ResponsiveReiding

Through the Word in 2020 / March 19 – “In proportion to our faith”?

March 19th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 27:1-10; Romans 12:1-8; Psalm 66, Deuteronomy 13-17.

Reading through the Word following this plan, puts some passages before us forming interesting connections. Such is today’s set. Each of them references giving in some capacity. And giving, specifically as it is a key part of the Believer’s worship. Whether it was under the Old Covenant or the new, giving is an important part of the Believer’s spiritual life. Seldom do we imagine it so. There is no question that our giving is tied to several key concepts:

a. Giving to Christ’s work in response to how He has given all for us. b. How giving attacks our native, sinful materialism. Judas’ example is the obvious negative. The Romans and Psalms portions give us positive instruction and Deuteronomy a bit of both.

What I find most interesting today is captured in the Romans portion and a verse that is seldom addressed in detail: Romans 12:6–8 (ESV) — Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

What does “in proportion to our (or THE) faith” mean? Basically, it means no matter what our gift, we need to exercise it for the good of the Church taking in the whole of Scripture, and not isolating it from the whole counsel of God. And Paul teases that out by giving us examples with explanation.

a. The one who contributes – who gives to the work of the Lord, is to do so with generosity – not legalistically, begrudgingly, stingily, by meager scraps or out of mere duty. The entire Word reinforces this concept of generosity and rejects giving for other purposes. Giving to Christ’s cause in the Church must be done with the right heart and in such a way as to fight our sinful, materialistic impulses.

b. The one who leads – with zeal. Paul will expand on that in other places, but the Word is replete with admonitions toward leaders, and how zeal for serving God and His people must never give way to drudgery, moneygrubbing, seeking lordship over others, seeking position, power or recognition. Leading joyfully by being the first one in line to where we are all supposed to be going: The Celestial City.

c. The one who does acts of mercy – with cheerfulness. Again, a begrudging, stingy, gripey attitude of just doing one’s duty negates the giving of mercy. The heart and mind must be informed by how the Word calls us to have the Lord’s compassion on those in need. And lest we say to ourselves “they got themselves into this mess”, forgetting that we are responsible for getting ourselves into the entire mess of sin – and in His compassion, He cheerfully acted in mercy toward us.

Give your gifts to the Church beloved. Be it prophecy – spotlighting Biblical truth to bless, encourage and strengthen the brethren; be it teaching – in concert with the entire counsel of God; be it exhortation – exhorting to Spirit fueled godliness and not a legalistic duty; be it monetarily – with generosity; be it leadership – with humility and grace; be it mercy – cheerfully. Knowing how it manifests the cheerful mercy of our loving God.

Lord! Make it so in my own heart – in each and every one of these places.
Through the Word in 2020 / March 18 – An Amazing Provision!

March 18th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 26:57-75; Romans 11:25-36; Psalm 65, Deuteronomy 9-12.

One of the wonderful joys of reading the Word through time and time again, is the discovery of new riches. Things you’ve read multiple times before stand out in new ways. The Holy Spirit continues to draw back the curtain in places you thought were well worn. Today’s reading in Psalm 65 is just such a place. And I would call your attention to just one verse – Psalm 65:3 (ESV) — “When iniquities prevail against me, you atone for our transgressions.”

Just let that sink in a bit. Read it slowly. Marinate. And take David’s assurance for your own.

For anyone who desires to follow Christ, grappling with our own sins pains us to the very core. We walk with Him for years, decades, and still, certain sinful passions arise in our hearts and minds and trip us up again. And the grief is profound. The heart is scarcely at times able to bear it when we fall. And then we are brought back to a place like this. We are reminded that grace is always greater than our sin. And that the blood of Jesus was not only sufficient for our justification – it remains sufficient when we fall.

Notice David’s words:

a. “When”, not “if.” WHEN iniquities prevail. The struggle with indwelling sin is never over in this life. It is sly, cunning and ruthless. Neither Satan nor our own sin care how deeply we are wounded or how much pain they cause. We WILL fail at times. We are not to plan for it in that sense nor excuse it because of its inevitability. At one time or another we will act in anger. We will lust. We will covet. We will be selfish, hard, impatient, faithless and neglectful of holy things. And when that happens, in those times when our iniquities prevail – even as they do so less and less in our growth – there is still and atonement. The SAME atonement as always – the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

b. “You atone for our transgression.” Who atones? He does. We don’t. No amount of penance is capable of removing the vile stain of guilt – only the blood of The Lamb – and that – slain by the Father’s own hand in wrath against sin. Our sin. Never His. Ours alone. But this He does. This He is faithful to do. This is the heritage of those found by faith in Christ – He atones for our every transgression. He does.

