The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)
Let any of our old man, whether of our old temper, our old way of judging, our old disposition, any of it come up at all, if we are children of God, we know quite well that at that point a barrier is set up and we cannot get past, we are held up in our spiritual life and we have to go back and have that thing cleared up. It is as real as any other thing in the universe to us. At that moment we stand still spiritually, and the flaming sword is across our path. There is no way for that here. Bring that here and you will be judged. You will meet the judgment of God. You will be broken. It is coming up against the fact that God finished with all that long ago and we have to accept God’s standpoint. When we have accepted it then the thing works out, it continually works out. We take that position, we accept the truth.
We cannot bring an actual end to the old creation ourselves, but we say in a positive way: "I reckon as God reckons." Well then we shall find as we go on that God, having put all that under death, death rests upon it and if ever it shows its head again, the sentence of death is met. If we begin to work for the Lord with our own natural strength we meet death and before long our natural strength will come under death. If we begin to use our natural judgment in the things of God we shall meet an arrest and before long we shall come to a deadlock, unable to get through. Anything which we bring of nature into the things of God will bring us up against – not some new issue, but the old issue – death which was made to rest upon the old creation. In so far as we move in the newness of Life, work by the Spirit of God, and walk after the Spirit, death is done away and we are in Life and we can go on and can get through, no matter how much there may be of handicap and weakness in nature, we can get through as we go on in the Spirit. "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus made me free from the law of sin and death." We are free!
~T. Austin-Sparks~
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BIBLE MEDITATION:
“I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession…” Daniel 9:4
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The greatest thing we can do for America is to pray for America. I am convinced if there were ever a need for prayer, this is the hour. It’s one thing to criticize that our children cannot pray in school. But I think it is unmitigated hypocrisy to carp and criticize about children not being able to pray in school unless we ourselves are prayer warriors, don’t you? We must teach our children to pray in the home. We are unvarnished hypocrites to criticize, yet not teach our children to pray—by both gentle instruction and by example. Our children are watching us and will model our behavior.
ACTION POINT:
Teach your children how to pray in the home. Take them beyond “Now I lay me down to sleep.” We rattle off our little prayers. But have you really set your face to pray?
“I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession…” Daniel 9:4
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:
The greatest thing we can do for America is to pray for America. I am convinced if there were ever a need for prayer, this is the hour. It’s one thing to criticize that our children cannot pray in school. But I think it is unmitigated hypocrisy to carp and criticize about children not being able to pray in school unless we ourselves are prayer warriors, don’t you? We must teach our children to pray in the home. We are unvarnished hypocrites to criticize, yet not teach our children to pray—by both gentle instruction and by example. Our children are watching us and will model our behavior.
ACTION POINT:
Teach your children how to pray in the home. Take them beyond “Now I lay me down to sleep.” We rattle off our little prayers. But have you really set your face to pray?
~Adrian Rogers~
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In wondrous contrast--and yet with consistent harmony!
(Frederick Marsh)
In the floral kingdom, the flowers have many hues. A number of different colored flowers in a bouquet will enhance the beauty of each other by their contrast.
Just so in the cross of Christ, the attributes of God are brought out in wondrous contrast--and yet with consistent harmony. There we see . . .
His name glorified,
His love manifested,
His majesty upheld,
His justice satisfied,
His truth vindicated,
His law magnified, and
His righteousness displayed in the putting away of our sins!
"Mercy and truth meet together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other!" Psalm 85:10
(Frederick Marsh)
In the floral kingdom, the flowers have many hues. A number of different colored flowers in a bouquet will enhance the beauty of each other by their contrast.
Just so in the cross of Christ, the attributes of God are brought out in wondrous contrast--and yet with consistent harmony. There we see . . .
His name glorified,
His love manifested,
His majesty upheld,
His justice satisfied,
His truth vindicated,
His law magnified, and
His righteousness displayed in the putting away of our sins!
"Mercy and truth meet together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other!" Psalm 85:10
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Leaving a Lasting Impact
On this Independence Day, consider the question, How do you use the gift of freedom? God gives all believers true liberty through His Son Jesus Christ. Do you squander that blessing or share it with others? The problem is, some people are so focused on their own needs and desires that they fail to impact even their closest neighbor.
Think about the people you see every week. Do you know how many of your neighbors are sick? Are there people in your church who struggle to make it from day to day? Do you know if any of your coworkers are going through hardships? Most likely, there are individuals all around you who could use assistance. But being self-focused limits our ability to notice those people, let alone reach out to them.
Jesus taught His disciples, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men” (Matt. 5:13). In order for salt to remain useful, it must maintain its purity and potency. Likewise, we must endeavor to lead holy, humble, and loving lives, focusingon the Savior’s will rather than our own.
