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The Way we Come to God

Words of Faith Final

The Way we Come to God

Words of Faith 3-12-2021

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2021

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL

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Ephesians 4

[20] You, however, did not come to know Christ that way.   [21] Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.   [22] You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; [23] to be made new in the attitude of your minds;   [24] and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.   [25] Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.  

 

      There is a temptation for us once we are in the grace of the Lord to drift back into the life of the world.  It is easy.  We justify it in many ways.  We might say: "If I am disconnected too much from the world, then I will not relate."  "I have to be able to witness among those who are in the world." "I deserve some fun and recreation.  So why shouldn’t I do some of the worldly entertainments as long as I keep following Christ." "And, after all, I am under grace."

      Paul was very direct about this.  Do not live as the world lives.  Why?  His answer is interesting-- Because that is not the way that you came to know Christ.  That is not the way we came to know Him and that is not the way that we will continue to walk with Him.  No one comes to Jesus as a result of having done research in the world.  No one comes to an understanding of Jesus because they looked really hard in the worldly places.  Surely you heard of Him and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.

      The only place we find the Truth of Jesus is in Jesus.  No one can add to or subtract from that Truth.  The Holy Spirit points out to us that encountering the Truth of Jesus involves three movements of repentance, which is the continual work of God to change and renew our minds.

      1st - Putting off your Old Self.  The old self is being corrupted by its deceitful desires.  Do you remember when Lazarus was raised?  "The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, ‘Take off the grave clothes and let him go.’ John 11:44 (NIV) It is so very easy to slip back into our old clothing.  Our old self and our old way of life is comfortable.  And there is nothing quite so deceitful as our old self clothed in religious garb.  Jesus called the Pharisees and Teachers of the Law "White washed Tombs"– dead on the inside though painted up to look alive.

      2nd - Be made New in the Attitude of your minds.  The words here mean "be reformed and renovated" in the "spirit of your mind"– the disposition or attitude of your mind.  Allow God to give you a new outlook and attitude about things.  How we think becomes who we are.

      I love this quote by Chuck Swindoll-- "The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.  Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company ... a church ... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable.  The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude ... I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me, and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you ... we are in charge of our Attitudes."

     3rd - Put on the New Self.  We have a daily commission to put on the New Self in True righteousness and holiness.  We declare with each new day these truths:  I am a New Person in Christ Jesus– the old has passed away and the New has come.  I am a righteous person because of Jesus– there is nothing that stands between God and me.  I am a holy person in Christ Jesus– set apart for His use and mission.

     This is the way we came to Christ.  This is the way we will stay close to Christ.  This is the way we walk toward our future with Christ.

 

     Father God, help me today in the taking off of my OLD self.  Make me new in the attitude of my mind.  Put onto me the NEW self that You have designed for my life.  In Jesus’ Name.

 

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2010, 2021

Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)       

2820 Business Center Blvd.

Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200

Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com

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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2010 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.