(James 1:3) “for you know
that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”
Why is it that this truth which I will explore plays
such havoc with our commitment to Christ? At times we find ourselves asking,
“How and why?” I most certainly have wrestled with this for a long time in my
Christian life and I still find it looking to rob me in so many different ways
regarding my “standing” in Christ Jesus my Lord! Nevertheless regardless
of us, it is impossible to take away from the Lord Jesus’ accomplishments. Irrespective
of our hypocrisy, denial, unbelief or even disobedience; His accomplishments have
been recorded, what Christ achieved here on earth shall stand the test of time
and beyond the curtains of eternity His works will be chronicled throughout the
ages to come, praise His glorious name!
Men may one day praise the name of Jesus and sadly the
next freely curse, or find themselves unashamedly standing on a street corner
calling sinners to repentance and soon after eating and drinking with the
drunkard; no differently to “a dog returning to his vomit!” I would confess the
above analogies most certainly, sadly, have played a part in my life, guilty as
charged! This proves but one thing, my volatility… however it has no actual
bearing per say to what Christ achieved here on earth. It certainly gives
opportunity for the gainsayer to point his finger. Yet does this in any way
undermine what the Lord Jesus achieved? Most certainly NOT! He alone died on
Calvary and He alone paid the price to set sinners free. No matter what anyone else
does or does not do, it can’t nor ever will take away from the majestic victory
Christ consummated whilst on earth. Galaxy after galaxy and throughout the ages
Christians will be telling others about Christ’s effectuated victories and how
He was able though His own sacrifice to find and free those who were once lost,
those clueless with regard to who God is and yet to give them a hope, to open
their eyes, correctly resetting their compass, heaven now their destination
with hell fading in the backburner, where it once welcomed them with open arms;
for
there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be
saved." (Acts 4:12)
With this in mind, my question then, “why has God left
us with the ability as His children to still so easily make so many wrong
choices”? If we have received his Spirit, if we have truly been born again this
should not happen, or should it? It certainly shouldn’t! However we have not
been taken out of this sinful world and this is by design. God has so willed
it! Our own hearts need to be tested along life’s journey…
Once we are alive in Christ, the age varying for all
those whom are called, depending on when we respond to the wonderful message of
the gospel. Some earlier on in life while others close to their death beds; regardless
of age, we all have a road in front of us that will teach us to become
dependent upon the finished work of Calvary. Just as the Lord had to be tried
and tested so too shall we be tried and tested. No believer will escape this
truth! But many shall be found wanting when tested. Even our failure
(disobedience) will work together for our good, so long as we love God and have
been called in accordance with His purpose.
God’s goodness is most certainly beyond measurement,
for those whom he loves, it is too wonderful to describe. He is able to change
ones perception about so many things. He alone is wise, kind, merciful and patient.
Many may have given up on you, but not God! “Whilst you have breath you have
hope”! Callout and you shall be heard! Why? Because the Lord Jesus Christ has opened
the door and paved the way! But be watchful of the thieves along the way, those
who come with another message, those who speak of an easier way, they are liars!
By Christ alone, through grace alone, shall we only ever be able to enter
heaven. Find Him and find life!
Now back to my question, why do we make so many wrong decisions?
Or rather why have we been left with the ability to make so many wrong choices?
It’s simply the way God the Father has chosen to equip His children for the
ages to come. The Lord Jesus was constantly bombarded with having to make choices;
thankfully He never made a wrong one. Life in Christ is here to teach us to
find grace to make the right choices regardless of how many times we may have
failed in a particular area. However we cannot accept failure as permission to
carry on as we once did, this is deception luring us into error, and we are to
have no part with anything that is false.
If we remain within the boundaries of grace we shall
have peace with God, move outside of those boundaries and we will soon be no
different to dogs returning to their vomit or like pigs having been washed
returning to the mire and rolling in it.
God help us to understand “that we will be happiest
when we remain within the bounds of his grace”.
Signing off
Tyrone
5 comments:
http://www.sgi.org/buddhism/buddhist-concepts/desires.html
People encountering Nichiren Buddhism for the first time are often surprised by the stance taken toward desire which seems to contradict prevailing images of Buddhism. For many, Buddhism is associated with asceticism, and indeed there are many schools and traditions which stress the need to eliminate desire and sever all attachments.
Needless to say, a life controlled by desires is miserable. In Buddhist scriptures, such a way of life is symbolized by "hungry demons" with giant heads and huge mouths, but narrow, constricted throats that make real satisfaction unattainable. The deliberate horror of these images grew from Shakyamuni Buddha's sense of the need to shock people from their attachment to things--including our physical existence--that will eventually change and be lost to us. Real happiness does not lie here, he sought to tell them.
The deeply ingrained tendencies of attachments and desire (Jpn bonno) are often referred to by the English translation "earthly desires." However, since they also include hatred, arrogance, distrust and fear, the translation "deluded impulses" may in some cases be more appropriate.
But can such desires and attachments really be eliminated? Attachments are, after all, natural human feelings, and desires are a vital and necessary aspect of life. The desire, for example, to protect oneself and one's loved ones has been the inspiration for a wide range of advances--from the creation of supportive social groupings to the development of housing and heating. Likewise, the desire to understand humanity's place in the cosmos has driven the development of philosophy, literature and religious thought. Desires are integral to who we are and who we seek to become.
