TETELESTAI - Está consumado !
"VINDE,BENDITOS DE MEU PAI, POSSUÍ POR HERANÇA O REINO QUE VOS ESTÁ PREPARADO DESDE A FUNDAÇÃO DO MUNDO..."

- Eneida Stawinski
- Senhor, revela-Te a nós e mostra-nos a Tua Glória. Concede que Te vejamos e ouçamos. Querido Pai celestial, queremos Te adorar e agradecer, porque é tudo para o Teu prazer. Tudo é pela obra consumada de Cristo. Tudo é pelo poder do Espírito Santo. Capacita-nos a nos rendermos a Ti, a desistirmos de nossos direitos, e a deixarmos que Tu tenhas pleno domínio sobre nós, não apenas individualmente, mas juntos, para que Teu Reino possa se tornar uma realidade em nós hoje, e possamos estar aptos para proclamar o evangelho de Jesus Cristo. No nome de nosso Senhor Jesus. Amém.
Arquivo do blog
quinta-feira, 28 de julho de 2011
sábado, 2 de julho de 2011
terça-feira, 28 de junho de 2011
sábado, 11 de junho de 2011
Conversão Contínua
A Conversão Contínua
"...se não vos converterdes e não vos fizerdes como crianças" Mt 18:3
Se confiarmos em nosso entendimento em vez de confiarmos em Deus plenamente, acarretaremos com aquelas gravíssimas consequências pelas quais Deus nos responsabilizará sempre. Sempre que somos colocados em novas condições de provação contínua por coisas trazidas pela providência de Deus, temos que cuidar para que a vida natural se submeta à vida do espírito e obedeça ao Espírito de Deus vivente lá. O fato de já termos feito isso uma vez ou outra, não é prova de que tornaremos a fazê-lo caso suceda a oportunidade de novo. A relação do natural com o espiritual será o de uma conversão para continuar e persistir e é justamente a isso que mais resistimos; há quem queira vencer e submeter-se agora para nunca mais ter de se submeter. Em todas as situações nas quais possamos ainda ser colocados, o Espírito de Deus e a Sua salvação permanecem imutáveis dentro de nós, mas, temos que nos revestir "do novo homem", Ef.4:24. Deus sempre nos responsabilizará tantas quantas vezes nos recusarmos a converter-nos de algo específico. A razão dessa recusa será sempre nossa obstinação e falta de vontade em nos submetermos. Não nos deixemos governar através da vida natural; é Deus quem nos governará continuadamente e sempre - até nas coisas virtuosas.
O grande impedimento existente em nossas vidas espirituais será o fato de não nos dispormos a converter-nos continuadamente; há áreas de obstinação em que o nosso orgulho cerra os punhos diante do trono de Deus e diz: "Não me renderei porque considero que isto não está errado". Endeusamos a independência e a teimosia obstinada e até lhe damos outros nomes virtuosos. Aquilo que Deus vê como uma persistente fraqueza, nós chamamos de força prudente. Existem áreas inteiras de toda a nossa vida que ainda não foram submetidas a Deus e isso só pode ser feito pela continuidade da conversão. Lenta, mas, seguramente, podemos conquistar todo o território do pecado para o Espírito Santo de Deus viver em nós.
Autor: Oswald Chambers
"...se não vos converterdes e não vos fizerdes como crianças" Mt 18:3
Se confiarmos em nosso entendimento em vez de confiarmos em Deus plenamente, acarretaremos com aquelas gravíssimas consequências pelas quais Deus nos responsabilizará sempre. Sempre que somos colocados em novas condições de provação contínua por coisas trazidas pela providência de Deus, temos que cuidar para que a vida natural se submeta à vida do espírito e obedeça ao Espírito de Deus vivente lá. O fato de já termos feito isso uma vez ou outra, não é prova de que tornaremos a fazê-lo caso suceda a oportunidade de novo. A relação do natural com o espiritual será o de uma conversão para continuar e persistir e é justamente a isso que mais resistimos; há quem queira vencer e submeter-se agora para nunca mais ter de se submeter. Em todas as situações nas quais possamos ainda ser colocados, o Espírito de Deus e a Sua salvação permanecem imutáveis dentro de nós, mas, temos que nos revestir "do novo homem", Ef.4:24. Deus sempre nos responsabilizará tantas quantas vezes nos recusarmos a converter-nos de algo específico. A razão dessa recusa será sempre nossa obstinação e falta de vontade em nos submetermos. Não nos deixemos governar através da vida natural; é Deus quem nos governará continuadamente e sempre - até nas coisas virtuosas.
