Real Repentance Must Be Permanent!
Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. (2) And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Paul says that we are to present our bodies as a living sacrifice. I have always seen this statement as a comparison to the sacrifice of Jesus’ death, but I also think it applies to the time frame for which it applies. As long as we live, we must present our bodies as a sacrifice to God
Revelation 2:10 ...be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Matthew 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
As Paul tells the Christians in Rome, change must first start in the mind or heart. There MUST be a renewing. That renewing is a recognition of the danger and outcome of sin.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
I think that my wife’s view of snakes is the way that God wants us to view sin. My wife HATES snakes. There is never an imaginable situation in which my wife would EVER find a snake and then try to get as close as possible without getting bit. She is not like the Crocodile Hunter, who would pick it up and describe how beautiful it is. Instead, if she sees it...She RUNS FOR HER LIFE! Sin should never be tried. Sin should never be approached. We should Flee from it!
The “sacrifices” that people make for Lent are ONLY intended to be temporary. Once that Lent season has ended, they will indulge again in the things that they temporarily gave up. In fact, a couple of websites that I used to research this topic suggested that the treats given by the Easter Bunny was a result of this practice. Many taught their children to “give up” candy for Lent and then to celebrate the end, they indulged in Easter candy. As we saw in yesterday’s RTS, what God expects us to sacrifice for him are the behaviors, lifestyles and thought processes of sin. But those sacrifices must be real, not symbolic, and they must be permanent. It is counterintuitive and simply not genuine to plan to return to the life of sin after symbolicly giving it up for a short period of time,
If we truly want to please God, we must make real changes in our lives. If we genuinely desire go have all of the blessings that God has to offer his servants, we must dedicate our lives to living in the manner in which he desires.
Matthew 7:13-14 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: (14) Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Reflecting His SON,
Dennis Hogan
Minister, North Hardin Church of Christ
1804 Sam Stewart Dr.
Radcliff, KY 40160
Questions, comments or further explanation? Contact me at: dennis.hogan@icloud.com
If you have friends, family, or acquaintances that you feel could benefit from RTS, please forward
their e-mail address to me and I will add them to my mail list.
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