Every saved child of God at one time or another longs
for victory over sin. Yet many have sadly given up
hope of having a complete victory, mistakenly suppo-
sing that that blessing is only for the life after this.
They do not know how simple, and how immediately
available, is the victory for which they are not daring
to hope. It is right at hand in Christ, for all who let
Him undeceive them, and who will receive the victor-
ious life as the outright, supernatural gift of God.
The great truth that so many earnest surrendered
Christians have even yet failed to see is that salvation
is a twofold gift; freedom from the PENALTY of sin
and freedom from the POWER of sin. Most Christians
know that they are free from the penalty of sin, but
many have not realized that they may, in the same way,
by faith, be freed from the power of their sins. Even
though they know that their own efforts had nothing
to do with salvation, they are yet deceived by the
Adversary into believing that somehow their own ef-
forts must play a part in victory over their sins.
If we as Christians come to the Lord and say, "I want
to be saved from the power of my sins, and I will let
You save me provided You will let me share in the
work of overcoming their power, so that You and I
shall always know that part of this victory has been
accomplished by You, and part has been accomplished
by me." Christ Himself cannot save us from the power
of our sins? Think about it. When our Lord says to us
through Paul, "Sin shall not have dominion over you;
for ye are not under law, but under grace," He wants
us to remember what grace is. Grace is not partly man's
work and partly God's work. It is wholly God's work
and exclusively God's work; and all that man can do is
to receive it as God's outright, undeserved, and wholly
sufficient gift.
The Lord wants our lives on earth to be one long Christ-
mas day of receiving His gift of Himself as our victory.
If we say that our experience refutes this, do we mean
that we have found through the help of our own efforts
a satisfying completeness of victory over all recog-
nized sin, so that impatience, irritation, unlove, impur-
ity, have all been taken out of our life, and we are able
to live from day to day not only free from our outward
expression of these sins, but free from their dominion
within us?
Our hope for victory over sin is not "Christ plus my
efforts," but "Christ plus my receiving." To receive
victory from Him is to believe His Word that solely
by His grace He is, this moment, freeing me from the
dominion of sin. And to believe on Him in this way
is to recognize that he is doing for us what we cannot
do for ourselves. When the Lord was in Nazareth He
could do "not many mighty works there because of--
"Their inactivity?" No; "because of their unbelief."
To attempt to share by our effort in what only grace
can do is to defeat grace.
"This only would I learn from you, Received ye
the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hear-
ing of faith? Are ye so foolish? Having begun in
the Spirit, are ye now perfected in the flesh?...He
therefore that supplieth to you the Spirit, and
worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the
works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?...
For freedom did Christ set us free: Stand fast
therefore in the liberty, wherewith Christ has set
us free, and be not entangled again in the yoke
of bondage...But I say, 'Walk by the Spirit, and
ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh."
Gal 3:2, 3, 5; 5:1,16
Let us never forget this simple truth: the faith which
lets Christ bring us into and sustain us in victory is
just remembering that Christ is faithful; that it is His
responsibility and duty to accomplish this miracle
in our lives. Charles G Trumbull
Friday, November 17, 2017
Loving the World?
If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. --John 15:19
I have asked men and women alike who have fallen in lust with a perfect face and body, “How much are you willing to pay for sex?” Often they act surprised, but I know they are just in lust with a person, not in love. They overlook all the lacking qualities of character in favor of hoped for fulfillment of fleshly desire, which is too bad, since a fleshly person will beat the love right out of a mate. Of the men and women that I disciple, those who married just because of fleshly attraction have less sex than anyone else. It seems that after marriage the “beautiful” mate must prove that he has something more to offer than sex and withdraws. When the honeymoon is over, the true lack of character of the person is revealed, and in time, the love “felt” is beaten out of the mate. Why say all of this? Because I want to make an analogy about the world! It looks good, but marry it, and it will beat the love held for it right out of a person. I was once asked, “If drugs were legal and free, could I take all I wanted to and be happy?” The answer was, “No, you could not. The world does not work that way. Once it gets you, it will abuse you and will, in time, beat the desire you had for it right out of you.” That is why drug users eventually become suicidal. One fellow asked, “If it were legal, I would have several wives, or at least several affairs to fulfill my sex desire.” Well, many have done just that and come to pieces. They did not come to pieces because the behavior was illegal, but because man is made in the image of God, and to act in a manner not supported by God is unnatural.The world is a vicious lover, but once it has you, it will not let go easily, and all the while it will continue to hammer the love you have for it out of you. In this way, God does not fight the world but uses it.
