No Good Thing Does God Withhold – Part Two
The devil attacks the quality of one’s post salvation spiritual life in many different ways.
The devil is a master in the art of spiritual warfare. He has thousands of years of experience, interacting with human beings. He knows which Strategy is most likely going to work best, when attempting to distract, or to deceive, any given individual.
For some, it will be through great adversity, whereas with others, it will be through great prosperity (1).
For most of us, it will be a mixed bag of both moderate adversity and prosperity. The bigger the target, the more adversity or the prosperity there will be.
In adversity, the devil’s objective is to have us question the value of participating in the plan of God.
In prosperity, our fallen nature would have us forget the source of our blessings.
It matters not (to the devil) if it’s through adversity or prosperity, as long as it leads his intended target away from the plan that God has in mind.
“Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me the food that is my portion, So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” And that I will not become impoverished and steal, And profane the name of my God (Proverbs 3: 8, 9 NASB).”
All of us, as individuals, have our own areas of strengths and weaknesses. An area of strength is an area in one’s life where his or her thoughts and actions are consistent with the mind of Christ (2). An area of weakness is an area in our lives in which his or her thoughts and actions are inconsistent with what the Word of God has to say.
God does not reward one with good things for willful ignorance. One is willfully ignorant when he or she declines to learn what the Word of God has to say.
God does not reward disobedience. One is disobedient whenever he or she chooses not to apply the Biblical truths of what he or she has learned.
Human viewpoint would have us believe that we can make up for our areas of weakness by working overtime in our areas of strength. The truth is, all the good we do does not atone for any of the bad.
When God brings an area of one's weakness to his or her attention, one will not move forward in the plan of God until THAT issue is confessed and forsaken!
The bringing to our attention the error of our ways and the need for corrective action can be a painful and upsetting experience.
Human beings do not like being told they are wrong. Therefore, the spokespersons for God are taught to do so with gentleness and respect.
“but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and respect (1Pet. 3: 15 NASB).”
Experience teaches His spokespersons to be prepared to handle the inevitable adverse reactions.
When an edifying message is not well received,t he hostility of the fallen nature within us will attack the human messenger and or means that God has used.
Never experiencing spiritual adversity doesn’t say too much about the quality of the post salvation spiritual life of an individual disciple.
“Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2Tim. 3: 12 NASB).”
“Living godly in Christ Jesus” calls for lifestyle of discipleship, studying and applying the Word of God, no matter where you are, and what you are doing.
Is that your desire? Has the 2Timothy 3: 12 persecutions been your experience? Or are you among those more interested in what’s in it for you?
Satan will not only leave false prophets and apostate ministries alone; he will prosper them.
While humans will rationalize, and thereby justify, just about anything that fits their plans, while God and the devil are aware of the damage that just a little leaven (sin) can do.
“A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough (Gal. 5: 9 NASB).”
The devil identifies and attacks where and when his intended targets are the weakest. The more spiritually mature one becomes, the greater a target he or she will be. The greater a target one becomes, the more frequent and intense the satanic attacks will be. Spiritual combat is not for the weak at heart.
Lacking understanding or conviction concerning the Gospel Message (3), a double-minded individual is unstable in all his ways (4). Like a building with a cracked foundation, his entire soul structure (belief system) can come tumbling down (5) when the satanically-induced storms of doubt would have us question the security of our salvation.
A player running the bases in a baseball diamond will not give it his all if he does not believe that he has hit a fair ball or when he believes the ball is going to be caught by an outfielder. Such hesitation has cost many a batter a multiple base hit.
Likewise, a born-again believer will not give his all in the execution of his post salvation spiritual life if he isn’t sure that he has really been forever saved.
Christian religion, as opposed to Biblical Christianity, has a long history of adding more and more “requirements” for its followers to embrace. Christian religions teach that failing to comply with these additional requirements of Man (6) will result in them failing to obtain, retain, or regain salvation.
Here we see a fundamental difference between the mindset that a follower of Christ will have, and the mindset of a follower of one of the many Christian religions that have evolved throughout the course of the Church Age.
