Contrast, 18

~ Contrast: Conflict or Victory ~

 

Series Comment ~ The Scripture contains many contrasts.  In this series we look briefly at some of them.  Just like in our “Binary” series many of these contrasts represent a choice of this or that.

 

Scripture 1 (a life of conflict) ~ “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish” (Galatians 5:17).

 

“For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.  O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God — through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:22-25).

 

Scripture 2 (the way of victory) ~ “The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.  For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.  For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.  For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.  So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

 

“But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.  Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.  And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

 

“Therefore, brethren, we are debtors — not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.  For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Romans 8:2-13).

 

“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.  For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.  But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.  …

 

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16-18, 22-25).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW 

 

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God Attribute, 62

~ Christ Is The Lord Of All ~

 

This Series  ~  This series of posts looks at some of the many attributes of God.  Generally, we move in alphabetical order.

 

Introduction  ~  Christ is the Lord of all because of both His eternal deity and His creation of this world.  The resulting issue is whether individuals understand, accept, and live according to this reality. 

 

Scripture  ~  “This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown.  For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground; but a mist went up from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground. And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being” (Genesis 2:4-7).

 

“Then Peter opened his mouth and said: ‘In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality.  But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him.  The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ — He is Lord of all” (Acts 10:34-36).

 

Comment  ~  He is Lord!  That is a fact, whether you accept it or not!  The resulting question which follows “are you willing to make Him the Lord of your life?” That’s a tremendously large subject but one which each of us should consider carefully. 

 

Quote  ~  “Christ will be Lord or He will be Judge.  Every man must decide whether he will take Him as Lord now, or face Him as Judge then!”  A.W. Tozer 

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

Why Trust God? 47

~ God Returned The Ark ~

 

Introduction  ~  “Abundant Life Now” previously provided a list of Biblical of examples of fearing / reverencing God (217 posts).  In this current series we look at Biblical accounts that demonstrate that we can fully trust God.  Initially we posted seven general reasons for trusting God.  We are currently looking at passages from all 66 books of Scripture which demonstrate a reason for trusting our Creator. 

 

Scripture  ~  “Now the ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months.  And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, ‘What shall we do with the ark of the Lord?  Tell us how we should send it to its place’” (1 Samuel 6:1-2).

 

“Then He struck the men of Beth Shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the Lord.  He struck fifty thousand and seventy men of the people, and the people lamented because the Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter.  And the men of Beth Shemesh said, ‘Who is able to stand before this holy Lord God?  And to whom shall it go up from us?’  So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath Jearim, saying, ‘The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord; come down and take it up with you’” (1 Samuel 6:19-21).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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Question – Jesus, 178

~ Regarding “How Long” ~

 

Introduction  ~  This series is about questions involving Jesus.  Some were asked by individuals involved with Jesus Christ while He walked on earth.  Others are questions that Jesus Christ asked others.  We will look at questions on over 160 topics (some may split into two or more posts).  Even so, it is far from an exhaustive list. 

 

Scripture  ~  “And He said, ‘Go, and tell this people: “Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.  Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed’.”    

 

“Then I said, ‘Lord, how long?’

 

“And He answered: ‘Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, the houses are without a man, the land is utterly desolate, the Lord has removed men far away and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.  But yet a tenth will be in it, and will return and be for consuming, as a terebinth tree or as an oak, whose stump remains when it is cut down.  So the holy seed shall be its stump’” (Isaiah 6:9-13).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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In Jesus We Have… , 12

~ In Jesus We Have Peace: Philemon ~

 

Introduction  ~  In this series we look at a few of the verses which state what we have when we are “in Christ.”  Consider our series theme verse: 

 

“God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:4-10).

 

Scripture  ~  “Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, to Philemon our beloved friend and fellow laborer, to the beloved Apphia, Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Philemon 1-3)

 

Additional Scripture  ~  “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You [God], because he trusts in You” (Isaiah 26:3).

 

 Comment  ~  Do you know God – the source of peace that passes any human understanding? (See Philippians 4:6-7)

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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Adornment, 15

~ Head, 4 ~

 

Series Note ~ In this series we look at some of the Scriptures which mention human physical adornment—pretty much without comment.  These posts will include clothing, head (including hair and wigs), jewelry (including accessories), makeup (including tattoos), and perfume (including incense).  It is important to note that some of these passages are culturally related to a specific culture and time period. 

 

Two Principles ~ (1) Focus on the long-term: “Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.  Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates” (Proverbs 31:30-31).

 

(2) Exercise modesty: “Women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but, which is proper for women professing godliness, with good works” (1 Timothy 2:9b-10).

 

Scripture For This Week ~ “And so it shall be: instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-set hair, baldness; instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty” (Isaiah 3:24).

 

Two Keys ~ (1) “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).

 

(2) “Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?  For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

* * * * *

Fool Characteristics, 1

~ Fools Despise Wisdom ~

 

Series Note  ~  In this series we look at some of the passages in the Book of Proverbs – wise sayings that are generally true – that describe a fool from God’s perspective.  Some may surprise you. 

 

Scripture  ~  “To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion — a wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, to understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:2-7). 

 

Important Truth  ~  “The fool has said in his heart, ‘there is no God’” (Psalm 53:1a).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

* * * * *

Contrast, 17

~ Contrast: Old Nature (sin) vs. New Nature (spiritual) ~

 

Series Comment ~ The Scripture contains many contrasts.  In this series we look briefly at some of them.  Just like in our “Binary” series many of these contrasts represent a choice of this or that.

 

Scripture 1 ~ “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.  For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.  Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me” (Romans 7:18-20).

 

“Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts” (Ephesians 4:22).

 

Scripture 2 ~ “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.  Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:8b-9).

 

“Therefore, putting away lying, ‘Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,’ for we are members of one another.  ‘Be angry, and do not sin’: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, nor give place to the devil” (Ephesians 4:25-27).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW 

 

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God Attribute, 61

 ~ God Is Longsuffering ~

 

This Series  ~  This series of posts looks at some of the many attributes of God.  Generally, we move in alphabetical order.

 

Introduction  ~  There are many verses in the Bible which speak of the longsuffering nature of God.  We list just a couple.

 

Scripture  ~  “And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth” (Exodus 34:6).

 

“But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth” (Psalm 86:15).

 

Comments  ~  [1] One key reason for God’s longsuffering nature is His patience in waiting for more to accept the sacrifice of His Son as payment for their sins. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

 

[2] God’s patient longsuffering will not last forever: “And the Lord said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive with man forever’” Genesis 6:3a)

 

“The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.  He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever.  He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities” (Psalm 103:8-10).

 

[3] Believers are to become more and more Christlike as they live their lives on earth.  This includes longsuffering: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law.  And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.  Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another” (Galatians 5:22-26).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

* * * * *

Why Trust God? 46

~ God Establishes His Servants ~

 

Introduction  ~  “Abundant Life Now” previously provided a list of Biblical of examples of fearing / reverencing God (217 posts).  In this current series we look at Biblical accounts that demonstrate that we can fully trust God.  Initially we posted seven general reasons for trusting God.  We are currently looking at passages from all 66 books of Scripture which demonstrate a reason for trusting our Creator. 

 

Scripture  ~  “So Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.  And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel had been established as a prophet of the Lord.  Then the Lord appeared again in Shiloh.  For the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the Lord” (1 Samuel 3:19-21).

 

~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.

 

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