Live Wisely Ephesians 5:15-17 Colossians 4:5-6 Hebrews 12:14-17 Colossians 3:5-10 Colossians 3:12-17 Colossians 1:9-14 1 John 2:6 01.29.20

LIVE WISELY

BREAD

¹⁵ Be very careful, then, how you live--not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.  Ephesians 5:15-17 (NIV)

⁵ Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.  Colossians 4:5-6 (NIV)

¹⁴ Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. ¹⁵ See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ¹⁶ See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. ¹⁷ Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears. Hebrews 12:14-17 (NIV)

⁵ Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. ⁶ Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. ⁷ You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. ⁸ But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. ⁹ Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Colossians 3:5-10 (NIV)

¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.  ¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:12-17 (NIV)

⁹ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. ¹⁰ And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, ¹¹ being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully ¹² giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. ¹³ For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:9-14 (NIV)

⁶ Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. 1 John 2:6 (NIV)

BUTTER

“We will never put God in a nice little convenient proverbial box of our own makings and imaginations.  He is so totally other – His thoughts are not our thoughts neither His ways our ways.  His paths for us are always perfect and pleasing and have our best interest at heart though most often unimaginatively hard.  His ways may not lead us into comfort and painlessness.  Indeed, His children should not expect to be carried into heaven on a bed of down though He can do so if He so desires.  More often than not, His ways lead us into circumstances ‘far beyond our ability to endure’ to demonstrate to the unbelieving world (and to ourselves for that matter) His power in our lives whether it be by miraculously changing our circumstances or just as  miraculously (or even more so), by changing our hearts through the circumstances. His good ways will always lead us on paths of conformation to the fullness of His precious Son – that’s the purpose.  He wants us to be like Jesus – whatever it takes - and we want that too.  That is the abundant life.”   BHY

“He does not believe that does not live according to his belief.”  Thomas Fuller

“Pray for a strong and lively sense of sin.  The greater the sense of sin, the less sin.”   Samuel Rutherford

“Never be afraid to live for Jesus.  Never be ashamed to live for Jesus.   Never be apathetic in living for Jesus. Be committed.”     Anne Graham Lotz

“A special faith in our Lord Jesus Christ’s person, work and office is the life, heart and mainspring of the Christian character.  He sees by faith and unseen Saviour, who loved him, gave Himself for him, paid his debts for him, bore his sins, carried his transgressions, rose again for him, and appears in heaven for him as his Advocate at the right hand of God.  He sees Jesus and clings to Him…..He sees his own many sins, his weak heart, a tempting world, a busy devil; and if he looked only at them, he might well despair.  But he sees also a mighty Saviour, an interceding Saviour, a sympathizing Saviour—His blood…..His righteousness, His everlasting priesthood—and he believes that all this is his own.  He sees Jesus and casts his whole weight on Him.  Seeing Him, he cheerfully fights on, with a full confidence that he will prove more than conqueror through Him that loved him…Habitual lively faith in Christ’s presence and readiness to help is the secret of the Christian fighting successfully.”  J C Ryle, Holiness

“Holiness is not a feeling – it is the end product of obedience.  Purity is not a gift – it is the result of repentance and serious pursuit of God.”  Frances J. Roberts

“Always remain alert to the fact that where one man has gone back is exactly where anyone may go back.”    Oswald Chambers

“Our lives are an embodiment of a message of whatever we believe to be true.”  Anonymous

“The only evidence we have of each other is what we profess with our lips and live with our lives.”  J.A. Motyer 

“Be such a person, and live such a life, that if everyone were such as you, and every life a life such as yours, this earth would be God’s paradise.”   Phillips Brook

“As our Great Shepherd, He leads and directs His children in the way they should go.  This is profitable for us, though often extraordinarily difficult, yet always for our ultimate good and His Glory – never one surpassing the other.  Our lives are not our own.  We have been bought with a high price and we are to honor God with our bodies.  We are not to run ahead doing our own things, going our own ways, giving no thought to His will – which, BTW, is always for our best.  This will always lead to ultimate ruin.  It matters how we live our lives.  Nothing done in the flesh sans His power is eternal.  God will not own what mere flesh can accomplish.  It will all be burned up.  Seek to follow hard after the One who loves you with an everlasting love and rejoices over you with singing.  You will not be disappointed.”  BHY

“Live a story that tells of the wanted life, tells of the abundant life.”  Ann Voskamp

HEART SAVOR

• ·        When all the crowds were leaving Jesus He turns to His guys and asks this heart tugging question:  “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.   Peter’s response is stellar and should be every believer’s answer as well:  ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life. ⁶⁹ We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” John 6:67-69 (NIV)
• ·        His way is the high way – it is the way of wisdom and the path of perfect peace:  ³ You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Isaiah 26:3 (NIV)
• ·        Learn to live your life Coram Deo – before the face of God.  Seeking to please Him in all that you think and say and do.