When we’ve had a “bad” day spiritually
Jul 21, 2024 7:11:58 GMT -5
oliverwithatwist and anna like this
Post by Cindy on Jul 21, 2024 7:11:58 GMT -5
“How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!” (Hebrews 9:14)
Superior to the cleansing capability of the ashes of an animal is the cleansing power of the sacrifice of Christ. "The blood of Christ" is an expression that refers not simply to the fluid, but the whole atoning sacrificial work of Christ in His death. Blood is used as a substitute word for death. "The eternal Spirit." is either Christ’s pre-existent spirit or the Holy Spirit. The use of “eternal” as a qualifier serves to relate the Spirit to the “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12) and the “eternal inheritance” (Heb 9:15) which Christ accomplished by His sacrificial death. "Offered Himself." The animals in the Levitical system were brought involuntarily and without understanding to their deaths. Christ came of His own volition with a full understanding of the necessity and consequences of His sacrifice. His sacrifice was not just His blood, it was His entire human nature (Heb 10:10). MacArthur
Superior to the cleansing capability of the ashes of an animal is the cleansing power of the sacrifice of Christ. "The blood of Christ" is an expression that refers not simply to the fluid, but the whole atoning sacrificial work of Christ in His death. Blood is used as a substitute word for death. "The eternal Spirit." is either Christ’s pre-existent spirit or the Holy Spirit. The use of “eternal” as a qualifier serves to relate the Spirit to the “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12) and the “eternal inheritance” (Heb 9:15) which Christ accomplished by His sacrificial death. "Offered Himself." The animals in the Levitical system were brought involuntarily and without understanding to their deaths. Christ came of His own volition with a full understanding of the necessity and consequences of His sacrifice. His sacrifice was not just His blood, it was His entire human nature (Heb 10:10). MacArthur
The original readers of Hebrews were being tempted to turn back to the old system of sacrifices that had to be offered over & over. Such an action would imply that the sacrifice Christ offered wasn’t enough to obtain permanent forgiveness & make us right with God. We imply the same thing when we confess our past sins over & over. Designed for devotion
Once awakened by the power of God, the conscience becomes subject to the will of God. No longer can it be silenced or seared, if there has been true conversion, but it grows stronger. It comforts the believer with the knowledge that he is covered by the righteousness of Christ, it grows in its hatred of sin, and makes the believer sensitive to even the most minor transgressions. A conscience awakened and transformed longs to bring the life into conformity with the will of God in all things because there is now love in the heart for God and fear of His glory. Tabletalk Magazine
What should we do when we’ve had a “bad” day spiritually, when it seems we’ve done everything wrong and are feeling very guilty? We must go back to the cross and see Jesus there bearing our sins in His own body (1 Peter 2:24). We must by faith appropriate for ourselves the blood of Christ that will cleanse our guilty consciences (Hebrews 9:14). In a bad-day scenario, we might pray something like this:
“Father, I’ve sinned against You. I’ve been negligent in the spiritual disciplines that I know are necessary and helpful for my spiritual growth. I’ve been irritable and impatient toward those around me. I’ve allowed resentful and unkind thoughts to lodge in my mind. I repent of these sins and claim Your forgiveness. “You have said You justify the wicked (Romans 4:5). Father, in view of my sins today, I acknowledge that in myself I am wicked. In fact, my problem is not merely the sins I’ve committed, some of which I may not even be aware of, but the fact that my heart is sinful. These sins I’m now so painfully conscious of are merely expressions of my sinful heart. “But despite my sinfulness, You have said, ‘There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’ (Romans 8:1). Given my acute awareness of my sin, that’s an incredible statement. How can I be without condemnation when I’ve so flagrantly and willfully sinned against You today? “O Father, I know it’s because Jesus bore those sins in His body on the cross. He suffered the punishment I deserve, so I might experience the blessings He deserved. So I come to You, dear Father, in Jesus’ name.” Holiness Day by Day
A LIFETIME MESSAGE
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18)
The word of the cross … is the power of God.
If it’s true our relationship with God is based on His grace instead of our performance, why are we so prone to fall into good-day—bad-day thinking? It’s because we’ve relegated the gospel to the unbeliever.
Regardless of when you trusted Christ, the cross divides your life into two periods: “unbeliever” and “believer.” What one word describes the Bible message you most needed to hear as an unbeliever? It’s the gospel, the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16). And what one word describes the message we most need to hear as believers? I get many different answers to that question, but most can be summed up with the word discipleship—demands and duties such as the spiritual disciplines, holiness, and service.
I don’t question our emphasis on discipleship. Jesus did say, “Go therefore and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19). If anything, we need more challenge and instruction on this. But there’s something more basic than discipleship, something that provides the necessary atmosphere in which discipleship can be practiced—the gospel.
We need to continue to hear the gospel every day of our Christian lives. Only a continuous reminder of God’s grace through Christ will keep us from falling into good-day—bad-day thinking, where we view our daily relationship with God as based on how good we’ve been.
Only the joy of hearing the gospel, being reminded that our sins are forgiven in Christ, will keep the demands of discipleship from becoming drudgery. Only the gratitude and love to God that come from knowing He no longer counts our sins against us (Romans 4:8) will provide the proper motive for responding to the claims of discipleship. Holiness Day by Day
“For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18)
The word of the cross … is the power of God.
If it’s true our relationship with God is based on His grace instead of our performance, why are we so prone to fall into good-day—bad-day thinking? It’s because we’ve relegated the gospel to the unbeliever.
Regardless of when you trusted Christ, the cross divides your life into two periods: “unbeliever” and “believer.” What one word describes the Bible message you most needed to hear as an unbeliever? It’s the gospel, the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16). And what one word describes the message we most need to hear as believers? I get many different answers to that question, but most can be summed up with the word discipleship—demands and duties such as the spiritual disciplines, holiness, and service.
I don’t question our emphasis on discipleship. Jesus did say, “Go therefore and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19). If anything, we need more challenge and instruction on this. But there’s something more basic than discipleship, something that provides the necessary atmosphere in which discipleship can be practiced—the gospel.
We need to continue to hear the gospel every day of our Christian lives. Only a continuous reminder of God’s grace through Christ will keep us from falling into good-day—bad-day thinking, where we view our daily relationship with God as based on how good we’ve been.
Only the joy of hearing the gospel, being reminded that our sins are forgiven in Christ, will keep the demands of discipleship from becoming drudgery. Only the gratitude and love to God that come from knowing He no longer counts our sins against us (Romans 4:8) will provide the proper motive for responding to the claims of discipleship. Holiness Day by Day
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