O grande impedimento existente em nossas vidas espirituais será o fato de não nos dispormos a converter-nos continuadamente; há áreas de obstinação em que o nosso orgulho cerra os punhos diante do trono de Deus e diz: "Não me renderei porque considero que isto não está errado". Endeusamos a independência e a teimosia obstinada e até lhe damos outros nomes virtuosos. Aquilo que Deus vê como uma persistente fraqueza, nós chamamos de força prudente. Existem áreas inteiras de toda a nossa vida que ainda não foram submetidas a Deus e isso só pode ser feito pela continuidade da conversão. Lenta, mas, seguramente, podemos conquistar todo o território do pecado para o Espírito Santo de Deus viver em nós.
Autor: Oswald Chambers
terça-feira, 3 de maio de 2011
quarta-feira, 6 de abril de 2011
terça-feira, 29 de março de 2011
study by Stephen Kaung
Knowing Christ Dwelling in You
Do you know that Christ is
in you? Are you conscious of
His presence in you? Do you
treasure this mystery? The
problem is often that after
you believe in the Lord Jesus,
you think that by believing in
the Lord Jesus, all you are
looking forward to is having
your sins forgiven and going
to heaven one day after you
die. You do not know what
God has done for you. You
do not know that when you
believe in the Lord Jesus,
God has done something far
beyond what you can ever
think of: He puts Christ in
you. You believe in Him and
He comes and dwells within
you. This is the greatest
mystery, the greatest blessing
that God has given to you.
This is something God has
done. It is not something that
you can do. You just believe
in the Lord Jesus and God, by
His Spirit, will come into you
and live in you. It is not only
revealed in Paul, it is
revealed in every believer.
This mystery has been
manifested to the saints.
Therefore, it is revealed in
every believer. If you believe
in the Lord Jesus, Christ is in
you; God is in you. Christ,
the crucified One, the
resurrected One, the ascended
One, the One who is now at
the right hand of God, is in
you. You have Him.
You may say, “How do I
know He is in me?” If you
believe in the Lord Jesus and
you do not know that Christ
is in you, I wonder if you
really believe in Him,
because if you believe in
Him, you will know. How
can a person dwell in you and
you do not know? Or to use a
bad illustration: if somebody
is staying in your house, not
just for a minute, but
permanently, how can it be
that you do not even know he
is there? Something must be
wrong. How can Christ be in
you from the time you
believe in the Lord Jesus to
eternity—He never leaves
you nor forsakes you, He is
always there, ever there—
how can it be that you do not
know He is there? You can
neglect Him for an hour, for a
day, for a year, for a lifetime?
You never heard Him? He
never speaks to you? He
never touches you? It is
impossible! The moment you
believe in the Lord Jesus, the
Spirit of God within you will
cry out, “Abba, Father.” God
is now your Father. Through
His beloved Son, you become
His child. You can talk to
God your Father. He is with
you and He talks to you.
Have you ever heard Jesus
speaking to you? It is not
with the outward ear, but it is
in you.
You know it is true,
sometimes, you even can
hear audibly. I do not know if
it is really audibly or if it is as
if audible. I remember after I
believed in the Lord Jesus,
one day, there was a crisis in
my life. I had some
controversy with God,
something that God was
calling me to do, and I
hesitated. I was reluctant. I
found it difficult, impossible.
I tried to reason with Him to
give me some more time.
And strangely, it is as if I
heard someone talking to me:
“He that loves his father and
mother more than me, cannot
be my disciple.” There was
nobody there, but I heard it.
And many, many more times,
not audibly, but I have heard
it within me. He talks to me.
Sometimes He restrains me.
Sometimes He constrains me.
Sometimes He just touches
me, a gentle touch, but very
persistent. Sometimes, it is as
if there is a light shining
within me, and when He does
that, there is peace and life.
And when you rebel against
that, there is spiritual death in
you, darkness.
He is in you. Do you know
that? Are you in constant
communion with Him? Or do
you shut Him in the closet
and just ignore Him
completely? Christ in you is
the hope of glory. Christ in
you is not there dormant,
inactive. He is a Person, a
divine Person. How can you
shut Him in a closet for life?
