“Training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age,” (Titus 2:12 ESV)

Comparing worldliness with godliness

Worldly people:

• Worldly people are devoid of the Spirit

“It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.” (Jude 1:19 ESV) 

• Worldly people love the things in the world rather than doing God’s will

“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:15-17 ESV) 

• Worldly people who wish to be friends of the world makes themselves to be enemies of God

“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” (James 4:4 ESV)

• Worldly people are loved by the world and godly people are hated by them

“If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:19 ESV)

• Worldly people may appear Godly but they deny its power

“Having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.” (2 Tim. 3:5 ESV)

“For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.” (Jude 1:4 ESV) 

Godly people:

• Godly people are not conformed to the world but are transformed by the renewal of their mind

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom. 12:2 ESV)

• Godly people have their minds set on things above

“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” (Col. 3:2 ESV) 

• Godly people aren’t conformed to passions of their former ignorance 

“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance,” (1 Peter 1:14 ESV) 

• Godly people are effective and fruitful

“For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 5:1-8 ESV)

• Godly people will be persecuted

“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” (2 Tim. 3:12 ESV)

• Godly people have great gain in godliness with contentment 

“Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.” (1 Tim. 6:6 ESV) 

Therefore…

“No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.” (2 Tim. 2:4 ESV)

“I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” (John 15:15-16 ESV)

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27 ESV)

Quotes:

“We must meet the uncertainties of this world with the certainty of the world to come.” - A. W. Tozer

“May the things of this world so lose their power over us that we do not in the slightest wish to be "worldly"; nay, we even delight in not remaining "in the world.” - Watchman Nee

“The best means of resisting the devil is, to destroy whatever of the world remains in us, in order to raise for God, upon its ruins, a building all of love. Then shall we begin, in this fleeting life, to love God as we shall love him in eternity. - John Wesley

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“Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them." (Heb. 7:25 NIV)

Completely saved!

That means totally, entirely, wholly, thoroughly, fully, utterly, absolutely, perfectly, unconditionally, quite, altogether, downright, in every way, in every respect, one hundred percent, every inch!

How is this possible to be saved completely? Two reasons are given in the verse above.

First reason: You are saved through Jesus. The verse says, “Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him…” You are saved completely because It's done through Jesus.

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” (John 14:6 NIV)

And because your salvation is through Him, you can have complete confidence that He will keep it completely safe!

“For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” (2 Tim. 1:12 KJV)

Second reason: Jesus lives to intercede for you! The verse says, “because he always lives to intercede for them.” To intercede means to mediate, intermediate, arbitrate, conciliate, negotiate, moderate, intervene, interpose, step in, act, plead, petition, and advocate. This is what Jesus does for you!

“For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” (1 Tim. 2:5-6 ESV)

We can have confidence in Jesus!

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 1:6 NIV)

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"But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water welling up to eternal life." (John 4:14 NIV)

Jesus talks to a woman at a well

The longest one-on-one conversation with Jesus, recorded in John 4:4-26, is with a Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. On a hot day, when Jesus was tired and thirsty from a long journey, He stopped at the well to rest and to get a drink of water. A Samaritan woman was there, drawing water from the well, and He spoke with her. The conversation was unusual, because Jesus didn't follow the well-established religious rules of the day.

First, he was traveling through Samaria rather than walking around it as most Jews did to avoid Samaritans. Second, Jews weren't supposed to speak with Samaritans. Third, men weren't permitted to speak with women without their husband present. Fourth, rabbis had no business speaking to shady ladies such as this one.

The woman focused on the law; Jesus focused on grace

"You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman," she reminded him. "How can you ask me for a drink?" (John 4:9 NIV)

Jesus kept the conversation focused

“Jesus answered her, 'If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.'" (John 4:10 NIV).  After more questions from her, “Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’” (John 4:13-14 NIV).

The woman misunderstood Him

She thought Jesus was talking about the regular kind of water and therefore, meant that she wouldn't have to get water from the well any more as she usually does, so she asked Him for some. “The woman said to him, 'Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.'" (John 4:15 NIV)

Living water is a different kind of water!

Like many people today, the woman at the well misunderstood what Jesus meant when He said, "the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." (John 4:14 NIV). He was actually talking about the Holy Spirit. This is made clear In the seventh chapter of the gospel of John, when Jesus identifies the "streams of living water" that flow from within those who believe in him as the Holy Spirit. “On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.’” (John 7:37-38 NIV)

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“You alone are the LORD. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.” (Ne. 9:6 NIV)

God can handle anything!

In a recent posting, I spoke about the complexity of the incredibly small atom, and how God Himself, is the force that holds neutrons and protons together, (Col. 1:17). But, not only is He able to handle the smallest things, He can also handle the largest things!

Just consider the distant stars!

“Is not God in the height of heaven? Look also at the distant stars, how high they are!” (Job 22:12 KJV)

“By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host.” (Psalm 33:6 ESV)

“For You are the LORD Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.” (Psalm 97:9 NIV)

“This is what the LORD says: 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.'” (Isa. 66:1 NIV)

Nothing, in fact, including any problem you may face, is too big or too small for our God to handle!