God has prepared the good works that we are to walk in (Eph. 2:10). Our job is to choose to do so.
Whether or not we affect our world positively depends on the focus of our heart. Do you look inward to consider how you can do more to get ahead and add to your lot in life? Or do you look outward and think about ways that you can do more to serve others?
~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~
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Freedom from the dominion of sin!
(George Everard, "Up High!")
There is no more galling yoke to be found, than . . .
the thraldom of evil passions, tyrant lusts and sinful habits,
uncontrolled tempers which burst forth like a hurricane,
temptations which hurry a man onward toward the precipice of utter ruin,
the dark trinity of "the world, the flesh, and the devil"--
all drawing a man along the pathway that leads to eternal damnation! Here is a foe that is terrible indeed!
Yet in Christ, there is freedom from the dominion of sin, and from all the power of the enemy.
Satan is strong, for he is a roaring lion. But Christ is stronger, for He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Yes, He is the almighty Shepherd, who can guard the weakest of His flock from the treachery and deceit of the evil one.
Sin is strong, and it has conquered and destroyed its myriads in every age. But Christ is stronger, for He is our Joshua, and can put every enemy beneath our feet. If united to Christ by true faith, "sin shall not have dominion over you." Being no longer under the law, but under grace--Christ reigns in you by His Holy Spirit, and by the same Spirit can make you more than conqueror over every snare of the tempter.
Christian, always remember the secret of success in the sore conflict you have to wage. Let "the joy of the Lord" be "your strength." Apart from Christ, there is nothing but defeat. You may resolve to do better, you may strive against your besetting sin--but if it is in your own might, you will fail. But draw near to Christ, and keep Him in view continually. Hide deep in your heart His own word of promise, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Fly to Him as your stronghold, whenever danger is at hand. Make Him your shield, when the shafts of the wicked one are aimed for your destruction.
I often think of a lesson I learned one snowy day in Birmingham. A big bully was unmercifully snow-balling a smaller boy. But when the little fellow saw me coming, he ran behind me and kept me between himself and his enemy, until he was able to escape from him.
Ah, here is a lesson for me, thought I. Let me ever make Christ my shield. Let me ever put Him between me and my temptations; between me and my cares, and fears, and perils--and He will answer for them. No evil can overcome His power--and when I thus trust in Him, no sin or evil can overcome me.
Thus will you find strength for victory. You will be delivered from the sin which was once too strong for you. More and more the Spirit of Christ shall fashion you in His image and likeness. More and more shall the evil nature be mortified and kept under control, and Christ Himself make your heart His dwelling-place.
(George Everard, "Up High!")
There is no more galling yoke to be found, than . . .
the thraldom of evil passions, tyrant lusts and sinful habits,
uncontrolled tempers which burst forth like a hurricane,
temptations which hurry a man onward toward the precipice of utter ruin,
the dark trinity of "the world, the flesh, and the devil"--
all drawing a man along the pathway that leads to eternal damnation! Here is a foe that is terrible indeed!
Yet in Christ, there is freedom from the dominion of sin, and from all the power of the enemy.
Satan is strong, for he is a roaring lion. But Christ is stronger, for He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Yes, He is the almighty Shepherd, who can guard the weakest of His flock from the treachery and deceit of the evil one.
Sin is strong, and it has conquered and destroyed its myriads in every age. But Christ is stronger, for He is our Joshua, and can put every enemy beneath our feet. If united to Christ by true faith, "sin shall not have dominion over you." Being no longer under the law, but under grace--Christ reigns in you by His Holy Spirit, and by the same Spirit can make you more than conqueror over every snare of the tempter.
Christian, always remember the secret of success in the sore conflict you have to wage. Let "the joy of the Lord" be "your strength." Apart from Christ, there is nothing but defeat. You may resolve to do better, you may strive against your besetting sin--but if it is in your own might, you will fail. But draw near to Christ, and keep Him in view continually. Hide deep in your heart His own word of promise, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Fly to Him as your stronghold, whenever danger is at hand. Make Him your shield, when the shafts of the wicked one are aimed for your destruction.
I often think of a lesson I learned one snowy day in Birmingham. A big bully was unmercifully snow-balling a smaller boy. But when the little fellow saw me coming, he ran behind me and kept me between himself and his enemy, until he was able to escape from him.
Ah, here is a lesson for me, thought I. Let me ever make Christ my shield. Let me ever put Him between me and my temptations; between me and my cares, and fears, and perils--and He will answer for them. No evil can overcome His power--and when I thus trust in Him, no sin or evil can overcome me.
Thus will you find strength for victory. You will be delivered from the sin which was once too strong for you. More and more the Spirit of Christ shall fashion you in His image and likeness. More and more shall the evil nature be mortified and kept under control, and Christ Himself make your heart His dwelling-place.
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