:: one way. Jesus. ::

Saturday, March 12, 2005

Hi friends,

I would like to share with you, in this article, about Desire. Desiring has two faces. If you desire for things of God, it become "Passions of God" but if you desire according to the flesh, it becomes "Lust of the Flesh". Both are desires, but how then can you avoid the lust of the flesh and revel in the passions of God? Between it is a thin dividing line.

Benedict

passions of God

What are "passions of God"? Is it the fruits of the spirit??

Let's recall some of the spirit's fruits...patience...gentleness...love...joy...peace...slow to anger...wait a moment! These are all "attributes", in other words, character. Is character the same as passion?

Let's side-track a little. We all know that God is love, the very essence of God is to love. Thus, God does not have to try very hard to love. It is in Him. We sometimes find it difficult to love because we are imperfect. When Adam sinned, our God-image is scarred, thus that essence of love is also damaged. Only when we are in Christ, we can start to live again in our God-image, so that we may be able to love.

Love is an attribute, a character. But...when we as Christians, who are in Christ, strive to love one another, it becomes a desire. And desire will ultimately become a passion.

When God conforms us to His image, we begin to function in the "passions of God", pursuing after the fruits of the spirit.

Jesus himself, who is the (1) essence of love b'cos He is God, (2) lived for the passion of the cross. He already is love but the passion of the cross caused Him to give His life away. Passions of God are godly attributes that you are working towards, by God's grace.

lUst of the FleSH

The bible says that pursuing after the lust of the flesh ultimately leads to death, first spiritually and then, your whole being (physical and spiritual).

What are the lust of the flesh?

As long as a desire is not in line with God's will, it is a lust of the flesh. I'm going to point out 2 major Lusts of the flesh.

1) Pride: "As soon as pride creeps into your life, you will think yourself big." Many say. However, I believe that as soon as pride creeps into your life, you will first begin to think others small.
It is like a painter who draws the King's coutroom. At first, he draws the king- same size as every other person in the room. But then, he starts to enlarge the King. Do you think, the King in the picture (if it comes alive) will first think that the people around him are small? Or think that he himself is big? It is a definite yes that his first reaction will be to question the size of the people. We also sometimes judge others before checking ourselves due to PRIDE.

2) Intense Desire: The word "intense" has a different context, although it has similar meanings to the word- "strong". Intense brings out a sense of "getting my way; must do it", a very self-centered desire. This kind of desire does not care about others, nor does it seek to please God but only for self. I believe that sexual sins come under this category. There can also be an intense desire to get or do something, which may cause you to disobey your parents.

What then ShoUld wE Do?

1st Surrender: Let us take this burden of trying to keep out of pursuing the lust of the flesh off our backs & hand it over to Christ. Only He can help us.

2nd Spend time with God: Cultivate a relationship with Him; depend on His grace. Even when you fail, come back and ask for forgiveness. The bible says that God is faithful and just to forgive our sins when we repent. Tell God your deepest desires and struggles. He loves sincere hearts.

3rd Counter the Devil's temptations with the TRUTH of God's WORD. When you know the truth, the truth will set you free! Make it a point to memorise scriptures and USE them when lusts of the flesh come knocking at your door.

History Maker - traveled on - 5:59 PM

the traveller

Name: Benedict
Walked since: 1994
Walked For: God and God alone..His forever..with Family. Friends. Church. ...

past roads

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