I have asked men and women alike who have fallen in lust with a perfect face and body, “How much are you willing to pay for sex?” Often they act surprised, but I know they are just in lust with a person, not in love. They overlook all the lacking qualities of character in favor of hoped for fulfillment of fleshly desire, which is too bad, since a fleshly person will beat the love right out of a mate. Of the men and women that I disciple, those who married just because of fleshly attraction have less sex than anyone else. It seems that after marriage the “beautiful” mate must prove that he has something more to offer than sex and withdraws. When the honeymoon is over, the true lack of character of the person is revealed, and in time, the love “felt” is beaten out of the mate. Why say all of this? Because I want to make an analogy about the world! It looks good, but marry it, and it will beat the love held for it right out of a person. I was once asked, “If drugs were legal and free, could I take all I wanted to and be happy?” The answer was, “No, you could not. The world does not work that way. Once it gets you, it will abuse you and will, in time, beat the desire you had for it right out of you.” That is why drug users eventually become suicidal. One fellow asked, “If it were legal, I would have several wives, or at least several affairs to fulfill my sex desire.” Well, many have done just that and come to pieces. They did not come to pieces because the behavior was illegal, but because man is made in the image of God, and to act in a manner not supported by God is unnatural.The world is a vicious lover, but once it has you, it will not let go easily, and all the while it will continue to hammer the love you have for it out of you. In this way, God does not fight the world but uses it.
Sunday, November 5, 2017
The Life That Wins
Today I am going to lay the foundation for an excellent
book entitled, Victory in Christ, by Charles G Trumbull,
a man who lived from 1872 to 1941.
Dr Trumbull had been serving God for a couple of decades
but he had a growing need based on three things:
'1 He was aware of great fluctuations in his spiritual life.
It seems to me that it ought to be possible for me to live
habitually on a high plane of fellowship with God
2 There was the matter of 'failure' before besetting or
habitual sins. Despite earnest prayer for deliverance, abi-
ding victory had not been his experience.
3 He was conscious of lack in the matter of a dynamic,
convincing spiritual power that would change the lives
of others.'
'About a year before, I had begun to notice that certain men,
who were conspicuously blessed in their Christian service,
had a Christ consciousness that I did not have...one that was
beyond, bigger, and deeper than any thought of Christ I had
every had. I rebelled at the suggestion, when it first came to
me. "How could anyone have a better idea of Christ that I?
Did I not believe in Christ and worship Him as the Son of
God and one with God? Had I not accepted Him as my per-
sonal Savior twenty years ago? Did I not believe that eternal
life was in Him alone? Was I not trying to live in His service,
giving my whole life to Him? Did I not ask for His help and
guidance constantly, and believe that in Him was my only
hope? I was doing all this. How could a higher or better con-
captain of Christ than mine was possible."'
Reader, what does it mean to be 'dead unto sin; alive unto
God?' Well, in the latter part of Trumbull's life this is what
was said: 'Those who knew Dr Trumbull in his late years
remember him as a buoyant, joyous, earnest, unassuming,
Spirit-filled Christian, journalist and leader. He understood
that the life that abides in Christ and draws all of its resour-
ces from the risen Savior was a wonderful reality that he
experienced.'
Trumbull gave this testimony in 1911:
'There is only one life that wins; and that life is in Christ.
Every person may have this life; every person can live this
life.
I do not mean that everyone may be Christ-like, I mean
something much better.
I do not mean that a person may always have Christ's help,
I mean something much better.
I do not mean that a person may have the power of Christ,
I mean something much better.
I do not mean that a person shall be merely saved from his
sins and kept from sinning; I mean something better than
that victory.'
book entitled, Victory in Christ, by Charles G Trumbull,
a man who lived from 1872 to 1941.
Dr Trumbull had been serving God for a couple of decades
but he had a growing need based on three things:
'1 He was aware of great fluctuations in his spiritual life.
It seems to me that it ought to be possible for me to live
habitually on a high plane of fellowship with God
2 There was the matter of 'failure' before besetting or
habitual sins. Despite earnest prayer for deliverance, abi-
ding victory had not been his experience.
3 He was conscious of lack in the matter of a dynamic,
convincing spiritual power that would change the lives
of others.'
'About a year before, I had begun to notice that certain men,
who were conspicuously blessed in their Christian service,
had a Christ consciousness that I did not have...one that was
beyond, bigger, and deeper than any thought of Christ I had
every had. I rebelled at the suggestion, when it first came to
me. "How could anyone have a better idea of Christ that I?
Did I not believe in Christ and worship Him as the Son of
God and one with God? Had I not accepted Him as my per-
sonal Savior twenty years ago? Did I not believe that eternal
life was in Him alone? Was I not trying to live in His service,
giving my whole life to Him? Did I not ask for His help and
guidance constantly, and believe that in Him was my only
hope? I was doing all this. How could a higher or better con-
captain of Christ than mine was possible."'
Reader, what does it mean to be 'dead unto sin; alive unto
God?' Well, in the latter part of Trumbull's life this is what
was said: 'Those who knew Dr Trumbull in his late years
remember him as a buoyant, joyous, earnest, unassuming,
Spirit-filled Christian, journalist and leader. He understood
that the life that abides in Christ and draws all of its resour-
ces from the risen Savior was a wonderful reality that he
experienced.'
