You ever ordered something at like McDonalds…
and it wasn’t what you ordered. “I said ‘Chicken McNuggets’, not ’26 buckets’… what am I gonna do with all these buckets????’”
Ok, maybe not that corny… but you get the point.
The point of following Christ is so you look like him. What he does, his character, you are to mimic your God, (Eph. 5:1), so that “…men can see your good works and glorify your father…” (Matt. 5:16). So what’s up with the order? Why do we hand God half a heart when he asked for a whole heart?
Well sometimes, we can’t tell what’s what. Sometimes we have every intention to give God everything and somehow we end up falling sorely short, (Rom. 3:23).
An elder at church always stops in the middle of class and says, “Station Identification Break”. If we don’t “examine ourselves”, (2 Cor. 13:5), We’ll never be able to really have the genuine love that God wants out of us. If we are too cowardly to look at ourselves through the lenses of God’s truth, we will be doomed to have a hypocritical heart. It is in our reflection of ourselves that we develop the inward honesty needed to progress in our spirits. It is also in our reflection, where we see we need to reflect more on GOD’s WORD, and not OUR PROBLEMS! Oh yea, I’m bringing it to ya!
So in light of this, what do we look at?
“Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.”
This quote is from Stephen Covey, but I read it from Dr. Cindy Trimm’s book, “40 Day Soul Fast”. Also, this quote has every part of the human soul in its consideration. “As a man thinketh in his heart so is he.”, “Out of the heart the mouth speaks.”, “What comes OUT of the mouth defileth a man”, (Prov. 23:7, Luke 6:45). Taking a look at your life will always begin at taking a look at your soul.
(On my Dr. Ricky Allmon)… the soul, in the Hebrew, Nephesh, and in the greek, pusche – where we get psyche, by definition is the BREATH of God. It is also whatever has life… and in it’s broadest sense, it is vitality. By these definitions, the amazing conclusion is that your soul and the BREATH of the living GOD… is that same thing. Not to say we’re as amazing as God, but that great thing is… he literally put something of himself in us to make our SELF.
The SELF, (our consciousness, or awareness of), is comprised of, NOT mind, body and soul, but rather body, soul, and spirit. It is the soul that holds the mind, will, and emotions of the self. So in order to get everything in your NATURAL life right, you have to get your soul right, because it is your soul that dictates what goes on in the mind, thus, out of your mouth, and thus shapes your life.
But what’s the spirit? I’m glad you asked
The spirit is the part of the human being that we do NOT have direct control over. We have control over soul and body… but the spirit, although within us, we cannot dictate to it. The spirit always dictates to us, hence SUPERnatural always superseding the natural.
This is why we have so many issues. In deception, (Matt 24:24), SELF-deception, (James 1), being in the last days, (2 Tim. 3). There are so many things that we have to watch and pray for, (Matt. 26:41), so many things trying to take away your gift, calling, destiny, everything and everyone Godly in your life. But there is a…
SOLUTION:
By examining ourselves, we mature in understanding that we simply need Jesus.
Every minute, hour and second.
His deliverance of your spirit causes conflict in your soul, (mind), because of the fact that the flesh, (body), and spirit, (God-kind), are contrary one to the other, (Gal. 5:17).
So we need to walk in more commitment, more INTENTIONALITY to “fight the good fight of faith”. Don’t be that “lukewarm church”, (Rev. 3:14-22), don’t FAINT, (Gal. 6:9). When you look in the mirror called the scriptures, and really take a good, hard, long look at what you say, how you act, and what you do, you too will see that large gap between your love and Christ’s.
That’s when you can rid yourself of whatever bastardized version of Christianity you’re practicing, and get to the real love of God… and finally get that order right.
Jesus, Leland, and Reason 