Daily Devotional

THE LONG ARM OF LOVE AND OBEDIENCE

July 15

HE SERIOUS CHRISTIAN: Submits his/her life to the full will of the Father in Heaven; Rejoices at the opportunity to give of his/her finances to promote the Kingdom of God and the work of the Kingdom; Prays earnestly and sincerely for those who are their enemies; Loves and shows this love to the hurting, needy around them; Seeks to please their Heavenly Father in every way they can find to do so; Believes that Jesus is the Christ, the only begotten Son of the Living God; Prays in the name of Jesus, and believes that His blood was shed for the removal of their sins through sincere confession and repentance; Is the first to go to the front line of Christianity and eagerly and willingly offers themselves to the service of the King of Kings; Does not seek riches or to be rich in the things of this world, but first and foremost seeks to enrich the lives of others through kindness, honesty, patience in Christ, acts of love and blessings over the lives of others around him/her; Is praying in the Spirit of Christ selfless prayers to promote, heal, set free and lift up others in the Body of Christ; He ceases to make excuses for sin in his/her life, but presents themselves and their bodies as "a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1-2), believing that the precious blood of Jesus cleanses them of "all sin," and teaches them the way of holy living in Christ.

THE CHRISTIAN WHO PLAYS GAMES WITH THEIR FAITH: Gives their offerings to impress other Christians; Prays big prayers to show off and promote themselves as somebody important to other Christians; Is concerned mainly for their own interests--- social, financial and image-wise; Wears their good deeds as a badge of pride, and is the last to give themselves selflessly to the service of the Lord and to the hurting; Sees the poor as useless, and treats them as people who can do better than they do but are too sorry to improve themselves, rather than showing compassion for their brokenness, hunger, destitution and need of love and the impartation of compassion and healing through the power of the Lord Jesus; Has a poor understanding of the terms “surrender,” “brokenness,” “other-centered prayer and living of their lives,” instead emphasizes self-importance, self-promotion and what are my privileges as a Christian as opposed to promoting what are my responsibilities to the Lord and others as a Christian.

Prayer

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Father, deliver me from self-centered, self-promoting, self-important Christianity. I desire above all else to walk in the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ. He took no thought for himself, but continually loved others, gave to others, and blessed, healed, cleansed and forgave others freely. Make me like Him O Father, in Jesus' name, amen!