DOING OR BEING

DOING OR BEING


John, in the book of the Revelation, records the seven letters to the seven churches of Asia. Each letter ends with a promise to "him that overcometh."

We have consistently told you that there are Christians, and then there are Christians-- meaning that not all of us are going to inherit all of the promises that God has made.

Some of those promises are to a people who have "overcome". Overcome what, you might ask, just as I did when the Lord first brought it to my attention nearly fifty years ago.

If I were to tell you that our salvation is somewhat dependent upon what we do after the initial experience of forgiveness, would you believe me? Well, it is, whether we realize it or not.

I do not wish to infer that we are not secure in Jesus from moment one when we are saved. That much will, finally, get us into heaven without any further effort on our part. It is a gift.

But, there is a lot more involved in Salvation than merely making Heaven our home in the sweet by and by.

We are told in Philippians 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

The "salvation" Paul is talking about here is what pertains to our WALK WITH THE LORD after the initial experience.

It is here that we are exhorted to (Colossians 3:5) Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: Overcome them, if you please.

That responsibility rests on our shoulders. There is a REWARD if we do, no REWARD if we don't. The choice is ours. This is different from the GIFT of salvation.

Paul wrote to the Romans and told them how to accomplish this "killing out" of the fleshly desires.

Romans 8:13 --- but if ye THROUGH THE SPIRIT do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

There is no other way to accomplish it. Resolutions are inadequate. Education is a dismal failure. Etiquet training only covers over the festering corruption.

The question is often asked, "How can I get the Spirit to do this nasty job of mortifying the flesh?" "What do I do?"

The best answer I can give you is a "two pronged" attack.

One part is the Word of God. Saturate yourself with as much of the Word as you can get your eyes on. In other words, READ THE BIBLE AS MUCH AS YOU CAN. This may cause you to sacrifice time away from the "fishin' hole", the ball park, or other pleasurable activities. HARD CHOICES HAVE TO BE MADE. Nobody has said that it will be easy.

We must determine in our hearts that we will pay the price of CRUCIFIXION OF FLESH. If we have, habitually, indulged a lot of flesh in the past, the price of crucifixion will be proportionately higher. (It's a nasty job, but someone's gotta do it.)

The second part is prayer and consecration to God. I have found that I sometimes had to do some "begging" (supplication) God to help me to overcome some deep seated deficiencies in my make up, which are contrary to the Spirit. This, also, takes TIME AND ENERGY away from things which I ENJOY DOING, and which are NOT SINFUL. AGAIN, HARD CHOICES.

Bible study and prayer are BOTH needed. Either one, by itself, will fall short of the goal.
The veil of flesh (OUR FLESH) separates between us and the Glory of the Lord. That veil of flesh has to be torn apart. The responsibility rests squarely on our own shoulders.

WE must ENLIST THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT to beat down, subdue, and mortify (kill out) those things in our life that keep us from breaking through to the Glory of God.

Hey! I'm not talking about SINFUL things! There is much in every one of us that comes under the category of "NO HARM" in them. But when they consume energy and time which will have to be directed toward God if we are going to see His Glory---.

Some people have a tendency to get real active FOR THE LORD, hoping to be an overcomer by that means. About all they can accomplish is to further spread their carnality. God does not need what we can do FOR Him.

DOING is different than BEING.

Paul said, (II Corinthians 6:1) We then, [as] WORKERS TOGETHER [with him], beseech [you] also....

The essence of "overcoming", then, is just what the word implies. Overcoming our fleshly nature by filling our lives with the Word and the Spirit instead of flesh.

This is the essence of making Jesus the King and Lord of our lives. Nothing short of this will meet the rquirements of becoming an overcomer.

Overcoming constitutes a path of loneliness. There are "few that find it". It is a path of deeper obedience, and will, invariably, bring separation. The multitudes WILL NOT go the full distance with us.

God will make a difference in His Workers (Priests) of the coming Outpouring of Himself on the earth.

In Ezek 44 The qualifications are given to determine who shall minister in THE INNER COURT, and those who are barred from entering into it.

WHAT WE ARE DOING RIGHT NOW WILL BE A DETERMINING FACTOR.
Ezekiel 44:16 They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.

Today, each one of us is either ministering to the Lord, in our personal life, or we are catering to our flesh.

We must "come near to Him" before we can be qualified to minister to those who are outside.

THE PROMISES ARE TO THOSE WHO OVERCOME.