Lamentations 3:21-24 NIV
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”
There was a time in my life as a young Christian when I had the concept of God’s Salvation twisted in my mind. I thought that there is something I could have done to stay free from sins when I said Jesus is Lord and surrendered my life to him. I will never forget the day that the Holy Spirit convicted me. He said Annaika, if you were perfect and able to keep yourself from Satan’s pollution you would not need Jesus’ blood. This was about the time I began to understand and process what apostle Paul meant when he declared what a wretched man, he was in Romans 7:24. Paul understood that his earthly body is subject to death and there is nothing he can do within his own strength, knowledge and will to get to heaven.
Apostle Paul also warns us to fight for Holiness. When we repent and surrender our lives to Christ and if we don’t live a resurrected life, there is no more sacrifice left but death/condemnation (Romans 8:1-17, Romans 6:1-23, etc.). Yes, we are called by Jesus to obey the words of God (John 14:15). Where are you today in your journey with Jesus? Do you find yourself getting mad, discourage, frustrated and ready to give up because you keep messing up as a Christian? Are you in leadership and under pressure to achieve perfection according to society’s expectations? And are you fighting to master it? I might have good or maybe disappointing news for you. As long as you and I are living in this sinful body on this earth, our journey toward the city of life is a battle (Revelation 21:9-27). Only through Jesus Christ can you fight and win the spiritual battle waging against your soul. Satan and his demons will stop at nothing to snatch you out of God’s kingdom which is much bigger than your congregation, religions, politics, money/wealth, or anything that seems visibly attractive in this world. Paul explains to us how to live a life of a faithful Christian despite the battle Satan is waging against our soul in Galatians 2: 15-21. When God allowed me to begin understanding the power of the Holy Spirit in my life, I was introduced to the word of God as my road map, and I quickly learned it was not a matter of one or the other. The law and the Holy Spirit are both necessary tools to fight against Satan. Nonetheless, this life changing lesson I learned through the guidance of Jesus Spirit that lives in me. I can recall during my journey with Christ, one of the religious groups who impacted my life focused on the manifestation of the Holy Spirit and another on obedience to the word of God and repentance. Satan knows on our own, we are doom for destruction that is why his desire is for everyone to join him in hell at the last day. The entire Old Testament is about being obedient to the law of God which we also saw display in the New Testament in the lives of the Pharisees. As a result, the pharisees were so blind by the written law and could not even recognize the Messiah, Jesus Christ. God knew the law alone is not enough for us to fight against Satan’s schemes to cross over to the promise land which is much greater than the earthly promise land that he promised the Israelites in Exodus. God sent Jesus, the Word, who became flesh (John chapter 1) to exemplify what a dying life to God ought to look like. Jesus took our sins and offered his blood as a continual cleansing for those of us who are fighting to stay in congruence with his love (John 14 & 15). In addition, he sent us a powerful being in the Holy Spirit to elevate us to victories against Satan and his demons (John 14:25-26, John 14:26, Luke 12:12, etc.). Therefore, we no longer live under the requirement of the law as in the Old Testament, instead through Jesus Christ we live under God’s grace and redemption (Romans 6: 11-14). We are no longer slaves to the law but through Jesus Christ the law has become part of our flesh which is at work in us through the Holy Spirit who is our counselor and teacher (John 14:26). That is why we can confidently wake up every morning as sons and daughters of the living God and shout this message for the demonic spirit of this world to hear “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassion never fails. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Every day you are forgiving and is giving a new beginning with Jesus as your King, Lord and good Shepperd! Amen!
