What do we, or can we, hear from God? How does it work?
Because we are human, listening to God has similar qualities to listening to
fellow humans. When we listen for God, we do so with “baggage” – our
understanding of Him, our attitude toward Him, and our prior relationship to
Him.
Ever talked to someone and that person didn’t seem to hear you? It’s the same when we talk to
God. We develop listening skills as we develop our prayer life. We learn how to
better understand Him as we delve more into His Word. We have a fuller
understanding of what He is all about as we consciously change our attitudes
about Him.
Our humanity blocks us from our understanding of, and
hearing from, God. It’s time to break
down some of those barriers!
We all have a history with God. He knew us when we were
being formed.
Our sin nature keeps us apart from God until we’ve accepted
the free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Have you accepted that free gift of salvation? If you have
not accepted Christ as Savior, please speak to a pastor or email me. Let’s talk
about breaking down that first barrier to hearing God!
If you have accepted Christ, it’s time to break down barriers
and begin a two way relationship with God. We need to identify with Christ.
I have been crucified with Christ.
It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live
in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself
for me. Gal
2:20 (ESV)
He died for me and His flesh was nailed to a cross – my fleshly life died and my sins
were nailed to the cross.
We know that our old self was
crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing,
so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For one who has died has been set free from sin. Romans
6:6-7 (ESV)
He was buried and raised from the dead – I was buried and raised to a new
life in Him.
How can we who died to sin still
live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us
who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into
death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of
the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Romans 6:2-4 (ESV)
Sin’s power over me is broken –
I am free to walk in His Spirit and become who God wants me to be.
But now that you have been set free
from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to
sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in
Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:22-23 (ESV)
We need to live as Christ wants us to. He promises us
protection, help, and peace. He does not promise us “health and wealth”
as some television preachers promise. He tells us that we will have difficulty
in life, but He gives us a wonderful promise:
Abide in me, and
I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the
vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he
it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me
you can do nothing. John
15:4-5 (ESV)
How do we abide in Christ? By reading the Word (listening)
and praying (talking) with Him.
Jesus tells us we will bear fruit when we abide in Him. What
fruit have you seen since you became a Christian? Do you desire to bear more
fruit? Are you content with the fruit you are bearing?
I leave you today with a famous passage about the fruit of
the Spirit (a member of the Trinity of God). Look at this list and if you see
areas where fruit isn’t being produced, ask Him how you need to change!
And the fruit of the Spirit is:
Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law; 24 and those who are Christ's,
the flesh did crucify with the affections, and the desires; 25 if
we may live in the Spirit, in the Spirit also we may walk. Gal 5:22-25 (YLT)
See you Wednesday.
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