The word of God is the word of the most loving lover (> than your spouse, gf)
What is your response to his word?
- The more you feel weak before his command, the more a child of god will feel how overwhelmingly his love is for us (that sees through weakness)
Do you read the sermon on the mount with a heart of a blessed and loved child of God?
“If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”
- Don't leave sin to grow, actively deal with it. Don't wait for yourself to fall into the wrong action. If you re aware of being tempted, don't wait for things to happen before you said stop.
- We have hidden and obvious sinful nature --> so if we are not selective in what we read or hear! we will stand tempted
- Our spiritual mind can control our outer actions, if we r rooted in the word of god and walk closely with Him
- We need to hate and be disgusted by sin to really want to remove it from us!
“All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Matthew 5:37 NIV
- Be honest. Let your yes be yes, no be no. Especially so in marriage
- Remove all falsehood and come before god righteously
““You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.”
Matthew 5:38-42 NIV
- Sometimes we are mocked by these by non-Christians - we can look silly to people sometimes
- Give thanks for your enemy, because they made us realize only God loves us most. If not, we won't be driven to need God even more
- Grace and trust
- Grace - we are undeserving, and we all experience the unconditional love of god even to unadorable people ,
- Trust because we know God is on our side, He will not allow us to be shortchanged
“that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.
Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Matthew 5:45, 48 NIV
4 reactions to God's law (love)
- Ignorant, or, don't care --> live as they please <non-C>
- Hypocritical -> surfacely godly to seek human approval and praise (Pharisees, scribes) -they are self-conscious, only to serve self
- Accused (saved) - instead of getting comfort from the word, but they don't receive assurance of God's love, grace, support and plan. They see the rebukes (negative) only
- Enjoy being a child of god- enjoy full freedom and reconciliation with God
- Every day, every moment, we need to enjoy this renewed reconciliation with God
- Because they enjoy fellowship with God so much, they will not be toyed by Satan
*pray that we restore the right heart(reactions) as we read the word of god
What's God's word all about? he is emphasizing the inner, not the face value of commandment --> LOVE
Not letters but love (heart)
Internalise
Wellspring of a person's behavior comes from the heart.not changing behavior but heart
Heart changes, only outward changes
- Heart of Sonship
- God's word is relational first, then instructional
- Only obedience that stems from the heart of child can please god
- Do we confirm ourselves that we are COG?
- Are you hypnotising yourself? Because people say so?
- Live as father (live out His righteousness, kindness, love towards souls ) --> only then you confirm you are COG!
- Jesus is the perfect example --> new heart (assurance)
- State of the heart is important (heart of willing to submit, irregardless of situations)
- Love
- How to be holy?
- Love covers a multitude of sins -> that's why God's love make us holy
- Only love can enables us to do more than what's required
- The law specifies the minimum (do not cheat on people)
- But love renews and deepens -> you love instead of cheating
- Only when you are in a loving r/s with God that we will be satisfied (won't steal, won't commit adultery
- Silken fetter is love. You don't impose, it's a natural response; love knows no boundaries
- If you know God is with you. You have a lord in life -> you won't be easily shaken
- Practice until we can see and feel God's love in everything
We often go into Virtuous cycle
- Taste God's love -> love others -> more approval / grace from God -> strengthened. --> taste God's love ->..
Be perfect, as I am perfect - seek a perfection that cannot be attained in this life
- Don't be discouraged by our failures
- We will surely fail. Unless we are no longer on earth
- Fight against discouragement by confirming that you are already victorious in Christ, no longer enslaved by sin, yes, you may still sin, but you will not Like it.
- Pursue perfection
- Why? Because this is the way to blessing (because if you are always going backward, then you will be full of doubts and discontentment)
- It's even harder (miserable) to not be like father (grace and love abound)
- But it can be hard in trying to pursue. So we need to hold onto the promise of God (Ro 6:6)
- HS will stir us - make us to continue liking the good of God and disliking the impurity and intrusion of triggers that put our love with god at risk
- Hard to be perfect yes, but HS dwells in you (born again) because it is when you are weak that HS strengthens even more, forgiveness of Christ covers