How Could Someone So Persecute Jesus!

January 28th, 2011 by JDVaughn Leave a reply »

January 28, 2011
 
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? —Acts 26:14
 
 

Are you determined to have your own way in living for God? We will never be free from this trap until we are brought into the experience of the baptism of “the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). Stubbornness and self-will will always stab Jesus Christ. It may hurt no one else, but it wounds His Spirit. Whenever we are obstinate and self-willed and set on our own ambitions, we are hurting Jesus. Every time we stand on our own rights and insist that this is what we intend to do, we are persecuting Him. Whenever we rely on self-respect, we systematically disturb and grieve His Spirit. And when we finally understand that it is Jesus we have been persecuting all this time, it is the most crushing revelation ever.

Is the Word of God tremendously penetrating and sharp in me as I hand it on to you, or does my life betray the things I profess to teach? I may teach sanctification and yet exhibit the spirit of Satan, the very spirit that persecutes Jesus Christ. The Spirit of Jesus is conscious of only one thing— a perfect oneness with the Father. And He tells us, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). All I do should be based on a perfect oneness with Him, not on a self-willed determination to be godly. This will mean that others may use me, go around me, or completely ignore me, but if I will submit to it for His sake, I will prevent Jesus Christ from being persecuted.

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January 28, 2011

Journal for Today-JDV

There were two devotionals that spoke to me with the same message this morning. They both reminded me that God’s plan is NOT for me to act holy, or even try to be holy or religious.  Even if I do good works or good deeds and or reach out to others, I can be serving myself. The devotionals combined with a prayerful listening to the Holy Spirit reminded me that any good thing from me or because of me can only come from God as He has his way in my life.

And God says…”How many times have you tried to do the right thing and failed? How many times have you promised yourself and Me that you would do this or that…..and then failed? How many times have you yearned to do the right thing and failed miserably? In fact you gave up walking with Me for a number of years because you did not experience victory or the abundant life…….Now you know that you cannot change your own life, you cannot become a better person, you cannot grow your own servant’s heart. …….but you can rest and abide in Me and observe the transformation that occurs in your life when you simply hand your life to Me.”

Romans 12:2 (The Message)

Place Your Life Before God

 1-2 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.

 

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