Oh wounded Christian – your sin is not the last word – His grace is. Perhaps even today you have fallen and you grieve and are in great pain over it. “There is a fountain, filled with blood, drawn from Immanuel’s veins. And sinners plunged beneath that flood – lose ALL their guilty stains.”
Through the Word in 2020 / March 17 – Blessed reduction, Jesus is mine.

March 17th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 26:36-56; Romans 111-24; Psalm 64, Deuteronomy 6-8.

Pride is a terrible thing. How terrible, and how insidious is not easy to discern. Because pride is also very self-protective. It hides itself. But God in His loving desire to rid us of such an evil, often uses circumstances to expose our pride. And it shows up in some surprising places. 2 of those paces are shown to us in Deut. 8 and God’s dealings with Israel.

1 – Deuteronomy 8:2 (ESV) — 2 And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.

Nowhere is pride and lack of humility more revealed than in our bristling against God’s right of authority over us. Pride which seeks position and power doesn’t like to submit to any other authority.

Note the testing in our text was for the purpose of exposing their hearts. Not so that God would know what was in their hearts, but so THEY would come to grips with how deeply sin is rooted in their hearts. It is to inform us. To help us grapple with what He knows, so that we live in His reality. When we are in uncharted territory, when by Providence God leads us where would not choose to go, into circumstances we chafe against, we want to seize control rather than look to the Heavenly Father and trust His hand in it. But learning to relinquish our imaginary control over all of life into the hands of our God and Christ is not an easy thing to do. We want to lead, not be led. We want to be masters over our own course. But when the destination is His, He also gets to choose the route – the means. We cannot conform ourselves to the image of Christ – that is a Spirit-wrought work. And The Potter will shape and re-shape us many times in bringing forth the vessel which brings Him the most glory. Which best reflects His handiwork. And which in the end, will make us the most joyful. But when His leading takes us frightening places, dry places, places where we have no option but to rely on Him alone – that’s where our pride will show itself the most.

2 – And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Dt 8:3.

The second place where humility or its lack is revealed is in an unwillingness to submit to God’s providential provisions. When we demand more or other than what His hand provides – we are acting out of pride. When the only thing He gives to sustain us is – manna.

This leads us to understand that life does not consist in the external things which support our animal existence, but rather in our connection to God Himself in right relationship. We focus on the material – He is wanting to lead us away from that. That is how we fell in Eden. The fruit LOOKED good, would TASTE good, had a perceived BENEFIT. All of which is our reasoning whenever we step beyond the lines God has set for us.

But nothing so exposes our readiness to violate God’s ways, than the pinch of some appetite. When we think we MUST secure it- lest we die – no matter what sin it might entail, we are the Devil’s prey.

And then, to be forced to wait for a strange answer to our need, and not the answer we are familiar with or that most perfectly fits our appetite – is almost too much to bear.

Father save us from ourselves! Reduce us to Jesus. To rest content in what we have in Him. And to know that you provide all we REALLY need, in the Bread of Heaven.
Through the Word in 2020 / March 16 – The Lord is God.

March 16th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 26-17-35; Romans 10; Psalm 63, Deuteronomy 4-5.

The opening chapters of Deuteronomy – true to the title of the book (for Deuteronomy essentially means a second giving of the Law) – is a sort of recap by Moses of where the Israelites were at that moment in light of all that had happened to them and how God brought up to this point in time. They were poised to at last enter the Promised Land, and Moses takes pains to connect their present and the future to their past. It was God who chose them, God who delivered them, God who promised them their future, God who spoke to them at Sinai and gave them His great Law, and God who kept them through their wilderness wanderings. The chief implication being: God will be with them as they march into their future. Now all of that is surely a good place for all Believers even today isn’t it? We stand on the edge of eternity – about to enter the fullness of His promises when we cross Jordan either by reason of death, or translation at the return of Jesus. Either way, how wise and useful for us it is to recall that it is God who chose us unto salvation; God who delivered us from the penalty of sin; God who promised us eternal life with Himself; God who spoke to us and died for us at Calvary in Jesus; God who has kept us thus far in all our journeys and God who will bring us safely home. No matter what we face or experience in this present age. We need to remind ourselves of these realities often. But what I would point your attention to this morning is Deuteronomy 4:39 (ESV) — know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. a. KNOW, get it deep down into your soul… b. Lay it to your heart so that it governs your outlook and emotions… c. That the Lord God is in Heaven – He is ruling and reigning over all from His high and lofty throne. That nothing is outside of His view and His hand… d. That this same Lord God is God on earth as well – He is not an absent landlord. He is our very present help in the time of need. He is right here with us. Right in the midst of our sorrows, grief, cares, concerns and trials. Right in the midst of Covid-19. He is Lord ON the earth, not just over the earth… e. And there is no other. Satan does not rule. Governments do not rule. We do not rule. Circumstances do not rule. Viruses do not rule. God rules. Alone. There is no other. Praise the living and true God.
Through the Word in 2020 / March 15 – The Lord is our strength

