How do I live my life no longer pursuing what King Me wants but instead living daily, living moment-by-moment all for the will of God?
Learn more about the ministry of The Purity Coach at http://www.thepuritycoach.com
How do I live my life no longer pursuing what King Me wants but instead living daily, living moment-by-moment all for the will of God?
Learn more about the ministry of The Purity Coach at http://www.thepuritycoach.com
Okay, so I am “to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God” (1 Peter 4:2), I get that, and hopefully you do too – but how? How do I live my life no longer pursuing what King Me wants but instead living daily, living moment-by-moment all for the will of God? How?
It starts with this: “do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” (Ephesians 5:17) Colossians 1:9 says we are to “be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.” Acts 22:14 tells us that “the God of our fathers has appointed you to know his will.” Great! How then do we know what God’s will is?
Welcome to The Point of Purity Podcast. I’m your host, Steve Etner author, National speaker, and Purity Coach for the Pure Man Ministry ... and this is episode #126 entitled “Free to TRUST!”
Paul tells us in Ephesians 1:9 that God has “made known to us the mystery of his will.” In other words – it IS possible for you to know what God’s will is for you! How so? Because He’s made known to you the mystery of his will, and He has done so within the pages of Scripture. David writes in Psalm 119:45, “I shall walk in a wide place, for I have sought your precepts.” In other words, I shall go through life confident that I’m walking in your will because I’m daily in your Word!
It begins with you daily digging into the Word of God. Filling your mind and your heart with His truth, which in turn enables you to counter the enemies’ lies. Let me repeat that. You and I can go through life fully confident that we’re walking in obedience to His will ONLY as we choose daily to dig into God’s word, filling our mind and our heart with His truth, which in turn enables us to counter the enemies’ lies. David puts it this way: “How can a man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 119:9, 11, 105)
In an earlier episode of this podcast, we talked about choosing to trust God fully and unreservedly. We are to “trust in the Lord with all (our) heart, and do not lean on (our) own understanding. In all (our) ways acknowledge him, and he will make (our) paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) As you learn to fully trust your Creator, as you discover how to truly rely and depend upon your Heavenly Father, as you daily choose to put all of your focus upon the Savior of your soul and worship the God of the Universe as the only Lord and leader of your life – you will in turn develop an understanding of His will for you. After all, how can you possibly expect to know the will of God when your focus and attention is completely upon worshiping yourself?
The only way we will know and understand God’s will is if we daily choose to deny self, die to self, take up our cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23). Only then will He “equip (us) with everything good that (we) may do his will, working in (us) that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” (Hebrews 13:21)
It always comes back to a choice. A daily choice. “For freedom Christ has set us free; (choose to) stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1) Think about where your focus is–King Me or God. “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” (Colossians 3:23-24)
“Know (God) and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off.” (1 Chronicles 28:9 addition mine, see figure 5 above)
“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.” (Matthew 6:33a see figure 5 above)
A Question that Demands an Answer
Here is a powerful question that demands an answer. “Now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?” (Galatians 4:9 see figure 6 below)
What say you? Now that you are a child of God, a born-again believer who has been set free, why do you choose to turn back to LuPoMas–turning your back on the God who set you free? Why are you choosing to allow King Me to rule the roost once again? Especially when you already know what a lousy dictator he is!
"For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved.” (2 Peter 2:19)
“You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’ They answered him,
‘We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?’ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:32-36)
The fact is, “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” (2 Corinthians 5:10) So, go right ahead and blame your upbringing, blame your environment, blame your spouse, blame your circumstances or situation, blame the neighbor’s noisy lawnmower if you want. However, when you stand before God, those excuses won’t hold any water with “him to whom we must give account.” (Hebrews 4:13b)
“Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and to cling to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.” (Joshua 22:5)
“If it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, .... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)
Never forget my friend that “the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:2) This is why you are to “hold fast the confession of (your) hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23 addition mine). You are to “be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.” (1 Corinthians 16:13)
“Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)
“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1)
In Psalm 24:8, as he’s thinking and contemplating the character of God, David asks, “Who is this King of glory?” He then answers by saying: “The Lord (Jehovah), strong and mighty, the Lord (Jehovah), mighty in battle!” You see, this is who is your light, your salvation, your stronghold. This is who cares deeply about you, my friend. David cries out, (Psalm 8:9) “O Lord (Jehovah), our Lord (our Jehovah), how majestic is your name in all the earth!”
