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isaacsumner
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Jesus is Lord. Reformed Christian. Teacher. Dat postmil!
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isaacsumner 2 years ago
image Being adopted into God's family involves suffering in this world and glory in the resurrection. Like a child who has been stung by a bee, you can tell who our Father is by watching whom we instinctively run to, crying, "Father!" The "Abba! Father!" cry is not about trying to sense God's Spirit inside us. It is a reassurance that our faith is real when we find ourselves turning to Christ in hard times instead of fleeing from Him.
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isaacsumner 2 years ago
image Those who are trusting Christ for their right standing with God are already living eternal life. The Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, is the Life of the age to come. The Spirit has already begun making us fit for that age and will, at Christ's return, finish this work as He raises us up to share Christ's glory.
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isaacsumner 2 years ago
image Let me clarify two things about this verse. 1. Setting your mind on the flesh doesn't only mean to live a hedonistic life, being ruled by one's lower impulses. It is any manner of life that is lived relying on one's own strength, separated from God. It can manifest in rampant perversion, moralism, or anything in between. 2. Setting your mind on the Spirit doesn't mean a general openness to the unseen world. Most spirits that are interested in influencing your mind fervently desire your destruction. The true Spirit of God, who leads us in the path of eternal life, always draws us closer to Jesus Christ.
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isaacsumner 2 years ago
Even if a law is holy and perfect, like the law of God, it cannot produce righteous living. In fact, our sinful nature will rebel in the precise direction of that good law. Christ's death was a condemnation of sin itself. If we place our confidence in Christ, our sin is condemned while we escape justice. While sin continues to war against our good desires in this life, we are no longer held captive by its power. For the first time in our lives, we find the power to resist sin, NOT by fixating on the law as the basis for our relationship with God. Rather, Christ's Spirit helps us to fulfill the law as we chase after Him on the path He walked as the only Son of God. The law is useful for us, as a description of love which was fulfilled by Christ on our behalf. image
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isaacsumner 2 years ago
" I was already in bed with my son when they broke into our home. They cut me with a machete on my back, hands and thighs. They left us thinking they had killed us, but we survived the attack and were rescued the following morning.." https://gcrelief.page.link/MbRuhGGtdfS8PPJ5A