March 15th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 26-1-16; Romans 9:19-33; Psalm 62, Deuteronomy 1-3.

There is no question that David’s circumstances were far different than ours in this Psalm. But there is also no question that the God he was crying out to here is not in any wise different, but in every way the same. And so it is the same things David relies upon here, are equally the province of every true Believer. Both in the face of adverse circumstances, like the current distresses brought on by the Corona virus crises, and especially, in terms of facing the attacks of our greatest enemy – indwelling sin.

Psalm 62:1–12 (ESV): For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.

How necessary is the reminder to speak to our own souls to remain quiet and un-agitated as we look to our God for our salvation on all fronts.

2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.

He does not say he (nor we) will not be shaken at all, but that he will not be GREATLY shaken. He sees his trials as relative considering his status before his God.

Only when as Believers we completely put our trust only in Him to comfort us and to fight for us against our sins, and abide with us in our trials will we know the victory He plans for us. Until we come to truly realize that He ALONE is our rock, that He ALONE is our safety and fortress – no technique, program, exercise or system – but Him ALONE, will we find true deliverance.

3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah

So once again, after enumerating some of his opposition, David brings himself back to remember –
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.

And so he takes the very thing with which he comforts himself and appeals to us now to do the same –
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah

He reminds us that neither wealth nor poverty make any difference in these matters. All that matters is trusting our God.
9 Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.

And we might add to his admonition here, put no trust in Governments, in Science, in experts, in theories, in the media, or pundits from any side of any aisle –
10 Put no trust in extortion;
set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, set not your heart on them.

Here is the sum! Power belongs to God. Power over sin. Power over disease. Power over economies. Power over every circumstance and condition. We are to look to the One who alone has true power. Human power in the face of such things is a mere, egotistical illusion.
11 Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you will render to a man
according to his work.

Our good, holy, just, loving and all wise God will carry us, and bring all of life to its proper conclusion in due time.

Trust Him child of God. If He gave His only Son for your soul’s salvation – what won’t He do for you?
Through the Word in 2020 / March 14 – A Remarkably Timely Word

March 14th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 25:31-46; Romans 9:1-18; Psalm 61, Numbers 33-36.

My personality and constitution resists change. And that shows itself in me even more as I age. But our God doesn’t suffer from such a condition and He invites us always to find our only REAL permanence in Him – in His character, being, purposes and plans.

So it is the Christian life, just as all life, has many many stages to it. In Numbers 33, we are shown that during their 40 years in Wilderness, Israel had to break camp no less than 41 times. Is it any surprise then that the Church too will undergo changes along our route to the Heavenly Zion?

Some those changes are and will be exciting. And some will be filled with danger. Some are times of rest, and others times of attack. Some are times of peace and some times of raging war. There are pleasant places, dry places and seemingly empty places. Places where God meets with us, and places where He seems silent. Places of revelation like Sinai. Places of chastening. Places where they tarried long and places where they moved on quickly.

Childhood. Adolescence. Adulthood. Middle age. Old age. Singleness. Marriage. Bereavement. Joy. Career. Retirement. Perhaps divorce. Loss. Riches or poverty. And yes, massive interruptions to business or life as usual – like the advent of the Corona virus.

We will be living interrupted lives for a season – individually, and as a Church.

And so Numbers 33 offers us much to consider in our present season of uncertainty.

1. Our gracious God leads and attends us every step, and in every place. He never leaves us nor forsakes us. And His Church remains His Church every step. Though it may need to respond in new ways to new challenges.

2. It is a good reminder that we ought never to imagine the Christian life will be one of simple ease and rootedness. For this is not our home. This is the wilderness, wrought by the Fall. Change is not just inevitable, it is sovereignly appointed – AND, attended.

