“But the rulers of this world have not understood it; if they had, they would not have crucified our glorious Lord. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.’ But, it was to us that God revealed these things by His Spirit. For His Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets.” (1 Corinthians 2:8-10 NLT)
Every person on earth is on a journey of faith, leading somewhere. Ultimately, of course, being eternal beings, we will choose by our attitudes, actions, and choices whether we will enjoy eternity with the Lord Jesus or be forever separated from Him. Where are you going? What will you discover along the way? Will your journey ultimately lead to freedom or bondage; celebration or sadness; victory or defeat or some combination of those things. Faith is never in question, the object of our faith is.
Every religious or non-religious conviction, ideology or belief carves out for each of us a lifestyle, a set of beliefs or convictions from which and by which we will live. How are these convictions formulated? By whom or what are we most influenced? What are the implications of the choices we make, our families of origin, our friends, schooling, levels of education, training, employment, life’s experiences?
We’re all products to some extent of our environment, yet, the irony is, two people can experience the exact same environment and respond in completely different ways depending on the source of their faith. Why is that? Might it have something to do with the sensitivity of our spirit to the Spirit of God within us? Problems arise when our spirit seeks other spirits than the Spirit of God for satisfaction.
Perhaps your environment was very knowledge-based and reason-oriented. If it didn’t make sense to you, it wasn’t allowed to register in your spirit. Every human being is created with a body, mind, and soul (spirit), but like a mal-nourished body will deteriorate and not function to full potential, to smother, or deny the spiritual aspect of our being can thwart our soul and prevent full development of our spiritual capacity. Others seek to thrive in non-Christian religious environments.
The beauty of God’s love for us is that He will, upon our request, even at our spirit’s inclination, renew our spirit and regenerate our soul, giving us life from His Spirit that enables the activation of parts of our mind and heart that have laid dormant and undeveloped. Regardless of where we are on our life’s journey, the Holy Spirit of the living God will open our heart and mind to enable us to see and experience things we never knew existed. Often a fresh environment opens the way for this to happen.
What kinds of things? Ordinary occurrences for human beings such as the birth of child, a sickness, a relationship, a change in status like beginning or graduating from High School, College, Post Graduate Studies. Getting our first “real” job, getting a promotion, getting engaged or married, getting divorced or getting fired from a job or demoted from a position. These ups and downs can be exhilarating or crushing to our spirit.
Spiritual things such as a new or renewed awareness of who Jesus is can also play a key role in our spirit’s development. At the birth of Jesus, God poured Himself into human flesh and literally, as John 1:14 explains: “…became human and made His home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.” Why is that important to know? Because God’s mission in becoming a human being wasn’t to punish us or take His anger out on us, but to express His deep love and affection for us; so much so, the very purpose of Jesus’ coming was to die for us. But why? Because there was no other way for us to know forgiveness for our sin than for the perfect “Lamb of God” to be sacrificed for the payment of our sin. This is all explained in the Bible, but suffice it to say, it exhibits God’s love in an unmistakable way.
Why did we need payment for our sin? Because sin, which is our willful choosing of our way over God’s, is what separates us from God, and the only remedy is the sacrifice of a sinless, spotless “Lamb,” which, as the Bible explains, is the reason Jesus came. He’s not out to get us, except to love, forgive, and fill us with Himself. He’s not angry with us, He delighted in creating us and filling us with the potential we have to become the person He’s designed us to be.
There’s so much more here, let’s continue in tomorrow’s article.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 