Planted in Christ
It is a singular and beautiful providence of God that nearly all the plants in hot climates, where the rain is scarce and the rivers few, have “tuberous roots buried far beneath the ground,” so that they know not when drought comes, and are almost independent of their outward circumstances. Such is the special privilege of the children of God who are planted in Christ. The roots of their lives are down in the depths of the fullness of God. This life is entirely independent of outward surroundings of the pleasures or fashions of the world. They shall not see when drought comes. They are like trees planted by rivers of water, whose roots lie buried beneath in the ever flowing stream of God’s eternal love and unchanging grace. So their leaf shall not wither. (Handfuls on Purpose -Smith and Lee)
This brings to mind Psalms 1:1-3. Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
It also brings to mind John 15:1-8. 1) I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2) He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3) You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4) Remain in Me and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. 5) I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing. 6) If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers, such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7) If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8) This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples.
Jesus answered, " It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' " Matthew 4:4.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning John 1:1-2.
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth John 1:14.
In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge Colossians 2:3.
We get our nourishment from the Vine, which is Christ Jesus, the Word made flesh.
We are to feed on His Word and drink of the Holy Spirit. Every word in the Bible has been God-breathed out for us to feed on so that we can grow spiritually mature as we gain a deeper knowledge of Him.
Check out 2 Peter 1:19-21.
19)And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20) Above all you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. 21) For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
Feeding on the Word of God is vital for our spiritual growth as well as gaining a deeper knowledge of God. Relying on the Holy Spirit to open our understanding by illuminating Scripture passages that we prayerfully meditate on, will cause us to delight in His Word as we make this a daily practice. The more we do this as a regular practice the more rooted we will become in His Word.
He is also the Word of God and has told us His Word is our daily manna to feed on. The Holy Spirit has been given to be our Teacher and Counselor. He will take the Word of God and open it up to reveal to us the wisdom and direction we need. God has provided for everything we need. Our part is to pray, seek His wisdom in His Word with the help of the Holy Spirit, and act upon it in faith. The more we store up in our hearts by meditating on His Word daily, the quicker the Holy Spirit can take from what has been stored up to bring to our remembrance in times of trouble.
Actually, Psalm 119:11 tells us to store up His Word in our hearts so that we will not sin against Him. When temptations come, and they will, that Scripture that has been stored up in our heart will come to mind and check us. That Scripture stored up in our hearts will also be brought to the forefront by the Holy Spirit when we are in difficult or frightening circumstances, and it will comfort and encourage us. When we are in a situation where we do not know what to do and we need wisdom, where do we find it? Well, Jesus is the source of all wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3), so who better to go to.
I know there are some Christians who rely on the Holy Spirit but pretty much neglect the Word of God. The Word of God cannot be separated from the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit cannot be separated from the Word of God. They always work together. If one does not know what the Word of God says on any particular thing because they are not familiar with it, how can they have discernment against false teachings? How can they be sure the spirit they have is the Holy Spirit. If you have the Holy Spirit you should want to be in God's Word to learn more about God Himself, His character, attributes, and His purpose as well as what His purpose is for us. Please do not think you can go just with the Spirit and neglect the Bible. The Holy Spirit always honors Jesus Christ before Himself and will not take the glory away from Jesus who is the Word made flesh. His purpose is to honor Christ Jesus. There may be times you are not in the Bible every day, but still have the Holy Spirit, but you will miss the time you were in the Bible and desire to get back in it. If that desire is not there, please confess this to the Father and ask Him to put that desire into your heart so that you can know Him in a deeper way and gain discernment of what is true and what is error in the teachings that are being broadcast over the air and in some churches. The desire to be in His Word may not be very strong in the beginning, but the more regularly you are in His Word and actively meditating on it, the stronger the desire will become.
