You pick up from the point of your failure – and keep on
going with God.
No – it’s not much different than getting a nail in a tire
on your car. Do you start all over with a new tire when
the tire becomes flat? No. You merely mend the
puncture and continue on your journey. It’s the same
with God. You ask for forgiveness and continue on your
walk with Him.
Love has no limits to its expression. Your consecration
to God was a choice of love. A new level of relationship
is always possible. The adventure of growth is to find
ways to let God be Lord – in your work – your
relationships – your family – your thoughts . . . . .
Here’s an example of what you can say to God – and you
can put it in your own words:
“Loving Father, I’m glad to be Your child. Thank you for
this new life – for the NEW ME. I’ve been struggling
over what to do with this new person I am. You see,
Father, there’s still a strong tendency in me to take the
steering wheel of my life into my own hands and try to
take control. BUT I DON’T DO VERY WELL. I see now
that I’ve only two choices – either I’m going to try to be
Lord in my life – or I’m going to surrender this new life
to You and let You be Lord. Well, I’ve made up my
mind. I want You on the throne of my life. So here I am
– take over the Lordship.
“Drops of grief can ne’er repay
The debt of love I owe.
Here Lord, I give myself away;
Tis all that I can do.”
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It has been a vital dimension of God’s plan for you
forever. Now – perhaps for the first time – you are
hearing – REALLY HEARING and understanding.
God wants you to give Him your life – the new one. The
life He’s remade. He made you this new person – He
gave you this new life. Now, what will you do with it?
(Romans 12:1-2) You can decide o confidently hand
yourself over to Him and have Him control and direct
this new life wisely and lovingly.
This is what you’ve wanted – you may not have known
how – but you wanted to. You didn’t know when you
would make God your Lord – but lovingly, God is hoping
IT’S NOW!
EXPLAIN ENTIRE
SANCTIFICATION
TO ME . . . . . .
So I can
Understand it
he term “born again” gets tossed around a lot today sometimes carelessly. But it’s a good term – and
Biblical. It describes what has happened to you as a
Christian.
You see – you were dead when you were away from
God (Romans 6:23), You were made alive when you
became a Christian (Romans 6:11), Then you were born
again – IT WAS WONDERFUL!
I know how you felt . . .
Your heart prayed, “I’ll be Yours – ALL YOURS. I’m
through running my life my may.” And you meant it. It
was genuine. You were sincere.
But as you’ve walked with Christ, you’ve become aware
that you’re still trying to rule a lot of your life. . . .some
of the time or much of the time. You may think, “Oh,
no. I thought I had gotten this taken care of when I
prayed.” There is disappointment and confusion. You
begin to question, “What have I done wrong? Was my
experience real? Am I playing a role . . . being a
hypocrite?
WHAT’S WRONG?
Well, it’s the old problem of Adam and Eve in the
Garden – WHO WILL BE LORD? You recall the account.
Man and woman defied God’s directive. They chose to
oppose Him. They thought they knew best. God could
not be God. The humans chose to be lords. The
temptation to take the lordship away from God
continues.
It is not likely, because we must choose to make God
Lord. The moment can usually be recognized. There
may very well be many things leading you to that point
of decision. So much so that it appears gradual. But
sometime, somewhere – God is inaugurated. HE
BECOMES PRESIDENT.
The Bible speaks of it in terms of death and freedom. A
person may be sick for a period of months, but dies in
an instant. So you are dead to sin – in a moment. And
that’s what “Self-Surrender to God” and “Filled by the
Spirit” is! A prisoner may wait for legal and technical
matters to be negotiated. Then freedom comes – at a
specific time – when the gates swing open.
In surrender – or we may call it consecration – you make
Him Lord. It is a matter of yielding to Him. Another way
of saying it could be – “To give Him authority - authority
to direct your life.” (Romans 12:1-2)
Self is denied Lordship – however – self isn’t dead. He
needs you to be “self” – a person. Self will isn’t
destroyed. If it were, you couldn’t choose. Your love of
God would be meaningless. What happens is – GOD IS
ENTHRONED. You allow Him to be boss – freely,
joyfully, you make Him God – fully God in your life.
(Romans 12:1-2)
God is not interested in things . . . but He does want
you. He wants your LOYALTY, ALLEGIANCE, OBEDIENCE
and LOVE. YOU are what He wants. Of course – along
with you comes your interest, possessions,
relationships, etc. Because He wants you – ALL OF YOU
– THEY ARE PART OF WHAT YOU GIVE Him. That way
you don’t have to choose repeatedly between Him or
them – they become His – at your request. With your
permission, you fully give them to Him. There is a
moment of radical surrender and the Holy Spirit’s
infilling. It is important to know that we do not equate
our consecration/self-surrender with sanctification. We
surrender/consecrate – but only God sanctifies
(cleanses, fills, empowers).
No, because God does not remove your freedom – your
ability to choose. Naturally, you want to avoid the
entanglements of sin – and you can. Because God is
Lord of your life, you choose to make His way your way.
Sin is simply not an ongoing part of your life. John gives
us God’s plan and blue print for His children. “My dear
children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But
if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the
Father in our defense . . Jesus Christ . . “ (1 John 2:1) In
time, you’ll hear yourself saying to Him, “I LOVE YOU
MORE THAN I EVER HAVE . . . “ It will be true – you’ll be
growing as a Christian – as a person.
God is the One who invites you into his relationship. He
asks you to give yourself to Him. He does not invite you
to failure – He invites you to success. Because He
invites you, He also empowers you. His Holy Spirit will
live in you. Since you will have given Him LORDSHIP –
CONTROL – SOVEREIGNTY – He is free to keep you as
His. Of course, He is FAITHFUL and RELIABLE in doing
this. YOU CAN COUNT ON HIM.
Yes, you would – but that’s how God works to show His
genuine love and concern for you. He doesn’t want you
to be a “drop out.” He goes to great lengths to keep you
as His special one.
You can expect an inward assurance – not just a feeling
or emotion – but an IMPRESSION – an INNER CERTAINTY
– KNOWLEDGE. It is God’s Holy Spirit saying, “Things are
right. It is as it should be.” You’ll respond, “That is the
way I want it.” We speak of it as God’s Spirit witnessing
with your spirit. Both say the same thing.
There is a definite cleansing by the Holy Spirit of your
heart from self-centeredness. The Holy Spirit fills the
hearts and expels all else. This is called ENTIRE
SANCTIFICATION. You’ll find yourself supervising your
own behavior, thoughts and conversations.
Your
highest pleasure will be to PLEASE HIM, Your Lord.
While it may not be easy, you’ll discipline your
tendencies to waywardness. It will bring you lasting
peace and joy. You’ll develop the quality of being
consistent and reliable – and other positive aspects will
become a part of you.
Oh, yes. Jesus Himself was thrust into situations where
He had to decide:
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Am I going to be Lord . . . or is God?
Will my physical needs and drives be Lord or will
God’s?
Will my ambitions – desires for fulfillment – be
satisfied with or without the Lordship of
God?