Trumbull gave this testimony in 1911:
'There is only one life that wins; and that life is in Christ.
Every person may have this life; every person can live this
life.
I do not mean that everyone may be Christ-like, I mean
something much better.
I do not mean that a person may always have Christ's help,
I mean something much better.
I do not mean that a person may have the power of Christ,
I mean something much better.
I do not mean that a person shall be merely saved from his
sins and kept from sinning; I mean something better than
that victory.'
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Lonely
“One is the loneliest number that you’ll ever do,” the song goes made popular way back in 1969 by the group Three Dog Night. Alone, loneliness, all alone, one… But, Michael gives us a beautiful perspective from God’s Word in Romans ch.14. This is a great set of truths each of us can share with someone who is experiencing the feelings of loneliness…
For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.–Romans 14: 7, 8
I suppose that there are times in everyone’s life when they feel all alone. Actually, this is an awareness of something that has always existed. A person may have always been alone but only recognize it at a time when there is not activity around him. One woman, when widowed for a short time, aptly said, “I know God is with me, but this morning I fell and there was no one there to pick me up.” In the outer life loneliness is more readily recognized; however, in the spirit and soul we were all born lonely. There has never been (in spite of the insipid teaching of having a “soul mate”) anyone who can touch our mind, heart, soul, emotions, will, and spirit. No one, that is, save One, and that One is Jesus. Psalm 25:16, “Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.” Psalm 68:6, “God makes a home for the lonely.” If you have invited the life of Jesus to live within, you have learned that He is the only One who fills loneliness and assures you that you never were alone.I like feeling lonely and turning to Him to discover His nearness. I like the fact that He alone can fill the emptiness that is deepest within me. I cannot imagine that He wants to be that near, but He does.
The natural mind, both in Unbelievers and Believers, is known to draw either to the idea of a “soul mate.” Michael calls it an “insipid teaching.” Amen. It is most sad that a Believer would operate in the natural mind instead of the Mind of Christ that Paul tells us we have and can only “receive the things of God” with.
- Mike Wells
For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.–Romans 14: 7, 8
I suppose that there are times in everyone’s life when they feel all alone. Actually, this is an awareness of something that has always existed. A person may have always been alone but only recognize it at a time when there is not activity around him. One woman, when widowed for a short time, aptly said, “I know God is with me, but this morning I fell and there was no one there to pick me up.” In the outer life loneliness is more readily recognized; however, in the spirit and soul we were all born lonely. There has never been (in spite of the insipid teaching of having a “soul mate”) anyone who can touch our mind, heart, soul, emotions, will, and spirit. No one, that is, save One, and that One is Jesus. Psalm 25:16, “Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.” Psalm 68:6, “God makes a home for the lonely.” If you have invited the life of Jesus to live within, you have learned that He is the only One who fills loneliness and assures you that you never were alone.I like feeling lonely and turning to Him to discover His nearness. I like the fact that He alone can fill the emptiness that is deepest within me. I cannot imagine that He wants to be that near, but He does.
The natural mind, both in Unbelievers and Believers, is known to draw either to the idea of a “soul mate.” Michael calls it an “insipid teaching.” Amen. It is most sad that a Believer would operate in the natural mind instead of the Mind of Christ that Paul tells us we have and can only “receive the things of God” with.
- Mike Wells
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Talking About Age!
You know what beloved, talking about age "There is no such thing as age in the realm of the Spirit. Your life does not weaken, it doesn't get less and less and less.” You say, "Well, I'm getting older, I'm getting grayer, and I am not as young as I used to be." But, there is a life in the Spirit, and a life in the Spirit does not decrease. It increases. Hallelujah! It's the life of the Son of God!
It's a life that's provided by the Son of God, through His death and the wonder of His resurrection, His risen life! And that was why Paul was able to say in Galatians in the Second Chapter and in the Twentieth verse, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God.” I have the life of Christ in me. This is reality! This is life! This isn’t emotion and commotion, but the very dynamic, growing, vital life of the Son of God.
You don’t need to go to a “Deeper Life” convention to go deeper, you’ve got the life of the Son of God now. I don’t belong in the over-comers, I just have to overcome. You know it’s, "I am crucified with Christ." We have the living Son of God inside of us, we have Christ in our life, and that's what Paul said, "Christ is my life!"
It's a life that's provided by the Son of God, through His death and the wonder of His resurrection, His risen life! And that was why Paul was able to say in Galatians in the Second Chapter and in the Twentieth verse, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God.” I have the life of Christ in me. This is reality! This is life! This isn’t emotion and commotion, but the very dynamic, growing, vital life of the Son of God.
You don’t need to go to a “Deeper Life” convention to go deeper, you’ve got the life of the Son of God now. I don’t belong in the over-comers, I just have to overcome. You know it’s, "I am crucified with Christ." We have the living Son of God inside of us, we have Christ in our life, and that's what Paul said, "Christ is my life!"
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