God created man with emotions. This man who was created with emotions, suddenly finds that his life does not go in the way which he desires. Everybody wants a good life and they want to be happy and satisfied. But if we observe our lives, it is full of ups and downs, twists and turns and full of unexpected surprises. The odds are stacked against us. During these circumstances, do you know it is essential to keep your emotions under control?
Do you know why God is keeping you alive in this world? God keeps you in this world and is giving you these days so that you work towards perfection. But at the same time, there are certain things within us that prevent us from moving towards perfection and live as saints. Each and every one of us has an internal emotional world which others are not aware of and very often we ourselves are not clear of this internal emotional world that is within us. If this emotions within us is not properly handled, it will not only impact us but also will defile many others. Do you know God will not be happy with us if you are being the reason for causing many others to get defiled?
Many of us may think, “Why is my faith lacking?”
All of us know that God loves us. How much does He love you? It is so great love!
All of us know that God is rich in mercy towards us.
All of us know that God cares for us.
All of us know that God has spoken the promises for us and it should be manifested in our life.
All of us know that God died for our curses and for our healing just like He died for the forgiveness of our sins. In fact even before you decided to be healed, He has died for your healing and for your blessing.
Then why is it that people today are struggling to receive what God has promised? Why are you not 100% sure? Why are you struggling to believe? You will have to actually analyse. The reason is just simple - your faith level is not up to the mark. If your faith level is up to the mark, then you will be sure even before you see it manifesting before your eyes. Yes, you will be sure of the healing before it manifests.
Ephesians 1: 1
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:
Paul calls believers as saints (saints at Corinth, saints at Philippians, saints at Ephesians). Though they were saints, God expects certain things from these saints. The apostles were trying to bring to their notice certain things and one of the things is found in,
2 Corinthians 13: 9
For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
God's wish is your perfection. He also says in,
Hebrews 6: 1
Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
So saints should just not be happy with the designation that they are saints, but they should go on to perfection. To move towards perfection, they need to leave behind the principles of the basic doctrines of Christ. But today many believers are at the basic level, for example- repentance from dead works and faith towards God. All these are basic things. Paul asks us to leave all these things and go unto perfection. Only when you go unto perfection, your faith level will also reach perfection, otherwise your faith level will be low. I am sure none of you want your faith level to be low. Before Goliath appears, your faith level should be sky high and not after he shows up. If it is not, you will run. But if your faith level is high, then Goliath will run. Hence we have to go on unto perfection. God keeps you in this world and is giving you these days so that you work towards perfection. But at the same time, there are certain things within us that prevent us from moving towards perfection and live as saints. Let us see one important but a dangerous thing within us.
God created man with emotions. But at the same time He expects us to keep our emotions under our control and our emotions should not have control over us. We have to discern, which emotion is right and which is wrong. Some emotional responses are wrong because of what they do not only to us but the impact they have on others with whom we are in contact with. This man who was created with emotions, suddenly finds that his life does not go in the way which he desires. Everybody wants a good life and they want to be happy and satisfied. But if we observe our lives, it is full of ups and downs, twists and turns and full of unexpected surprises. The odds are stacked against us. In fact sooner or later things are going to happen in your life whereby you are going to get hurt. These hurtful feelings will pile up over time, will lead to resentment, and then anger and then sadness and in some cases it may also lead to depression. This will make you to hold grudges and a desire to take revenge and finally it will result in bitterness. All these happen when your emotions are not kept under your control. Life is like this because the things which you don’t like suddenly happen.
Bitterness is the greatest enemy of perfection and faith. Bitterness can wear you down. It has the power to destroy us from within and also negatively impact on those whom you are coming in contact with. At some point in time, we are being hurt by someone in life. Sometimes this hurt is deliberate and sometimes it is unintentional. How many times, you are being hurt by the words or actions of the co-believers, spouse, friends and colleagues? You thought how they could be so insensitive that it might hurt you. Your heart feels like it would burst out of our chest wall. What is this common trigger? It is because of something which somebody did. Sometimes, some people may insult you. They can behave in such a way that it can trigger the pain inside you. Sometimes some people will talk behind you, which at a later point you might have heard and it would have hurt you. Some people may have rejected you and because of that you are hurt. Some people would have judged you and you came to know about it and it would have created resentment within you. Sometimes you get hurt, because somebody whom you believed greatly would have deceived you. Sometimes some people would have ignored you. We have to be careful about that because the ignorance can be unintentional. Someone might be facing a big problem at home. This person would have come to a function where you also have gone and when you were interacting with that person, he might not respond properly as his mind is full of his problems that you are not aware of. Actually he is not responding properly because his mind was preoccupied with his problems but you have been thinking that he is ignoring you and thus you thought it differently. Hurt can also take place when you differ with others even in the area of truth. In simple terms, you are hurt when someone did something hurtful or spoke hurtful.