He is active in you. He is in
you to give you glory.
What is Glory?
What is glory? In the
Bible, glory is a term that is
beyond definition, because
when you try to define glory,
you limit it. Glory is as
unlimited as God Himself.
God is glorious, within and
without. Sometimes the Bible
uses glory to substitute the
name God. God is all
glorious. Whenever God
appears, you see glory. In the
Hebrew language there are
many words that describe this
glory. Sometimes that word
means “something weighty,
heavy.” It is not light. Paul
mentioned in II Corinthians
“the weight of glory.”
Sometimes in the Old
Testament glory means
“excellent, beautiful, grand,
bright, conspicuous.” It is
beyond description. It is the
self-manifestation of God, of
His own nature, and of His
acts.
In the New Testament
Greek, the word glory means
“opinion, estimate” and
therefore, “honor according
to good opinion.” The glory
of God is especially
manifested in His Son, Jesus
Christ. In John 1:14 it says,
“The Word became flesh, and
tabernacled among man, and
we beheld His glory, even as
of a son with a father, full of
grace and truth.” When our
Lord Jesus performed his first
sign, turning the water into
wine, the glory manifested.
When our Lord Jesus took
the disciples to the mount of
transfiguration, He was
transformed, filled with light
and glory. When He rose
from the dead, His glory was
manifested.
In the Old Testament, in
Exodus 33, Moses stood
between the children of Israel
and God and interceded for
the children of Israel. God
heard him and he found favor
in the sight of God. Then
Moses dared to make a
request. He said, “God, show
me Your glory. Let me see
Your glory.” In other words,
“I want to see you.” And God
said, “No one can see Me and
live.” No one is worthy
because He is too glorious.
But God said, “All right, I
will let you see My back; not
My face, but My back. Hide
in a cave, and when I pass by,
I will show you My glory.”
So in Exodus 34 God
passed by. God hid Moses
and God declared His name:
“Jehovah, Jehovah. Merciful
and gracious, slow to anger,
forgiving our iniquities.” In
other words, when God
declared His name, He
showed his glory to Moses,
but it was the back. Why?
When a person is absent, you
use his name, so it is as if you
see the back.
But when you come to the
New Testament time, thank
God, we can see the glory of
God in the face of Jesus
Christ (see II Corinthians 4).
Today, we not only hear His
name, but we can see the
glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus
has manifested to us all the
glory of God. He is the outshining
of the glory of God.
Having said all these
things, you may still wonder
what glory is. I think brother
T. Austin-Sparks explained it
very well. He said, “Glory is
the self-gratification of God
the Creator in all His created
things. What is glory? Glory
is when you say, ‘This is how
it ought to be.’ That is glory.”
You know, when you do
something, when you see
something and you say, “This
is what it ought to be—just
right,” there is a sense of
glory in you. You are happy,
satisfied. So he said, “Glory
is when God can look at you
or look at the thing and say,
‘This is how it ought to be.’”
Then glory is manifested. So
glory is God satisfied, God
manifested, God approved,
and God is happy. Then glory
appears.
Do you not know that
God’s purpose for us is
glory? We are so small.
Probably all we want to get
from God is to go to heaven.
That is all we want. Once
someone said, “If my two
legs are just within the door
of heaven, I will be
satisfied.” But is God
satisfied? No. God will not be
satisfied until one day, glory
becomes your portion. Then
He is happy. What God
intends for you is glory. What
is glory? Glory is when God
can look at you and say,
“This is how you ought to be.
Now you are like My Son.
You have been transformed.
You are now conformed to
the image of My Son. I am
happy.” That is what God
wants for you and for me.
The Key to Glory
How can it be? What is the
key to glory? The key is:
Christ in you. When you
believe in the Lord Jesus, the
very day you believe in the
Lord Jesus, the key is given
to you. Now this Christ in
you can become the hope of
glory. Hope is looking
forward. Hope is possibility,
potential, anticipation. Hope
encourages you. No one can
live without hope. If a person
is without hope, what is the
sense of living? But we have
a hope, and the hope is glory.
