8:6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
8:7 For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law-- indeed it cannot,
8:8 and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
8:9 But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him.
8:10 But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
8:11 If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through His Spirit that dwells in you.
Voice of the Martyrs reports that as Pastor Brian Michael Williams was returning to India to preach the Gospel in the state of Andrha Pradesh last February, in partnership with El-Shaddai Ministries, he wrote, "This will be my 7th time crossing the ocean, the 4th time preaching the gospel in Asia, and my 2nd time in India. Last year, I was blessed by the Lord to see a tremendously fruitful time of ministry. Spirit gifts were imparted, the church was strengthened and encouraged, many people were healed of Aids, Cancer, Diabetes, barren wombs were opened, but most of all Jesus was glorified among the people of India. Only heaven knows the true count of who was truly born-again, but according to the testimony, that number is in the thousands."
In Islamic Iran, where Shi-ite Muslims who leave Islam for another religion face death, Iranian Christians are prevailing in prayer before God; and in answer to their prayers the Holy Spirit is working mightily across Iran. Muslims report having supernatural dreams and visions of Jesus. Powerful healings and miracles are taking place. Through these supernatural experiences in the last twenty years, more Iranians have come to Christ than in the last 14 centuries. More Iranians have become Christians in the last 25 years than at any time since the dawn of Islam.
As the Holy Spirit moves in Iran, the underground church movement has seen literally hundreds of house churches springing up. Some Christian leaders in Iran claim there are over a million secret Spirit-filled Christians. In the spirit of Isaiah 43, the Lord is building and readying His church around the world for the great Marriage Supper of the Lamb: “Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up,’ and to the South, 'Do not hold back.’ Bring My sons from afar and My daughters from the ends of the earth. Everyone who is called by My name, and whom I have created for My glory, whom I have formed, even whom I have made.” -- Isaiah 43:5-7
What does all this mean? It means exactly what it has meant since the dawn of time; Almighty God is moving in the lives of men. He is completing His plan as He has always said He would do, all in His own good time.
We can either walk in the steps of His Son, Jesus Christ, and pray that all we do and say will be to the glory of God, or we can choose our own steps, go our own way, and walk away from the very God who loves us so very much. We always have that choice, by the will of God. He is a perfect gentleman, and will not force Himself upon us, because He loves us, even though our choices would separate us from Him. Forever.
As today's scripture indicates, too many of us have our mind on the flesh. We love what is carnal, what will one day disappear because it has no value in a heaven without sin. Our hungers, our desires, our egos, we need to turn all that over to God and allow the Holy Spirit to fill us with the Spirit of the Christ. We here in America easily take our Christian worship for granted, because it costs us nothing.
Even as 22% of the world's population lives in China, figures for Christians in China range from 6 to 90 million. Henan Province, one of 23 China regions, has an estimated three million Christians out of 100 million people, served by 168 ordained clergy, 480 elders, and 7,000 churches and other meeting places. If those numbers seem small, understand that to be an ordained minister of Christ in China is to be a volunteer organ donor. It's costs something to live for Christ in China, and yet, the Holy Spirit continues to move among these people, drawing His own to Him.
As I noted before, we here in America easily take the freedom of our Christian worship for granted, because it costs us nothing. We decorate and manipulate our worship into times that entertain and do not bore us. The Christian church in America has become of such concern outside America, that for several years the churches in Africa have been sending missionaries to America, out of love and concern for our Christian experience.
Recently the dean of my alma mater, Trevecca Nazarene University, expressed his own concern, from an academic point of view, about the churches in America. Dr. Dan L. Boone, dealing with students of every Christian denomination, opines that the American church today falls into one of three categories: the safe church, the final word church, and the maturing church, depending on how they approach life's hard questions and the consequences for their followers.
The Safe Church, says Dr. Boone, "stays in the middle of the road -- no challenge of one's thoughts; no discomfort because the pastor's safe sermons do not complicate one's lifestyle; no infusion of new ideas from science, politics, immigrants, minorities, or education; and no discussion of anything controversial. The bland religion found at Safe Church is designed to make you smile and play nice."
His description brings to mind the suggestion that the purpose of the gospel is not to make comfortable the afflicted, but to afflict the comfortable.
Of the Final Word Church, Dr. Boone suggests, "Everything has been figured out -- all doctrinal, ethical, social, and political issues. Your signature on everything -- every candidate, every ethical issue, every controversial topic. With a kind of biblical authority that places opinions above scripture, Final Word congregants tend to be judgmental, arrogant, and mostly angry at the world."
The Maturing Church, he says, "Invites parishioners to grapple with tough issues, to face questions about faith in every realm of life, to understand that good people can read the Bible and reach different conclusions. This vibrant faith community is not afraid to discuss unresolved issues which have no simple answers -- criminal justice, poverty, political systems, use of force -- but it does so with love in a spirit of unity. And the people of Maturing Church grow in likeness to Jesus, without avoiding the hard questions (as they do at Safe Church) or becoming arrogant in knowing (as they do at Final Word Church).
Verse 10 of today's scripture reminds us that "...if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness." The power is in the Spirit's ability to bring "life because of righteousness."
The Spirit is moving in the world today. Even under threat of death, people in foreign countries are coming to Christ as He calls His own home. In a spirit of prayer and repentance, revival begins to work its way through nations.
Through the past, there are generally considered to be six great awakenings or revivals; 1727, 1792, 1830, 1857, 1882 and 1904. Then there is the great Welsh Revival of 1930, led by the prayers, pleadings and preaching of Evan Roberts, which swept across that small nation converting hundreds of thousands of people to follow Jesus Christ. And it all came about through the power of prayer and repentance. For its there the Spirit moves men and women to come to Christ.
Evan Roberts, with tears rolling down his face through the agony of prayer, would preach "First, is there any sin in your past with which you have not honestly
dealt -- not confessed to God? On your knees at once. Your past must be put away and cleansed. Second, is there anything in your life that is doubtful -- anything you cannot decide whether it is good or evil? Away with it. There must not be a trace of a cloud between you and God. Have you forgiven everybody - EVERYBODY? If not, don't expect forgiveness for your sins..."
If you would know the power of the Holy Spirit in your life, find yourself a group of worshippers modeled after the Maturing Church, and set yourself to prayer and repentance.
For as the last verse of today's scripture assures us, "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through His Spirit that dwells in you."
The indwelling power of the Spirit, through prayer and repentance, is the power that changes lives. First, yours, and then another, and then another, and you have released the power of Almighty God. Such is the gift of love we have through Christ Jesus. Thank You, Father. Amen.
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