Rejoice in the Lord always! I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:4-8
Paul is recommending that we trust his experiences and recommendation because that is what HE followed as an apostle of the Lord. Do like I did! Follow Jesus! It will help, he can give you peace if you do this! That’s no different than offering help that isn’t Jesus. Yet most will not accept that it is even possible to even consider especially if we have been the director of our lives for a while. Admitting that we can’t even keep track of ourselves and keep ourselves right and letting an unseen person do it takes some faith, but also I do say that I agree with Paul: if you do it, then you will see more of Christ in yourself and others will too. I would add as an example that it’s like when your kiddo follows in your footsteps in profession. We tend to see a little bit of ourselves in our children and want to guide them directly. We as parents usually don’t want them to make the same mistakes that we did and generally give a testimony of what our consequences were and what we learned about ourselves and the world and God. We tell people what we went through because we know that the human heart is fragile and we don’t want them to feel alone, that everyone has something to overcome. All fall short. But God is love.
If we do to others as though we are doing to the Lord – then we would allow HIM to clean up our act. What I mean is, if the Lord is in front of you saying, talk to Sam as though he were Me – I’d be different because of who I see in front of me, and yet I know the word says this and I still struggle. I think the reason why is that Sam is in front of me in the physical form. And I am familiar with this form. But when you are born again the old you has to die so a new you can be born. Now That doesn’t mean you aren’t you – but you live a Spirit Led life because your Spirit, like your baby body, has been born. The natural comes first, then the Spiritual at the new birth. All our lives we followed the law of the land and customs and social expectations. God’s way is different from that. So it takes time pull down those things and replace them with the truth of the Lord. The love and justice of the Lord. It’s comforting to know that He loves us enough to correct our thoughts, which will change our actions, with truth revealed by the Holy Spirit and through His Word. Isn’t that amazing love from an amazing God!
Can two walk together if they don’t agree to walk together? (Amos 3:3) How hard would it be to keep alive our sinful natures so we can please our flesh and make ourselves feel better – all the while grieving the Holy Spirit that also is within us? (Ephesians 5:8-14) Is this the same thing as trying to serve two masters: Our flesh and the Holy Spirit. It usually will end in either conviction from the Holy Spirit to make us turn back to the Lord – or we walk away for a while and do things that make you feel better that are acts of the flesh instead of serving the Lord, falling away. The fight that is within us. You can’t be in the light and in the darkness at the same time. One will overpower the other(Matt 6:24, Luke 16:13).
2 Corinthians 6:14. Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?
1 Cor 15:33 Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” 34 Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God—I say this to your shame.
When a seed is planted and buried, you notice when the plants grow they aren’t all the same looking flower when they produce fruit. Some come up earlier than others, some a few days or so later and some never grow. We can get an average amount of days it will take til germination is complete and you start seeing a little growth. The plant has to grow for a while before it produces fruit or flowers most of the time as well. It’s the same when a person has the seed of God within them for a new birth. The seed has to be buried and you wait the days of germination and you tend to it even though there’s nothing coming through the ground yet. Keep it moist with water at least. Some wrap the seeds in paper towels and keep them wet til they see growth.
I’ve had a lot of fruit on my plants both flower and edible. I’ve had some not make it because of storms or animals coming in and eating them or destroying them. Sometimes the sun got too hot and scorched them. Sometimes the soil wasn’t good for them. Sometimes it was too cold or the wrong season. We get seeds from plants that have had the circle of their life. They had to give up their life and seed in order for me to buy the seeds from the store or wherever i get them from, I then plant the fruit of their lifespan(seed) into the ground (put to death) to make them rise again (resurrection) and make another plant and bear more fruit. Each is different. I like zinnias because I never know what color I will get usually. It’s only til I see the plant in full bloom that I see it in all it’s glory. Its the same with if the Lord has placed his seed in us and tells us to be fruitful and multiply. Gen 1:22, Gen 8:17 ) It’s buried within us and when we plant his seed into someone else – his garden also grows. ( Jer 23:3).
1 Cor 15:35 But someone will say, “How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?” 36 Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. 37 And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain—perhaps wheat or some other grain. 38 But God gives it a body as He pleases, and to each seed its own body.39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind [f]of flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds.40 There are also [g]celestial bodies and [h]terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the earth, made[i] of dust; the second Man is [j]the Lord from heaven. 48 As was the [k]man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we[l] shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
And this brings us back to our initial primary scripture:
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Amen
Put it into practice and the God of peace WILL BE with YOU (emphasis mine).
In His name, Amen
Thinking About Thinking... 