IT
IS POSSIBLE TO MAKE A CHANGE
BREAD
21 Surely
you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in
Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of
life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful
desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and
to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and
holiness. Ephesians 4:21-24 (NIV)
10 For
we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.
Ephesians 2:10 (NIV)
4 You,
dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in
you is greater than the one who is in the world. 1 John 4:4 (NIV)
15 “If you love me, you will obey what I command. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another
Counselor to be with you forever-- 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept
him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives
with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come
to you.” John 14:15-18 (NIV)
15 For
this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your
love for all the saints, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering
you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that
you may know him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be
enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the
riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and
his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working
of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the
dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far
above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be
given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. Ephesians
1:15-21 (NIV)
17 Therefore,
if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has
come! 2 Corinthians 5:16-17 (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. 11 Here
there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian,
slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Colossians 3:5-11 (NIV)
29 For
those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his
Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And
those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those
he justified, he also glorified. Romans
8:29-30 (NIV)
23 Search
me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. 24 See
if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalms 139:23-24 (NIV)
BUTTER
“It is then faith in Christ – not merely works or slavish legal
obedience - which releases the divine power to live the Christian life. Flesh will ultimately fail you. Christ does not automatically operate in a
believer’s life like rubbing a jar for a genie and making a Paul out of a Pilate. No, no…as we walk in faith, placing our trust
and confidence in Him, He bestows the power to accomplish things too hard for
man to do – the most amazing one is changing the bents of our broken human
hearts. He is the ultimate Transformer
always from the inside out. Trust Him
with your life.” BHY
“Why faint when you can be strong? Why
suffer defeat when you may conquer? Take your wavering faith and faltering
graces to Him who can revive and replenish them, and earnestly pray, ‘Summon
your power, O God . . . by which you have worked for us.’” C. H. Spurgeon
“God offers us encouragement, hope, consolation, and direction when
we come to Him in the midst of our struggle.
He speaks to us through His Spirit, equips us with self-control, reminds
us of His love, and surrounds us with people who can speak life into our
darkness. To say yes to God, no matter what
season or situation we’re in, we have to first be honest with Him
about the reality of our pain.” Teresa Swanstrom
Anderson
“Don’t be a fatalist. Be a Christian. Change
is possible. God is alive. Christ is risen. The promises are true.” John Piper
“As a believer in Jesus walking in His will, the task ahead of you is
never as great as the Power behind you.
In Him is the strength to accomplish all He asks for us to do. Lean in and on Him. He will never let the righteous fall.” BHY
“Will power does not change men. Time does not change men. Christ does.” Henry
Drummond
“The gospel...should be seen as not only a
message of good news for lost people to be saved from sin's penalty, but also a
message of good news for Christian people to be saved from sin's domineering
power. The goal of the gospel is not merely to forgive us, but to change us
into true worshippers of God and authentic lovers of people.” Dr.
Steve Childers
“You
need to stop and seriously ask God to show you the insides of your heart. Lean into it, even if it’s hard and
yucky. Who are you at the core, really? Ask Him, being honestly willing to hear
His response. Take time in silence with the Lord and go through everything in
your mind like you’re unpacking a suitcase . . . taking items out,
one by one. Let Him show you if there is sin here.” Teresa Swanstrom Anderson
“We have no power in an of ourselves to walk
in a manner worthy of the Gospel. Flesh
will not finish well. It is only through
His power that we are able to do this. It
is actually an emptying of self and a filling of the Holy Spirit’s power to
take over the whole life. God is not
interested in just part of us – He desires the whole heart. Our pleas to Him, as King David’s was for his
son Solomon, is for Him to give us wholehearted devotion and a willing mind to
walk in a manner worthy of His Gospel.
Always for our good. Always for
His glory. The One who gives the power
to accomplish so great a fete is the One Who is to get the glory.” BHY
“Being changed and sweetly breathed upon by the
Spirit of God, the will desires and acts not from compulsion, but
responsively.” Martin Luther
“The goal
is Christlikeness. The power to achieve
this high calling, is only through the all-achieving indwelling Omnipotence of
the Holy Spirit residing in every true believer of sweet Jesus. Our willingness, lame and limping as it so
often is, to this superlatively high calling is our meager contribution.” BHY
HEART SAVOR
·
If anyone
is in Christ he is a new creation – the old is gone, the new has come.
·
It is
only through His power that we can be more and more conformed into His image –
for our good – for His glory.
·
It is
Christ Who changes hearts.
