To practically live the life which is in accordance to the Spirit, the following steps are of intrinsic importance.
a. Obedience
As
obedient children, we are not to conform to the evil desires we had when we lived
in ignorance, but just as He who called us is holy, so we are to be holy in all that we do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy” (1Peter 1:14-16).
Having
received the Spirit of life which is in Christ Jesus, we should no longer have
a carnal mind which by nature is enmity against God; for it is not subject to
the law of God, nor indeed can be, but should have a spiritual mind that we
might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
b. The food for the Lord’s offering
Offering
the Lord the food for His offerings at the appointed time as it is commanded saying;
“See that you present to Me at the appointed time the food for My offerings,
made by fire, as an aroma pleasing to Me.” It is by so doing, that we can now
draw near to God with a sincere heart, in full assurance of faith, having our
hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience, and having our bodies
washed with pure water (Numbers
28:2; Hebrews 10: 22).
It
is by having faith in this offering that we are able to fulfill the will of God
which was preordained even before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption
as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the
Beloved.
c. Urging others towards love and
good deeds
For
we have been admonished saying; “Consider how we may spur one another on
towards love and good deeds, for we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. And are
urged to; “Live a life worthy of the calling we have received. Be completely
humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Making every
effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Hebrews 10:24;
Ephesians 4:1-3).
d. Not forsaking the assembling of
ourselves
Let
us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing. But let us
encourage one another – and all the more as we see the Day approaching. For
thus says the Lord who is the same yesterday, today, and forever; “These are
the Lord’s appointed feasts, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for
bringing offerings made to the Lord by fire...” (Hebrews 10:25; Leviticus 23:37).
Warning!
“If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the
truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of
judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who
rejected the Law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three
witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished
who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing
the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who insulted the Spirit ofGrace? For we know Him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ and
again, “The Lord will judge His people, It is a fearful thing to fall into the
hands of the living God” (Hebrews
10:26-31).
It
is the blood of the New Covenant that washes away our sins; it is the blood
that makes us whole again when we have fallen; for our pardon, this is what we
see, for our cleansing, this is all our plea, this is all our hope and peace,
this is all our righteousness, for nothing else can atone for sins. This is the
law of the spirit of life that makes us free from the law of sin and death, do
not neglect so great a salvation, and do not receive the grace of God in vain.
To
the Jews this is a stumbling block, to the Gentiles this is foolishness, but to
those whom God has called, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ the power and the
wisdom of God: For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the
weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.
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