3. No stage is the entire journey. We can easily begin to think where we are at this moment is the way it will always be. Not so. Some things may return to normal, or we may need to adjust to a “new normal” – temporarily or permanently in some ways. The never-changing normal is to be found in our never-changing God, and His every faithful care and Word.

4. Our Canaan is still the other side of Jordan. And we will have no permanent place until then. But we will “break camp” and re-camp together as His Church as need be, until then.

5. At every stage in Israel’s Wilderness journey, there was God’s presence; God’s provision; and the reality that every step was part of God’s plan in bringing them home. That has not changed. It is just as much a reality for us – even as it was foreshadowed in passages like this one.

As an assembly, we’ll need to respond in new ways to our present challenges. But we remain in the hand of our good God. And He will provide the wisdom, the ways and the wherewithal to do so.

Hang in their Beloved – our God is at work!
Through the Word in 2020 / March 13 – Another Intercessor

March 13th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 25:14-30; Romans 8:18-39; Psalm 60, Numbers 31-32.

If there is any passage of Scripture I can say was my Dad’s favorite over all others – it is today’s section of Romans. It stands out as the pinnacle of comfort and security of Believers. It is truly unparalleled.

But one aspect of this portion which seldom gets its due, either in preaching and teaching or even in the ordinary Believer’s mind is 26-30 and the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

The ministry of the Holy Spirit in intercession for the Believer is a most neglected doctrine. Neglected to the genuine loss of much comfort in our pains, trials, sorrows and griefs. And, it serves as a grand template as to how we might best pray for one another. When you don’t know how to pray from someone else, the 3 ways He intercedes for us give us a marvelous pattern to follow.

So first, know this Christian, if no one in all the world knows your needs and prays for you, the Holy Spirit does. And as indwelling you, He knows your needs with the searchlight of infinite, intimate knowledge, and infinite compassion.

He knows us better than we know ourselves.

Second, What is this great WILL of God for us which the Spirit must assist us in praying for? This thing which is labeled here – as an intercession “according to the will of God?” It is the answer as to why is it that all things work together for the good to those who love Him? Because we are called according to His PURPOSE which is: TO BE CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF HIS SON.

In this, He wants better for us than we want for ourselves. Our pleas are often so temporally located, so immediately. His, deeply, spiritually and eternally.

Third, note how this is an indication of the depth of the Spirit’s groanings on our behalf, not ours. These are not our utterances but His. He so agonizes on our behalf. He knows our real needs, we do not. He knows how desperate we are, we do not.

He loves us better than we can love ourselves.

When we don’t know our need well enough to groan, He does. And can any imagine that the SPirit who was sent from the Father and the Son to us and for us will not be heard when He groans on our behalf? Indeed He will. And we will bear all of the benefits.
Through the Word in 2020 / March 12 – Do you love His appearing?

March 12th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 25:1-13; Romans 8:1-17; Psalm 59, Numbers 28-30.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins (as it is called) is a familiar one, and though some of its key points are subtle, they are powerful. It is unique to Matthew’s Gospel.

The picture of all ten being virgins is meant to let us know that there are those in the visible Church, those among us who profess Christ and to all outward appearances are Christ’s, but who nevertheless are not prepared for His coming and being gathered to Him. In the final analysis, they will prove to be professors only. This is vitally important: Merely being “moral” (symbolized here by all 10 being virgins) is not the same as having the saving righteousness of Christ by faith.

Many are those who have it in their mind that they want and expect the blessings of Heaven. But in truth, some of those do not have the key essential to a good and proper expectation – the indwelling, illuminating Spirit of Christ. They want the joys and the privileges of Christ, but have done nothing to be prepared for His coming and what it means. They have not been born again.

This parable illustrates the same concept as 2 Timothy 3:5 – that there are those who have a form of godliness, but deny the power of true godliness. Only the Spirit can illumine the heart and mind and make us ready for Jesus’ coming. Nothing less or else is sufficient. One may indeed have a lamp that looks like everyone else’s – but if it is empty – we will be lost.

So note 3 things:

1. Those without “oil” have no provision for the long haul – to endure while Christ delays. Indeed, they profess to be those who will celebrate His coming, but they are not prepared for it at all. They are bereft of the central need – union to Him in the Spirit.

2. And when He comes, such provision cannot be gotten from others, you must have it within yourself. The Spirit is not a borrowed commodity. No one else can give you some of the Holy Spirit from themselves. He must be had personally as given by Jesus.

