We have mentioned that you have to follow God’s instructions if you want to become all that God has planned for you to become. As believers, we now know some of the many benefits to following God’s instructions. While we are still a work in progress, we have discovered one of “the rewards for them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). We become “spiritually and morally mature.” When we become “spiritually and morally mature,” we speak wisdom among them that are the same. We speak not the wisdom of the world or the wisdom of those thought to be intelligent, wise, learned, or scholarly. We speak not the wisdom of the sages and the men of discernment. We speak not the wisdom of the Greek philosophers and orators or the Jewish theologians and the Christian teachers. No, we speak the wisdom of God, which is given to us by divine revelation. Yes, we speak the wisdom of God, wisdom that was hidden before the world began. Yes, that’s right; wisdom that God predestined from the beginning that would result in glory to us. Jesus prayed, thanking the Father for revealing this wisdom to those who would become “the spiritually and morally mature.” And as the spiritually and morally mature, we now know that the word of God is wisdom only to “those who have an ear to hear.”

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Because of Adam’s disobedience, the penalty of death came and reigned like a king over all mankind. It, death, was passed to every man because all have sinned.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Romans 5:12).

But the sin spoken of here is not what you may think it is. “Sin is not sin.” And no, we have not lost our minds or gone over the edge. However, the explanation may interest you, especially, if you be one of those who has an ear to hear. One definition of “sin” says, “to miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honor, to do or go wrong.” Another one says, “to wander from the law of God or to violate God’s law.” Another definition says, “that which is done wrong as in an offence or a violation of the divine law in thought or in act.” Then there is “the complex or aggregate of sins committed either by a single person or by many” definition. Traditionally, “sin” has a very simple definition. “Sin” is basically defined as “a violation of divine law.” But could there be an alternative definition?

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Rejoice in the Lord always. Even though the fig trees are all destroyed, and there is neither blossom left nor fruit; though the olive crops all fail, and the fields lie barren; even if the flocks die in the fields and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will be happy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength; he will give me the speed of a deer and bring me safely over the mountains (Habakkuk 3:17-18 TLB). Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near (Philippians 4:4-5 NIV). The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him (Exodus 15:2 NIV). I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations (Isaiah 61:10-11 NIV). I will rejoice in the Lord and I will be joyful in God my Savior.

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Proud men end in shame, but the meek become wise (Proverbs 11:2 TLB). Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness before a fall (Proverbs 16:18 TLB). Pride ends in destruction; humility ends in honor (Proverbs18:12 TLB). Pride ends in a fall, while humility brings honor (Proverbs 29:23 TLB). And how does a man benefit if he gains the whole world and loses his soul in the process? For is anything worth more than his soul (Mark 8:36-37 TLB)?

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth. And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: and he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits (store my crops)? And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow (store) all my fruits (crops) and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God (Luke 12:15-21). For what is a man advantaged (benefited), if he gain the whole world, and lose himself (is destroyed), or be cast away (lost) (Luke 9:25)? For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul (Matthew 16:26)?

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“O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me. You know when I sit or stand. When far away you know my every thought. You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment you know where I am. You know what I am going to say before I even say it. You both precede and follow me and place your hand of blessing on my head. This is too glorious, too wonderful to believe! I can never be lost to your Spirit! I can never get away from my God! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there. If I ride the morning winds to the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, your strength will support me. If I try to hide in the darkness, the night becomes light around me. For even darkness cannot hide from God; to you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are both alike to you” (Psalm 139 1-12 TLB).

God knows everything there is to know about you. He knows your name. He knows your every thought. He sees each and every tear that falls from your eyes. He hears you when you call to him. He knows to where you go and from where you come. He is there whenever you go and whenever you return. God even knows the number of hairs that you have on your head (Matthew 10:30). Man is very important to God.

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Did you know that God has a plan, a purpose for your life?

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).

Yes, it is true. God has a great plan, a purpose for your life. God wants you to succeed and not fail. You were not created to fail, no matter what has happened in your past or what it appears like now. God’s plan has always been for good, meant to prosper you, a plan to give you hope and to give you a future. His plan never included evil that was meant to harm you. How awesome is that! Did you know that you are called and set apart for a heavenly purpose?

“But you are not like that, for you have been chosen by God himself—you are priests of the King, you are holy and pure, you are God’s very own—all this so that you may show to others how God called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were less than nothing; now you are God’s own. Once you knew very little of God’s kindness; now your very lives have been changed by it” (I Peter 2:9-10 TLB).

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Believe that no matter what you are going through, the Lord is with you!

“Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Deuteronomy 31:6).

Moses, when he was a hundred and twenty years old and forbidden to go over the Jordan, told the children of Israel to “be strong and of good courage; not to be afraid” as they prepared to go over the Jordan into the Promised Land, led by Joshua.

“And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither
“forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed” (Deuteronomy 31:8). “...as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Joshua 1:5).

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Not long ago we spoke of Paul’s assignment to inform others of the mystery of the gospel and to make clear, the good news of this gospel (Ephesians 6:19). Paul wanted us to clearly understand that his knowledge in “the mystery of Christ” (Ephesians 3:3-4) was by revelation from God, so that he could inform, proclaim fully, and make clear the truth concerning Jesus the Christ through the revelation of the mysteries, which were kept secret since the world began. The one thing we found amazing was the fact that there were many untruths circulating around about the person of Jesus the Christ in Paul’s day as he was making clear the mystery of the gospel. The problem for Paul was that there was another force going about preaching another gospel, different from the one that he was preaching. In a letter to those believers at Corinth, he spoke of his concerns.

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There are many spirits mentioned throughout scripture that have been associated with mankind, some of them good while others are bad. Scripture clearly states that God gives us the good spirits and does not give us the others, yet we find those spirits, which we receive not from God, affecting or influencing our lives. We hear of this war that we are all involved in, where “we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12), and though we normally do not think of our opponents in these terms, could altering how we view them give us an advantage in this spiritual war that we are engaged in?

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (II Timothy 1:7 NKJV).

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