Skip to main content

Experiencing God in our flesh.

 


The body craves things that comfort it. We spend most of our lives taking our queues from what our natural body desires. If we experience God or happiness it is usually as a result of something that happens carnally in our senses. There have been people who have experienced something of a cleansing that transcends fleshy existence and have experienced God, not as a carnal thing, but as transformative experience in the human body. The bible says that those who live in the flesh cannot please God, but we exist in a body, and we cannot escape our flesh, but the church talks about theosis or  divinization,  where some people have had a greater experience of God that transforms the flesh. 


We are not God, but we can experience God. While we can never become a god, the bible says that we are partakers of the divine nature, which means that when we accept Christ we are given the Holy Spirit and partake in the life of salvation. Our appetites change and we are helped to transform our desires to resist sin, and to take part in the process of becoming more like Christ in our character, which is called sanctification. We renew our minds through the word of God, and experience the comfort that comes from the word of God. 


Our flesh is not changed, but should be submitted to holiness, not perfectly but gradually in progressive steps. When we fall, we repent and ask for forgiveness. We already possess the life of Christ, and it is lived out in faith, in community and in communion with the Holy Spirit who assists us in resisting sin, and resisting the devil. What I become in the Christian walk is consequential on my knowledge of scripture and my obedience to that. Practical knowledge must be applied in order for me to really see the transforming power of the gospel. 


Because we are already in Christ, we work out of our position, not to necessarily attain it. Change can be gradual and every step in conformity with the word of God, and the help of the Holy Spirit helps us to progressively make changes, that lead us closer to God, and closer to His holiness. 


Whenever we behave in a way that is in moral conformity to the word of God, and to the character of Christ, we strengthen our souls and come closer to our position in Christ in actuality. When we gradually follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in this way, our faith becomes more evident, and we have more confidence in our salvation. Progressively we continue, despite our setbacks, to be controlled and lead by the Holy Spirit and comforted by our efforts despite our lack of perfection. Romans 8:14 “Those who are led by God's Spirit are God's children.” This is Mike.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Some Bible Verses on Money.

  Bible verses about money. I bet you didn’t think the bible said that? Proverbs 23:5 When you glance at wealth, it disappears, for it makes wings for itself and flies like an eagle to the sky.  1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. Proverbs 13:11 Wealth quickly gained is quickly wasted — easy come, easy go! But if you gradually gain wealth, you will watch it grow. Psalm 62:10 Don’t make your living by extortion or put your hope in stealing. And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the centre of your life. Luke 6:38 “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Ecclesiastes 11:1 Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that

How Believing in God Changes Your Perspective on Time.

  When you have an awareness of the Divine your perspective on time changes. Uncertainty can be the cause of a lack of belief in God. In generations past our culture has had more of an awareness of God and lived with more certainty. The bible is not just a story book for the present moment, it contains the past, the present, and the future in it. The Holy Spirit can give us a perspective that holds the past, the present, and the future, and allows us to see God’s whole picture, despite what we may be feeling or experiencing around us or in our lives.   Trials and persecution can make it difficult to see the whole picture, but I believe that it’s a gift of God to live with this perspective. Unbelief can hinder us from “seeing it all” and insecurities and weaknesses can also disable us from living with this certainty. Also the fear of death, or impending doom, can erase God’s perspective of the future, because our minds get clouded with fear, and we are not able to perceive reality prope

Why has the church lost its capacity and power?

  The church has modernized itself and in the process has lost something very valuable. It has lost its capacity to be personable. The way we reach lost souls is by seeing them, by getting to know them, and by recognizing them, but people are getting lost in the church. The church has become a busy place and is also becoming a less holy place. To make disciples we have to get to know people, and technology in the church is depersonalizing souls, and depersonalizing God for them. Faith becomes a marketable commodity, whereas in the past, churches and their leaders nourished and valued personal faith. While faith is still valued, it’s becoming something that is marketable, which reminds me of the story of Jesus in the temple turning over tables (Matthew 21:12-17). The problem isn’t that the church doesn’t work or doesn’t want to share the gospel, it could be how we are doing it. The church is currently being run like a business, and each Christian metaphorically speaking has a profit val