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Preface: Volume 9
Gal. 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness (defrauding others for personal gain), lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance (debating), emulations (striving to outdo others), wrath (desire for revenge), strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Jesus told the woman taken in adultery: "Go, and sin no more." Jn. 8
She was not condemned by Jesus, but she could no longer continue in her sin.
And Paul explains that those who continue in such sins "shall not inherit the kingdom of God."
It is my experience that after we are born again, we want to know about God. We want to hear things of God. We do not want to sin as we once did.
We must keep that original fire for God burning inside us. We throw another log on the fire each time we choose to go in a godly way, keeping our flesh "down", not allowing ourselves to hate and strive as this world does.
Therefore Jesus says: Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation ... the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak ... Mt. 26:41
"Watch" ... we feel our flesh about to rise up to exalt itself. We feel that hatred against another person. We feel that we are about to strive over something. We cannot afford to fall asleep to this. Instead we stay watchful so that we can take immediate action to stop our own flesh from doing what it wants to do. We begin praying immediately, as soon as we see this is about to happen, asking God to keep us from saying that which our own flesh wants to say ... or praying asking not to let us do that which our flesh wants to do. Thus we control our flesh through God by prayer and by acting on anything shown us by the Holy Spirit. We overcome through God. This is the only way to overcome our own flesh. But it works every time. God will not fail us when we really want to do HIS will.
"God ... please don't let me say that ... Please don't let me do that ..."
When I take this action against my flesh, I find God always overcomes my flesh and honors my prayer!
Be aware: We never get to the point where the flesh is better ... Flesh does not improve ... Flesh just sits there waiting for the opportunity to take over and exalt itself.
Our responsibility is to keep that flesh under the control of God, not allowing the flesh to speak and to do as it once did. To do this, we must stay alert.
Paul explained it as follows:
I Cor. 9:24-27 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 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. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: 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.
God tells us the following in Hebrews 10
22-26 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for HE is faithful that promised;)
And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
As we wait for the return of Jesus for the church, we need to surround ourselves daily with godly exhortations, doctrine, Bible!
Paul once said to Timothy:
I Tim. 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
As the world gets worse, godly thinking can slip unless we keep our minds on what God has to say about the issues of this life. Though we know doctrine, we need to refresh our minds to doctrine as presented in Bible, for this world and the churches today so often promote "another doctrine". We must focus on the real doctrine of Christ from the Bible, not on the counterfeit doctrine.
The following exhortations are given to us by the Spirit of God to help us in a time like this.
Joan Boney
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