What is Christianity Wiki

Jump to: navigation, search

Difference between revisions of "Study Working with God 7"

(Created page with "<p>"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we...might...")
 
 
(One intermediate revision by the same user not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
−
<p>"In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we...might be for the praise of his glory" Ephesians 1:11-12 (see Romans 9:23; Job 36:5; Isaiah 46:10).</p>
+
<p>"As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man" Proverbs 27:19.</p>
−
<p>As Christians, we have been "called according to his purpose" (Rom.8:28). The plan He has for our lives was conceived even before the creation of the world (Eph.1:4; 1 Cor.2:7). That plan includes many things, but the bottom line of God's purpose is to reveal His glory in and through our lives.</p>
+
<p>The condition of our heart is the key to our life in Christ (Proverbs 4:23; Matthew 6:21). God searches our hearts, revealing areas that will block our relationship with Him (1 Samuel 16:7; Romans 8:27).</p>
−
<p><strong>Revelation of God's Glory</strong></p>
+
<p><strong>Three Gifts of Forgiveness</strong></p>
−
<p>"A voice of one calling: 'In the desert prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God...And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken'" Isaiah 40:3, Isa 40:5.</p>
+
<p>"I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more" Isaiah 43:25 (see also Psalm 103:1-3; Micah 7:19).</p>
−
<p>The earth is already full of God's glory (Isa.6:3) - the creation itself reveals one level of God's glory (Psa.19:1-3; Rom.1:18-20).</p>
+
<p>The Bible talks about three gifts of forgiveness:</p>
−
<p>But God desires to reveal His glory in a much deeper way.</p>
+
<p><strong>The forgiveness God gives to us</strong> (1 John 1:9; Luke 7:47).</p>
−
<p>"For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" Habakkuk 2:14.</p>
+
<p><strong>The forgiveness we give to ourselves</strong> (Phil.3:13-14).</p>
−
<p>God's glorious plan hinges on the Church becoming everything that God intended for her (Eph.3:10-11). God has planned for a Church that will reveal His glory and nature to the world.</p>
+
<p><strong>The forgiveness we give to others</strong> (Luke 17:3-4).</p>
−
<p>"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you" Isaiah 60:1-2 (see also Isa 58:8).</p>
+
<p>"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you" Colossians 3:13 (see also Ephesians 4:32).</p>
−
<p><strong>The Darkness of the World</strong><br /> "...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" Romans 3:23.</p>
+
<p>These three gifts of forgiveness are important in our lives. We must understand God's gift of forgiveness to us, through the shed blood of Jesus (Colossians 1:13-14; 1 Peter 1:2).</p>
−
<p>When Adam rebelled against God, sin entered the world. The Greek word for sin means "to miss the mark." It means to fall short of God's glory. When he sinned, Adam exchanged the glory of God for his own glory (Romans 1:21-23).</p>
+
<p>But we must also learn to forgive ourselves - which simply means receiving God's gift of forgiveness and agreeing with it. Now we are obliged to forgive others. If we refuse to forgive others, then unforgiveness will block the daily expression of God's forgiveness in our lives.</p>
−
<p>But into this darkness, the "light of the gospel of the glory of Christ" has shone (2 Cor.4:4, 2 Cor 4:6). This Gospel promises two kinds of glory:</p>
+
<p>"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" Matthew 6:14-15 (read also Matt 18:21-35).</p>
−
<p>A future glory (Romans 8:17-18; 2 Corinthians 4:17)</p>
+
<p><strong>Stages of Unforgiveness</strong><br /> <strong>Initial hurt</strong> - someone says or does something that wounds our hearts (Psalm 109:22).</p>
−
<p>A present glory (2 Corinthians 3:10-11, 2 Cor 3:18).</p>
+
<p><strong>Resentment</strong> - if we don't deal with it straight away, we begin to harbour resentment. Our hearts dwell on the hurt. We are filled with self-pity and a continuing anger against the person who hurt us (Colossians 3:8-10,12-14).</p>
−
<p>"To [us] God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" Colossians 1:27 (see also 2 Thessalonians 2 :14).</p>
+
<p><strong>Retaliation</strong> - we get back at that person, usually either by not speaking to them, or by slandering them to others (Romans 12:17-20).</p>
−
<p><strong>The Radiance of God's Glory</strong><br /> God has chosen to reveal His glory to the world through:</p>
+
<p><strong>Bitterness</strong> - this is where we allow unforgiveness to defile our hearts (Hebrews 12:15; Ephesians 4:29-32).</p>
−
<p><strong>The Son of God<br /> "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word..." Heb.1:3.</strong></p>
+
<p><strong>Living One Day at a Time</strong></p>
−
<p>The glory of God was revealed in the person of Jesus (John 1:14, John 1:18). He is "the radiance of God's glory." We cannot look directly into the glory of God (Exo.33:20). But when we look at Jesus, we see the brightness of God's glory through Him.</p>
+
<p>"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" Matthew 6:34.</p>
−
<p>"For God...made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ" 2 Cor.4:6.</p>
+
<p>Many Christians are either a prisoner of the future (through worry) or a prisoner of the past (through guilt and unforgiveness). God wants to set us free so that we can live each day with Him - a day at a time.</p>
