Shalam, brothers and sisters,
May God bless you and his light shine upon you, on this his glorious Sabbath day. Its’ been awhile since we spoke, yet I have kept you all in my prayers, hoping for that day when the Father, by the spirit of our Lord Jesus, would gather all his elect in one. Yet, in things spiritual time is but a moment; for God sees both the beginning and the end of things all at once. Therefore, though it has been awhile since my last entry, yet it seems as yesterday in this spiritual matter.
Today, God has put it upon my heart to share with you some thoughts on Overcoming in order to reach the other side. We all face struggles, trials, and hardship in this natural life. It is common to all men- if there was no striving, no conflict, and no change, then life would stop.
For example, as a baby develops in the womb it changes. The arms and legs grow, the heart and lungs get stronger, the mind and nervous system develops and at the appointed time the mother undergoes labor pains to bring forth that child. It’s all a process, a changing of the seasons and times; if it stops then life stops. Oh yes, ask any mother, there is pain, yet at the end of the pain there is joy. This is a good illustration of Overcoming because in life we will have to undergo change and painful ones at times, in order to reach our destination.
Brothers and sisters, I’m here to let you know, if you didn’t already know, that the walk with Jesus is a road that many profess to be on, but in the end only a few truly abide. Why? Because it is not easy, it’s hard, it’s messy, it’s coming face to face with your weakness, fears, doubts, and a mountain that seems to be impossible to pass over. Then in the mist of this you come to the realization that only you can pass over these obstacles- I can’t do it for you, your pastor can’t do it for you, your teachers can’t do it for you, your mom and dad, or family members can’t do it for you; YOU will have to conquer this mountain and God is asking you to believe you can do it, knowing that he is right by your side, even though you can’t see Him. Jesus calls this “Faith” and by it you shall live.
So, let us build together that we may learn how to Overcome and reach the other side through our Faith.
A) First, to Overcome you must abide in God and God in you.
The essence of these verses is to stay in God and God in you. One does this by abiding in the word of God, which means obedience to his commandments, instructions, and teachings. This word and the commandments of God are embodied in the person of Jesus Christ-hence he is called the Word of God in the gospel of John. In this word we should live and stay or abide because from it comes true strength and life. These verses go on further to explain that the product of this action, of staying in God, is like the fruit of a tree once it begins to bear. Yet, for a tree to live and bear fruit it needs to be rooted in the earth. Our roots, the roots of man, are the commandments of God. They ground our souls in that which is perfect, sure, wise, right, pure, enlightening, clean, enduring, true, and altogether righteous( Psalm 19:7-9). Christ states that by them, his commandments, we shall live and bear much fruit, but apart from them we die and become barren and unfruitful.
To illustrate, I once saw after a great storm a tree that seemed strong, towering high into the sky, but its roots were rotted and weak, and when the strong winds blew fiercely on that tree it crashed to the ground. Almost destroying my car parked in the drive way. After the storm my neighbors came by and sawed it in pieces and carried it off to be used as firewood. So, also is the fate of those that trust in their own selves, being a law unto themselves and abide neither in God nor taking heed to his commandments. They have no root or anchor to stand against the storms of life.
B) Abiding in God opens the Spiritual world unto you and provides one with a mighty shade of protection against the troubles of life that comes in their fullness like the heat of the sun that burns at day. Therefore, by staying in God you will Overcome.
Those of how Abide or dwell in God-making him their habitation and the center of their lives, truly live in a Secrete place with him. The secrecy of this state is expressed by the apostle Paul as he describe the difference between those who abide with God and those who don’t through the description of the Natural man vs. the spiritual man. Paul stated, the natural man can not receive the things of the spirit of God-his word, his commandments, or his son Jesus the Christ. To him these things are foolishness. He doesn’t even have knowledge of them, because he is spiritually discerned, which is the state of being separated from God. But he who abides with God or dwell with him has the mind of Christ and is able to judge all things through the spirit and not of his own human mind. He knows the things that are freely given to him by God because God’s Holy Spirit dwells in him (1 Corn. -16). So, then the spiritual world is hidden from the natural man, but its' secret is revealed to the spiritual man by God.
