Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: In and Out (04/30/09)
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TITLE: In And Out of Order | Previous Challenge Entry
By Doug Laird
05/06/09 -
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God, and the plan of God, is not put on hold because we are out of order, but I wonder how many times the service that God had for us to perform, had to be re-assigned because we were out of fellowship, and thereby out of order, at the time.
John 15:5 makes it clear that apart from God, we can do nothing in the spiritual realm, but many who identify themselves with the Christian Community doesn’t seem to understand, or care, what “nothing” means.
Nothing, in this verse means that there is nothing that we can do that either glorifies God or generates heavenly reward. True disciples do not serve God in order to be rewarded, but the production of divine good during the course of the post salvation spiritual life is what glorifies God.
The glorification of God is the reason that Man was created, and is what defines and give purpose and meaning to everyday life, here in the devil’s world.
Divine good, as opposed to human good, are deeds that are produced with the power of God the Holy Spirit, working through, born again, Spirit-filled believers. The satanic deception is that deeds of human good and divine good can appear to be one is the same.
As of the moment of salvation, all born again believers are then and forever Spirit-indwelled.
Salvation is permanent and is not contingent on our performance during the post salvation spiritual life.
The indwelling of the Spirit does not change, but being in fellowship, Spirit filled (controlled) is lost through the inevitable involvement with post-salvation sin.
Fellowship, and the filling (control) of God the Holy Spirit, necessary to produce divine good, is regained by the confessing of all known sin to God (1John 1: 9).
The amount of time that any one of us spends out of fellowship, and thereby out of order, can be as brief as the time it takes to confess the known sin, or for as long as the rest of one’s post salvation spiritual life if one refuses to do so.
A popular human tactic is to do overtime in another area of service to make up for our deficiencies in the one(s) that God want us to address.
The problem with that concept is that we are trying to please God without addressing the issue(s) that He has brought to our attention.
The truth is that we will go no further in our walk with God until we address the issue(s) that God has brought to our attention. We must not only acknowledge the issue, but apply God’s solution.
Once again, we must learn that we can do NOTHING apart from God.
Needless to say, believers who are involved in sins of lifestyle, or mental attitude sins, such as judging or refusing to forgive others, are virtually NEVER in fellowship with God.
If we are to remain in fellowship with God, after confessing a sin, it must then be forsaken (John 8:11). Otherwise we spend a lifetime in a revolving door of being in and out of fellowship.
During times out of fellowship, a born again believer can be “religious”, and produce humanitarian deeds, but cannot produce divine good.
God is not glorified by deeds performed with human power or ability.
Such deeds have a value and purpose here on earth, but have nothing to do with the glorification of God or spirituality. If a non-believer can do it, it is NOT divine good.
Isaiah 64:6 defines such “righteous acts” as filthy rags in the eyes of God. The righteous acts spoken of here would be acts that are offered and performed with human power and ability as substitutes for the divine good.
Satan would have us rationalize away the sin(s) that God the Holy Spirit brings to our consciousness, by blaming others or self justification based on the relatively worse behaviors of others. James 2: 10 put all of us in the same stinking and sinking boat.
How much of our post salvation spiritual life we spend out of order with God and the things of God is a choice that we make.
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