Saturday, April 07, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/07/07

Romans 6:22 - But now having been set free from sin, and being servants to God, you now have your fruit unto holiness and the end eternal life.

Fruits are the expressions of one's conduct and manner of life. When we were the servants of sin our fruits were the shameful behaviors of iniquity. Now that we are the servants of God our behavior glorifies God. The fruit of holiness is in fact the same as the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, enduring patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance (Galatians 5:22-23).

These are the evidences that our members are yielded to the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit who is leading and guiding us into all truth produces those things which pertain unto holiness as we voluntarily yield ourselves to His influence (John 16:13; Romans 6:13; 2 Peter 1:3). He is our teacher who has come to show us how to function in the nature of God (1 John 3:24; Philippians 2:13; Colossians 1:29; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Timothy 3:17). If we will yield ourselves to Him then we are baptized in His influence (Ephesians 5:18; Romans 6:16, 19; Galatians 5:25). We are not able to bear these fruits of holiness unless we are willing to dwell in Jesus.

This life of the Spirit demands that we dwell in Jesus as a branch dwells in a vine; for without Jesus we can do nothing (John 15:5; Romans 7:4; Philippians 1:11). The fruit that was in our lives before we were made a new creation were the fruits of death and of sin (Romans 7:5). But now we have the fruit of the Spirit of life which is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth (Ephesians 5:9). It is essential to recognize that these fruits of holiness are in our lives as an act of submission and obedience to God. When we recognize that we are coming under the influence of unholy emotions we must submit ourselves to God and bring it to an end. For example: the contrast between the fruit of sorrow and the fruit of joy is easy to discern. When we find our members taken over by the cares and concerns of the world and sorrow begins to dominate us we must recognize that we are not yielding ourselves to the Spirit of God. At the very moment that we recognize this we must choose to dwell in Jesus by turning to Him as our Savior and Lord. As we look unto the One who has come to provide for us, who is the author and finisher of our faith, He comes and rescues us. As we yield our members to God, the joy of the Lord begins to spring up and flow out of us as rivers of living water.

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org

Friday, April 06, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/06/07

Colossians 3:1 - If you then be risen together with Christ seek those things that are above where Christ is seated on the right hand of God.

All those who have accepted Jesus as their savior and thereby received the miracle of the new birth have a statement of faith that was outlined for us by the Apostle Paul: "I am crucified together with Christ; I am buried together with Him by baptism into His death; I am raised up together with Him; I am alive together with Him, and I am seated together with Him in the heavenlies" (Crucified: Romans 6:6, 8; Galatians 2:20; Buried: Colossians 2:12; 3:3; Romans 6:4; Galatians 3:27; Raised: Ephesians 2:6; Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12; 3:1; Alive: Ephesians 2:1, 5; Romans 6:11, 13; Colossians 2:13 Seated: Ephesians 2:6).

The miracle of the new birth transcends all time insomuch that even though Jesus was crucified, buried, arose from the dead, and ascended into heaven 1977 years ago we are participants today. Being raised up together with Christ does not speak of a process that changes us but a radical transformation that takes place in the instant of the new birth. If we are going to participate in the process of maturation in Christ then we must turn all of our affections toward the realm of the Kingdom of God and gaze upon the Author and Finisher of our faith, Christ Jesus.

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org

Thursday, April 05, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/05/07

2 Peter 2:9 - The Lord knows to deliver the godly from temptation but the unrighteous are kept to a day of judgment being punished.

Now the Lord has set apart him that is godly for himself (Psalms 4:3). There are four Greek words translated godly in the New Testament; three of them share common roots whereas the fourth is the same word that is used to translate God (theos). "For godly sorrow works repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world works death" (1 Corinthians 7:10). All four of these words denote the opposite of unrighteousness and ungodliness.

Godliness is the nature of holiness that we have all been given by the Holy Spirit. Every day if we give ourselves to the realms of the Kingdom of God and yield to the word of God and the Holy Spirit, we are taught how to walk in godliness (2 Peter 1:6). One of the primary words in the New Testament that is translated godliness (eusebeia) is given a clear definition by its application in 1 Timothy 3:16 and 2 Peter 1:3. In these verses godliness is defined by the life and nature of Jesus Christ and as the divine nature that has been given to everyone who has been born of God.

