Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.
Do you believe the same things He believes or is what He communicated too good to possibly be true or too distant to possibly be relevant to your life at present?
Is your mind set on things that are above or are you still keeping yourself entrenched in the very things Jesus rescued you from?
Do you remind yourself of eternal truth or consume yourself with temporary issues?
How much of your thinking is focused on eternal matters?
The longer we value what this world values over what Christ values, the more we're opening ourselves up to a pattern of thinking that does not typify the loving heart of Christ.
Our actions are the fruit of our convictions. Our behaviors are the visible testimony of our core convictions.
In life, behavior follows belief. Everything we do is directly connected to what we believe is true.
If we allow ourselves to believe that the gospel is merely a "baby-step" in our Christian life, we'll compartmentalize it instead of delving deeper into it and allowing the Holy Spirit to help us apply it more consistently to all areas of our living and thinking.
We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. (Romans 15:1)
False gospels rest on a foundation of human effort.
Christ calls us and then gives us the faith, desire and strength to answer 'yes' to His call
Growth continues through spending intentional time with Him through prayer and looking into His Word. It is strengthened through relationships with other believers and it's deepened by living your faith in Christ out and being strengthened by Him to actively serve others.
Dogs don't bark at parked cars.' What does that mean? His point was this - most often, people won't criticize you if you spend your time standing still, never trying new things, not moving toward a goal. The kind of people who bear the most criticism are motivated people. Those who are aggressively seeking to fulfill their calling and greater purpose are those who are going to be barked at.
He's keeping us from falling away from Him. Our life and future are in His hands.
For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.