Under Grace

November 22, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Faith, Trust

Under Grace

For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.
‭‭Romans‬ ‭6:14‬ ‭

Dead To Sin

Have you ever considered why we all continue to sin even after we have been saved? Just because we accept the free gift of salvation doesn’t mean we will never sin again. It just means that the work of Jesus Christ has paid the penalty of our sins. He has justified us before God and we are forgiven.

For an unbelieving person, sin dominates their life. They do not even realize they are sinning. They are a slave to sin and sin is their master. But as a Believer you are a slave to righteousness. You have been set free from sin. That does not give us the right to go sin even more, it just gives us the attitude to sin less. Once we consider what Jesus did for us on the cross it will make us not want to sin. We will be more aware of our sins and we will make special effort not to sin. The Holy Spirit gives us power to overcome the sins that once dominated our life. Perhaps you noticed in your personal life that after you were saved you quit doing some of the sins you use to commit.

Christ makes us a new person from the inside out. He changes our heart first and then places a desire in our hearts to not want to sin. Sin is anything that does not glorify God. As Christ followers we live a life that is pleasing and accepting to Christ. We need to pay close attention to any sins that we commit on a regular basis.

Prayer

Lord, I confess my sins to you one by one. Thank you for forgiving me and giving me new life.

A Good Conscience

November 20, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Encouragement, Faith

A Good Conscience

Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, “Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.”
Acts 23:1

A Clean Slate

If you remember the life of Saul before the Lord changed his name to Paul, you will remember how he was persecuting the church and killing Christians. He was not considered a good person in our perspective. But here in this verse Paul says to the Sanhedrin council, “I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.” How could he say such a profound statement?

Paul knew his past was not good. But he also knew that he had received God’s forgiveness and grace. Even though he had previously acted out violent persecutions against Christians, he was a new person in Christ. He always used his testimony to show people how Jesus changed his life. So Paul could honestly stand before the council and declare that he had a good and clear conscience before God. His slate was clean and he was cleared from all unrighteousness.

That is a great way to live. We should all seek to live before God with a good conscience. The only way you can effectively do so is to confess your sins and turn from all evil. A problem occurs when we confess our sin but keep doing the same sinful things. We are to confess, repent, and turn away from repeating the same sins. The only way to receive a good conscience before God is to be clean and free from sin. Paul was able to let the past stay in the past and live in the present for the Lord. Is there any sin in your life that is troubling your soul and keeping you from having peace with God? Confess and repent today.

Prayer

Pray and ask God to reveal any unconfessed sin and repent from it today.

Fervent In Spirit

November 19, 2019 Pastor Stephen Dedman Encouragement, Faith, Trust

Fervent In Spirit

Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.
‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:11‬

Passion And Enthusiasm

The word fervent means to have passion for something or towards something. There are many things that we show passion for. But most importantly, we are to be passionate about serving the Lord. That really means that we show enthusiasm when it comes to our spiritual behavior. In other words, we are to be excited about the things of God.

What do you have a passion for? Are you enthusiastic when it comes to serving Christ and serving others? We live in a very selfish world that tends to make everything revolve around self. We must constantly and consistently be searching for opportunities to glorify God.

Today it is rare to see someone excited about their job. But when you do it is noticeable. They have a smile on their face and enthusiasm in their soul. They enjoy what they are doing. That is the kind of passion we should have when it comes to serving the Lord. People around us should witness the joy we have and the passion for serving Christ. It is not about money, power, and prestige. It’s about having a fervent spirit. You are not going to naturally wake up in the morning ready to go to work for Jesus. The natural tendency is to be lazy about the work of serving others. Paul essentially instructs us to get our priorities straight. If we have passionate desires for worldly things, something is wrong spiritually. Our focus needs to turn to being enthusiastic about what makes God happy.

Prayer

Lord, renew my mind and fill my heart with joy. I want to serve You today and be enthusiastic about Your work that You have called me to do.