July 1, 2011
You will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny —Matthew 5:26
There is no heaven that has a little corner of hell in it. God is determined to make you pure, holy, and right, and He will not allow you to escape from the scrutiny of the Holy Spirit for even one moment. He urged you to come to judgment immediately when He convicted you, but you did not obey. Then the inevitable process began to work, bringing its inevitable penalty. Now you have been “thrown into prison, [and] . . . you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny” (5:25-26). Yet you ask, “Is this a God of mercy and love?” When seen from God’s perspective, it is a glorious ministry of love. God is going to bring you out pure, spotless, and undefiled, but He wants you to recognize the nature you were exhibiting— the nature of demanding your right to yourself. The moment you are willing for God to change your nature, His recreating forces will begin to work. And the moment you realize that God’s purpose is to get you into the right relationship with Himself and then with others, He will reach to the very limits of the universe to help you take the right road. Decide to do it right now, saying, “Yes, Lord, I willwrite that letter,” or, “I will be reconciled to that person now.”
These sermons of Jesus Christ are meant for your will and your conscience, not for your head. If you dispute these verses from the Sermon on the Mount with your head, you will dull the appeal to your heart.
If you find yourself asking, “I wonder why I’m not growing spiritually with God?”— then ask yourself if you are paying your debts from God’s standpoint. Do now what you will have to do someday. Every moral question or call comes with an “ought” behind it— the knowledge of knowing what we ought to do.
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July 1, 2011
Journal Entry for Today-JDV
Once again Lord when I feel like I cannot do one thing right, when I feel like I have walked outside your direction and left a trail of unrighteousness, you show me that You are still working on and in me. Right when I thought I was incapable of living the life you called me to live, You show me that it is You that works in me regardless of my condition.
And God says…”All things work together for the good of those that love the Lord and are called according to His purpose. Give it to me…whatever it is…, I will make it holy and righteous. Just as the song says… I do make beautiful things out of dust. Stay in my presence and grace and know that I love you beyond anything you can imagine. You are much more to me than your right or wrong choices. And regardless of your choices, I can and will make you beautiful.”
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