Beware works that look spiritual but are actually efforts of the flesh mindset. If you’re trying to get something from God by doing something in the spiritual realm, you are probably “in the flesh.” Meaning, you think you can get something from God based on a work like giving, repenting, forgiving, rebuking, and so on.
I made a social media post recently that said, “you can’t add to or improve upon Christ’s finished work, you can only enjoy it.” 98% of the comments were grateful for this powerful truth. But there will always be those people who bring up the need for “works” when talking about the finished work of Jesus.
When the topic of the complete sufficiency of the sacrifice or freedom from the Law comes up, these passages usually enter the conversation.
As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. James 2:26
For we are God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10
But this passage should also be part of the conversation.
For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Hebrews 4:10
Because of this passage.
The word "doer" from James 1:22 in the original language (poiētēs) means to "poetically perform or act out."
The definition of "poetic" is: having an imaginative or sensitively emotional style of expression.
The idea is this; imaginatively and emotionally express the Word of God.
This process starts in your heart.
"Doing the Word" is more than mere outward obedience, it's a process of holding the Word of God in your heart until it bursts out of you as fruit. On the outside, legalism and fruit can look the same. But legalistic acts leave you empty, cold, and faithless.
Transformation is effortless, but it is the product of believing, and it may take massive amounts of effort to persuade your heart to believe. Your new heart wants to believe. It knows how to believe. It's spiritually genetically encoded to believe. But the competing thoughts in your mind might rob your heart from being fully persuaded.
The remedy to doubt and unbelief is to seed your heart with the Word of God and not allow it to be plucked out or choked by cares, lust, and money issues.
Once you seed your heart with God's Word, and you are standing to give it time to grow and bear fruit, you have to push away doubt and fear.
Proverbs 13:12 says "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.” We have an epidemic of sick hearts in the world today. Join us today as we discuss how to cultivate peace in our hearts so grace will spring forth and bring healing.
God is not sending trials into your life to make you more holy or teach you lessons. Tribulation will come in this life, it’s unavoidable, but it’s not from God.
Your faith is tested when you are tempted. Sometimes you pass the test; sometimes, you don’t. The good news is that God will give you wisdom to stand in the spiritual gift of patience until you are free from the trial/temptation and become more mature in that area. He wants to help you out of it. You can ask God for help, and he will help you without finding fault or rebuking you (James 1:5).
When you face the trial/temptation in the power of patience, it causes you to grow up in that area and become more mature. If you are tempted in an area or continue to face specific trials, ask God for help, He wants to help you. Don’t accept it as His will and embrace the pain.
The Word of God is life for every aspect of our being. It not only shows us who God is as revealed in Christ, it shows us our very identity. We must use it to renew our minds in a deep way that transcends behavior. Thanks for joining us today as we discuss the deeper aspects of repentance and the power of the Word of God.
This video is two messages in one, from Mike Crane and myself. Mike Crane is an elder at Forward Church and a former Georgia Senator.
Mike brings a powerful word about our responsibility as influencers of society. I go on to point out the prophetic nature of Mike’s message regarding our responsibility as citizens of Heaven and as citizens of the United States. Both of us address the current possibility of the overturning of Roe vs Wade and the state of abortion in our nation.