One day, Christ will lead
many sons into glory. But
how can He lead us into
glory, unless He works glory
into us first? Otherwise, you
cannot stand the glory. No
one can see the face of God
and live unless glory is
wrought in him. Then he can
see God face to face. One
day, the Lord Jesus will lead
many sons into glory, but
today He is working that
glory into you and into me to
make us suitable for that day
of glory. Isn’t that
wonderful?
The Way to Glory
How does God work that
glory in you? Christ in you.
Let Him live out His life in
you. Let Him transform you
and conform you to His own
image; then there will be
glory. John said: “See what
love the Father has given to
us, that we should be called
the children of God. For this
reason the world knows us
not, because it knew him not”
(I John 3:1). And that is true.
The Father has given His
love to us that we should be
called the children of God.
We are the children of God.
The world does not know
because they do not know the
Father. “Beloved, now are we
children of God, and what we
shall be has not yet been
manifested; we know that if it
is manifested we shall be like
him, for we shall see him as
he is” (v.2).
We are now the children
of God, but what we shall be
will be manifested. And
when it is manifested, we
shall be like Him because we
see Him as He is. In other
words, what God is doing for
us and in us is to bring us
into maturity, to be
conformed to His Son, that
we are no longer babes in
Christ but we become sons
and daughters, grown up in
Christ. Or to put it another
way: Christ is formed in us.
His character, His nature is
gradually formed within us.
His gentleness, His love, His
kindness, His faithfulness,
His discipline—everything
that Christ is becomes us. It
is Christ in you; Christ
formed in you; Christ seen
through you. This is glory.
And this is what God is
doing.
But of course, it is not that
simple. The reason it is not
simple is because you and I
are standing in the way. Even
after we believe in the Lord
Jesus there is that I—my
opinion, my feeling, my
thought, my way, my life. Our
old self, our flesh wants to
continue to live in the way it
lived before, even after the
Lord has come in us and
dwells in us. And the Lord
comes to us and says, “From
now on, you do not need to
live. I will live.” But we say
to the Lord, “No; get to the
closet. I am going to live.”
Now, that is the problem, and
because of this, there is no
glory, only shame. For this
reason, the way to glory is
the cross, is suffering.
Look at our Lord Jesus. He
is the perfect man. He has
His personality, of course.
You remember His prayer in
Gethsemane? “Not my will,
but Thy will be done.” He is
not a man without a will. He
has a will. God does not want
us to be without a will. Our
Lord Jesus, the perfect man
has a will, but His will is
always yielded to the Father’s
will, not like us. Our will is
always against God’s will,
but our Lord Jesus was
always yielding to the
Father’s will. He has His
will, but He yields to the
Father. And in doing that, He
suffers, so far as the flesh is
concerned, even though His
flesh is without sin. In other
words, He denies Himself all
His life, and in denying one’s
self, there is suffering
involved.
In Hebrews 5:8 it says,
“Even though He were Son,
He learned obedience from
the things which He
suffered.” He learned
obedience to the Father
through the things which He
suffered. He was willing to
suffer, to allow Himself to
die and let God be
manifested. This is the way
of the cross. This is the way
our Lord has gone through,
and this is the way that He
leads us into glory.
Unless we are willing to
deny ourselves, take up our
cross, and follow the Lord,
that hope of glory will be
dashed. If we really look
forward to glory, are we
willing to let go of ourselves?
Are we willing to lay down
our opinions? Are we willing
to deny ourselves? Are we
willing to let ourselves suffer
a little bit, or sometimes,
quite a lot? But, when we
think of the momentary, light
affliction that will gain for us
that eternal weight of glory,
then what does it matter?
Christ in you is to bring you
into glory, into all that He
is—His nature, His character.
He is there, determined to do
this thing, but do you
respond? Do you say, “No; I
like to live my own life”?
What a loss! Unfortunately,
many of God’s children are
short-sighted. They do not
see what glory God has
prepared for them. But
remember, unless you allow
Him to glorify you now, you
will not be comfortable in the
glory that is coming where
you will spend your eternity.
The apostle Paul said, “It
is because of this I labor, that
by all means I may present
every man perfect in Christ.”
God is for perfection. God
wants us to be like Him. He
has given us His Son, His
life, and now He wants to fill
us to the fullest. Are we open
to this? May the Lord help
us. It is not something
beyond you. It is already in
you. The hope is there. All
you need to do is to say,
“Lord, I offer myself as a
living sacrifice. Do whatever
is needed to transform me,
conform me to the image of
Thy Beloved Son that You
can look at me and say, ‘This
is how it ought to be.’”
