Run to win the race, said Paul. (I Cor. 9)
Some people rejoice briefly in the light when they are shown truth from God and then they somehow go back into darkness even while continuing to read the messages I print.
Mk.
4 ... 14 The sower soweth the word. 15 And these are they by the way
side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh
immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16
And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when
they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 And
have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time:afterward, when
affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they
are offended. 18 And these are they which are sown among thorns; such
as hear the word, 19 And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness
of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word,
and it becometh unfruitful. 20 And these are they which are sown on good
ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit,
some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.
We
have to take that word and build a root system ... doing that word
continually but also thinking upon that word until it becomes a part of
us, not letting it slip away nor be stolen away.
The
sower sows the seed which should bring up good fruit ... but the seed
doesn't get buried deeply enough in the ground so the fowl of the air comes and picks up that seed and devours it and no fruit at all comes from that seed that was sown.
It is like turning on a light switch and then immediately turning off the switch and sitting in darkness of the surrounding, while deceiving yourself into thinking you are living in light because you read the Bible or read such things as I write. But the fruit from darkness appears showing the truth to many.
I've
seen a woman in our little church group do this over and over. She will receive the word
with gladness ... "this is the answer" ... then almost immediately it
goes dark and she wallows about in the religious wanderings of her own
mind which are wrong and she will do various sins. Somehow she
deceives herself. The light will be there briefly then quickly she
turns the light off while faithfully reading the blog and thinking she
is OK.
I
had a dream about this woman where I went to her house and was in back yard
and it was dark there and I turned on the light and it was beautiful.
Then this woman turned off the light. I tried to get her to turn the light
back on but she wouldn't.
She does not run the race to win ... (and she deceives herself because she thinks she is OK until I hear what she has to say and have to correct her again, turning on light, but then she turns the light into darkness again.)
I
Cor. 9 ... 24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but
one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 25 And every man
that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it
to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 26 I therefore
so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:27
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection:lest that by any
means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
I
will correct this woman I spoke of, and for one brief moment she is straight again ...
then the next time I talk with her she is twisted and the correction has
to be done again ... and so it has been for the past 30 years ... light
on/light off ... correction from me so light on / then off ...
correction from me ...
This should not be happening this way. I can't be her salvation.
==============
I've seen another woman in our group start in the word with seemingly clarity and then drift away ... I don't know how this happens but I've seen her do this.
This week I spoke with her by phone and she told me she had been focusing for days on the scripture "Love not the world neither the things that are in the world."
Certainly that is the right way to set yourself to win the race. To
keep that word that you have heard before you day and night, thinking on
that word and doing that word, then after doing it think on it ... If she can develop a strong fear of God and develop root for the word
she hears, that is certainly hopeful. But the race isn't over ... We
don't arrive until we stop breathing on this earth ...
Entering into the kingdom of God is not automatic.
We begin and we must continue to the last breath we take on this
earth. And we must run to win, doing that which causes real results,
not imaginary results.
I
don't find it hard to do ... It is a way of life we learn ... to think
on the word, to do that word, to keep thinking on that word until God
gives us another word and then we develop root system with the next word
we are given, thinking on that word and doing it and then continuing to
think on it after doing it.
(There are times I will have one scripture I focus on continually for months.)
Another woman in our church group reported a dream which was like this: We were given assignments. It
was not hard to do the assignment but it was an effort to keep doing the
assignment.
The only way I know to enter in is to do what you hear and continue in that word ...
Run
the race to win ... not allowing any word to slip away (fowl coming
down and eating the seed and therefore no good fruit comes in your
ground)
We
watch our ground where that word lies and chase away the devouring
fowls, keeping that seed in the ground until it can develop into what it
is supposed to be.
Nothing
is as important to us as this seed given us by God. So we take care of
it diligently, watering it, keeping weeds away that would choke it ...
considering it to be very precious, more important than rubies and gold
or anything else this world can offer... loving the word and fearing the
word and caring for that word ...