−
<p><strong>The Church of God</strong><br /> "...Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her... to present her to himself as a radiant church..." Ephesians 5:25-27.</p>
+
<p>"'In your anger do not sin': Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold" Ephesians 4:26-27.</p>
−
<p>The Church holds the central place in God's eternal purpose (Ephesians 3:10-11). The purpose of God is that the Church will reveal the full majesty of God's glory (John 17:22).</p>
+
<p>One simple principle in forgiveness is not to allow feelings of hurt and unforgiveness to enter a second day. Each evening we can get things right with God and with others. One other provision God has made is the communion table. Whenever we partake of the Lord's Supper together, we are instructed to make sure we are not holding anything against a brother or sister (1 Corinthians 11:27-31).</p>
−
<p>"And he...showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal" Revelation 21:10-11 (read also Hebrews 11:10,Heb 11:16; Heb 12:22-23; Heb 13:14).</p>
+
<p><strong>A Continuing Debt</strong></p>
−
<p>The redeemed people of God are described as a city, shining with the glory of God. Whereas Jesus is the actual radiance of God's glory - "the exact representation of his being" - the Church is likened to a precious jewel, reflecting the glory of God. When you hold a diamond up to the sun, it splinters the light into many colours. This is how we reveal the glory of God.</p>
+
<p>"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another..." Romans 13:8.</p>
−
<p>"His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord" Ephesians 3:10-11.</p>
+
<p>When Jesus died for you, he took the judgement you deserved.</p>
−
<p>The word "manifold" literally means "multicoloured and magnificently variegated." Each of our lives reflect the glory of God in a unique and complimentary way.</p>
+
<p>You now owe Him a massive debt which you have no ability to repay.</p>
−
<p><strong>Walking in God's Glory</strong><br /> Experiencing God's glory was the whole ambition of Moses (Exodus 33:18) and of David (Psalm 17:15; Psa 27:4). But under the Old Covenant, the glory of God was limited.</p>
+
<p>But God doesn't require you to repay it -except in one way: God has transferred this debt to Him onto others around us. We are now indebted to everyone. The only way we repay this continuing debt is by forgiving one another.</p>
−
<p>"Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?" 2 Corinthians 3:7-8 (read the whole chapter).</p>
+
<p>When we consider how great our debt is to the Lord, is this too big to ask? We now express our love to God by loving others. We cannot be close to God while harbouring hatred and unforgiveness.</p>
−
<p>The Cross changed forever the way God's glory interacts with people. The New Covenant in Christ has opened the way for every believer to walk in God's glory.</p>
+
<p>"If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen" 1 John 4:20.</p>
−
<p>"And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" 2 Corinthians 3:18.</p>
+
<p>When we forgive others, we acknowledge several things:</p>
−
<p>With Moses, God's glory was a fading glory that had to be veiled (2 Corinthians 3:13). Now, through the action of the Holy Spirit in our lives (Romans 8:1-11),</p>
+
<p>God's love for us (Matt.18:21-35; Luke 6:36; John 13:34-35; Psalm 103:7-14).</p>
−
<p>God's glory is unveiled and ever-increasing! As we walk closely with the Lord, two things happen - we reflect the glory of God like a mirror and we are transformed into His glorious likeness. This is the purpose of God for our lives. As we walk in His purpose, the glory of God is revealed through us to the world.</p>
+
<p>Our love for God (Luke 7:47; 1 John 4:20).</p>
−
<p>"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen" Ephesians 3:20-21.</p>
+
<p>Our trust in God's justice (2 Thessalonians 1:3-7).</p>
 +
<p>Our faith in God's plan for us (Romans 8:28).</p>
 +
<p>Our readiness to suffer abuse (Matt.5:11-12).</p>
 +
<p>Our enemy is not people (Ephesians 6:12).</p>
 +
<p>Our secure position in Christ (Col.1:1-4).</p>
 +
<p>If I forgive, will the hurt I feel go away? Probably not immediately. But forgiveness has nothing to do with feelings. Forgiveness is a decision. Forgetting is a process. If we decide not to forgive, the hurt is like an open, festering wound, which is very difficult to heal. When we make the decision to forgive, the hurt is cleaned up, and the healing process is then quick.</p>
 +
<p><strong>Healing the Heart</strong></p>
 +
<p>"He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds" Psa.147:3.</p>
 +
<p>God is able to heal every heart. In fact, this is part of the Gospel message (Isaiah 61:1). But more than that, God wants to use us to minister that healing to others. Only when we have experienced both the personal forgiveness of God and the grace to forgive others can we be used to minister healing to others.</p>
 +
<p>"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God" 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.</p>
  
 
[[Study Working with God 8|Walking in God's Purpose]]
 
[[Study Working with God 8|Walking in God's Purpose]]
 +
 +
[[Study Working with God Index|Back to Index]]

Latest revision as of 00:48, 14 February 2011

"As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man" Proverbs 27:19.

