Chapter 19 - The Great Divide
'In such times as these, Jesus requires his disciples to distinguish between appearance and reality, between themselves and pseudo-Christians. They will then rise above all inquisitive examination of others, but they will need a sincere determination to recognize the verdict of God when it comes. At any moment the nominal Christians may be separated from the real ones. We may even find that we are nominal Christians ourselves. Here is a challenge to closer fellowship with Jesus and to a more loyal discipleship. The bad tree is cut down and cast into the fire. All its display of finery proves ultimately to be of no avail.'
Mat 7:19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Mat 7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
My thoughts-
Distinguishing between appearance and reality.
Sometime appearance really can be very, very deceiving. The outward Christian can be the inward devil, yet no one knows but perhaps them. Even then, we love to deceive ourselves. We quickly turn a blind eye to our shortcomings giving them labels such as- 'Can't help it. Just the way it is. Oh well, that's life. I'll never be perfect. It always has to be something. If it's not one thing, it's another.' And on and on it goes.
We are scared to truly look at ourselves because we know that even our hearts are deceitful.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Jer 17:10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
Again- the FRUIT of his doings.
The fruit truly is the OUTCOME of a tree/plant, it's the END product. And like fruit trees and such, year after year they are bearing their fruit. We must have fruit, the end product of our actions. We are constantly producing fruit as well. That's why Jesus says- 'By their fruits ye shall know them.' We KNOW people by their actions and what those actions bring forth. Some fruit takes a long time to be produce, others are very prolific but the final produce is what matters.
If you've ever planted a garden and had a bad season where your plants simply refused to produce much fruit, and that it produced was of low quality, then you know that there are NO guarantees on the fruit that will come forth.
So many variables can affect fruit production, and just like fruit trees and their produce, our lives are affected by many variables as well.
We have to comprehend that JESUS holds up the standard and HE promises us all the help we'll ever need to live for Him, to live in Him. Jesus isn't going to ask us to do or not do anything that isn't possible to do or not do, through HIM.
If we look at ourselves we will NEVER ever find ourselves capable of bearing proper good fruit for Him. We CANNOT do the necessary work. We have to submit to allowing the power of Christ to live in us, to work in us.
We have to put all our hope in HIM.
However… we cannot ignore all that He says and believe we are submitting to Him, that is self-deception!
We cannot constantly produce rotten fruit and believe we are submitted to Him.
Christ will WORK in us, but we have to allow Him to do so.
We have to KNOW HIM, and be KNOWN by HIM.
If we KNOW CHRIST then we know that His will is just, that the fruit He calls for us to produce through Him is LOVE and all the results of love. If your ways are selfish, if your ways are covetous, if your ways are evil and of the WORLD then you have to know they are NOT GOD'S WAY!
This is truth-
Pro 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
In ALL our ways we HAVE to acknowledge GOD! Not just in a few ways we think are good. In ALL OUR WAYS we must acknowledge GOD and only then can He direct our ways! We have to reverence the LORD, we have to fear the LORD, we have to TRUST wholly in HIM, not ourselves, not our ways!
2Co 13:4 For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.
2Co 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
2Co 13:6 But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
2Co 13:7 Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.
2Co 13:8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
2Co 13:9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
Everything through CHRIST!
Examine ourselves!
Prove ourselves!
We have to look at ourselves, we can't ignore ourselves and just do as we please without any consideration for our SAVIOR. If we are examining and proving ourselves and we come up very short of the mark, we have to REPENT, we have to seek FORGIVENESS, we have to go to our SAVIOR - HE SAVES US! We do NOT save ourselves. HE will save us IF we let HIM! Truly let Him and do not hold back trying to run our own lives the way we desire, in sync with the world and its ways. If we want to live as the world, and be as the world, we have to comprehend that makes us a part of WORLD and not of GOD. If we want to live as God would have us live, and be what God would have us be, we likewise have to comprehend that we can be GOD'S. We cannot have BOTH! When we seek to compromise then we are clinging to the world and that evil will stain us and keep us from giving our heart fully to God.
Please LORD, help us be FULLY, WHOLLY YOURS!
WE want to bear good fruit through YOU and only through YOU! We don't want to be as the world! We want to be YOURS! Help us to submit to YOU in ALL THINGS, not just pick and choose where we will submit. PLEASE LORD, save us as only YOU can save! Save us from ourselves, from all the evil that would cling to us. Cleanse our hearts! Clean us as ONLY YOU CAN CLEAN US!
All through YOUR LOVE ALWAYS!
