Pinpointing idols: be specific
1. First is the surface or most obvious/exposed struggle you have...
Become convinced that your present method of ______ is sinful and cease from it;
(This could be anything: talking, exercising, eating, drinking, sleeping, spending time/money, working, posting, writing, watching, etc. be specific for your sake.).
"Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I tell you about these things in advance — as I told you before — that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."
(Galatians 5:19-21)
2. Then recognize why you are convicted that it is bad.
Become convinced that God's methods for disciplined ___________ are right and begin practicing them;
(This could be: all the same things listed in the first example)
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law."
(Galatians 5:22-23)
3. Seek diligently to change your mind and become conformed to God's thinking, especially in the area of your ___________;
Be specific. (All three blanks shoud have the same answer)
4. Continue to practice these new thoughts and behaviors, even when the struggle gets hard.
Being taught to run to God for comfort because He is the only one who will comfort from the root.
The things we run to instead of God might comfort us for a while (material goods, busy schedules, food, sexual stimulants, sleep, etc), but in time they always run out and we always need more and more until hope runs thin. God's comfort causes hope to abound in our hearts! (Romans 15:13)
Good news! This is not something we do with our so called will power. If you struggle with sleep and want to be disciplined so that you sleep to glorify God and not to satiate your anxiety or boredom, know that God desires for you to sleep for His glory even more than you desire it! You don't have to struggle on your own methods of trying harder or doing more. No. Our will power is weak, and we need the Holy Spirit to aid us--instead of thinking we can do this, it is realizing that we cannot do this, and calling upon the Holy Spirit to intercede to God on our behalf for His leading and His hope to bring about genuine change in our broken character flaws. Aside from the Spirit of God, I have nothing in me but stubbornness, laziness, deception, and weakness. So how will I, by these things, be able to change myself? With what good can I change myself? Good intentions? Even my intentions are filthy by God's standards and His perfect law. If my intentions are not to glorify Him, which is only by being prompted by His Holy Spirit, but to glorify myself or fix myself for the sake of myself, then that is my "good intentions" to make me, myself, be my own god. If you don't see what's wrong with that then that's a different story. As a coheir of the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of Jamie, I am created to give all praise, glory and honor to The King. If my King is myself, then I have no part in God's kingdom. We will dwell in the kingdom of whom that kingdom's king is. Only problem is...I don't have a kingdom. And if I do, I don't like it. I want to live and be an heir in God's kingdom.
The enemy of darkness will, with grandeur, propose that we will be given a kingdom of our own on earth, much like the way he offered such a package to Jesus in the wilderness.
"So he took Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. The Devil said to Him, “I will give You their splendor and all this authority, because it has been given over to me, and I can give it to anyone I want. If You, then, will worship me, all will be Yours.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.”
(Luke 4:5-8 HCSB)
It will happen in a moment of time. We will feel the bodily realities of time in this life telling us "you only live once!!! So get your kingdom and get it now in this moment before it's too late!" This is the temptation of sin telling us to grab at our earthly wants and desires for the kingdom that we are told will be given to us if we do. No wonder so many people are stressed out! Everyone is frantically trying to get what they can because that's all they think about. That's all they feel. Time is not waiting so neither should you.
Unless. Unless you want the kingdom of God. In which case time can come and go all it wants, because the kingdom of God is over and above time. It is eternal. God's kingdom is not about what you build, it's about what God builds. God's kingdom is not about glorifying you, but about glorifying God. If you don't want to glorify God you won't want God's kingdom, otherwise known as "heaven."
Consider this: right now, as we are living in these mortal bodies, especially if you can start seeing the effects of age cramping your style, what would be the most loving thing for God to do in order that we remain in the truth of God's kingdom versus the kingdom of (insert your name here)? Clearly if your kingdom is enough, that being the one that's aging and decaying, then carry on! Keep grabbing at what you can while you can!
Because time is indeed running out! We will all meet death because of time, this is true. If you think you will not die then try holding your breath for......ever. It will begin to hurt because your body needs air to live. Air, by the way, with which you cannot make, all you do is enjoy it. (But I won't get into that).
"Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. And walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all of these things God will bring you to judgment." (Ecclesiastes 11:9)
You can be like the best of the best in this life! If that's enough for then so be it! No one can stop you from what you think is the best, but consider this:
"I increased my achievements. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. I made gardens and parks for myself and planted every kind of fruit tree in them. I constructed reservoirs of water for myself from which to irrigate a grove of flourishing trees. I acquired male and female servants and had slaves who were born in my house. I also owned many herds of cattle and flocks, more than all who were before me in Jerusalem. I also amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I gathered male and female singers for myself, and many concubines, the delights of men. So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem; my wisdom also remained with me. All that my eyes desired, I did not deny them. I did not refuse myself any pleasure, for I took pleasure in all my struggles. This was my reward for all my struggles. When I considered all that I had accomplished and what I had labored to achieve, I found everything to be futile and a pursuit of the wind. There was nothing to be gained under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 2:4-11 HCSB)
Because in the end whether rich or poor, smart or dumb, beautiful or ugly, death came regardless. And when death comes none of these things will matter, even if you want to think that they will. That's called wishful thinking. Or gambling a very foolish amount based on your feelings.
Now consider the kingdom of God, which is not based on feelings (which is both the good and difficult part about it), but based on God's word given to us through the Holy Spirit.
If the chief end of your desires is for the glory of yourself and the kingdom you are trying so hard to build and maintain, then you will not be able to dwell in the kingdom of God.
Of course no one, from the outset, would say "I want to be my own god!" Or "I prefer my kingdom over God's!" No one would say or even really notice that because it sounds so foolish. But when we pinpoint our idols and the things in our lives that are not for God's glory (even something as harmless as sleeping) we can trace the root of that to an idol, an idol that we have been serving and giving glory to through our service of time, money, and thoughts, rather than to God. And God will not live in a kingdom where His glory is shared with an idol. Would you marry someone who wanted a couple of other spouses on the side? Even if just one other than you?
Maybe you wouldn't mind. But is that what you would passionately desire? God is passionate about His love for you and he does not want to share you with any other idol.
Know your idols in order that you can seek the Spirit of God to help you stop serving them. We can try and try to stop serving our idols of laziness or greed, vanity or gluttony of lusts, but our attempts will be weak and meager without the power of God. You don't have to do this alone, and you won't be able to do this alone. This is about giving God all the glory. And God is glorified when He is the one who helps us change from being stuck in time to becoming coheirs of His kingdom that rules over time. Ask God for his help.
Pinpoint your idols and ask God for His help. If you want to change into someone who will love heaven, it means changing into someone who lives to give God all the glory and praise! That will be heaven. Otherwise, even if you do somehow get to heaven after your time on earth runs out, you might find that it will be an eternity of displeasure on your part, all by yourself.
The good news is that God saved us from that displeasure by giving us His Son through whom we are transformed by to be who God created us to be: His children. Without the Son we would not have the Spirit. Without the Spirit we are on our own. On our own....we are grabbers in a fading and decaying humanity.
Good news! Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be renewed day by day. May hope and joy abound in you and in me.
Jmegrey
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