3. Only those who have set their hearts and minds upon receiving Him and being in right condition for that hour will be His. He returns for those who “love His appearing” (2 Tim. 4:8), none else.

Now is a good time to ask yourself if you are one who truly loves His appearing, anticipates it with genuine joy, or one who simply owns it as a piece of religious dogma? Is Jesus’ return an authentic and motivating hope? If not, why not? And what are you going to do about it?
Through the Word in 2020 / March 11 – The Romans 7 Conundrum

March 11th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 24:36-51; Romans 7:13-25; Psalm 58, Numbers 26-27.

If there is a chapter that has spawned more debate than Romans 7, I am at a loss to name it. Is this Paul talking about his pre-conversion state? Is he talking about the Christian’s battle with sin? Is he talking about being bound by habitual sin even after his conversion? What’s going on here? And I wouldn’t presume to counter the great men of God who have taken their stand on any side throughout the centuries. But I will proffer a consideration.

One of Paul’s key themes underlying chapters 5 through 8 is: Exactly what has changed for the Believer, and what has not? We are new creatures indeed, but we are not yet glorified. We are justified, but still sin. We have eternal life, and yet will still die physically. We have a new love of holiness, and yet sinful desires still stir within us. So he can write: “I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Romans 7:22–23 (ESV). It would seem that only a genuine Christian could declare they “delight in the law of God”, but how does that square with being “captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members”?

Without trying to reach above my grasp or overcomplicating the matter I think his point is ultimately this: Even as a Believer, even in my best efforts to serve God, sin still taints all of my motives. I do nothing purely yet. And if that is true, if I cannot find even one really pure motive and intent of the heart that isn’t still somehow tainted by sin – then why am I not condemned the way I was before? And the glorious answer is: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!… There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” Rom. 7:25a & 8:1-2.

The old law said: “Sin, and you will die.” But the new law, the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from that old law. The new law says: “Believe, and you will live!” The Believer’s being “captive” in vs. 23 is simply that we cannot escape sin tainting all – even our best service for Christ. But the Believer’s freedom is that we are not subject to condemnation even though that is the case because – and ONLY because – we are in Christ Jesus.

Hallelujah! This is our joy and our freedom and our glory even though we still cry out with Paul “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” What does that look like? “So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.” I set my mind to serve Christ, even though I know that I still have fleshly tendencies tainting my service. And because of Christ – the Father receives it as purified in the blood of the Lamb.

What a Redeemer He is!
Through the Word in 2020 / March 10 – Sin doesn’t die

March 10th, 2020

We are reading the Bible through together this year, using the Discipleship Journal Reading Plan published by the Navigators. You can download it free of charge from: https://www.navigators.org/resource/bible-reading-plans/

Today’s 4 readings are: Matthew 24:15-35; Romans 7:1-12; Psalm 57, Numbers 23-25.

Our Romans passage today carries vital information for the Believer on 2 counts. I cannot stress how important this passage is to the way Christians need to think.

Note that it is not the Law which dies, but that we die to it. It is essential that we grasp Paul’s language here and not convolute it into saying what it does not say. And, it is the very same with sin. The text DOES NOT say sin dies or that we can kill it. It says WE die to sin. Indwelling sin does not die, but we die to having to obey its influence. So many live in constant discouragement that they cannot make sin die within them altogether. But that is not for this age. Such freedom is reserved for the age to come. For this age, it is enough that while sin remains within us, and while it will continue to voice its desires throughout our lives, we can learn to turn a deaf ar to its pleas – we can die to it. We HAVE died to it in Christ.

If you Christian, have imagined some state of being now, in this life, where sin will not still stir within and continue its attempt to gain the ascendency in your life, you are mistaken. Trying to arrive at such a place will drive you to despair. That is an impossible battle and to waste your time and energy trying to get to that place will distract and exhaust you from fighting the real battle: Dying to sin. Learning to turn a deaf ear to its false promises. Refusing to answer when it knocks at the door of your heart. Know that because of your union with Christ you are no longer under compulsion to respond. And flee to Him in thanksgiving in such hours. Your own voice in thanksgiving and praise can drown out the siren song of sin.

And make no mistake, this takes a perpetual reminding ourselves of the reality of our death in union with Jesus. We do not retain this knowledge as a static reality easily. We must come back to the Word over and over and over to read it afresh and keep our hearts alive in the truth of it.