FUNDAMENTALS
OF DISCIPLESHIP
Romans 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in
your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13 Neither yield ye your members
as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto Elohim,
as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of
righteousness unto Elohim.
14 For sin shall not have dominion
over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
15 What then? shall we sin,
because we are not under the law, but under grace? Elohim forbid.
16 Know ye not, that to whom ye
yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether
of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Last week’s post ended with this question:
What do you want?
In what do you take delight? What
brings you joy?
You are going to discover that the
answer to this basic question is either going to
imprison
you in sin, or liberate you unto genuine
discipleship.
A favorite Bible verse quoted by many believers is:
Psalm 37:4 Delight thyself also in IAUE: and he shall give thee the desires
of thine heart.
Many fancy that their faithful observance of the
religious culture of Christianity is evidence that they delight in IAUE; thus,
they deserve to receive the desires of their heart. It does not matter that their desires are almost
exclusively selfish. They pray this verse
back to IAUE and enumerate their wants to Him.
So few who can quote this verse can also quote the next verse.
Psalm
37:5 Commit thy way unto IAUE; trust also in him; and he shall bring
it to pass.
It is impossible to delight in IAUE and not also
commit your life to His rule, trusting in His wisdom to direct your life. Our delight in IAUE is measured by our
commitment and trust.
Pause for a moment, right now, and reflect on
the desires of your heart. What
would you ask
IAUE to give you, right now?
What do you find populating this “wish list?” What do you really desire? Would you ask for a better job? A spouse? A better spouse? A better income? A better car?
A nicer house? An easier
life? Or would you ask for wisdom, or
insight, or the fruit of the Spirit in your life? Look at what Solomon desired.
1 Chronicles 1: 9 Now, O IAUE
Elohim, let thy promise unto
David my father be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like
the dust of the earth in multitude.
10 Give me now wisdom and
knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy
people, that is so great?
Solomon asked for wisdom
and knowledge to know how to lead IAUE’s people. His heart’s desire was to do right by IAUE
and to care for the people called by His name.
What did IAUE give him in response to this desire of his heart?
11 And Elohim said to Solomon, Because
this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour,
nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked
wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I
have made thee king:
12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted
unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of
the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after
thee have the like.
The New Testament equivalent of this exchange is found in the Sermon on
the Mount.
Matthew
6:19 Lay not up for yourselves
treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break
through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also…
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also…
33
But seek ye first the kingdom of Elohim, and
his righteousness; and all these things
shall be added unto you.
The things men naturally desire, they desire to cater to their own flesh. These natural desires can no longer be a
function of our lives if we are to be the disciples of Messiah Yahushua. Such
desires keep our flesh in control of our lives and keep our relationship with
IAUE and Yahushua forever on a calculated basis; i.e., we will obey them when
we deem obedience to their will to be acceptable to us. However, “these things”
CAN be blessings that our Father gives to us as the delight of HIS heart toward
us when our delight is truly, and exclusively in Him. He responds to our delighting in Him by
giving to us “these things.” In this
manner, they are not fulfilling the lusts of our flesh, because our flesh was
not pursuing them. They become gifts
from our Father and our response to receiving them from Him is affection toward
Him and a deeper commitment to obedience to His will.
It is not possible…I say again…it is not possible to pursue delighting in
IAUE in order to get what our natural man desires. The desires that IAUE gives to
us are the desires that are produced within us when we delight in Him, commit
our way to Him, and trust in Him.
There must be a separation of our lives from the flesh…from the principle
of sin that courses through our physical bodies, if we are going to become
effective disciples of Messiah.
Romans 6:12 Let not sin therefore reign in
your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
Paul establishes the
concept of control. Who is in control? It may come as a surprise to many that we
do not retain control when we choose to cater to the lusts of the flesh. If we yield to the dictates of the flesh, the
FLESH REIGNS. Our soul (our mind, will and emotions) does not retain rulership. The
principle of sin in the flesh commands us to cater to its desires; and our
response to its commands is “obedience.”
Do you see? We do not retain
control. We become servants of the
flesh. If you can understand this
exchange of reign, you can begin to understand why it seems impossible to deny
ourselves certain fleshly behaviors or activities. We have given our flesh the right to rule in
those areas to which we have transferred authority to rule. When the flesh commands…we obey. That exchange of command must be broken for
us to experience deliverance.
Romans 6:13 Neither yield ye your members
as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto Elohim,
as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of
righteousness unto Elohim.
Paul restates this
instruction a few chapters later when he says:
Romans 12:1 I beseech you
therefore, brethren, by the mercies of IAUE, that ye present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto IAUE, which is your reasonable
service.
2 And be not conformed to this
world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of IAUE.
One of the keys to
deliverance from the law of sin in the flesh is to relegate our bodies as no
longer belonging to us. If our bodies
are “living sacrifices,” that means that they have been offered as a sacrifice
unto IAUE; and though the physical body is not slain, we are now dead to our
physical body. Our bodies now belong to
IAUE and they are His to use as He pleases.
Our relationship to our bodies becomes one of useful vessels in which to
carry out the Father’s will.
Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion
over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
15 What then? shall we sin,
because we are not under the law, but under grace? Elohim forbid.
The apostle had
explained earlier in Romans 6, that the existence of the law is what made us
aware of our sinfulness; but we died to the law when we were united with
Messiah. We are now under grace…the power Elohim gives that enables us to do
His will. The question is asked, “Since
we are no longer under the law, which makes us aware of sin; are we now free to
sin with reckless abandon because we no longer have the law to convict us of
sin?” The answer is given in the next
verse.
16 Know ye not, that to whom ye
yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether
of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Sin is sin, whether or not there is law to tell us it is sin. The reality is this: We are not in control. We merely choose who is. We may choose to obey the flesh,
resulting in an unrighteous lifestyle of obedience to the natural desires (1 John 2:15-16) that leads to death; or we may choose to obey the
will of IAUE, resulting in a righteous lifestyle that leads us to life.
Galatians 5:24 And
they that are Messiah’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I
have set before you life and
death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:
We must make a choice.
Kingdom heart: a heart that offers no resistance to the performance
of the will of IAUE.
If it is subjec tto decay, it is mortal. If it can be contaminated, it is mortal. If it is of IAUE it is immortal. The 'moth' will only eat what IAUE dos not deem to be essential in our lives. Did he not give up to 'decay' the excess that the Israelites tried to store in the wilderness? IAUE does not necessarily stop us from enjoying things that the flesh enjoys, such as ice cream or the like, but we have to be willing to hear if he tells us 'NO!' Messiah did not stop the people from doing their 'everyday' things, like having people around for dinner, weddings etc, but he made them aware that if IAUE says, 'No!; then you are to stop.
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