Micaiah
Member
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2019
- Messages
- 23
INTO EVERY CHRISTIAN life there comes a time of sacrifice, a difficult time of surrendering to God. For some, this comes when one has allowed his mind to become occupied by a thought that compromises his faith in some small way, to the point where its fulfillment is no longer mere fantasy but actual desire, his desires are no longer completely parallel to those of God; in some small and well-hidden ways, his wishes have actually gone in a totally opposite direction. It is usually very difficult to notice the change at all, except that the person's opinions in that area now differ from the Bible. Now, to that individual, the Bible appears in this regard to be legalistic, old-fashioned, impractical ...or just misinterpreted! To this person the Word of God must be spoken dogmatically and with no uncertainty. Unfortunately, while the surrendered Christian will rejoice in the telling of the Scriptures, the compromising Christian will see it as uneducated legalism. For this reason,
16 To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
17 For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.
II Cor. 2:16-17 The BIBLE
12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Heb. 3:12 The BIBLE
One area that perhaps more than most others is, in the Church the most subtle and widespread "sin unto death (I John 5:16)," is that of sexual impurity. It is a difficult subject to convince of sinfulness as it is, on the surface, sin not against others so much as against one's-self.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
I Cor. 6:18 The BIBLE
It is sin not merely of the body but also of the mind and heart:
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Matt. 5:27-28 The BIBLE
And it is a sin that changes one's Theology. It so totally enwraps the individual in its pleasure and addiction that one so involved can have difficulty maintaining a Biblical belief on the subject. As God is love, and sex so often involves that, one can easily find ways to justify in his own mind the idea that what he is doing is not sinful after all - at least not in his situation! But as long as he hasn't persisted in his sin long enough to completely over-scar his conscience by it, he always has, deep within his spirit, the ever-present knowledge that he is not within God's will.
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for My Name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Rev. 2:2-5 The BIBLE
14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brunet forth death.
16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.
James 1:14-16 The BIBLE
The surrendered Christian will generally not have to be commanded by God to do anything! His Christ-like actions will, as he lives his life by the Word and the Spirit of God, be a natural outflow of his life. a) By the Spirit of God we know that Christ dwells in us (His commitment to us) and it is only by Christ that we know, in our Spirit, the necessity of His keeping His commandments. b) But it is only by loving obedience to His commandments that we know that we dwell in Him (our commitment to Him).
24 And he that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us.
I John 3:24 The BIBLE
For this reason, to the sincere Christian the following need only be reminders:
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
I Cor. 6:9 The BIBLE
3 For this is God's will - your purity of life, that you abstain from fornication;
4 that each man among you shall know how to procure a wife who shall be his own in purity and honour;
5 that you be not overmastered by lustful cravings, like the Gentiles who have no knowledge of God;
6 and that in this matter there be no encroaching on the rights of a brother Christian and no overreaching him. For the Lord is an avenger in all such cases, as we have already taught you and solemnly warned you.
7 God has not called us to an unclean life, but to one of purity.
I Thes. 4:3-7 The BIBLE (Weymouth)
No circumstance is unique in God's eyes when it comes to purity glorifying to Him (God has seen and anticipated it all). There is no new nor unusual situation justifying sin: all pre- or extra-marital sex is sin, no matter how secret or subtle!
9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
Ecc. 1:9 The BIBLE
So then, exactly what sex is pleasing to God?
6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.
7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Mk. 10:6-9 The BIBLE
4 Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.
