One of God’s Favorite Words

by Russell Meyer

Although I am a creature of habit, I have to admit that I do like new things! I like new clothes, new places, and new seasons. I like getting a new tie. I even like new restaurants. To me new is a really good feeling. But what I have found to be really cool about new is that God loves new things too! Throughout the Bible He talks about the new things He has given to us:

God gives us a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26).

God gives us a new spirit (Ezekiel 18:31).

God puts a new song in our hearts (Psalm 40:3).

He has given us a new name (Revelation 2:17).

He has given us a new self (Ephesians 4:24).

He makes us wholly new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 pulls it all together and says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away; behold all things have become new.”

Habits are a great way to examine your walk with God. What old habits do you have that have passed away? If you are still clinging to some old habits what does that say about your walk? Why are you not surrendering these to Jesus?

As human beings we sometimes have a hard time with change. Surrendering completely to Jesus and letting Him be completely in control of your life can be scary. However, what you need to realize is that the new things He brings to you will always be better than what you have right now. It is easy to just stay where you are and not face the challenge of moving forward. This is even true with our sins. We can find them hard to let go of and sometimes even find ourselves clinging to them. If we don’t let go and surrender them to Jesus we won’t make it very far.

Picture a trapeze artist if you will. He sits on one trapeze fully knowing that he needs to let go and grab the other trapeze. But he feels secure where he is. If he doesn’t let go of the trapeze he’s on he will probably get booed by the crowd, and even fired by the circus, but more importantly he will miss the exhilaration in letting go and moving forward. This is true for us all…by clinging to what we have right now, and not trusting Jesus, we too miss the trill of moving forward.

Understand that God brings about change in our lives. In fact among the final words God will speak in human history will be “Behold, I make all things new” (Revelation 21:5).  Change, when it is God directed, is a very good thing. When we change as people it can be a painful experience, but when God changes us it is always for the better.

The Christian life is about being new, about being different and about being changed. If you are not changing, being transformed little by little, day by day feeling His victory, then what’s up with your faith? Those people who are in Christ are being changed. That is why the Bible says we should “walk in newness of life.” The words “newness of life” from Romans 6:4 translate a Greek word that does not mean new in time, but new in character, new in quality, a different person. (Share testimony)

Think about what is new in your life since coming to Christ. Have you been open to what the Holy Spirit can teach you in Scripture on a daily basis?  If not, surrender to Jesus whatever is keeping you from daily reading and form a new habit with Scripture.

God wants to make us new. Think back to the time before you committed your life to Christ. Do you remember how you were a slave to certain sins? No matter how you tried, you fell back into those same patterns over and over again. The good news is that when you confess Christ as your Lord & Savior, God connects you with the resurrection power of Jesus Christ and the power of sin in your life is broken. Sin is still going to try to get your attention but it cannot boss you around anymore.

This is the picture Paul communicated in Romans 6:1-7. “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore, we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”

 Paul wanted us to know that we do not have to be under the demands of sin anymore. That need not be our experience, and by the power of God, it is not the experience of those who live in His resurrection power. Tragically, Christians today are still living like they are under the power of sin. Before Christ we didn’t have a choice. Now we do! Having a choice doesn’t mean you won’t be tempted, but we can choose to follow that temptation or listen to the Holy Spirit.

The temptation to sin is not gone, but it’s sort of unplugged. You can’t make toast if the toaster is unplugged and you can’t sin if the old person is unplugged, but you can go plug the old person in again.

When Paul said that we have “been freed from sin,” he was letting you and I know that the power of sin is broken in us. All who receive Christ personally have had their inclination to sin cut off or rendered inoperative. Sin is not in charge anymore; you don’t have to do what it says. (Philippians 4:13) tells us that we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength. I believe that verse is underestimated—Christ is greater than anyone or anything. If we rely on Him we will succeed.

                If we are still struggling with a certain sin, it is because we choose to remain in that sin. When we are tempted by sin we hear two things. One of them is the Holy Spirit telling you to draw strength from Him and flee (James 4:7-10) and the other is Satan telling you it is ok.

Hebrews 2:18 tells us that “because He himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.” It is a sad thing to have the means to escape, yet choose not to act upon it.

In his historical book The Three Edwards, Thomas Costaine described such a tragedy. During the fourteenth century a duke named Ranald lived in the region which is now Belgium. Ranald was grossly overweight. Eventually Ranald became king, but his brother, Edward, was very jealous. After a violent quarrel, Edward rallied a group of people together and led a revolt, taking over the castle and the kingdom.

Now you might think that Edward would kill his older brother, as was often done, but somehow he had compassion on him and built a dungeon for him—a very specific kind of dungeon.

Edward removed Ranald from the throne and built a large, circular room, which had a doorway but no door. Inside the room were a bed and table and all the essentials Ranald would need. The doorway to the room was regular-sized but Ranald was too big to get through it. Edward told Ranald, “When you can fit through the doorway, you can leave.”

Every day, Edward had a smorgasbord of pies and pastries, along with massive platters of meat and other delicacies laid out in front of his brother. People accused Edward of being cruel, but Edward had a ready answer. “My brother is not a prisoner. He can leave when he chooses to.”