Christian religion would have us believe that failing to comply with all the do’s and don’ts of Christian religion(s) can void the atoning Work of Christ on the cross (7); undo the sealing (8) and destroy the regenerating (9) Work that God that God performed at the moment one first believed. An equally false, but prevailing, teaching of Man, is that eternal security is a license to sin (10).
False teachers of the Church Age would have us believe that the regenerating, sustaining, and the enabling power of God is in THEIR hands, and whose benefits are obtained and retained by participating in the overt ceremonies and rituals that THEY perform. To reinforce THEIR position, religious authority as taken upon itself, and have delegated to THEIR clergy, functions that God has never given to any man, or group of men, here in the Church Age.
During the Old Testament dispensations, clergy performed overt ceremonies and rituals that were symbolic of the Work and functions that God would perform through the future Work of God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, executing the plan of God the Father.
No fallen man has ever had the power to save himself, let alone anyone else.
The primary target group for the Church Age evangelist are the unbelievers, providing them with the opportunity to be born again. The primary target group of the Church Age pastor-teacher are those who have already been born again.
To keep the ship (the Church) on course, Church Age pastor-teachers reiterate the unadulterated Gospel Message. In order to give the opportunity for the individual sailors (believers) aboard to advance in the post salvation spiritual life, the pastor-teacher provides the crew (congregation) with the necessary information, guidance, and supplies for a successful voyage, especially during storms at sea.
When the messages of the evangelist and or the pastor-teacher are believed, it is God that produces the accompanying results (11) (John 3: 16/Titus 3: 5/Eph. 1: 13/Eph. 4: 30/1Cor. 3: 7/1Cor. 3: 16).
These messages are among the good things that God does not withhold from anyone who has a desire to receive them.
The advancing disciple who understands the irrevocable (12) nature of the gift (13) of salvation will operate from a position of strength.
The shield of faith (14) is one of the good things that God does not withhold from those who are spiritually mature enough to make use of it. This shield of faith to deflect the fiery darts (15) of the devil. Having the knowledge, but lacking the faith to apply it, will not accomplish too much in the heat of battle (16).
Aside from an occasional satanically-induced storm (17) intended to shake a believer’s faith, the devil has a different strategy for those who have confidently settled the issue of his or her salvation.
This strategy will be to promote their involvement in anything that can take the believer out of fellowship with God.
Believers who are out of fellowship with God will not be motivated to pursue the life of Biblical discipleship.
Ongoing sin, of any (18) type, takes and keeps a born-again believer out of fellowship with God, until the sin is confessed (19). The restored fellowship is maintained by forsaking (20) the same sin in the future.
The devil is pleased with all the time and resources that God’s people spend on activities trying to make the devil’s world (21) a better place to live, as long as God and or the things of God, are left out of the picture.
Establishing a PRODUCTIVE world while keeping God and or the things of God at bay, has been the objective of the devil since the day he rebelled in Heaven. This was before Man even entered into the picture.
Trying to make the world a better place to live, but keeping God and or the things of God out of the picture, creates a win-win scenario for the devil. His world benefits from the human good that God’s people produce, while placing the primary mission (22) that God gave His Church to do on the back burner.
End of Part Two
________________
1) Luke 4: 6/Mark 8: 36 (2) 1Cor. 2: 16 (3) Rom. 8: 1 (4) James 1: 8 (5) Matt. 7: 27 (6) Mark 7: 7 (7) 1John 2: 2 (8) Eph. 4: 30 (9) Titus 3: 5 (10) Rom. 6: 1, 2 (11) John 3: 16/ Titus 3: 5/Eph. 1: 13/Eph. 4: 30/1Cor. 3: 7, 16 (12) Rom. 11: 29 (13) Eph. 2: 8 (14) Eph. 6: 16 (15) Eph. 6: 16 (16) James 1: 22 (17) Matt. 7: 24 – 27 (18) James 2: 10 (19) 1John 1: 9 (20) John 8: 11 (21) Luke 4: 6 (22) Matt. 28: 19, 20
The devil attacks the quality of one’s post salvation spiritual life in many different ways.