In this sense, the elimination of all desire is neither possible nor, in fact, desirable. Were we to completely rid ourselves of desire, we would end up undermining our individual and collective will to live.
Your desires were given to you. They are not defilements. They are gifts. Ask any women if she wants to be desired. I don;t think it is a sin. It is a gift.
The path of the Buddha is called the middle path because, as well as avoiding extremes of behavior, it avoids two extreme views. One view holds that somewhere in this world of appearance and presentation, this glittering world of sense pleasure, of fleeting phenomena, there is something, somewhere that we can find that will not change, that we can always count on to be stable. Somewhere there is something that is substantial, that is solid, that can be relied upon always. When we hold that view, we look for that one thing constantly. At times we think that finally we have it. Then we hold on tightly. Eventually we confront change or we experience loss, and we suffer.
I was in Toronto not too long ago and at one point passed a giant billboard that had a picture of a car and one phrase: "Lust conquers all." I never got to go by it again to investigate further. But despite the prevalence of that kind of message, on visible and invisible billboards everywhere, counting on the fervor of our lust to conquer the exigencies of change, the flow of time, or the avoidance of death, is clearly folly.
Yet if that view permeates our belief systems and our motivations, we will continually act from that place and be disappointed again and again. This doesn't mean that we can't enjoy anything, but the clinging and grasping and fruitless attachment can well go, and we would be happier people, living more in accord with how things actually are.
The other extreme view holds that our lives are chaos. Here, everything is empty so it doesn't matter what we do, what we care about, what we think about. It's all kind of blank or void. It's from that point of view that people will say: "Well, if effort to improve my life or make this a better world is an empty phenomenon, what difference does it make if I put forth effort or not? Why bother?" It is then that a Zen master would usually take a stick and hit somebody over the head. "If everything is empty, why did that hurt?"
From the Buddhist point of view, it is true that emptiness is a characteristic of all of life - if we look carefully at any experience we will find transparency, insubstantiality, with no solid, unchanging core to our experience. But that does not mean that nothing matters. Things don't just happen in this world of arising and passing away. We don't live in some kind of crazy, accidental universe. Things happen according to certain laws, laws of nature. Laws such as the law of karma, which teaches us that as a certain seed gets planted, so will that fruit be. If we plant an apple seed, we can beg and plead and implore to have a mango, but we aren't going to get it. There is a way to get a mango, because we live in a lawful universe, and that is to plant a mango seed.
It is very important that we be able to hold both these truths at the same time - the ultimate emptiness of our experience, its constant changing nature, and, at the same time, to understand that it is lawful. It's not crazy, and it's not haphazard, and we can, and must direct our lives according to these laws.
When the Dalai Lama was here some years ago, he was asked by somebody giving a talk about these two aspects of the teachings, understanding emptiness and the ultimate nature of all experience, and then understanding the law of karma in the relative world, the world of relationship. He was asked if he had to make a choice between these two approaches and could only teach one, which one would he teach? He said he would teach the law of karma because, in each and every moment, if we understand that law, we have the possibility of really transforming our lives.
The middle way is a view of life that avoids the extreme of misguided grasping born of believing there is something we can find, or buy, or cling to that will not change. And it avoids the despair and nihilism born from the mistaken belief that nothing matters, that all is meaningless. It avoids these extremes by offering us a vision that is empowered by its alliance with the truth of how things are: that everything arises, but also passes; that what we do matters, though we won't find anything that does not change; that totems against impermanence won't keep us safe, but we can, in accordance with laws of nature such as karma, create a life filled with wisdom and love.
Quite right, desire can be a glorious thing, but it must be used correctly. A woman most certainly wants to be desired but does that mean every man is entitled to love her (sleep with her)? Not according to God's Word, marraige is the answer. The source I use in arriving at any conclusion is the Holy Bible
Morning All,
Let me start out by saying that I most certainly welcome comments and input with my blog… The reason I pen words is to help me start a day with a thought or three and then mull it over as the day progresses; this then helps me to focus on what is important in accordance with the scriptures…
There are many opinions about what one should do to find love and happiness and many different religions and philosophies used to achieve this. But I am persuaded that the Holy Bible holds the key to all our questions and that the Lord Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
I use the bible to find my answers and to challenge my thoughts; therefore anything outside of the written word (Holy Bible) is not up for discussion. Why? One may ask!
Let me simplify it; we (all of mankind) are sinners and we are in a desperate state, awaiting judgment. Not judgment from a man but rather a judgment from the only true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Because of this pending judgment we once were all awaiting trial; BUT GOD in is goodness made a way of escape in and through His Son the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore whoever would call upon the name of Jesus Christ the Lord would be saved. Saved from what? God’s judgment! In accordance with what the bible propagates there is no other way whereby a person can escape. It was the Lord Jesus who died for sin and no one else, and that is why nothing or no one else will ever be able to aid in our escape. I am totally persuaded by this message and believe it to be true with all my heart. Sure we may struggle with many things along life journey but that will never change the truth all that does is proves how much we need a Saviour.
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