Word for Today, Wed, 17 Mar 2004: Changing Your Behavior
Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>
Dear friends,
Today's message is about changing our behavior in response to
the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Note that our identity as
Christians means that we are no longer independent of God; we
have declared our dependence upon Him by placing faith in
Christ. This message is all about that, and changing our
behavior accordingly. It's definitely something to not only
consider, but something to consistently act on.
Yours in Christ,
Brian
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NEIL ANDERSON'S DAILY IN CHRIST
from Freedom in Christ Ministries
March 17
CHANGING YOUR BEHAVIOR
Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the
flesh (Galatians 5:16).
A careful distinction must be made concerning your relationship
to the flesh as a Christian. There is a difference in Scripture
between being in the flesh and walking according to the flesh. As
a Christian, you are no longer in the flesh. That phrase
describes people who are still spiritually dead (Romans 8:8),
those who live independently of God. Everything they do, whether
morally good or bad, is in the flesh.
You are not in the flesh; you are in Christ. You are no longer
independent of God; you have declared your dependence upon Him by
placing faith in Christ. But even though you are not in the
flesh, you may still choose to walk according to the flesh
(Romans 8:12, 13). You may still act independently of God by
responding to the mind-set, patterns and habits ingrained in you
by the world you lived in. Paul rebuked the immature Corinthian
Christians as "fleshly" because of their expressions of jealousy,
strife, division and misplaced identity (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). He
listed the evidences of fleshly living in Galatians 5:19-21.
Unbelievers can't help but live according to the flesh because
they are totally in the flesh. But your old skipper is gone. You
are no longer in the flesh and you no longer need to live
according to its desires.
Getting rid of the old self was God's responsibility, but
rendering the flesh and its deeds inoperative is our
responsibility (Romans 8:12). God has changed your nature, but
it's your responsibility to change your behavior by "putting to
death the deeds of the body" (Romans 8:13). You will gain victory
over the flesh by learning to condition your behavior after your
new skipper, your new self which is infused with the nature of
Christ, and learning to transform your old pattern for thinking
and responding to your sin-trained flesh by renewing your mind
(Romans 12:2).
Lord, knowing that I am no longer controlled by sin is such a
liberating concept. I can walk today in freedom from my old self,
the world system, and the devil. Praise Your name!
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--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: http://www.geocities.com/masinick/
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