Examine Ourselves
This week we had a break from our Galatians study. The class was canceled last Monday due to weather. So for study of the Word I continued my Bible reading track for reading the Bible in a year. I've been at it for over a year at I'm only on May. So it's slow going.
Yesterday I read this verse in 2 Corinthians 13:5, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you -- unless, of course, you fail the test?"
My question is, How often do we examine ourselves in terms of our spiritual life in comparison to what the Bible says?
Soon after becoming a Christian I read, and re-read the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4). Read it now if you like but in short there are four soils, seed was sown on all four of them, and only one produced a crop at all. At that time in my walk with the Lord I immediately interpreted the first three soils with problems as "other people", and the fourth soil as Christians. And I interpreted the multiplicity of the crop as other people coming to faith in Jesus. With this understanding, and even with the explanation of the parable in just a few verses later I don't think I took it seriously the truth as it is.
A few years ago I started examining myself in light of this scripture and humbly came to realize a few things. First I could not categorize my heart as the fourth soil. There was no evidence of thirty, sixty, or a hundred people coming into the Faith by anything I did. So which soil was I?
Second is that the other soils are evident in professing Christians. For example Mark 4:17 says, "Others, like the seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy". Non-believers do not receive God's word with joy.
The third thing I realized is the crops need not be converts. In Galatians there is discussion of the fruits of the Spirit. The crop therefore could be made up of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, etc.
So even in light of this, what soil was I? What soil are you?
To be honest with myself I would have to say the third soil, those with thorns -- worries, deceitfulness of wealth and desires for other things choking the word and making it unfruitful in my life.
The sanctification process is slow. I have moments of love and joy. I have patience -- sometimes. But other fruits show up, fruits of the sinful nature. The biggest one lately is anger. I rarely have actual outbursts of anger but when I do it is remorseful. And more often, I imagine in my mind some amazing, academy award-winning tirades. This practice in my mind is just setting me up for more uncontrolled outbursts.
I think as committed followers of Jesus we long to see fruits of the Spirit exhibited in our lives. And as averagegirl says we should share these fruits with others. So what do we do? God's Word is true so let us all examine ourselves against it. And let us take action to live according to it, as what Hebrews 12:1-2 says.
I will never tell any Christian to try and solve their sin problems by their own power. In the past I know I have expected folks to just stop sinning in their own power, but no more. Some effort, or act of faith should be initiated in our part but let the Spirit do the work of helping us with our struggle against sin. In our own power we strive and succeed at avoiding sin, for a while maybe. Even if we were to conquer a sin in our lives, we would be boastfully proud of our accomplishment. And when we try and try, or even conquer a sin in our own power, then it just becomes an enslavement that burdens us, not something that sets us free.
Lately the biggest help for me has been by the study of Galatians and taking a careful look at what grace means. Other books in the Bible talk about grace too. Listen. Jesus' sacrifice on the cross for my sin and yours is what truely sets us free. It lifts the burden. And when we consider what He has done and why He did it that breaks us from the slavery of the sin and even removes the burden of avoiding the sin. Romans 8 comes to mind here.
In the "final greetings" part, 2 Corinthians 13:11 says "Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you."
Yesterday I read this verse in 2 Corinthians 13:5, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you -- unless, of course, you fail the test?"
My question is, How often do we examine ourselves in terms of our spiritual life in comparison to what the Bible says?
Soon after becoming a Christian I read, and re-read the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4). Read it now if you like but in short there are four soils, seed was sown on all four of them, and only one produced a crop at all. At that time in my walk with the Lord I immediately interpreted the first three soils with problems as "other people", and the fourth soil as Christians. And I interpreted the multiplicity of the crop as other people coming to faith in Jesus. With this understanding, and even with the explanation of the parable in just a few verses later I don't think I took it seriously the truth as it is.
A few years ago I started examining myself in light of this scripture and humbly came to realize a few things. First I could not categorize my heart as the fourth soil. There was no evidence of thirty, sixty, or a hundred people coming into the Faith by anything I did. So which soil was I?
Second is that the other soils are evident in professing Christians. For example Mark 4:17 says, "Others, like the seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy". Non-believers do not receive God's word with joy.
The third thing I realized is the crops need not be converts. In Galatians there is discussion of the fruits of the Spirit. The crop therefore could be made up of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, etc.
So even in light of this, what soil was I? What soil are you?
To be honest with myself I would have to say the third soil, those with thorns -- worries, deceitfulness of wealth and desires for other things choking the word and making it unfruitful in my life.
The sanctification process is slow. I have moments of love and joy. I have patience -- sometimes. But other fruits show up, fruits of the sinful nature. The biggest one lately is anger. I rarely have actual outbursts of anger but when I do it is remorseful. And more often, I imagine in my mind some amazing, academy award-winning tirades. This practice in my mind is just setting me up for more uncontrolled outbursts.
I think as committed followers of Jesus we long to see fruits of the Spirit exhibited in our lives. And as averagegirl says we should share these fruits with others. So what do we do? God's Word is true so let us all examine ourselves against it. And let us take action to live according to it, as what Hebrews 12:1-2 says.
I will never tell any Christian to try and solve their sin problems by their own power. In the past I know I have expected folks to just stop sinning in their own power, but no more. Some effort, or act of faith should be initiated in our part but let the Spirit do the work of helping us with our struggle against sin. In our own power we strive and succeed at avoiding sin, for a while maybe. Even if we were to conquer a sin in our lives, we would be boastfully proud of our accomplishment. And when we try and try, or even conquer a sin in our own power, then it just becomes an enslavement that burdens us, not something that sets us free.
Lately the biggest help for me has been by the study of Galatians and taking a careful look at what grace means. Other books in the Bible talk about grace too. Listen. Jesus' sacrifice on the cross for my sin and yours is what truely sets us free. It lifts the burden. And when we consider what He has done and why He did it that breaks us from the slavery of the sin and even removes the burden of avoiding the sin. Romans 8 comes to mind here.
In the "final greetings" part, 2 Corinthians 13:11 says "Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you."
posted by Gary at 1:45 PM
2 Comments:
Reading your blog for the 1st time. I can relate. I have seen such crappy fruit in my life that I despair of trying to do good.
I just struggle with knowing how to stop striving and just trust in what Christ did on that cross. That sacrifice seems vague and foggy at times.
I wished it was always clear in my heart and mind.
joy
Joy,
Thank you for reading. I find that through studying Galatians it is an amazing book that convinced me to give up on my own effort of striving and to rest in Jesus' sacrifice. Draw near to God and he'll draw near to you. My prayers to you and all of us with the same struggles.
Gary
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