“I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” (Jer. 32:27 NIV)

 “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7 NIV)

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“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”  (Ez. 36:26 NIV)

Delineation between good and evil

When I think of what it means to be hard-hearted and evil, I think of some of the characters I saw as a child in old Disney films, such as the jealous evil queen in Snow White and the wicked Cruella Deville, in 101 Dalmatians. These early Disney films had a very clear delineation between good and evil and left no doubt as to who was good or who was evil.

Not so much today!

The lines have become blurred. One example is the recent Disney movie, Maleficent, which is a sympathetic version of the evil villain of Sleeping Beauty. Instead of being pure evil in this film, she is depicted as being simply misunderstood. I imagine this fuzziness about good and evil is confusing to today's children.

The Bible clearly defines evil

“He went on: ‘What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.’” (Mark 7:20-23 NIV)

We must hate and reject evil

“Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 97:10 NIV)

Reject every kind of evil

“Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong.” (Isa. 1:16 NIV)

“Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” (Psalm 34:14 NIV)

“Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” (James 1:21 NIV)

“But test them all; hold on to what is good, reject every kind of evil.” (1 Thess. 5:21 NIV)

The Lord will rescue you from every evil attack

“The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (2 Tim. 4:18 NIV)

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“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Col. 1:15-17 NIV)

Atoms are the basic building blocks of ordinary matter

Atoms can join together to form molecules, which in turn form most of the objects around you. Atoms are composed of particles called protons, electrons and neutrons.

The mystery of what holds the atom together

The nucleus of an atom is positively charged while electrons are negatively charged. The neutrons are electrically neutral, and so the electric force won't hold them in. Furthermore, the protons are all positively charged and so they all repel each other. This creates a big physics dilemma. If everything within the atom is negatively and positively charged and naturally repel each other, what is it that holds them all together? The answer to the question is debated much with many theories, both old and new, involving things like quarks and gluons. Physicists all agree that there has to be some other force that holds protons and neutrons together, but that's were their agreement ends - it all comes down to guesses and theories.

The so called, “strong force”

Even though they are not in agreement as to what it is that holds atoms together, physicists have named it "the strong force." In addition, they claim the strong force is also responsible for binding the quarks and gluons into protons and neutrons.

All things were made through Jesus

All these physics discussions are frankly beyond my ability to wrap my brain around. I have chosen a simpler answer found in the Bible, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” (Col. 1:17 NIV). That explains it to me!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made." (John 1:1-3 NIV)

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"For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” (Rom. 6:14 KJV)

Did the devil make you do that? 

The late great comedian, Flip Wilson, said jokingly in one of his famous Geraldine routines, “The devil made me do it.” But, as a person united with Christ and set free from the power of sin, the devil has no power or authority to make you do anything! He is a liar and deceiver who will tempt you to do wrong things, but the final decision is entirely yours to make.

You have genuine safety and freedom in Christ!

When Jesus sets you free, you are “free indeed.” (John 8:36). Sin can only dominate you if you allow it to. The Bible commands us not to give the devil a foothold. (Eph. 4:27). 

We are no longer enslaved to sin!

“We know that our old self was crucified with Him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin." (Rom. 6:6-7 NIV)

You are free from the law of sin!

“For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death." (Rom. 8:2 NIV)

You were called to freedom!

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." (Gal. 5:13 ESV)

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“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.” (2 Cor. 8:9 NIV)

This is called the great exchange!

This is the gospel — the good news that our sins are laid on Christ and his righteousness is laid on us.

This great exchange happens for us not by works but by faith alone. When you receive Christ as your personal savior you instantly become enriched.

 Here is what you get in the great exchange

• Forgiveness according to the riches of His grace. "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight." (Eph. 1:7-8 NIV)

• Every special blessing in Christ. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” (Eph. 1:3 NIV)

• You have been brought to fullness in Christ. “And in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority.” (Col. 2:10 NIV)

• Your needs are supplied according to His riches in glory. “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:19 NIV)

• You have a great inheritance. “To obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you.” (1 Peter 1:4 NIV). “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” (Eph. 1:18 NIV)

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“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.” (Eph. 2:19 NIV)

There has been much written in the press lately about illegal aliens in our country and what to do about them. One answer, although not popular, is for them to do what the law of our country requires to become a citizen. Unfortunately, many illegals want to stay in our country, enjoy all of the benefits and privileges without doing what's required to become a citizen.

Religious Illegal Aliens

In the same way, many religious people, who call themselves Christians, are actually religious illegal aliens, because they have not done what is necessary to become a member of God’s citizenship.

Jesus spoke about them

He said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6 NIV). He also said, “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.” (John 10:9 NIV). He said, anyone who attempts to “enter any other way, is a thief and a robber.” (John 10:1). When Jesus said these things, many religious people, such as the Pharisees and other religious leaders of that day, became very angry and plotted to kill Him.

Just because you are a religious leader doesn't mean you are a citizen of God’s Kingdom

In fact, many religious leaders will find out at the day of judgement that they were not legal citizens of God’s Kingdom. Jesus said, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matt. 7:22-23 NIV)

The great news is we can easily become legal citizens of God’s Kingdom by personal faith in Jesus!

“If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Rom. 10:9 NIV)

Therefore…

Our citizenship changes when we become born again, and therefore become "fellow citizens with God’s people." (Eph. 2:19 NIV)

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