The devil is a master in the art of spiritual warfare. He has thousands of years of experience, interacting with human beings. He knows which Strategy is most likely going to work best, when attempting to distract, or to deceive, any given individual.
For some, it will be through great adversity, whereas with others, it will be through great prosperity (1).
For most of us, it will be a mixed bag of both moderate adversity and prosperity. The bigger the target, the more adversity or the prosperity there will be.
In adversity, the devil’s objective is to have us question the value of participating in the plan of God.
In prosperity, our fallen nature would have us forget the source of our blessings.
It matters not (to the devil) if it’s through adversity or prosperity, as long as it leads his intended target away from the plan that God has in mind.
“Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me the food that is my portion, So that I will not be full and deny You and say, “Who is the Lord?” And that I will not become impoverished and steal, And profane the name of my God (Proverbs 3: 8, 9 NASB).”
All of us, as individuals, have our own areas of strengths and weaknesses. An area of strength is an area in one’s life where his or her thoughts and actions are consistent with the mind of Christ (2). An area of weakness is an area in our lives in which his or her thoughts and actions are inconsistent with what the Word of God has to say.
God does not reward one with good things for willful ignorance. One is willfully ignorant when he or she declines to learn what the Word of God has to say.
God does not reward disobedience. One is disobedient whenever he or she chooses not to apply the Biblical truths of what he or she has learned.
Human viewpoint would have us believe that we can make up for our areas of weakness by working overtime in our areas of strength. The truth is, all the good we do does not atone for any of the bad.
When God brings an area of one's weakness to his or her attention, one will not move forward in the plan of God until THAT issue is confessed and forsaken!
The bringing to our attention the error of our ways and the need for corrective action can be a painful and upsetting experience.
Human beings do not like being told they are wrong. Therefore, the spokespersons for God are taught to do so with gentleness and respect.
“but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and respect (1Pet. 3: 15 NASB).”
Experience teaches His spokespersons to be prepared to handle the inevitable adverse reactions.
When an edifying message is not well received,t he hostility of the fallen nature within us will attack the human messenger and or means that God has used.
Never experiencing spiritual adversity doesn’t say too much about the quality of the post salvation spiritual life of an individual disciple.
“Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2Tim. 3: 12 NASB).”
“Living godly in Christ Jesus” calls for lifestyle of discipleship, studying and applying the Word of God, no matter where you are, and what you are doing.
Is that your desire? Has the 2Timothy 3: 12 persecutions been your experience? Or are you among those more interested in what’s in it for you?
Satan will not only leave false prophets and apostate ministries alone; he will prosper them.
While humans will rationalize, and thereby justify, just about anything that fits their plans, while God and the devil are aware of the damage that just a little leaven (sin) can do.
“A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough (Gal. 5: 9 NASB).”
The devil identifies and attacks where and when his intended targets are the weakest. The more spiritually mature one becomes, the greater a target he or she will be. The greater a target one becomes, the more frequent and intense the satanic attacks will be. Spiritual combat is not for the weak at heart.
Lacking understanding or conviction concerning the Gospel Message (3), a double-minded individual is unstable in all his ways (4). Like a building with a cracked foundation, his entire soul structure (belief system) can come tumbling down (5) when the satanically-induced storms of doubt would have us question the security of our salvation.
A player running the bases in a baseball diamond will not give it his all if he does not believe that he has hit a fair ball or when he believes the ball is going to be caught by an outfielder. Such hesitation has cost many a batter a multiple base hit.
Likewise, a born-again believer will not give his all in the execution of his post salvation spiritual life if he isn’t sure that he has really been forever saved.
Christian religion, as opposed to Biblical Christianity, has a long history of adding more and more “requirements” for its followers to embrace. Christian religions teach that failing to comply with these additional requirements of Man (6) will result in them failing to obtain, retain, or regain salvation.
Here we see a fundamental difference between the mindset that a follower of Christ will have, and the mindset of a follower of one of the many Christian religions that have evolved throughout the course of the Church Age.