Ranald remained in that room, a prisoner of his own appetite, for more than ten years. He was released when Edward died in battle, but by then his own health was so far gone that he died within a year.  This is what it is like to know that you can choose Christ yet persist in your sins, until you are consumed by death.

If we are in Christ, we are not a slave to any sin. In Christ, we have the power to be the person that God wants us to be. No pattern of thinking holds you. No pattern of behavior enslaves us. The chains of sin are broken in us; we are free to do what is right.  As you walk with Jesus, always let Him be in control.

We need Christ's strength in our lives to help us, but what steps are you taking to avoid sin? (Example: a person with a drinking problem would just stay away from bars & parties with alcohol, etc.)

Are you capturing your thoughts immediately and giving them to Christ? What Scripture’s can you quote to help ward off sinful thoughts? (Ephesians 6:10-18)

Are you showing others that you have a relationship with Jesus? (John 14:15, 15:14 & 1 John 2:3-4)

What must you do to receive the Holy Spirit and have a Godly walk? (Acts 5:32)

In what areas do you find it easy to obey and in what areas do you struggle?

I’d like to share a story with you that always hit’s home for me.  Before I accepted Jesus as my savior, I saw God as my observer, my judge, keeping track of the things I did wrong to determine whether I merited going to heaven or hell. To me, God was like the President. I recognized His picture when I saw it, but I really didn't know Him. After accepting Christ, my life became like a ride on a tandem bike with Christ on the backseat helping me pedal. I’m not sure at what point He suggested we change seats—with him in front—but my life has not been the same since.

Before Christ joined me on this bike ride through life, I thought I knew the way.  When He took the lead, instead of just the boring, predictable ride I was on, He showed me delightful new paths, up mountains, through rocky places— all at breakneck speeds.  It is all I can do to hang on! 

Even though it sometimes seems like madness, He keeps telling me, "Pedal!" At times, I worry and ask, "Where are you taking me?" Sometimes, He just laughs, and sometimes he doesn’t answer. And when I say, "I'm scared," He leans back, touches my hand and comforts me. I have learned to trust that He knows the way. I have left my boring life behind and entered into a great new adventure. 

At first, I did not trust Him to be in control of my life, my journey.  I soon came to find out that he knows bike secrets—how to take the sharp corners, how to jump to clear the high rocks and how to fly to shorten the scary passages.  I am learning to learning to enjoy the view and the cool breeze on my face with my delightful constant companion, Jesus Christ.  I have gained love, peace, acceptance and joy; gifts to take on my journey—My Lord's and mine. And when those times come that I have doubt, He just smiles and says... "Pedal." 

The point of this story is that God asks us to be active. We are required to do things in our walk. When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead He told Lazarus to “come forth.” He didn’t just raise Him up and send him on his way. He spoke to Lazarus and Lazarus had to respond. Jesus wants us to listen and obey. Just as Lazarus had to come forth, so do we. We need to walk in faith and trust in Him when He asks us to do something. And when we are tempted by sin and we hear Him telling us to resist the devil, our strength lies in His voice, in His grace and in His mercy.

As you leave here today, I encourage you to listen to what God has to say to you about what He wants you to change in your life. As you read your Bible, ask God to show you what He wants you to know. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you and lead you.  Come to Him with a clean heart; confess to Him your sins, your doubts, your fears. Don’t allow un-confessed sin to block communication with our Lord. This doesn’t have to be a huge process. Just tell Him. Let Him take away the impurities. Then the channel of communication will be open and He will do great things in your life.

When you don’t hear God it is for one of two reasons. Either you aren’t reading your Bible or you are hanging on to your sin. In Isaiah 59:2, we learn that our iniquities have separated us from our God, and our sins have hidden His face from us.

You need to confess your sins and heed what the Holy Spirit says. As a believer, who has the Holy Spirit in Christ Jesus, ask yourself: “Does the Holy Spirit have all of me?” “Does He control me?” The fact is, He does not control every believer. Paul writes to believers in Ephesians 5:17-18, “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine . . . but be filled with the Spirit”

“Be filled with the Spirit.”  The Greek word there, plarusta, means “to be controlled.”  It means “to be intoxicated, permeated, or thoroughly influenced.”  God does not give suggestions, just commands. And because He commands us to be filled, then it is possible. But you cannot fill yourself; God fills everyone who asks Him to. There’s no special class of people who have something from the Holy Spirit that none of the rest of us have.

So is this a “once and for all” Spirit thing? At the moment of salvation, you were baptized into the Holy Spirit. That will never change. But many times during your life you can be filled by the Spirit as you ask Him to completely control you.

When the Holy Spirit fills us, He takes control of our tongue and we say things that bless, encourage, and nourish God’s people.

When the Holy Spirit has control of our body we can serve people and be part of building God’s kingdom.

When the Holy Spirit fills us, He occupies our mind and we think thoughts that please Him. He gives us the ability to wrestle with the truth of His Word in a way that impacts our lives.

When the Holy Spirit takes control of us, we don’t have to be afraid anymore. We’re also not filled with anger or sorrow or doubt.

So how do we get the Holy Spirit? We ask God and then get out of the way! Let go of your burdens and pick up the yoke of Christ. The way is narrow but the reward is out of this world!!

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