Each and every one of us has an internal emotional world which others are not aware of and very often we ourselves are not clear of this internal emotional world that is within us. I call this as emotional drama and the emotions with this emotional drama is if you allow it to pile up or to continue it will grow to hurt, anger and finally to bitterness. This will finally block your path to perfection. We have to be very careful as we go towards the path of perfection. It will also do something that is described in the Bible. The danger of bitterness is very clearly explained by the apostle Paul as,
Hebrews 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
NIV translates as "see to it and be careful that you do not fall short of the grace"
Paul is saying this to the saints who are the holy men of God. He asks the saints to look diligently/ carefully/ watchfully. Jesus said, “Watch and pray lest you fall into temptation"
Before prayer comes, watching is essential. Else without your knowledge, this root of bitterness may go inside and will make your prayer ineffective. Hence the first step is to look diligently and be careful so that no root of bitterness springs out of you and trouble you. So Paul very clearly knows that this root of bitterness can suddenly enter you and start growing. Each one of us has an internal emotional world within us which others are not aware and which we ourselves are not aware and hence Paul tells us to “look”. So if this root of bitterness springs up within you, it will trouble you or disturb you. Paul says, because of the root of bitterness springing up within you, many will be defiled. He uses the term - "defiling others". You may ask how your bitterness will affect others to be defiled. Defile means "unholy" as you can see from the below verse
Daniel 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.
Daniel was very careful about one thing that if he allowed him to be defiled, then God will not move for him. So he did not defile himself.
But the point here is, it is not defiling yourselves but you are defiling others, not one person but defiling many. That means, their blood may be upon your head. God will be upset with you. If you are a saint, then other saints will be affected because of you. Since you did not look diligently, the internal emotional world within you started reacting and this root of bitterness started to spring up within you and because of that so many people are defiled.
Today many people defile other people and walk as if they are perfect saints. Root of bitterness is very dangerous, hence he tells us to be careful so that you do not fall short of the grace of God. In fact a saint is supposed to grow in grace. Let us see one reference in this context.
2 Peter 3: 18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
James also says that “God gives more grace”
But this guy because of allowing this internal emotional world, his grace is getting reduced. This is very dangerous and will affect your faith. This emotion known as bitterness will not only impact your perfection but also your faith. Jesus reveal this in,
Mark 11 : 24 Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.
Mark 11 : 25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
When you compare both the verses, you will find something very interesting as below.
Matt 11:24 - in prayer He says when you "stand praying believe"
Matt 11:25 - in prayer He says when you " stand praying forgive"
There is a relationship between your answer to prayers and forgiveness. This means that bitterness should be completely erased and not temporarily. Forgiveness means that it will no more come back to your mind. If it is going to come back in your dream, then you haven't completely forgiven. Your forgiveness should be complete. This is where we need to have the strength of the Holy Spirit. Many people think they have forgiven and actually forgiveness means you forget about it and you don't think about it. Real forgiveness is not possible without the power of the Holy Spirit and without the power of Grace. How does God forgive you? He forgets about it and after that he doesn’t remember what you did. How can this be done? That is God. You can do this, when God comes inside you. God who is at work through you and if it is God who is at work through you, you can also do the same thing that God does.
Philippians 2 : 13
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Bitterness can be removed only by God. So remember, when you pray you have to believe. In the next verse it says that you have to forgive.
But if you do not forgive,
Mark 11:26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.
If you don't forgive, it means that bitterness is still inside you.
Do you know that this bitterness also blocks your healing?
James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Here James asks us to do something, that you may be healed. Instead of thinking that you are correct and the other person is wrong, you confess your fault one to another. After confessing, pray for one to another. When you do this then you have erased bitterness out of your heart.
Ephesians 4:31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
Paul is teaching the meaning of walking in the Spirit. If bitterness is there, you cannot walk in the Spirit. Hence he has said "all bitterness" or "all types of bitterness" That means bitterness of any type should not be inside you. Look at other things that he says - wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking. All these are the effects of bitterness. Paul says that you have to always put away these things.
Colossians 3:12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
As per the above verse, we have to put on all these things. But in Ephesians 4:31, we have to put off all these things. One is put on and the other is put away.
Hence the path of perfection demands what has to be put on "should be put on" and what has to be put off "should be put off". This is your job. You have to live in the light of eternity. Hence God gives us the light or revelation of eternity. We are in the path of perfection. In such a time as this, when a virus is affecting the people, God is looking for people who walk towards perfection. People who understand the desire of the creator and work for that.
When you work towards perfection, you will not lose anything but will see God's best in your life. Daniel understood this when he was young and during the Old Testament days. God honoured him. In the secular world, he was at the top. The same God is working today. If you are in the secular job, you better work towards perfection and you will see God's best manifesting in your life. Not only that, you will be ready when the Lord comes. God will say " Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
God bless you.
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