The condition of our heart is the key to our life in Christ (Proverbs 4:23; Matthew 6:21). God searches our hearts, revealing areas that will block our relationship with Him (1 Samuel 16:7; Romans 8:27).

Three Gifts of Forgiveness

"I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more" Isaiah 43:25 (see also Psalm 103:1-3; Micah 7:19).

The Bible talks about three gifts of forgiveness:

The forgiveness God gives to us (1 John 1:9; Luke 7:47).

The forgiveness we give to ourselves (Phil.3:13-14).

The forgiveness we give to others (Luke 17:3-4).

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you" Colossians 3:13 (see also Ephesians 4:32).

These three gifts of forgiveness are important in our lives. We must understand God's gift of forgiveness to us, through the shed blood of Jesus (Colossians 1:13-14; 1 Peter 1:2).

But we must also learn to forgive ourselves - which simply means receiving God's gift of forgiveness and agreeing with it. Now we are obliged to forgive others. If we refuse to forgive others, then unforgiveness will block the daily expression of God's forgiveness in our lives.

"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins" Matthew 6:14-15 (read also Matt 18:21-35).

Stages of Unforgiveness
Initial hurt - someone says or does something that wounds our hearts (Psalm 109:22).

Resentment - if we don't deal with it straight away, we begin to harbour resentment. Our hearts dwell on the hurt. We are filled with self-pity and a continuing anger against the person who hurt us (Colossians 3:8-10,12-14).

Retaliation - we get back at that person, usually either by not speaking to them, or by slandering them to others (Romans 12:17-20).

Bitterness - this is where we allow unforgiveness to defile our hearts (Hebrews 12:15; Ephesians 4:29-32).

Living One Day at a Time

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" Matthew 6:34.

Many Christians are either a prisoner of the future (through worry) or a prisoner of the past (through guilt and unforgiveness). God wants to set us free so that we can live each day with Him - a day at a time.

"'In your anger do not sin': Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold" Ephesians 4:26-27.

One simple principle in forgiveness is not to allow feelings of hurt and unforgiveness to enter a second day. Each evening we can get things right with God and with others. One other provision God has made is the communion table. Whenever we partake of the Lord's Supper together, we are instructed to make sure we are not holding anything against a brother or sister (1 Corinthians 11:27-31).

A Continuing Debt

"Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another..." Romans 13:8.

When Jesus died for you, he took the judgement you deserved.

You now owe Him a massive debt which you have no ability to repay.

But God doesn't require you to repay it -except in one way: God has transferred this debt to Him onto others around us. We are now indebted to everyone. The only way we repay this continuing debt is by forgiving one another.

When we consider how great our debt is to the Lord, is this too big to ask? We now express our love to God by loving others. We cannot be close to God while harbouring hatred and unforgiveness.

"If anyone says, 'I love God,' yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen" 1 John 4:20.

When we forgive others, we acknowledge several things:

God's love for us (Matt.18:21-35; Luke 6:36; John 13:34-35; Psalm 103:7-14).

Our love for God (Luke 7:47; 1 John 4:20).

Our trust in God's justice (2 Thessalonians 1:3-7).

Our faith in God's plan for us (Romans 8:28).

Our readiness to suffer abuse (Matt.5:11-12).

Our enemy is not people (Ephesians 6:12).

Our secure position in Christ (Col.1:1-4).

If I forgive, will the hurt I feel go away? Probably not immediately. But forgiveness has nothing to do with feelings. Forgiveness is a decision. Forgetting is a process. If we decide not to forgive, the hurt is like an open, festering wound, which is very difficult to heal. When we make the decision to forgive, the hurt is cleaned up, and the healing process is then quick.

Healing the Heart

"He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds" Psa.147:3.

God is able to heal every heart. In fact, this is part of the Gospel message (Isaiah 61:1). But more than that, God wants to use us to minister that healing to others. Only when we have experienced both the personal forgiveness of God and the grace to forgive others can we be used to minister healing to others.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God" 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.

Walking in God's Purpose

Back to Index

Retrieved from "http://www.wicwiki.org.uk/mediawiki/index.php?title=Study_Working_with_God_7&oldid=9481"