We are taught of God that we are to deny ungodliness and live soberly, righteously, and godly (eusebos) in this present world (Titus 2:12). There should be no mistake: godliness is something that God demands of our lives. He has called everyone of us to take hold of "the doctrine which is according to godliness" (1 Timothy 6:3).

Be blessed,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org

Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/04/07

1 Corinthians 6:17 - But he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit.

How could it be possible to communicate a greater degree of oneness with Christ Jesus than is expressed in these verses? Our bodies are the members of Christ, our spirits are one with him, and our bodies are also the temples of the Holy Ghost. To think that our whole spirit, soul, and body has not been redeemed and made holy unto God steps outside the boundary of the word of God (1 Thessalonians 5:23; Colossians 1:22; Philippians 2:15; Titus 2:14; Jude 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:2; Hebrews 2:11; 1 Thessalonians 3:13; Ephesians 5:27).

When we were redeemed by the blood of Jesus every stain of sin was washed away from every part of our being: spirit, soul, and body. That we have been born of the Spirit is at the very heart of the New Testament (John 3:6; Romans 8:9; Ezekiel 36:26-27). The idea of somehow leaving the soul out of what the blood of Jesus has cleansed and made new is an assumption that goes beyond reason. The soul is as much a part of us as our spirit and our bodies (1 Peter 1:9; 22; 2:25; Ephesians 6:6; 3 John 1:2; Hebrews 6:19; 10:39) . Our spirit soul and bodies describe who we are as individuals, and so when we are singled out as redeemed by the blood of Jesus then it is not some part of us but the whole of who we are. Although our bodies are still corruptible and must wait for the resurrection, yet they are holy and belong to God. We are commanded to glorify God in our bodies just as we do in our spirits because they are both His (1 Corinthians 6:20; Philippians 1:20; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 6:16; 2 Corinthians 4:10-11).

Jesus told Peter that if just one part was washed then the whole would be clean (John 13:10). Yet God has gone to great lengths to convince us that we are one with Him by describing the holiness of every part of our being. The most important part of the gospel seems sadly neglected by many, and that is: that we are one with Jesus Christ, He is in us, and we are in Him (John 14:20; 17:11,21-23, 26; 6:56; 15:5-7; Romans 8:1; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18; Colossians 1:20; 1 John 4:12; 3:24).

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org/

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/03/07

Romans 8:13 - For if we live after the flesh we are about to die but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you shall live.

The Greek word 'praxtis' (deeds) may be translated 'function, activities, deeds,' implying sustained activity as in Romans 12:4, "and all these parts have different functions." Now Paul uses this word to describe all the possible activities that can take place in the mortal body. He is dealing with every activity or function of the body whether it is sin, sickness, or disease. It must be remembered in understanding the message of this text that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, it belongs to the Lord, it is blameless, it is the place where God is to be glorified, and it is not the residing place of sin (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:13, 18, 19, 20; 2 Corinthians 6:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; James 2:26).

Sin and the consequence of sin - which are sin, sickness, and disease - have no right to have any control over the mortal body (Romans 6:12). In fact, we are instructed to put all of these things to death by the Spirit (Colossians 3:5). There is a war that is being waged against the saints by all of the demonic powers and their influences (2 Corinthians 10:3-4; 1 Timothy 1:18; 1 Peter 2:11; Ephesians 6:12; Hebrews 12:4). There is a spirit that now works in the children of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2). It is the power of darkness that rules in the realm of the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16). These fleshly lusts are at war against the saints in an attempt to subjugate us to its demonic realm, whom we are to resist steadfast in the faith (1 Peter 2:11). As much as Israel was commanded to put to death anyone who committed high treason against God even so the New Testament saint is commanded to put to death sin, sickness, and disease.

We may view ourselves in some respects as both the temple and the temple guards. It was the responsibility of the temple guards to insure that no one brought anything into the temple that would defile or profane the temple. It is essential to remember that we can only effectively deal with these things by the Spirit. God has given to us strength and His power and has insured that we will triumph in every temptation (2 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 6:10; 3:16; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Colossians 1:11)

Be blessed,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org

Monday, April 02, 2007

Daily Bread - APR/02/07

Colossians 3:5 - Therefore put to death your members which are upon the earth fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil desires, covetousness which is idolatry.