Here in Psalm 27:1, David is declaring to the world that it is Jehovah, it is “the Lord” that is your light and your salvation. It is “Jehovah” –it is “the Lord” –who is the stronghold of your life. It is because of “the God who cares about you” (Jehovah) that you have nothing and no one to fear. Only “the Lord” (only Jehovah) can be (and is) your light and your salvation, the stronghold of your life.
“Cast all your anxieties on him.” Why? “Because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) Think about that. God cares about you, so cast all your anxieties upon Him. Cast them. Don’t just show them to Him as if they were on display behind the tempered glass of a high-security vault. Don’t just casually mention them to Him as if they were the end credits to a movie. Cast them, throw them, utterly and totally get rid of them. Willingly choose, voluntarily place all of your anxieties upon the God who cares for you! Why? Because Jehovah cares for you.
Understand this my friend: You, and everything about you are of high importance to the Almighty, all-powerful, most Holy, sovereign designer and Creator of the Universe. You–your thoughts, your dreams, your hopes, your aspirations, your fears, your anxieties–everything about you is of greatest concern and interest to Him This is why Psalm 55:22 commands you to “Give your burdens to the Lord (to Jehovah), and he (Jehovah) will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” (Additions mine)
Think about that my friend. The Lord, Jehovah, cares about you! Now I admit, sometimes that can be a bit hard to wrap your brain around. David ponders that point in Psalm 8:4 when he asks, “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” In other words, “How can the Holy, Almighty, Perfect and Sinless God of the Universe possibly care about dirty, rotten, ugly, sinful me when I am such a screw-up?” Can you relate? “Why would God want to have anything to do with me when I tend to turn my back on Him almost daily?”
As hard as that may be to grasp, the fact is: “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” (Ephesians 5:25) That phrase, “The church,” includes you, my friend! Yes, you! God says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you.” (Jeremiah 31:3) John 3:16 reminds us that God demonstrated that love for you when He “gave his only Son, that whoever (that includes you - whoever) believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
OK, we’re going to hit the pause button here until next week’s episode. If you would like to learn more about today’s study, or if you’re interested in learning more about The Pure Man Ministry, and more specifically how we can help you live in freedom from sexual sin, be sure to visit our website to see the multitude of resources we’ve made available to you – you can find our website at ThePurityCoach.com.
Now before I close out this episode, I WANT TO REMIND YOU OF SOME VERY, VERY EXCITING NEWS. After nearly 11 years of testing, I am excited to announce the release of my newest book “The Point of Purity” Workbook! Available now on Amazon, this workbook is the accumulation and culmination of 10+ years of coaching, mentoring, and counseling men in the area of sexual addiction and purity.
“The Point of Purity” Workbook is a 12-week journey through Scripture to help you discover the point of purity. Why should I be pure? What’s the point? What's wrong with a little "forbidden pleasure" from time to time? You will also learn how to get to the point of purity - living daily in freedom and victory over temptation.
Written in such a way that you can do this on your own or with an accountability partner or small group its purpose is to walk you through Scripture discovering from God’s Word how you can be free. Each week you are equipped with powerful tools from The Bible that will help you not only BE free, but LIVE free. You will learn how to effectively change your thought process when faced with temptation (not just sexual temptation, but actually any and all temptation). You will discover how to submit yourself to God, standing firmly against the temptation and successfully resist it every time.
You see, the real problem we struggle with is not sexual temptation. The real problem is a worship disorder. Who is sitting on the throne of your heart? Whom are you worshiping and why? “The Point of Purity” Workbook is a 12-week deep dive into Scripture to help answer this all-important question and discover how to dethrone King Me, allowing God to be Lord and leader of every part of your life. So be sure to visit Amazon.com today and get your copy of “The Point of Purity Workbook!”
And if you have not yet subscribed to this podcast, let me encourage you to do so today so you won’t miss any of our upcoming episodes! So, until next time this is Author, National Speaker, and Purity Coach Steve Etner reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.
So, until next time this is Author, Speaker, and Purity Coach Steve Etner reminding you that if you are going to glorify God in your everyday living, He must first be glorified in your every moment thinking.