life but wants to lead each one in it, the solution to the problem is contained in this text: Psa 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
we all know that the Father already knows our heart right? He knows our thoughts as well, however the key is willingly surrendering ourselves to Him, by inviting and entreating Him to search us, submit ourselves to His mercy and boundless love so we can be truly free, and in our hearts and minds to serve Him more fully, the bible as you know, has a great deal to say about the heart, our Savor spoke these words when faced with folks who choose to attempt to establish their own righteousness:Mat 12:35 A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.
Doesn't the bible say the heart is wicked and who can know it? (jer. 17:9) how then can a man have good treasure in his heart? the answer of course is found here, Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
As we submit everyday. our Savior empowers each of us to not simply to overcome our propensity toward evil but He does something amazing and more effective, he gives us a new heart! we still must struggle against the habits and ways in our minds, this is why we all must trust Him by telling Him ALL our struggles and failures, this is where the real change occurs, we cannot very well put on the full armor of God (Eph. 6:13-18) if we have not surrendered all to Him otherwise, what we have inside us becomes the enemy.
Our beloved Savior has provided all we need to truly overcome and stand on His promises, all we need do, is truly and fully submit all we are to His loving care, however we must do this everyday, our part is so small, (simply come to Him and trust) His part is so much more, all the goodness of heaven was given for us, the greatest gift in the whole of creation was not withheld from us, lets embrace this gift with full assurance and trust in the One who gives it. blessings ......