Members (melos) may be used of either the physical parts or the spiritual parts of man. Our members may be yielded to God and used as weapons of righteousness or to sin as weapons of unrighteousness (Romans 6:13; 1 Corinthians 6:15). In the spiritual dimension, man's members refer to his attitudes, affections, emotions, passions, and thoughts. We may also think of our unseen members as the spirit, soul, mind, heart, will, conscience, and thought. In this passage, earthly members are identified as fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affections, evil desires, and covetousness.

When the power of sin would attempt to influence us we are to yield our members unto God as weapons of righteousness. By the act of yielding our members to God those evil things that would attempt to work in our members through the power of sin are destroyed. All that is in the world: the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life will war against us, but as we allow the Holy Spirit to wield our members as weapons of righteousness the power of sin cannot exercise dominion over us (Romans 6:7; 12; 1 Peter 2:1) .

When the physical member the eye looks and beholds that which the realm of sin would turn into adultery or fornication, Jesus said it would be better to pluck it out so that such influence would not lead the whole body into eternal destruction (Matthew 5:29). In this sense, Paul is addressing the church into absolute conformity to God's rule. Therefore, the members must be put to death that would cause an offense. Not that God would require self-mutilation but an absolute conformity to His word. An excellent example of this is given by the Theological Dictionary with regard to the disposition that God's people should have toward the things they speak, "This means that the sinful use of the tongue, being radically condemned to death, can have no more place" (Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. S. 4:565). Paul takes us one step further with our members and reveals to us that our members are joined to one another and unto Christ (1 Corinthians 6:15, 17; Ephesians 5:30; John 6:56; 14:20, 23; 15:5; 17:11, 21-23, 26; Colossians 1:27; 1 John 3:24; 4:13, 15-16; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:10; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; 2 Timothy 1:14; Romans 8:9-11).

Keeping in mind that Paul likens our members to slaves and the slaves can only do what their master allows (Romans 6:19). As the redeemed of the Lord, our Master Christ Jesus rules over us in righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18). God has called us to set all of our affections on things above and not on things of this earth. Sin would like to play its melody (melos) in our members but the people of God are to only yield their members to the influence of the Holy Spirit.

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org
Daily Bread - MAR/31/07

Romans 5:9 - Much more then being now made righteous by his blood we shall be saved by Him from the wrath.

The blood of Jesus has made us righteous because the blood has both erased the former life and its sin and imparted the life of God into us (2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24). Paul said that if there had been a law that could have given life then righteousness would have been by the Law (Galatians 3:21). The blood of Jesus, which purifies us is also the blood that gives us life. The blood of Jesus produces a fellowship that results in our lives being knit together with the fabric of the life of Jesus insomuch that when we partake of His blood He dwells in us and we dwell in Him (John 6:56; John 15:4-5; 17:22; 2 Corinthians 6:16).

Righteousness was imparted to us because the life of Jesus was imparted to us by the activity of the blood and the Spirit (1 John 3:24; 4:12,15- 16). Of course the water of the word that was supplied to us by the announcement of the gift of God through the preaching of the Gospel produced within us the faith to respond to the miracle of the new birth (1 John 5:8; John 4:10; Romans 10:14-15). It may be argued that the translation of this Greek word (dikaiothentes- rt:dikaioo) should be 'declared to be righteous' or 'proven righteous'.

However, in the Septuagint 'dikaiousthai' normally translates the Hebrew word 'tzedek' which means 'be righteous, 'stand a righteous' and is used with respect to God (Ps 18:10; 50:6; Isa 42:21) and man (Isaiah 43:9,26; 45:25; Ps 142:2). It may be concluded then, that from a "legal sense a judicial exercise of justice reveals the uprightness of a person," The Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament. "Thus dikaioo does not mean the mere declaration of innocence, but the liberation from sin which holds man a prisoner" (The Complete Word Study Dictionary, New Testament- G1344).

Blessings,

Pastor Mark Spitsbergen
abidingplace.org