Shall we pray:
Lord speak by Thy Spirit
to our inner man that we may
hear and obey. Oh, how we
praise and thank Thee, Thy
thought concerning us is so
glorious, so rich. Lord, have
mercy upon us that we may
not fail thee. Lord, we want
to offer ourselves afresh to
Thee this morning. Come and
do anything that is necessary
until Thou can say, ‘This is
what it ought to be.’ To Thee
be the glory. In the name of
our Lord Jesus. Amen.
Do you know that Christ is
in you? Are you conscious of
His presence in you? Do you
treasure this mystery? The
problem is often that after
you believe in the Lord Jesus,
you think that by believing in
the Lord Jesus, all you are
looking forward to is having
your sins forgiven and going
to heaven one day after you
die. You do not know what
God has done for you. You
do not know that when you
believe in the Lord Jesus,
God has done something far
beyond what you can ever
think of: He puts Christ in
you. You believe in Him and
He comes and dwells within
you. This is the greatest
mystery, the greatest blessing
that God has given to you.
This is something God has
done. It is not something that
you can do. You just believe
in the Lord Jesus and God, by
His Spirit, will come into you
and live in you. It is not only
revealed in Paul, it is
revealed in every believer.
This mystery has been
manifested to the saints.
Therefore, it is revealed in
every believer. If you believe
in the Lord Jesus, Christ is in
you; God is in you. Christ,
the crucified One, the
resurrected One, the ascended
One, the One who is now at
the right hand of God, is in
you. You have Him.
You may say, “How do I
know He is in me?” If you
believe in the Lord Jesus and
you do not know that Christ
is in you, I wonder if you
really believe in Him,
because if you believe in
Him, you will know. How
can a person dwell in you and
you do not know? Or to use a
bad illustration: if somebody
is staying in your house, not
just for a minute, but
permanently, how can it be
that you do not even know he
is there? Something must be
wrong. How can Christ be in
you from the time you
believe in the Lord Jesus to
eternity—He never leaves
you nor forsakes you, He is
always there, ever there—
how can it be that you do not
know He is there? You can
neglect Him for an hour, for a
day, for a year, for a lifetime?
You never heard Him? He
never speaks to you? He
never touches you? It is
impossible! The moment you
believe in the Lord Jesus, the
Spirit of God within you will
cry out, “Abba, Father.” God
is now your Father. Through
His beloved Son, you become
His child. You can talk to
God your Father. He is with
you and He talks to you.
Have you ever heard Jesus
speaking to you? It is not
with the outward ear, but it is
in you.
You know it is true,
sometimes, you even can
hear audibly. I do not know if
it is really audibly or if it is as
if audible. I remember after I
believed in the Lord Jesus,
one day, there was a crisis in
my life. I had some
controversy with God,
something that God was
calling me to do, and I
hesitated. I was reluctant. I
found it difficult, impossible.
I tried to reason with Him to
give me some more time.
And strangely, it is as if I
heard someone talking to me:
“He that loves his father and
mother more than me, cannot
be my disciple.” There was
nobody there, but I heard it.
And many, many more times,
not audibly, but I have heard
it within me. He talks to me.
Sometimes He restrains me.
Sometimes He constrains me.
Sometimes He just touches
me, a gentle touch, but very
persistent. Sometimes, it is as
if there is a light shining
within me, and when He does
that, there is peace and life.
And when you rebel against
that, there is spiritual death in
you, darkness.
He is in you. Do you know
that? Are you in constant
communion with Him? Or do
you shut Him in the closet
and just ignore Him
completely? Christ in you is
the hope of glory. Christ in
you is not there dormant,
inactive. He is a Person, a
divine Person. How can you
shut Him in a closet for life?
He is active in you. He is in
you to give you glory.
What is Glory?
What is glory? In the
Bible, glory is a term that is
beyond definition, because
when you try to define glory,
you limit it. Glory is as
unlimited as God Himself.
God is glorious, within and
without. Sometimes the Bible
uses glory to substitute the
name God. God is all
glorious. Whenever God
appears, you see glory. In the
Hebrew language there are
many words that describe this
glory. Sometimes that word
means “something weighty,
heavy.” It is not light. Paul
mentioned in II Corinthians
“the weight of glory.”
