“you have a little power, and have followed My word, and have not denied My name.”
“We [the Apostles] have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star [Christ] arises in your hearts.” 2 Peter 1:19
What dark place is Peter and the other apostles talking about here? I must say it’s our hearts and the sanctification process through the Holy Spirit taking place there. This transition happens as we listen to Christ and His apostles, spend much time in prayer with Christ, and move forward in obedience and repentance.
In my own life as I’m spending much more time in prayer, the Holy Spirit has been revealing some things I never knew were there. I confess and repent when He brings them to my mind and agree! If we don't spend quality time with Him though we will not discern the small voice of correction!
The process is not always an easy one, and I want to stress this fact, and encourage you each onward in Christ. We are in a spiritual war, and war is never easy! The time spent in our Father's presence is worth more then anything the world can offer us though.
The outcome of this process within our hearts is vital to be able to hear more and more clearly from our Head, Jesus Christ, through His Holy Spirit who God the Father has placed in us, to transform us into the image of Christ.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
At this time in my life, His presence is with me as never before, and I don’t want anything, or any darkness The Holy Spirit is bringing to the light to hinder communion with God! “Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” Psalm 51:11 So repentance as He reveals stuff not of Him to us is vital! Let us catch those things He reveals at times deep within our hearts contrary to Him brethren and run to our Fathers Throne Room through Christ sacrifice in confession, repentance and cleansing!
“Alas! and did my Savior bleed And did my Sovereign die Would He devote that sacred head For sinners such as I…” Isaac Watts
“Well might the sun in darkness hide, And shut its glories in, When Christ, the mighty Maker, died. For man the creature’s sin.” I’m thankful Christ died for our sins, thankful we can go boldly to our Father’s throne room! Thankful for His death even for one as unworthy as me! I want to go deeper though! I want to live in His resurrection life! I want to stop wading in the shallows concerning Christ Jesus and His precious sacrifice today! I want my feet not to be able to touch the bottom without my head deep below the norm, becoming fully, and deeply submerged! Just as through faith, the church in Philadelphia must have done to have had Christ’s approval!
I see a walk with Jesus that surpasses earthly understanding. A light open to even us that surpasses what many ever venture into, through Faith and obedience to the Living Only Begotten Son of God! I see it even within the Old Testament, within the saints’ relationships with God! which I have always heard were shadows of the things to come, even now within our time!
“Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” Genesis 5:21 “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.” Genesis 6:9 “Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless.” Genesis 17:1 And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses. And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door.” Exodus 33:8-10
Beloved we can go deeper with God our Father, and He wants us to! The scriptures reveal it to be true! However seeking to walk closer with God the Father will kill us to our self life! He wants to purify us inwardly in every area and crevice. For “do two people walk together unless they have agreed to meet?” Amos 3:3 “If anyone wants to come after [Jesus], he must deny [himself/herself], take up [their] cross, and follow [Him].” Matthew 16:24 This is part of the agreement we must fulfill, if we want to walk closely with our mighty God in three.
Note the three steps above given by Christ Himself to all desiring to follow Him. 1. Deny self. 2. Pick up our cross. 3. Follow Jesus Christ where He chooses to led us.
“….whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.” Mark 8:34
Christ said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” John 12:24 Godly fruit will not be brought forth through us unless we first die to ourselves, thus allowing God to take control of our lives, and do what He chooses with us.
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit… Remain in Me, and I in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself but must remain in the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; the one who remains in Me, and I in him bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing…” John 15
Again we have to deny ourselves, pick up our cross, and follow Him! “…in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.” Ephesians 4:22-24 “Therefore, as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” Colossians 2:6
“Now those who belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:24
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. …” Romans 6
“Pray, then, in this way: Our Father, who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. [Note, His will, not our will be done, death to the self life!] Give us this day our daily bread. [Spiritual food from heaven.] And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Matthew 6:9-13
“…whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” Matthew 10:38
“When we walk with the Lord In the light of His word What a glory He sheds on our way While we do His good will He abides with us still And with all who will trust and obey” John H. Sammis
The apostle Paul obeyed Jesus’s command to “deny [himself], take up [his] cross, and follow [Him].” Matthew 16;24 So he could say honestly that, he had “…been crucified with Christ; and it [was] no longer [he] who live, but Christ [lived] in [him]; and the life which [he lived] in the flesh [he lived] by faith in the Son of God, who loved [him] and gave Himself up for [him].” Galatians 2:20 “For to me to live [the apostle Paul could say] is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21 I dismiss any notion that allows us to live less in Christ then scripture calls us too! The Holy Spirit’s work of sanctification is partly to kill the entanglements the old man still has in us! Through our obedience He can then produce “much fruit, and so prove [ourselves to] be [Christ] disciples.” John 15:8 Nothing good can come of us holding on to our old life, and we will never be able to dive deeply experientially into the truths of the cross, and Christ in us if we ignore the inward defilements being brought to the surface by the convicting and revealing work of the Holy Spirit!
“[Jesus] Himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds [we] have been healed.” 1 Peter 10:24
“For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3
“Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” Romans 6:11
By faith, let us heed Christ and His Apostles as the church in Philadelphia did, and see through the Spirit ourselves hung on that cross in Christ so long ago. Then follow those three steps Christ commanded of us. Deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow Him. Matt 16:24 By faith let us reckon ourselves dead to sin, and rid ourselves of anything the Holy Spirit dislikes! How? Such a task is only possible through God’s grace. “For His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence.” 2 Peter 1:3 “In view of God’s mercy… offer [your] bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God-this is [our] true and proper worship.” Romans 12:1
“When I survey the wondrous cross On which the Prince of glory died My richest gain I count but loss And pour contempt on all my pride Where every realm of nature mine My gift was still be far too small Love so amazing, so divine Demands my soul, my life, my all.” Forest Lake
Not only did my Savior die as the ultimate sacrifice. In place of my undeserving life, but by faith, the Spirit’s insight and a penetrating light. His apostles words to me, are burning quiet bright! Declaring in many ways, that I, too, died at Calvary that unnatural night, and the life I now live is but that of Christ’s own life. Ushered forth consistently, and continually as I abide, in Him, in the Light.
“Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of instruction about washings and laying on of hands, and about the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment. And this we will do, if God permits.” Hebrews 6:1-3
_________________ Billy Witt
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