Christian religion would have us believe that failing to comply with all the do’s and don’ts of Christian religion(s) can void the atoning Work of Christ on the cross (7); undo the sealing (8) and destroy the regenerating (9) Work that God that God performed at the moment one first believed. An equally false, but prevailing, teaching of Man, is that eternal security is a license to sin (10).
False teachers of the Church Age would have us believe that the regenerating, sustaining, and the enabling power of God is in THEIR hands, and whose benefits are obtained and retained by participating in the overt ceremonies and rituals that THEY perform. To reinforce THEIR position, religious authority as taken upon itself, and have delegated to THEIR clergy, functions that God has never given to any man, or group of men, here in the Church Age.
During the Old Testament dispensations, clergy performed overt ceremonies and rituals that were symbolic of the Work and functions that God would perform through the future Work of God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, executing the plan of God the Father.
No fallen man has ever had the power to save himself, let alone anyone else.
The primary target group for the Church Age evangelist are the unbelievers, providing them with the opportunity to be born again. The primary target group of the Church Age pastor-teacher are those who have already been born again.
To keep the ship (the Church) on course, Church Age pastor-teachers reiterate the unadulterated Gospel Message. In order to give the opportunity for the individual sailors (believers) aboard to advance in the post salvation spiritual life, the pastor-teacher provides the crew (congregation) with the necessary information, guidance, and supplies for a successful voyage, especially during storms at sea.
When the messages of the evangelist and or the pastor-teacher are believed, it is God that produces the accompanying results (11) (John 3: 16/Titus 3: 5/Eph. 1: 13/Eph. 4: 30/1Cor. 3: 7/1Cor. 3: 16).
These messages are among the good things that God does not withhold from anyone who has a desire to receive them.
The advancing disciple who understands the irrevocable (12) nature of the gift (13) of salvation will operate from a position of strength.
The shield of faith (14) is one of the good things that God does not withhold from those who are spiritually mature enough to make use of it. This shield of faith to deflect the fiery darts (15) of the devil. Having the knowledge, but lacking the faith to apply it, will not accomplish too much in the heat of battle (16).
Aside from an occasional satanically-induced storm (17) intended to shake a believer’s faith, the devil has a different strategy for those who have confidently settled the issue of his or her salvation.
This strategy will be to promote their involvement in anything that can take the believer out of fellowship with God.
Believers who are out of fellowship with God will not be motivated to pursue the life of Biblical discipleship.
Ongoing sin, of any (18) type, takes and keeps a born-again believer out of fellowship with God, until the sin is confessed (19). The restored fellowship is maintained by forsaking (20) the same sin in the future.
The devil is pleased with all the time and resources that God’s people spend on activities trying to make the devil’s world (21) a better place to live, as long as God and or the things of God, are left out of the picture.
Establishing a PRODUCTIVE world while keeping God and or the things of God at bay, has been the objective of the devil since the day he rebelled in Heaven. This was before Man even entered into the picture.
Trying to make the world a better place to live, but keeping God and or the things of God out of the picture, creates a win-win scenario for the devil. His world benefits from the human good that God’s people produce, while placing the primary mission (22) that God gave His Church to do on the back burner.
End of Part Two
________________
1) Luke 4: 6/Mark 8: 36 (2) 1Cor. 2: 16 (3) Rom. 8: 1 (4) James 1: 8 (5) Matt. 7: 27 (6) Mark 7: 7 (7) 1John 2: 2 (8) Eph. 4: 30 (9) Titus 3: 5 (10) Rom. 6: 1, 2 (11) John 3: 16/ Titus 3: 5/Eph. 1: 13/Eph. 4: 30/1Cor. 3: 7, 16 (12) Rom. 11: 29 (13) Eph. 2: 8 (14) Eph. 6: 16 (15) Eph. 6: 16 (16) James 1: 22 (17) Matt. 7: 24 – 27 (18) James 2: 10 (19) 1John 1: 9 (20) John 8: 11 (21) Luke 4: 6 (22) Matt. 28: 19, 20