I'm reading a book by John MacArthur called, "Saved Without A Doubt". And while I am fully convinced that Jesus Christ has saved me from my sin and from the Father's wrath...I find that my saved life so often does not resemble how Paul put it so eloquently and accurately in 1 Corinthians 2:9: "What no eye has seen, and no ear has heard, and what has never come into a man's heart, is what God has prepared for those who love Him."
Why? Why do I feel so "hum drum" sometimes, so "in the middle of the muddle"? Where is the peace that passes understanding and the deep abiding joy that should fill my heart and overflow to those around me? Where is a patient heart that reflects my Father's patience towards me and why does my love often look little like "denying self" and more like "selfishness"? Where is the grandeur of chapter 2 verse 9 in my own life and heart?
The answer is all wrapped up in verse 10! "Now God has revealed them to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit searches everything, even the deep things of God."
In Christ, I have been given the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is spectacular! He produces amazing fruit that I can walk in and, therefore, live a life that is pleasing to the Father and that brings Him much glory! Thomas Brooks says this about Him, "The Spirit is the great revealer of the Father's secrets, He lies in the bosom of the Father, He knows every name that is written in the book of life; He is best acquainted with the inward workings of the heart of God toward poor sinners; He is the great comforter and the only sealer up of souls to the day of redemption. If you grieve by your wilful sinning He that alone can gladden you, who will then make you glad?" MacArthur followed it up by saying that if "you grieve or quench the Spirit by walking in the flesh, you short-circuit His ministries to you".
Wow! My own heart was quickly convicted that much of my "hum drum" may very well be because I am not "in step" with the Spirit. I have taken my sin too lightly, treated God's grace too carelessly, and, as a result, have had a "short circuit" in my fellowship and communion with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. How quick I can be to "broad stroke" my sin when asking forgiveness from God instead of taking each sinful thought captive, doing battle against it, and crying out for God's strength and power to overcome as well as His grace and mercy to forgive me when those thoughts turn to words and deeds!
Could my battle for joy be because, as Thomas Brooks put it, "if you grieve by your wilful sinning He that alone can gladden you, who will then make you glad?"
Much to meditate on...but also, I find my heart rejoicing. Rejoicing in God's Word, rejoicing in godly men's wisdom, rejoicing in the indescribable gift of the Holy Spirit and the conviction He brings, and rejoicing in the victory over sin that is mine because I am "in Christ"....the One who conquered sin and death! Hallelujah, what a Savior!!!!
Why? Why do I feel so "hum drum" sometimes, so "in the middle of the muddle"? Where is the peace that passes understanding and the deep abiding joy that should fill my heart and overflow to those around me? Where is a patient heart that reflects my Father's patience towards me and why does my love often look little like "denying self" and more like "selfishness"? Where is the grandeur of chapter 2 verse 9 in my own life and heart?
The answer is all wrapped up in verse 10! "Now God has revealed them to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit searches everything, even the deep things of God."
In Christ, I have been given the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit is spectacular! He produces amazing fruit that I can walk in and, therefore, live a life that is pleasing to the Father and that brings Him much glory! Thomas Brooks says this about Him, "The Spirit is the great revealer of the Father's secrets, He lies in the bosom of the Father, He knows every name that is written in the book of life; He is best acquainted with the inward workings of the heart of God toward poor sinners; He is the great comforter and the only sealer up of souls to the day of redemption. If you grieve by your wilful sinning He that alone can gladden you, who will then make you glad?" MacArthur followed it up by saying that if "you grieve or quench the Spirit by walking in the flesh, you short-circuit His ministries to you".
Wow! My own heart was quickly convicted that much of my "hum drum" may very well be because I am not "in step" with the Spirit. I have taken my sin too lightly, treated God's grace too carelessly, and, as a result, have had a "short circuit" in my fellowship and communion with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. How quick I can be to "broad stroke" my sin when asking forgiveness from God instead of taking each sinful thought captive, doing battle against it, and crying out for God's strength and power to overcome as well as His grace and mercy to forgive me when those thoughts turn to words and deeds!
Could my battle for joy be because, as Thomas Brooks put it, "if you grieve by your wilful sinning He that alone can gladden you, who will then make you glad?"
Much to meditate on...but also, I find my heart rejoicing. Rejoicing in God's Word, rejoicing in godly men's wisdom, rejoicing in the indescribable gift of the Holy Spirit and the conviction He brings, and rejoicing in the victory over sin that is mine because I am "in Christ"....the One who conquered sin and death! Hallelujah, what a Savior!!!!
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