Many
Christians live with unnecessary feelings of guilt and condemnation because
they do not know how to distinguish between legitimate and illegitimate sources
of guilt. Guilt feelings that come from unconfessed sins is a result of the convicting work of the
Holy Spirit and can be dealt with by asking God's forgiveness. Guilt feelings
that come from sin that have already been confessed do not come from God, but
Satan, who is also known as the accuser of brethren- Rev. 12:10.
We
are not free from condemnation because we are sinlessly perfect; our freedom
results from being in Christ; and we should not carry around condemnation for
sins which we have confessed and which, consequently have been forgiven by God;
because we are forgiven, we are not expected to punish ourselves for confessed
sins. Though a degree of discipline may be
required for committed sins, we can be rest assured that our
relationship with Christ is restored when we confess our sins.
The
Holy Spirit is the power for victorious Christian living, which means freedom
from the law of sin and death- Gal. 5:13; 2 Cor. 3:17; 2 Cor. 5:21; Rom. 3:25;
Gal. 3:13. We must walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit, because walk
after the flesh pleases self and the other pleases God- Rom. 8:8. The
indwelling Holy Spirit is God's assurance to us, that we like Jesus, will
experience a bodily resurrection. Salvation and eternal life are God's free
gifts to us, but believers are not free from moral obligation- Rom. 6:23. The
Holy Spirit whom repentant sinners receive is not a spirit of bondage that
generates fear, rather it is a Spirit of adoption. Bondage is associated with
attempts to keep the Law as the basis for salvation. Since this always end in
failure, the result is the fear of the judgment of God- 1 Cor. 2:12; 2 Tim.
1:7. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of adoption by which we call God as Father.
Christians
are not exempt from adversity and often God does not choose to answer the
question ''Why'' when tragedy strikes. During difficult times, we rest in the
assurance that eventually God will be glorified by bringing all things together
for our good. Sometimes, as we look at our lives, we see all the knots and the
loose ends. If we could see from God's perspective, we would see the beautiful
pattern He is working for our good and His glory.
God's ultimate objective for His children is
that we become conformed to the image of His son- 2 Cor. 3:18; 1 Jn.3:2. We
must be fully persuaded that God will do what He has promised to do. As long as
we walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh, we are secure in Christ,
not in our own strength. The Holy Spirit makes intercession for us.
Sometimes
our concept of life in the Spirit is that it should be one long, glorious revival
meeting, a continuous series of Spiritual highs. Life in the Spirit is a life
of faith and trusting in God. Sometimes, the way is not cleat at all and we
need to walk by faith and not by sight- 2 Cor. 5:7. Often the spirit gives us
just enough light to take the next step and we must trust Him to guide in the
steps that follow.
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