March 19th Daily Discussion

I think that we just live our lives everyday in a way that would be pleasing to Christ, making sure that when we run into those occasional stumbling blocks, we take a step back and ask ourselves if whatever it is we are about to do will bring glory to God or ourselves. It doesn't always work because we are usually so full of ourselves........

Tami,
Our Lord tells us we are dead to sin and it no longer masters us, though we know we sin every day, no matter how hard we try. Paul tells us that he did the same...but then...he tells us to press on.
Press on...keep going...all the way through this journey called life, to get to our final destination to be with Jesus. Phil 3:13-14. BUT the BEST part is that He gave us the Holy Spirit...right here inside us...to guide and comfort us through it all, not to mention the blessings, grace and mercy He bestows. How can we not have joy and peace knowing these things? I am so grateful to belong to Him.

I think Paul said it best when he said "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions". This is the key of living a life holy and acceptable to God. We must continually on a daily basis, crucify our flesh and take up the cross and follow him. We must never take our eyes of Jesus like Peter did on the sea or else we will fall.

Christ said he is able to keep us from falling. Also he says he is able to make a way of escape when we are faced with temptations because he too was tempted with every sin imaginable.

So in conclusion if we follow these precious words of God. I mean really apply it to our lives then we can live a life where sin does not rule us

Romans 6:7/NIV-- "Because anyone who has died has been freed from sin."

I asked myself this question as I read this (together with the first 5 Chapters of Romans), have I died to sin yet? If so why the struggle (Romans 7)?

But the answer had already come in an earlier Chapter. Romans 5:3-5. The suffering in necessary for the spiritual transformation to take place. Praise God, I don't have to look beyond the struggles and problems and worries of today (Matthew 6:34), because in Christ Jesus, right now, I can know His power that leads to the victory!Glory to God!

Keep the faith and press on!

Good Morning Tami, I have a question. In regard to part of your statement: which is found in Matt 16:33 and Mark 8:33.

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

I agree with “I am dead to sin and alive in Christ, and sin is no longer my master!“ But I’m still thinking about your question and what you mentioned in the beginning.
1 Peter 5:8 says; be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. And 5:9 Says Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

I agree with Devaughn M. and with you. So I say; Get behind me Satan! You have no place in my life. I choose to live for Christ and I will be alert and self-controlled. By Gods Grace I will be able to do what I have said.
He indeed gave me the Holy Spirit to help me in which I am so thankful. In Him we are blessed with his marvelous Love, and through him we will have life and have it more abundantly. Alive in Christ! Praise The Lord God Almighty!

Jerry,

I'd like to answer your question on Tami's behalf.

We have the authority to resist Satan. In fact, James 4:7 says, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." But the truth of the matter is, even as Christians, we still fall victim to his tricks. In other words, we sin. Tami's question was, "What do we do then?" First John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Unconfessed sin interferes with our walk with the Lord. So we confess it, forsake it and get back on track again.

Hope that's helpful.

Allen, Biblical Correspondent at Back to the Bible.

Allen, thank you for that. I was really wondering if anyone was going to say it, but I don't think we as humans can possibly live "perfectly". Isn't that by design after all? Our fantastic Creator is glorious in all He does, including creating us as we are, and then being so completely merciful that He sees to it we're given a perfect way out of our imperfection through Christ. Praise Him always! :-)

Great responses.

What do I (we) do when I (we) sin? As Allen said, confess it to our Lord Who is faithful to forgive...AMEN!!

It is important to remember to learn from our sin, to forgive ourselves as the Lord has, and move forward. We are still being perfected and do not know or understand all things which are spiritual, but we will know when we see our Lord face-to-face. As mentioned earlier, we press on, seeking daily to glorify our Lord daily.

It is a daily commitment to walk with Jesus and walk as Jesus walked. That is why He gave the Holy Spirit. We can do nothing with out Him.

Love and blessings in Christ!

Allen, Thank you for the word of truth, We do need to Confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleans us from all unrighteousnesss.And forsake any action, or thoughts that interfere with our walk with God. Submit ourself to God (which I hope and Pray that God finds my Submiting acceptable ) and resist the devil, and he will flee. I agree with that. I want to be on track. The part that which I am still curious about is the "Get behind me Satan!" part at the begining. wondering why that was used? I was thinking about the question also and I thank you again for your response.If there is not a answer thats ok. I still love Powered by 4 and I beleive Tami does a great job in bringing about interesting questions and comments.
By the way if the invitation for prayer is still open, we really could us much prayer as possible for my daughter Andrea. Meth a drug I beleive is straight from Hell itself.We are praying for her to be set free. We currently have gardianship of her three small children. Praise God Almighty for his great love for us.

Jerry, thanks for letting us know how we can pray for your daughter. We will be praying specifically for her situation--that God would bring deliverance. Tami W.

Jerry, let me comment on your last question.

The expression "Get thee behind me, Satan" (taken from Matthew 16:23) has come to mean, "Satan, I reject your temptations." After all, that's what Satan was using Peter to do--tempt Jesus not to go through with the Father's plan for Christ's death on the cross. So how does this fit the passage in Romans 6:1-14? In this passage in Romans, Paul is saying that sin no longer has control over you. That means Satan has no authority over us. We can now say, "Satan, I reject your temptations!" When Christ died on the cross, He not only paid for our sins, He defeated Satan!

Allen, Biblical Correspondent at Back to the Bible