Cream of the Crop 11/Cream of the Crop 11-2.iso/extra/livingv.zip/LIVINGV.TXT

Text File | 1995-12-20 | 12KB | 232 lines

 God wants you to "prosper and be in health, even as thy soul, prospereth"
(III John 2). It is also His plan that you shall live victoriously
every day.  With head high and shoulders back you may trod the earth
like a conqueror; not in pride of course, but in sheer joy of serving
Him and with full confidence in His direction of your life.

Some indications of His purpose can be seen by reading His messages
to ancient Israel.  Take your Bible and turn to the book of Deuteronomy.
 Here
you will find some of the most striking promises of this sort.

"If ye shall diligently keep these commandments which I command you,
to do them, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, and
to cleave unto him; Then will the Lord drive out all these nations
from before you, and ye shall possess greater  nations and mightier
than yourselves.  Every place whereon the soles of your feet shall
tread shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river
Euphrates, even unto the uttermost sea shall your coast be.  There
shall no man be able to stand before you: for the Lord your God shall
lay the fear of you and the dread of you upon all the land that ye
shall tread upon, as he hath said unto you." (Deut. 11:22-25)

"The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be
smitten before thy face: they shall come out
against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways." (Deuteronomy
28:7)

"The Lord shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he
hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord
thy God, and walk in his ways.  And all people of the earth shall see
that thou art called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid
of thee."  (Deuteronomy 28:9-10)

NOT IN MIGHT
Notice that the power of the people would reside not in military might
but in holiness.  They would be respected because of their Godly principles
and noble lives.  No one would dare to harm them, because they were
obviously identified with the God of Heaven.  The same spiritual significance
can be seen in this promise also:
"And the Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou
shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken
unto the commandments of the Lord thy God, which I command thee this
day, to observe and to do them..." (Deut. 28:13)

Later, as Israel was about to enter the promised land, God said to
their new leader, Joshua;
"Only be thou strong, and very courageous, that thou mayest observe
to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee:
turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest
prosper whithersoever thou goest." (Joshua 1:7)

"Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not
afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee
whithersoever thou goest." (Joshua 1:9)

Accepting these glorious promises at their face value, Joshua went
on from victory to victory until God's purpose in Canaan had been achieved.
At the close of his life, he was able to say,
"There failed not ought of any good thing which the lord had spoken
unto the house of Israel; all came to pass." (Joshua 21:45)

May we claim these promises today? By all means.  Why not? God has
not changed His plans for those who love Him and keep His commandments.

In Joshua's day the people of Israel lost their way and forsook the
worship of God for idols, at very great costs to themselves.  The promised
blessings were withdrawn, but not forever. They were merely held in
reserve until there should appear on earth a people who could be trusted
with them.

THE PEOPLE OF GOD
At last such a people appeared.  To the eager, innocent, zealous followers
of Jesus, who made up the Church of God of the first century, God said
to the apostle Peter,
"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation,
a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who
hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:  Which in
time past were not a people but are now the people of God:  which hath
not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy." (I Peter 2:9-10)

Because they were "now the people of God," doing what was pleasing
in His sight, the blessings were bestowed on them.  Like a river in
full flood the power of the Holy Spirit came upon them and they "went
forth conquering, and to conquer." (Revelation 6:2)

Each individual member believed, as did Joshua,that God was with him
wherever he went.  Remembering the master's promise, "I give unto you
power ...over all the power of the enemy" (Luke 10:19), He talked victory
and expected victory.  So, irresistibly, the Church of God moved on
to establish the Kingdom of Jesus Christ on the face of this earth.

This glorious conquering spirit was specially manifest in the life
of the greatest of all missionary apostles, the apostle Paul.  Nothing
seemed to discourage him.

CHRIST ENDURED
After his conversion, life was not easy for him.  He endured much.

"...In labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons
more frequent, in deaths oft.  Of the Jews five times received I forty
stripes save one.  Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned,
thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in
perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils
in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in
perils among false brethren; In weariness and painfulness, in watchings
often in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness."
(II Corinthians 11:23-27).

All this was enough to make any man depressed but not the apostle Paul.

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities,
in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for I am weak, then
am I strong". (II Cor. 12:10)

"We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed
but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down but not
destroyed;"  (II Cor. 4:8-9)

"Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us
also by Jesus, and shall present us with you". (II Cor. 4:14)

DAILY RENEWAL
"For  which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish,
yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction,
which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and
eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are
seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are
seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."

(II Corinthians 4:16-18)

What marvelous faith!  What incredible courage!  Here indeed was the
spirit of a conqueror.  Sustained by absolute confidence in God, sure
of his love, leadership, and ultimate deliverance, Paul faced each
day's trials and defeats as though God had already turned them into
victories.

"Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ,
and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place."
(II Corinthians 2:14)

No doubt he had often seen Roman Generals departing on foreign expeditions
at the head of armor-clad legions.  And he had seen them return, bringing
the spoils of war to lay at the Emperor's feet.

MORE THAN CONQUERORS
"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation,
or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long;
we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things
we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded,
that neither death, nor life, nor angels, not principalities, nor things
to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able
to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
(Romans 8:35-39)

To the end of life's journey this conquering spirit remained with
him.  In his last letter, written just before his execution, he said;

"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept
the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and
not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing."  (II
Tim. 4:7-8)

How did he manage to keep up his courage so long, through so many
terrible trials?  There is a hint of the secret in that word of his
to the Corinthians: "The inward man is renewed day by day."  His was
a day by day experience.  He never let himself get far away from God.
He kept close to the fountain of spiritual strength.  Instead of taking
trials and insults to heart and grieving over them, he told God about
them.  When threatened and persecuted, he thought of God's long range
plans and laughed at his fears.

It was to the Ephesians that he spoke most plainly on this subject.
He wanted again to be as "Strong in the Lord and in the power of his
might" as he was himself.  He wanted them also to live a victorious
life.  So he gave them this admonition:
"Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of
his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and
blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers
of darkness of this world against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able
to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand
therefore having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the
breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation
of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith
ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take
the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the
word of God; Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the
Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication
for all saints:"
(Ephesians 6:10-18)

Notice this armor carefully for you, too, must wear it if you will
live victoriously.

ARMOR OF GOD
First there is the garment of truth; next the breast plate of righteousness;
then the shoes of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation,
and finally the sword of the spirit, "which is the word of God."

Obviously, this armor is not material but spiritual.  It has to do
with the mind and the heart rather than the body, but, once donned,
it will preserve the whole being from "all the flaming darts of the
evil one."

Truth will give us certainty and keep our thoughts balanced and reasonable.
Righteousness will give us confidence and free us from fear of criticism.
Peace will give us gentleness and enable us to ignore all slights and
slurs upon our character and way of life.  Faith will give us courage
and buoyancy and place all disappointments and hardships in their true
perspective.

The word will supply every weapon we need in our warfare with the
powers of darkness.  Like the flaming sword over the gate of Eden it
will turn "every way" in the battle with evil.

Notice particularly that last piece of equipment suggested by the
apostle - "the Word of God," that of course, is the Bible.  Your Bible!

This means that the very book you have in your home, can help you
to triumph over every difficulty, every sorrow, every set back, and
to live victoriously here and hereafter.