Page 15 - MyFaith Mag JULY 2016 Web 001

Speatrkutthhein love.
but we are called to be holy for He is Holy.
Whereas living in ignorance results in sin and
produces ungodliness, living in Truth results
in freedom and produces holiness. So how
exactly do we become holy? Is that even
possible?
• We need to realize that we “all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans
3:23 NIV), therefore the answer doesn’t lie
within ourselves, but the Son of God – Jesus
Christ – for “God made Him who had no
sin [ Jesus] to be sin for us, so that in Him we (NIV):
might become the righteousness of God” (2
Corinthians 5:21 NIV). He became…so that
we might become…
• The Bible instructs all of mankind to
“repent”. The word “repent” or “repentance”
does not simply refer to acknowledging
our sin before God, but to “think differently”
and ultimately turn away from it by acting
differently. This is why God warns us
that we should not be “conformed to this
world”, but we must be “transformed by the
renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2 KJV).
God called us out of the kingdom of dark-
ness and into the Kingdom of Light. When
we respond to that call, we have an obli
gation to no longer think or act the way we
have done before.
Acting differently as a result of thinking differ- tion of His throne” (Psalm 97:2 NIV). The Word
ently is not only the evidence of true repent-
ance, but also our salvation, “for they that are
after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh;
CL myfaithmag.com
but they that are after the Spirit the things of
the Spirit” (Romans 8:5 KJV).
When we have transformed our mind, by
thinking and acting differently as a result of the 5:14 NIV). Philosophically, there is no such
revelation of Truth, we begin to walk according
to the Spirit and not the flesh. The Apostle
Paul (someone whom did not hesitate to
speak the truth in love and as a result wrote
two thirds of the New Testament) reveals this
striking contrast between walking in the flesh
as opposed to the Spirit in Galatians 5:19-23
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual
immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry
and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits
of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I
warn you, as I did before, that those who live
like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness and self-control.
It is my prayer that we will make the decision
to seek and desire holiness in spite of the
evident moral decline we observe in the world
– for we are not of this world. “God is love” (1
John 4:8 NIV) and “He is the same yesterday,
today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8 KJV), and
“righteousness and justice remain the founda-
of God (Truth) is still the only moral plumb line
(the gold standard, the supreme authority) for
a healthy, thriving society. I believe the main
reason we are witnessing such a (sharp) moral
decline, is because the world has rejected God
and His authority and the Church no longer
speak the truth in love. As Christians, we are
called to be the light of the world (Matthew
thing as darkness, for darkness is merely an
absence of light. Therefore, for darkness to
prevail, there simply needs to be an absence
of light – men and women who are called by
His Name, who decide to do nothing about the
status quo. It is my prayer that we will stop
complainingabout the problems in society and
startbeing the solution, by speaking the truth
in love and letting our light shine under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit.
In closing, I want to remind you about a story
of a twenty-six-year-old man, named Evan
Roberts, who fervently prayed for revival to
come to Wales during the turn of the twenti-
eth century. The “conditions for revival” was
not ideal – in fact, the moral fabric of society
was similar to what we are witnessing today.
It was reported that the spiritual wood was so
dry, that even the smallest spark could ignite
a mighty flame – it simply needed a spark. In
September 1904, against all odds, the words
“Bend me! Bend me!” would spark one of the
greatest revivals since Pentecost.
Kevin Davis is the lead pastor of the River
Church in Marco Island, Florida.
www.rivermarco.com
JULY 2016 | 15