*Salvation – sōtēria; rescue or safety (physically or morally): deliver, health, salvation, save, saving.
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction (training) in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.
The Process
Romans 12: 1, I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
- We need to learn how to be Kingdom minded (New man) not worldly minded (Old man).
Take off the Old and put on the New
Ephesians 4:20, But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
Colossians 3:8, But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.
How to take off the old and put on the new – change our filter
Ie. Change the oil filter of a car… else you will have problems
- Learning how to filter (the word of God) our thoughts before we speak
- Learning how to filter our actions before we react, reaction to emotions often leads to regret.
- The Choice we make tell us a lot about our progress in making Jesus Lord!
- Before Christ in your life your conscience was developed by your world view which is by and large secular. Therefore, some of the thinking you have about what is good and acceptable is influenced by your soul and flesh. Now as a believe you have a new voice speaking into your conscience… the Holy Spirit.
- Making choices that the Holy Spirit prompts you to do. Take a step of faith and do it!
How to recognize His voice:
- It lines up with the Word of God- the Bible.
- You will never be able to discern the voice of God unless you know His character and nature which can only be learned from the Word of God, the Bible.
- Compare your thoughts or action in words and deeds with the Word of God!
- God’s voice will often prompt you to do what you don’t want to do or feel comfortable doing.
- To be truthful when you don’t want to
- To be honest when you don’t want to
- To go out of your way when you don’t want to
- To be loving, joyful, peaceable, patient, kind, good, gentle, faithful, gentle and in self-control
- The Holy Spirt removes the confusion and brings peace to your thoughts and decisions.
- Colossians 3:15, And let the peace of God rule (umpire) in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
I’m going to close with an old American Indian tale that illustrates the battle we all face in our soul.
One evening, an elderly Cherokee brave told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said “my son, the battle is between two ‘wolves’ inside us all. One is evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other is good. It is joy, peace love, hope serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”
The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “which wolf wins?” the old Cherokee simply replied, “the one that you feed”
In terms of the Lordship of Jesus Christ, if you feed the Old Man you will not succeed in making Jesus Lord of your life, however, if you feed the New Man, made in the image of Christ, you will receive the peace that passes all understanding and walk in the blessings of the Lord here on earth and in Heaven!
