The
Question We All Seek; What is Christian Living
I have seen so many articles voicing
various opinions on Christian living. Each and every Christian is
seeking to live a life pleasing to God, at least we should be and so
it makes sense to be contemplative of the thoughts and actions that
become the very fabric of our lives. Thankfully we are not left out
in the cold on this one. The Holy Bible is an excellent place to
start and reading through it we have laid out before us example after
example of what is expected of us as Christians. If the examples
aren't clear enough in the Old Testament, It is laid out before us in
the New Testament. Thankfully, we are also blessed with His Holy
Spirit. If there is a question we have and we seek an answer to, we
have His Holy Spirit to help guide us. As long as we keep His word
in our hearts and truly seek His will we can be sure He will guide
us.
The first step in making a decision is
to remember not to lean unto our own understanding but to let Him
direct our paths. We must acknowledge His ways are not our ways and
our ways not His. Understanding this helps when we must discern
between the leadings of the Holy Spirit and the desire of our own
hearts. How does one discern between the desire of one's heart and
the leading of the Holy Spirit? The only way to do that is to spend
time in prayer and reading the Bible to know Him. If we cannot take
that time to truly digest our daily bread we cannot expect to receive
spiritual nourishment nor the discernment we need.
When we are told to pick up our cross
and follow Him. He meant for us to no longer walk in the flesh but
to walk in the spirit. To live in the world but to not
be of the world is what we are commanded. We must be
reminded that wide is the path but narrow is the gate.
Wow! Does that make a very clear and bold statement to anyone else?
It certainly does me. I understand that statement to be that many
people TRY to do the right thing or they think God won't care if abc
or God never said anything about xyz. But think about that.
That is the path that is wide – headed in the right direction but
missing the mark, or should I say gate, altogether.
We must live in the Spirit and apply
that to our daily lives to make sure that all of our thoughts, all of
our actions glorify and honor our God. Living in the spirit is being
the Light in an otherwise dark world. We are to be set apart but we
are also to love one another as we love ourselves – we are to be
light bearers of His Holy Spirit.
When moral controversies arise among
Christians and the answer seems elusive, if you can't find within the
Bible clear direction or resolve to your conundrum, if there is
confusion between the desire of your heart and the Holy Spirit (and
which is which), remember what it means to be a Christian to find
your answer.
To be a Christian is to follow Christ.
If we are to consider what is appropriate or inappropriate we can
always ask of ourselves, What Would Jesus Do? (WWJD). That's right I
just pulled the hackneyed WWJD we have all heard of, but how many of
us actually take an extra moment to really ask ourselves, WWJD? When
all else still leaves you without a clue, try it.
To come full circle, when it comes to
the controversies of Christian living in truth there is always an
answer and there is always only one. The differing opinions are a
result of different degrees of closeness in our relationship with God
or in some cases the degrees of separation between some and God.
Various opinions on Christian living have little to do with there
being multiple answers, because there are not, but has more to do
with how tied one is to the Holy Spirit and how tied they are to the
Flesh. Always remember two things; the path is wide but the gate is
narrow and when making those decisions that will affect your walk
with our Lord and Savior, aim for the narrow gate and we cannot serve
two masters.
- Proverbs 3:5-6“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”
- Isaiah 55:8“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD”
- Matthew 16:24“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”
- Romans 8:9“You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.”
- Romans 12:2“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.
- Matthew 7:13-14“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
- John 15:4“Remain in me, and I will remain in you...”
- John 14:15-17“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever – the Spirit of truth.”
- 2 Corinthians 4:6“For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
- 2 Corinthians 6:14“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?”
- Matthew 5:14-16“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
- Matthew 5:19“...love your neighbor as yourself.”
- Matthew 6:24“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:21“You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord's table and the table of demons.”
Scriptures
Referenced and Suggested Reading:
* A
Prayer for Today *
Lord, thank
you for your abounding love and thank you for your grace. Thank you
Lord for the gift you have given us of the Holy Spirit.
Life is full
of choices, and decisions must always be made. We pray Lord that you
will continue to guide us and lead us so that we do not stumble upon
the path. Please continue to lead us as we follow you Lord and
please forgive us if we should stumble. Please help us to always do
what is right, because we know it to be right. Lord, do not let our
hearts be hardened by the world. We ask that you use the Holy Spirit
to convict us within our hearts if we begin to falter, are doing
wrong, or are being lead astray. Keep us close and be the lamp unto
our feet and light our paths. Please Lord, as you lead us continue
to purify us, to mold us, and to make us the Christians that you
would have us be so that we may serve and glorify you Lord.
In Jesus' Name
Amen.
***
A
few of the controversial topics I have heard in regard to Christian
living are the following;
Books
we read
Movies
we watch
Television
God's
marriage view and the new world view
Divorce
The
clothes we wear and swimsuits
Religion
being allowed in school
There
are many more but these are a few of the ones that I have seen and
heard being tossed around by Christians trying to find a Biblically
ethical answer to the problems that the world in it's modern form
poses. Hopefully each Christian faced with any moral, ethical or
controversial dilemma, question or problem will seek God's will and
direction for answers to these and other issues Christians face.
If
any one has anything to add on the topic of Christian living ….. as
always, I'm here :)
***
May
God Bless you and be with you one and all.
