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| JAMES LESSON #22 �Real worship is the offering of everyday life to Him.� How..do we do this? We were looking at Romans 12:1-2 with the question in mind, �How do you know your God?� The �how� part isn�t something we do �alone.� The �how� part demands a radical change. Look at verse 2. Do not be �conformed� to this world, but be �transformed� - I want to take a minute and look at those two words. The word �conformed� in the Greek finds it�s root in the word �schema,� which means the �outward form� that varies from year to year and from day to day. A man�s �schema� changes as he matures � it varies with what surrounds him. A man�s �schema� will be different when he goes to a formal dinner than when he goes to a ball game. A man�s �schema� will not be the same when he�s seventy as when he is sixteen. It is continuously changing. With this word Paul is saying � don�t imitate everything around you � don�t take on the fashions of your surroundings. �Transformed� in the Greek finds it�s root in the word morphe, which means �the essential unchanging shape of anything. A man�s schema is his outward appearance. A man�s morphe is who he really is- his inner man. What�s he saying? In order to really worship God � to offer Him our strength in everyday life, something has to happen that changes our inner personality. When we accept Christ as Lord of our lives we move from having a life dominated by human nature at its lowest, to life dominated by the Spirit of God. This change happens through the �renewal of your mind.� It doesn�t happen through the renewal of your wallet, or the renewal of your marriage, or the renewal of your weight, or the renewal of your kids, or the renewal of your health: it happens through the renewal of your �MIND.� When Christ comes into a man�s life he is a new man. His mind is different, for the mind of Christ is in him � and he begins a continuous process of �mind renewal.� How? Through �truth� encounters � bringing down the strongholds that lies create in your life through the use of God�s Word. Not only has God given us a �joint effort opportunity� but He�s equipped all of us as believers with �weapons of warfare.� Before we move further in James I want to take a look at what our �weapons of warfare� are � and how we use them. Then I want to come full circle and take a look at how the enemy sets us up and what we do to bring him down. Turn to Ephesians 6:10-14 Finally, be strong (dunamis) in the Lord : notice it does not say, take on the heat of the fire and fight the battle like a good soldier: it does not say be strong in �you� � go out there and fight it �alone� � it says, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of what? His might. Put on your armor � is that what it says? No. It does not say �Put on �your� armor.� It says, Put on the full armor OF GOD � notice that�s it�s God�s armor, not yours. HE supplies it. �Put on� is a �command� � not a �suggestion.� Put it on why? So that you may be able to �stand firm� � stand firm where? In your relationship with Him � trusting His heart, not His hands � in �faith� � believing that when He says He loves you He does regardless of what you �see� or �hear� - stand firm in your �joint effort opportunity� : �Stand firm:� In the Greek it�s: stete: a military term which means �hold your position� �We are to 1) Take over 2) Hold a watchpost �be on guard 3) Stand firm and hold out in a critical position against what? - the schemes of the devil. The word �schemes� there is �methodia� in the Greek and it means �crafty deceit, lies, plans, methods � to get you to operate �outside� the �joint effort opportunity.� -�alone� in �isolation� �remember, the moment you step out of the �joint effort opportunity,� you will plummet. Verse 12 For our �struggle� � in the Greek, this word is �pale� and it means �to throw to the ground and pin you there � is not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness where? In the heavenly places. According to Ephesians 1:19-23 we are positioned next to Christ Himself (we�ve covered this previously)- which positions us in power above all of these things. Where did these spiritual forces come from? We�ve covered this: Revelation 12:4 -one-third of the angels went to earth with Satan - Ephesians 6:13 � Therefore: So: Because of all this: Take up the full armor of God: �Take up� � in the Greek is �analambano� � it means �with the idea of bearing � to wear- to put on- to receive by deliberate and ready reception whatever is offered� Take up the �full armor of God� � the �full armor of God� in the Greek is �panoplia� and it means: �every weapon-both offensive and defensive Usually when we consider spiritual battles, we only think �DEFENSE!� We have just as much responsibility in �OFFENSE.� Take up the full armor of God why? So that you may be able to �resist� � �resist� what? DESIRE-(regardless of what you see and/or hear) that leads to temptation � that leads to sin- that leads to death. Take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and having done all : in the Greek: katergazomai : having conquered all, defeated all, overcome all - and having done all, to STAND: �stete�- hold your position. At this point, we�ll start to look at �how� � Ephesians 6:14 Stand firm: hold your position, therefore, having girded your loins : The word �girded� in the Greek is: perizonnumi : and it means: To be wrapped around as in to �Belt tightly� � spoken in reference to the long flowing garments of the orientals which were pulled up and knotted at the waist for freedom of movement. The word �loins� in the Greek is: osphuos : The loins of the human body comprising the five lower vertebrae of the back, so-called perhaps from the labor they can do and sustain and their ability to position to maintain balance when a man exerts his strength. The garments of the orientals being loose and flowing, it was necessary to wrap them about their hips when they wanted to exert or display their strength. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with TRUTH �having belted the very center of all that you are with Truth : using it to assist in labor, to sustain and to position in balance�so that you can FREELY move about, unhindered. I want to take a look at the �belt of truth-� The basis of all sin is unbelief. Sin, is what �pins us to the ground.� That�s why the belt of truth is so important. Satan�s strategy is to get you outside of your position in Christ (joint effort opportunity). It�s to get you outside of Christ in word- so that you speak a lie. His strategy is to get you outside of your position in deed, so that you live a lie instead of living according to the truth. EVERYTHING HINGES ON TRUTH � that�s why it�s the �belt.� Satan�s efforts will be centralized in one area: to convince you that what God says isn�t true. There are four things you need to do if you�re going to �gird up your loins, or put on your belt of truth.� 1) You must believe that the Bible is true � 2) You must KNOW the Word. To be convinced it�s true is one thing. To know it is another. Look at Romans 12:2 The �renewing� of our minds happens as we�re in the Word of God � it changes the inside of us : confronting lies with truth and setting us free. Why? So that we can prove the will of God : which is always good, always acceptable, and always perfect: why? Because it�s TRUTH. 3) You must remain in and carry out (abide in) the Word. Look at Isaiah 50:10 The key word in this verse is �trust� � it requires action. We�ll talk about that a lot more later. To abide in the Word of God is to �act� in agreement with what it says: to �carry it out.� 4) You must SPEAK the truth. Satan catches us in lies: Look at Ephesians 4:25 Many of us march out to meet the enemy with our belts around our ankles � we fall all over ourselves before we even get to the enemy. The �truth� is not in position in our lives, it�s wrapped around our ankles and we�re stumbling over it. Why? Because we haven�t spent the time necessary to �gird� ourselves in the Word of God so that we can recognize the lies and counter them with truth. When you hear teaching, preaching, TV, radio, Science, psychology or philosophy � ALWAYS line it up next to the Word of God. If it doesn�t agree with God�s Word, toss it out. Why? A) The Word is �inspired� by God. It is God breathed. Look at II Timothy 3:16. Circle the word �All� �Being in the Word does four key things in your life: It teaches you truth: It reproves (convicts) � It corrects (by confronting lies with truth) and trains in righteousness: for what reason? So that we will be equipped for every good work. Look at II Peter 1:19-21 God breathed � man wrote. In Psalm 12:6 it says that the Word of God is pure, tested seven times. B) The Word of God was preserved by God. God is God. He inspired his Word and then He preserved it. Matthew 5:17-19 Every word to the last letter will be fulfilled. C) The Word of God is without error in every subject that it addresses. It�s through faith that we understand this. Hebrews 11:3 Revelation 22:18-19 The Word opens up with God in charge as Creator, and closes with Him as the Righteous Judge over those who do not hold to the inerrancy of His Word. All the way through the Word you see, �God said-� over and over and over. You say, but a lot of that was written after it had been known for a long time. No. God breathed. Man wrote. Not of their own interpretation � they wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit of God. If God is able to send His Son to earth, incarnate Him, put him on a cross, take all your sins and my sins, put them upon Him so that He is made sin for us, resurrect Him and seat Him at the right hand of God the Father and promise us that WE are seated with Him even now, and give us authority and we see that these things indeed are true and work, --don�t you think that God�s able to give us a book, to keep it from the contamination of man, to preserve it? How do I know all this? By faith � faith in what God says � handed down � the Old Testament, which Satan attempts to discredit � Jesus supports. There are over 250 quotes from the Old Testament just in the book of Revelation. Jesus supported Adam and Eve in Matthew 19. He supported Jonah in Matthew 16. He supported Noah and Lot in Matthew 24 � and in Luke 24 He said, �Oh you fools and slow of heart � not to believe all that was written by Moses and the prophets.� You have in your hands the Word of God � and at the moment, are diligent in study � �renewing your mind.� It is your belt. If you hear something � line it up with the Word. If it doesn�t agree, toss it out. Why? Because anything that stands outside it, is a lie. If you are going to win in warfare you have to have TRUTH. It�s your PRIMARY PROTECTION in warfare. Every bit of the rest of your armor has to do with the Word of God. How do you prepare for true worship? � offering your strength to God throughout the day? You begin by girding up your loins with truth: Tomorrow, we�ll continue to look at the �belt� and add the shield and the shoes! Loving you- Robin �Copyright2001 Jim and Robin Hibschman |
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