Sometimes in the Old
Testament glory means
“excellent, beautiful, grand,
bright, conspicuous.” It is
beyond description. It is the
self-manifestation of God, of
His own nature, and of His
acts.
In the New Testament
Greek, the word glory means
“opinion, estimate” and
therefore, “honor according
to good opinion.” The glory
of God is especially
manifested in His Son, Jesus
Christ. In John 1:14 it says,
“The Word became flesh, and
tabernacled among man, and
we beheld His glory, even as
of a son with a father, full of
grace and truth.” When our
Lord Jesus performed his first
sign, turning the water into
wine, the glory manifested.
When our Lord Jesus took
the disciples to the mount of
transfiguration, He was
transformed, filled with light
and glory. When He rose
from the dead, His glory was
manifested.
In the Old Testament, in
Exodus 33, Moses stood
between the children of Israel
and God and interceded for
the children of Israel. God
heard him and he found favor
in the sight of God. Then
Moses dared to make a
request. He said, “God, show
me Your glory. Let me see
Your glory.” In other words,
“I want to see you.” And God
said, “No one can see Me and
live.” No one is worthy
because He is too glorious.
But God said, “All right, I
will let you see My back; not
My face, but My back. Hide
in a cave, and when I pass by,
I will show you My glory.”
So in Exodus 34 God
passed by. God hid Moses
and God declared His name:
“Jehovah, Jehovah. Merciful
and gracious, slow to anger,
forgiving our iniquities.” In
other words, when God
declared His name, He
showed his glory to Moses,
but it was the back. Why?
When a person is absent, you
use his name, so it is as if you
see the back.
But when you come to the
New Testament time, thank
God, we can see the glory of
God in the face of Jesus
Christ (see II Corinthians 4).
Today, we not only hear His
name, but we can see the
glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus
has manifested to us all the
glory of God. He is the outshining
of the glory of God.
Having said all these
things, you may still wonder
what glory is. I think brother
T. Austin-Sparks explained it
very well. He said, “Glory is
the self-gratification of God
the Creator in all His created
things. What is glory? Glory
is when you say, ‘This is how
it ought to be.’ That is glory.”
You know, when you do
something, when you see
something and you say, “This
is what it ought to be—just
right,” there is a sense of
glory in you. You are happy,
satisfied. So he said, “Glory
is when God can look at you
or look at the thing and say,
‘This is how it ought to be.’”
Then glory is manifested. So
glory is God satisfied, God
manifested, God approved,
and God is happy. Then glory
appears.
Do you not know that
God’s purpose for us is
glory? We are so small.
Probably all we want to get
from God is to go to heaven.
That is all we want. Once
someone said, “If my two
legs are just within the door
of heaven, I will be
satisfied.” But is God
satisfied? No. God will not be
satisfied until one day, glory
becomes your portion. Then
He is happy. What God
intends for you is glory. What
is glory? Glory is when God
can look at you and say,
“This is how you ought to be.
Now you are like My Son.
You have been transformed.
You are now conformed to
the image of My Son. I am
happy.” That is what God
wants for you and for me.
The Key to Glory
How can it be? What is the
key to glory? The key is:
Christ in you. When you
believe in the Lord Jesus, the
very day you believe in the
Lord Jesus, the key is given
to you. Now this Christ in
you can become the hope of
glory. Hope is looking
forward. Hope is possibility,
potential, anticipation. Hope
encourages you. No one can
live without hope. If a person
is without hope, what is the
sense of living? But we have
a hope, and the hope is glory.
One day, Christ will lead
many sons into glory. But
how can He lead us into
glory, unless He works glory
into us first? Otherwise, you
cannot stand the glory. No
one can see the face of God
and live unless glory is
wrought in him. Then he can
see God face to face. One
day, the Lord Jesus will lead
many sons into glory, but
today He is working that
glory into you and into me to
make us suitable for that day
of glory. Isn’t that
wonderful?
The Way to Glory
How does God work that
glory in you? Christ in you.
Let Him live out His life in
you. Let Him transform you
and conform you to His own
image; then there will be
glory. John said: “See what
love the Father has given to
us, that we should be called
the children of God. For this
reason the world knows us
not, because it knew him not”
(I John 3:1). And that is true.
The Father has given His
love to us that we should be
called the children of God.