Heb. 13:4 The BIBLE
Yes, sex is glorifying to God, and honourable! It is a great gift of God, and as I Thessalonians, above, explains, intended by God to be enjoyed potentially by all! But it is "undefiled" only as God designed it (in official marriage)! Marriage is established in God's eyes by the act of sexual intercourse, (Matt. 19:5-6). The wedding ceremony is necessary, however, to a) seal one's oath of life-long faithfulness to one's partner and to b) witness that to the world. The oath is indeed made to both partner and world (and is thus similar to baptism), and to act outside of that oath and witness is to break it, and to offend both. Nor is it at all acceptable to precede marriage with sex with one's fiancé: the act of marrying after sex is itself a witness as to how wrong is premarital sex, as one is thus stating that marriage, that witness of oath of faithfulness, is in fact unnecessary.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
I Cor. 6:18-20 The BIBLE
5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
Deu. 6:5 The BIBLE
13 And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.
Jer. 29:13 The BIBLE
Central to the gospel of Christ is a heart that is centered on the Father, and one that is diligently seeking after Him "...with the whole heart:"
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Gal. 5:16-17 The BIBLE
18 A zealous, heartfelt pursuit of God will ensure that the Christian will escape the lusts of the flesh.
But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal. 5:18,19 The BIBLE
To take one's eyes off Christ enables the heart to start making compromises. Because the body isn't sinning we convince ourselves that we are in God's will.
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Matt. 5:27-28 The BIBLE
The sincere Christian will ask, however, not, "How close can I get to sin without sinning," but, "How far can I get from sin?" (This doesn't need to be said; any Christian will know this!) With this recognition, it is readily obvious that sin consists even of the contemplation of photographs, art, jokes, or stories that would entice one to fantasize or even consider or imagine sex with anyone other than one's spouse.
37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken Thou me in Thy way.
Psa. 119:37 The BIBLE
13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
I Pet. 1:13 The BIBLE
Sex cannot even be contemplated with anyone but one's spouse, whether that person is fictitious or real, as one's heart must be centered on God and, as Christ said, one's desires only on one's spouse. God wishes the heart's purity, not merely the body's, as it is the sinful nature, more than the sin, that condemns us to hell. God therefore calls upon his children to repent. And not only to repent, but to renounce all desire to commit fornication, and to cleanse himself even of pleasure in the memory of it. It is a change of heart that God calls for. One must come to the point, with the enabling of God, of now hating the sin, something impossible for fleshly man, but quite possible for the man of the Spirit, empowered by God.
2 Blessed are they that keep His testimonies, and that seek Him with the whole heart.
…
10 With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy commandments.
Psa. 119:2, 10 The BIBLE
12 And she caught him (Joseph) by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.
Gen. 39:12 The BIBLE
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:7 The BIBLE
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
I Cor. 10:13 The BIBLE
9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
II Pet. 2:9 The BIBLE
19 ...Be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev. 3:19 The BIBLE
16 To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
17 For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.
II Cor. 2:16-17 The BIBLE
12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Heb. 3:12 The BIBLE
One area that perhaps more than most others is, in the Church the most subtle and widespread "sin unto death (I John 5:16)," is that of sexual impurity. It is a difficult subject to convince of sinfulness as it is, on the surface, sin not against others so much as against one's-self.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
I Cor. 6:18 The BIBLE
It is sin not merely of the body but also of the mind and heart:
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Matt. 5:27-28 The BIBLE
And it is a sin that changes one's Theology. It so totally enwraps the individual in its pleasure and addiction that one so involved can have difficulty maintaining a Biblical belief on the subject. As God is love, and sex so often involves that, one can easily find ways to justify in his own mind the idea that what he is doing is not sinful after all - at least not in his situation! But as long as he hasn't persisted in his sin long enough to completely over-scar his conscience by it, he always has, deep within his spirit, the ever-present knowledge that he is not within God's will.
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for My Name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Rev. 2:2-5 The BIBLE
14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.
15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brunet forth death.
16 Do not err, my beloved brethren.
James 1:14-16 The BIBLE
The surrendered Christian will generally not have to be commanded by God to do anything! His Christ-like actions will, as he lives his life by the Word and the Spirit of God, be a natural outflow of his life. a) By the Spirit of God we know that Christ dwells in us (His commitment to us) and it is only by Christ that we know, in our Spirit, the necessity of His keeping His commandments. b) But it is only by loving obedience to His commandments that we know that we dwell in Him (our commitment to Him).
24 And he that keepeth His commandments dwelleth in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abideth in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us.
