Borrowed Truths

Changed

Picture of Borrowed Truths

Changed

You may or may not be able to associate this with yourself, for it really depends on who you were before Christ, before the Holy Spirit came to indwell within you, but there are times for me personally to this day that seem as if the person I am becoming, or perhaps better said, being transformed into, (Romans 12:2) is the last person on earth that I would have wanted to hang around with.

He would most definitely not fit in at the bars I hung around in, the drug dealers and baser sort of people that I associated with on a regular, day-to-day basis, he in no way could keep up with the trash talk, and many that I knew would just as soon throw him over a cliff than to look at him.

I am not who I used to be, nor are you, and if you will admit truth to yourself, there are occasional moments when you do not want to be who you are today. There is no longing, no pining for those days, they are gone and good riddance to them, but there are times when being a Christian can seem, well, rather “weak willed.” The world is a tough place, if you are not tough, it will eat you alive.

“Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.” (1 Peter 3:9) Sure, you bet. “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7) The most powerful man ever born, able to do anything he wanted to at any time, he did not need to call upon twelve legions of angels (Matt. 26:53) He is God Almighty, and yet He humbled Himself, for you, for me.

Strength under control is called meekness, but the world calls it weakness, the largest, strongest man is supposed to be in control, the people of Israel feared the giants of the land, people with no military training do not attempt to stand against a well-trained army. Power is shown by force, not forgiveness. Yet that is what we are called to do, we are called to love our enemies. (Luke 6:27)

When the Holy Spirit enters into a strong man, whether it be of physical strength or strength of will, unstoppable fortitude, He does not turn that man into a weakling, He does not remove that strength, He directs it to the glory of God. Here is wisdom, “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” (Gen. 6:5) Yet “But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.” (1 Sam. 16:7)

David was a man who was called a man after God’s own heart, (1 Sam. 13:14) he was also a bloody man, a man of war, of calculating tactics that the Lord used to not only bring nearly every nation around Israel into subjection to them, but to pen the Psalms. The Lord uses us as we are, but redirects that pride, that anger, frustration, fortitude and all the other attributes that the world wants to emulate and turns that heart to one who sees no other purpose in life but the glory of the Most High, to exalt His name above the heavens. (Psalm 57:5)

Now, you may not have been mean, rude, crude, belligerent and all the other attributes that some of us were, you may have been considered a nice person, polite, kind, obedient to authority, willing to listen and obey. So then, I would ask you this, if you were that person before Christ, how are you different today?

This is actually the point of this short letter to you, if you were a “nice” person before, how has the Lord changed you? Herein I believe is where many who call Christ Lord are deceiving themselves, for when questioned, “What have you repented of?” If you are one of these, I cannot answer this question for you, but it would be wise if you asked it of yourself.

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