'In such times as these, Jesus requires his disciples to distinguish between appearance and reality, between themselves and pseudo-Christians. They will then rise above all inquisitive examination of others, but they will need a sincere determination to recognize the verdict of God when it comes. At any moment the nominal Christians may be separated from the real ones. We may even find that we are nominal Christians ourselves. Here is a challenge to closer fellowship with Jesus and to a more loyal discipleship. The bad tree is cut down and cast into the fire. All its display of finery proves ultimately to be of no avail.'
Mat 7:19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Mat 7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
My thoughts-
Distinguishing between appearance and reality.
Sometime appearance really can be very, very deceiving. The outward Christian can be the inward devil, yet no one knows but perhaps them. Even then, we love to deceive ourselves. We quickly turn a blind eye to our shortcomings giving them labels such as- 'Can't help it. Just the way it is. Oh well, that's life. I'll never be perfect. It always has to be something. If it's not one thing, it's another.' And on and on it goes.
We are scared to truly look at ourselves because we know that even our hearts are deceitful.
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Jer 17:10 I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
Again- the FRUIT of his doings.
The fruit truly is the OUTCOME of a tree/plant, it's the END product. And like fruit trees and such, year after year they are bearing their fruit. We must have fruit, the end product of our actions. We are constantly producing fruit as well. That's why Jesus says- 'By their fruits ye shall know them.' We KNOW people by their actions and what those actions bring forth. Some fruit takes a long time to be produce, others are very prolific but the final produce is what matters.
If you've ever planted a garden and had a bad season where your plants simply refused to produce much fruit, and that it produced was of low quality, then you know that there are NO guarantees on the fruit that will come forth.
So many variables can affect fruit production, and just like fruit trees and their produce, our lives are affected by many variables as well.
We have to comprehend that JESUS holds up the standard and HE promises us all the help we'll ever need to live for Him, to live in Him. Jesus isn't going to ask us to do or not do anything that isn't possible to do or not do, through HIM.
If we look at ourselves we will NEVER ever find ourselves capable of bearing proper good fruit for Him. We CANNOT do the necessary work. We have to submit to allowing the power of Christ to live in us, to work in us.
We have to put all our hope in HIM.
However… we cannot ignore all that He says and believe we are submitting to Him, that is self-deception!
We cannot constantly produce rotten fruit and believe we are submitted to Him.
Christ will WORK in us, but we have to allow Him to do so.
We have to KNOW HIM, and be KNOWN by HIM.
If we KNOW CHRIST then we know that His will is just, that the fruit He calls for us to produce through Him is LOVE and all the results of love. If your ways are selfish, if your ways are covetous, if your ways are evil and of the WORLD then you have to know they are NOT GOD'S WAY!
This is truth-
Pro 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
In ALL our ways we HAVE to acknowledge GOD! Not just in a few ways we think are good. In ALL OUR WAYS we must acknowledge GOD and only then can He direct our ways! We have to reverence the LORD, we have to fear the LORD, we have to TRUST wholly in HIM, not ourselves, not our ways!
2Co 13:4 For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.
2Co 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
2Co 13:6 But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
2Co 13:7 Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.
2Co 13:8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
2Co 13:9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
Everything through CHRIST!
Examine ourselves!
Prove ourselves!
We have to look at ourselves, we can't ignore ourselves and just do as we please without any consideration for our SAVIOR. If we are examining and proving ourselves and we come up very short of the mark, we have to REPENT, we have to seek FORGIVENESS, we have to go to our SAVIOR - HE SAVES US! We do NOT save ourselves. HE will save us IF we let HIM! Truly let Him and do not hold back trying to run our own lives the way we desire, in sync with the world and its ways. If we want to live as the world, and be as the world, we have to comprehend that makes us a part of WORLD and not of GOD. If we want to live as God would have us live, and be what God would have us be, we likewise have to comprehend that we can be GOD'S. We cannot have BOTH! When we seek to compromise then we are clinging to the world and that evil will stain us and keep us from giving our heart fully to God.
Please LORD, help us be FULLY, WHOLLY YOURS!
WE want to bear good fruit through YOU and only through YOU! We don't want to be as the world! We want to be YOURS! Help us to submit to YOU in ALL THINGS, not just pick and choose where we will submit. PLEASE LORD, save us as only YOU can save! Save us from ourselves, from all the evil that would cling to us. Cleanse our hearts! Clean us as ONLY YOU CAN CLEAN US!
All through YOUR LOVE ALWAYS!
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