I John 3:24 The BIBLE
For this reason, to the sincere Christian the following need only be reminders:
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
I Cor. 6:9 The BIBLE
3 For this is God's will - your purity of life, that you abstain from fornication;
4 that each man among you shall know how to procure a wife who shall be his own in purity and honour;
5 that you be not overmastered by lustful cravings, like the Gentiles who have no knowledge of God;
6 and that in this matter there be no encroaching on the rights of a brother Christian and no overreaching him. For the Lord is an avenger in all such cases, as we have already taught you and solemnly warned you.
7 God has not called us to an unclean life, but to one of purity.
I Thes. 4:3-7 The BIBLE (Weymouth)
No circumstance is unique in God's eyes when it comes to purity glorifying to Him (God has seen and anticipated it all). There is no new nor unusual situation justifying sin: all pre- or extra-marital sex is sin, no matter how secret or subtle!
9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
Ecc. 1:9 The BIBLE
So then, exactly what sex is pleasing to God?
6 But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.
7 For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;
8 And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.
9 What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Mk. 10:6-9 The BIBLE
4 Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.
Heb. 13:4 The BIBLE
Yes, sex is glorifying to God, and honourable! It is a great gift of God, and as I Thessalonians, above, explains, intended by God to be enjoyed potentially by all! But it is "undefiled" only as God designed it (in official marriage)! Marriage is established in God's eyes by the act of sexual intercourse, (Matt. 19:5-6). The wedding ceremony is necessary, however, to a) seal one's oath of life-long faithfulness to one's partner and to b) witness that to the world. The oath is indeed made to both partner and world (and is thus similar to baptism), and to act outside of that oath and witness is to break it, and to offend both. Nor is it at all acceptable to precede marriage with sex with one's fiancé: the act of marrying after sex is itself a witness as to how wrong is premarital sex, as one is thus stating that marriage, that witness of oath of faithfulness, is in fact unnecessary.
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
I Cor. 6:18-20 The BIBLE
5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
Deu. 6:5 The BIBLE
13 And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.
Jer. 29:13 The BIBLE
Central to the gospel of Christ is a heart that is centered on the Father, and one that is diligently seeking after Him "...with the whole heart:"
16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Gal. 5:16-17 The BIBLE
18 A zealous, heartfelt pursuit of God will ensure that the Christian will escape the lusts of the flesh.
But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal. 5:18,19 The BIBLE
To take one's eyes off Christ enables the heart to start making compromises. Because the body isn't sinning we convince ourselves that we are in God's will.
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
Matt. 5:27-28 The BIBLE
The sincere Christian will ask, however, not, "How close can I get to sin without sinning," but, "How far can I get from sin?" (This doesn't need to be said; any Christian will know this!) With this recognition, it is readily obvious that sin consists even of the contemplation of photographs, art, jokes, or stories that would entice one to fantasize or even consider or imagine sex with anyone other than one's spouse.
37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken Thou me in Thy way.
Psa. 119:37 The BIBLE
13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
I Pet. 1:13 The BIBLE
Sex cannot even be contemplated with anyone but one's spouse, whether that person is fictitious or real, as one's heart must be centered on God and, as Christ said, one's desires only on one's spouse. God wishes the heart's purity, not merely the body's, as it is the sinful nature, more than the sin, that condemns us to hell. God therefore calls upon his children to repent. And not only to repent, but to renounce all desire to commit fornication, and to cleanse himself even of pleasure in the memory of it. It is a change of heart that God calls for. One must come to the point, with the enabling of God, of now hating the sin, something impossible for fleshly man, but quite possible for the man of the Spirit, empowered by God.
2 Blessed are they that keep His testimonies, and that seek Him with the whole heart.
…
10 With my whole heart have I sought Thee: O let me not wander from Thy commandments.
Psa. 119:2, 10 The BIBLE
12 And she caught him (Joseph) by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.
Gen. 39:12 The BIBLE
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
James 4:7 The BIBLE
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, Who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
I Cor. 10:13 The BIBLE
9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
II Pet. 2:9 The BIBLE
19 ...Be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev. 3:19 The BIBLE