“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as
unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are
evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do
not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the
Spirit.” – Ephesians 5:15-18 NIV
All of us have been created to be the image
of God (Genesis 1:27) but since Satan, the enemy of
God, has deceived us (Revelation 12:7-9), we fell into temptation
to be sinners by falling short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). John 16:8-11 states that not believing in
Jesus Christ is indeed sin since He is the perfect image of God (Colossians 1:15). This is because if we do
not believe in Him, then we do not know where humans have been actually come
from. This is the exact reason why Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross and
resurrected to reveal the love of God to us (1 John 4:9-10; Romans 5:6-8). In addition to this, God has
given us eternal life through Jesus Christ instead of the death, since sin
leads us into it (Romans 6:23) Therefore, we have to repent
for not believing in Jesus Christ (Matthew 3:2), and then believing in Jesus
until the end of the age (John 3:16-18).
For it is by grace
you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the
gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us
to do. (Ephesians 2:8-10)
At one time we too
were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and
pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But
when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because
of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through
the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us
generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by
his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a
trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who
have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good.
These things are excellent and profitable for everyone. (Titus 3:3-8)
As we are believing in Jesus Christ, we
ought to overcome the world as well (1 John 5:1-5). This is because the world
urges us to think we are our own saviour. The world even think that everyone
has to literally be perfect in everything by our deeds to enter the kingdom of
heaven at the end of the age. In addition to this, the desires of the Spirit of
God are not able to go with the worldly ones, due to the fact that they are
contrary to each other (Galatians 5:17). Matthew 6:24 can be the best explanation
for this. This is because the desires of the world is all about money due to
the fact that money enables us to buy everything that we desire and want. If we
focus on the world too much, then we do not have time to serve God because our
natural desires never end. Thus, for
this reason, we have to crucify our desires from the flesh to serve God by
keeping in step with the desires of the Spirit, and to really belong to Jesus
Christ (Galatians 5:24-25) In other words, we
should always be filled with the Spirit of God to serve Him until the end of
the age. However, most of us easily be mistaken with “inspirational moments”
and the filled in the Spirit of God. They seem to be similar, they are
different. The “inspirational moments” are the empowerment of the Spirit of God
to do everything for His purposes and for His glory (1 Corinthians 10:31). The “inspirational
moments” even can be visions of God that tells us what the will of God is for
our lives. Nevertheless, we always can be filled with the Spirit of God to do
everything for His purposes and for His glory by changing our mind-sets from
our own nature into the nature of God (Colossians 3:1-4).
The Son is the
image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all
things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible,
whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created
through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold
together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and
the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the
supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and
through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or
things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Once you were
alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil
behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death
to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if
you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move
from the hope held out in the gospel… (Colossians 1:15-23)
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