"Shazaaaam!" moment. I have got to stop the 24/7 news cycle of Satan and his minions, who are ever accusing me to my face. They have it right just enough of the time (99.9% of the time the lies are fantastical and yet brilliantly manipulative...my enemy has watched me for a very long time) to keep me face down in the dirt of condemnation. I am a sinner. What a newsflash! Only thing is, I get the distinct impression that God wants me to identify with what the Bible calls the born-again believer in Christ, thanks to his sacrifice on the cross, and that is a S.A.I.N.T. A saint is an overcomer. A saint is washed in the holiness that is showered on us by God's grace via the cross. A saint is forgiven. A saint has an audience with the Almighty God. A saint is part of an army of believers who have the favor of God. Paul had this encouragement for the believers at Ephesus: "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with ALL THE SAINTS what is the width and length and depth and height-to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God." (Ephesians 3:14-19, NKJV)
I must first accept the love of God (not condemnation) before I can be a conduit of His love to others. Then I will be energized to serve Him in these last days. I need the awe-inspiring power of the Holy Spirit to stand up to the spiritual battles I will face daily. I need the discernment of the Holy Spirit to know the truth about my situation, and what action to take every single day. We are funneling down to the end, I truly believe. While things will heat up, the Christian who sees him or herself as an overcoming, blood-bought saint clothed in the favor of God will be victorious. We need to keep our ears peeled for the voice of God, and our hearts consecrated to Him for His use and His alone.
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation-as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the scriptures. You, therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." 2 Peter 3:10-18, (NKJV).
I must first accept the love of God (not condemnation) before I can be a conduit of His love to others. Then I will be energized to serve Him in these last days. I need the awe-inspiring power of the Holy Spirit to stand up to the spiritual battles I will face daily. I need the discernment of the Holy Spirit to know the truth about my situation, and what action to take every single day. We are funneling down to the end, I truly believe. While things will heat up, the Christian who sees him or herself as an overcoming, blood-bought saint clothed in the favor of God will be victorious. We need to keep our ears peeled for the voice of God, and our hearts consecrated to Him for His use and His alone.
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation-as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the scriptures. You, therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." 2 Peter 3:10-18, (NKJV).
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