We are the children of God.
The world does not know
because they do not know the
Father. “Beloved, now are we
children of God, and what we
shall be has not yet been
manifested; we know that if it
is manifested we shall be like
him, for we shall see him as
he is” (v.2).
We are now the children
of God, but what we shall be
will be manifested. And
when it is manifested, we
shall be like Him because we
see Him as He is. In other
words, what God is doing for
us and in us is to bring us
into maturity, to be
conformed to His Son, that
we are no longer babes in
Christ but we become sons
and daughters, grown up in
Christ. Or to put it another
way: Christ is formed in us.
His character, His nature is
gradually formed within us.
His gentleness, His love, His
kindness, His faithfulness,
His discipline—everything
that Christ is becomes us. It
is Christ in you; Christ
formed in you; Christ seen
through you. This is glory.
And this is what God is
doing.
But of course, it is not that
simple. The reason it is not
simple is because you and I
are standing in the way. Even
after we believe in the Lord
Jesus there is that I—my
opinion, my feeling, my
thought, my way, my life. Our
old self, our flesh wants to
continue to live in the way it
lived before, even after the
Lord has come in us and
dwells in us. And the Lord
comes to us and says, “From
now on, you do not need to
live. I will live.” But we say
to the Lord, “No; get to the
closet. I am going to live.”
Now, that is the problem, and
because of this, there is no
glory, only shame. For this
reason, the way to glory is
the cross, is suffering.
Look at our Lord Jesus. He
is the perfect man. He has
His personality, of course.
You remember His prayer in
Gethsemane? “Not my will,
but Thy will be done.” He is
not a man without a will. He
has a will. God does not want
us to be without a will. Our
Lord Jesus, the perfect man
has a will, but His will is
always yielded to the Father’s
will, not like us. Our will is
always against God’s will,
but our Lord Jesus was
always yielding to the
Father’s will. He has His
will, but He yields to the
Father. And in doing that, He
suffers, so far as the flesh is
concerned, even though His
flesh is without sin. In other
words, He denies Himself all
His life, and in denying one’s
self, there is suffering
involved.
In Hebrews 5:8 it says,
“Even though He were Son,
He learned obedience from
the things which He
suffered.” He learned
obedience to the Father
through the things which He
suffered. He was willing to
suffer, to allow Himself to
die and let God be
manifested. This is the way
of the cross. This is the way
our Lord has gone through,
and this is the way that He
leads us into glory.
Unless we are willing to
deny ourselves, take up our
cross, and follow the Lord,
that hope of glory will be
dashed. If we really look
forward to glory, are we
willing to let go of ourselves?
Are we willing to lay down
our opinions? Are we willing
to deny ourselves? Are we
willing to let ourselves suffer
a little bit, or sometimes,
quite a lot? But, when we
think of the momentary, light
affliction that will gain for us
that eternal weight of glory,
then what does it matter?
Christ in you is to bring you
into glory, into all that He
is—His nature, His character.
He is there, determined to do
this thing, but do you
respond? Do you say, “No; I
like to live my own life”?
What a loss! Unfortunately,
many of God’s children are
short-sighted. They do not
see what glory God has
prepared for them. But
remember, unless you allow
Him to glorify you now, you
will not be comfortable in the
glory that is coming where
you will spend your eternity.
The apostle Paul said, “It
is because of this I labor, that
by all means I may present
every man perfect in Christ.”
God is for perfection. God
wants us to be like Him. He
has given us His Son, His
life, and now He wants to fill
us to the fullest. Are we open
to this? May the Lord help
us. It is not something
beyond you. It is already in
you. The hope is there. All
you need to do is to say,
“Lord, I offer myself as a
living sacrifice. Do whatever
is needed to transform me,
conform me to the image of
Thy Beloved Son that You
can look at me and say, ‘This
is how it ought to be.’”
Shall we pray:
Lord speak by Thy Spirit
to our inner man that we may
hear and obey. Oh, how we
praise and thank Thee, Thy
thought concerning us is so
glorious, so rich. Lord, have
mercy upon us that we may
not fail thee. Lord, we want
to offer ourselves afresh to
Thee this morning. Come and
do anything that is necessary
until Thou can say, ‘This is
what it ought to be.’ To Thee
be the glory. In the name of
our Lord Jesus. Amen.
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