Now, to abide with God is the state to be desired, but how do you do this? Read 1John 3:24-“And he that keepth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.” It is by obedience to God’s holy commandments and his Holy Spirit that we will dwell with God and God with us.
David, in this Psalm, speaks further of the blessed sure condition of these spiritual men and women stating they “shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” These who love and obey God shall stand steadfast and unmovable in any and all situations by his Awesome Power being protected by his majesty; for their faith is in God Almighty.
C) Fear God only and heed his Warning to live victoriously and reach your destination.
V.11- the Lord is speaking to his chosen and elect ones as a warning with a strong hand. This strong hand represents the power and terrible wrath of God against his enemies. Who are the enemies of God? Those who do evil are the enemies of God. Read Proverbs -19 to learn what God hates and finds abominable in man. Furthermore, God makes it plain speaking through David in Psalm 101: 6-8 who shall dwell with him and the judgment of the wicked- “V.6- Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. V.7- He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight. V.8- I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the City of the Lord.”
Isaiah goes on to state that God is instructing or warning us not to walk in the way of this people, in the way of the wicked. This is because of the fore mentioned judgment listed in the above scripture and many more scriptures throughout the Bible. For example, in Matthew 7:24-27 Christ warns us not to take his words lightly, but apply them so you might withstand the storms and evils of life and be victorious in the end standing on The Rock. John the Baptist in Luke 3:7-9 speaks of the wrath to come and advise the people to bring forth fruit worthy of repentance, less like an unfruitful tree they be cut down and cast into the fire. So, here too in Isaiah God cries out mightily to his people to avoid the wrong paths.
V.12- God goes on to inform us not to make or follow any allegiance after the pattern of this people- the wicked. Their sciences, philosophies, religions, education, and who they esteem as worthy, honorable, and good to follow. These all should be anathema to those following God in spirit and truth. Also, God counsels us not to fear what they fear, nor be afraid. Again, he encourages us to standout as the people of God. Ephesians 5:9-11 follows this same theme and instructs the faithful to “walk in all goodness and righteousness and truth. Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” And we, the Saints of God, are fearless and bold as lions in walking the good path, the path of righteousness, because God has given us a promise and a hope of new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwells righteousness( 2 Peter 3:13).
v.13-For this reason and the awesome power and glory of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit we sanctify the Lord of host himself. We hold God as our power and center of the entire universe from which all things generate and have their being and nothing can substitute for him or be lifted up to him in comparison. He only is Holy and Good-sacred. For this he should be your only fear and your only dread; no man, nation, or any trouble should move you from abiding in him.
D) The reward of Overcoming by abiding in him: the ultimate destination.
God’s promise of a new heaven and a new earth are explained in an even more spiritual manner as the apostle John describes the heavenly vision of the final reward of the saints. Here he explains the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from heaven as one of God’s marvelous creations and as a bride in her glory prepared for her husband. This holy city and bride is none other than the church of Christ
Conclusion:
In life we will face many struggles and hardships, yet the Bible says it is in the hard times that our integrity is tested and what manner of person we truly are shows forth. We mustn’t give up the fight. Struggle and hardships are apart of life. The sooner we accept this we will be able to grow, but not to full maturity till we acknowledge that it is God who test our faith in order to refine and perfect us( read 1 Peter 1:3-7). James the Lords’ brother said it best, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing (James 1:2-4).”
Brothers and sisters we have a God who has said, and it is impossible for God to lie, “I WILL NEVER LEAVE THEE, NOR FORSAKE THEE.” With such sure assurance that God is with us we can face whatever obstacles stand in our way and follow in the footsteps of the faithful who went before us and Overcame and reached the other side unto everlasting joy. Remember the words of our beloved brother Paul as he was preparing to depart from this world, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing (2 Tim 4:7-8). Finally, my brethren, remember that whatsoever things were written in time past were written so that we may learn from those recorded experiences, to the intent that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have HOPE (Romans 15:4).
Your brother and servant in the Lord Jesus,
God bless you and keep you till we meet again…
Zarach
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