As a genuine Christian we are planted in Christ but let us also be rooted in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit takes from what we have stored up or have studied or meditated on, and will bring particular passages to our mind as we need them in any type of situation when we rely on Him. The more you daily meditate on His Word on a regular basis, preferably daily, you will take greater delight as the Holy Spirit illuminates God's Word and begins revealing treasures we missed when first reading through. God's Word is an endless supply of treasure that we will go on discovering even into eternity.
~Annie~
This brings to mind Psalms 1:1-3. Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
It also brings to mind John 15:1-8. 1) I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2) He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit He prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3) You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4) Remain in Me and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. 5) I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing. 6) If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers, such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7) If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. 8) This is to My Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be My disciples.
Jesus answered, " It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' " Matthew 4:4.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning John 1:1-2.
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only who came from the Father, full of grace and truth John 1:14.
In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge Colossians 2:3.
We get our nourishment from the Vine, which is Christ Jesus, the Word made flesh.
We are to feed on His Word and drink of the Holy Spirit. Every word in the Bible has been God-breathed out for us to feed on so that we can grow spiritually mature as we gain a deeper knowledge of Him.
Check out 2 Peter 1:19-21.
19)And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20) Above all you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. 21) For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
Feeding on the Word of God is vital for our spiritual growth as well as gaining a deeper knowledge of God. Relying on the Holy Spirit to open our understanding by illuminating Scripture passages that we prayerfully meditate on, will cause us to delight in His Word as we make this a daily practice. The more we do this as a regular practice the more rooted we will become in His Word.
He is also the Word of God and has told us His Word is our daily manna to feed on. The Holy Spirit has been given to be our Teacher and Counselor. He will take the Word of God and open it up to reveal to us the wisdom and direction we need. God has provided for everything we need. Our part is to pray, seek His wisdom in His Word with the help of the Holy Spirit, and act upon it in faith. The more we store up in our hearts by meditating on His Word daily, the quicker the Holy Spirit can take from what has been stored up to bring to our remembrance in times of trouble.
Actually, Psalm 119:11 tells us to store up His Word in our hearts so that we will not sin against Him. When temptations come, and they will, that Scripture that has been stored up in our heart will come to mind and check us. That Scripture stored up in our hearts will also be brought to the forefront by the Holy Spirit when we are in difficult or frightening circumstances, and it will comfort and encourage us. When we are in a situation where we do not know what to do and we need wisdom, where do we find it? Well, Jesus is the source of all wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3), so who better to go to.
I know there are some Christians who rely on the Holy Spirit but pretty much neglect the Word of God. The Word of God cannot be separated from the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit cannot be separated from the Word of God. They always work together. If one does not know what the Word of God says on any particular thing because they are not familiar with it, how can they have discernment against false teachings? How can they be sure the spirit they have is the Holy Spirit. If you have the Holy Spirit you should want to be in God's Word to learn more about God Himself, His character, attributes, and His purpose as well as what His purpose is for us. Please do not think you can go just with the Spirit and neglect the Bible. The Holy Spirit always honors Jesus Christ before Himself and will not take the glory away from Jesus who is the Word made flesh. His purpose is to honor Christ Jesus. There may be times you are not in the Bible every day, but still have the Holy Spirit, but you will miss the time you were in the Bible and desire to get back in it. If that desire is not there, please confess this to the Father and ask Him to put that desire into your heart so that you can know Him in a deeper way and gain discernment of what is true and what is error in the teachings that are being broadcast over the air and in some churches. The desire to be in His Word may not be very strong in the beginning, but the more regularly you are in His Word and actively meditating on it, the stronger the desire will become.
As a genuine Christian we are planted in Christ but let us also be rooted in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit takes from what we have stored up or have studied or meditated on, and will bring particular passages to our mind as we need them in any type of situation when we rely on Him. The more you daily meditate on His Word on a regular basis, preferably daily, you will take greater delight as the Holy Spirit illuminates God's Word and begins revealing treasures we missed when first reading through. God's Word is an endless supply of treasure that we will go on discovering even into eternity.
~Annie~
No comments:
Post a Comment