That Old Nature

The old nature – that sin nature – has been crucified and put to death if so be that we have been born again, filled with the Spirit of God, ourselves buried together in baptism with Christ and raised to walk in newness of life. Newness of life! Old things have passed away; we are new creatures with a new nature. That old nature is dead! Sin is therefore no longer operating with dominion over us. It is only able to operate through the lusts of the flesh—our bodily members, which we continually war against. This flesh is born of corruption, but we being born-again by the Word of God are now born of an incorruptible seed—a seed that cannot be corrupted.

Do not believe the lie that there is a nature inside of you that must sin because it’s how we were born. We are BORN AGAIN – anew, brand new, by the blood of the Lamb, set free from sin and all the wages thereof! We should not be fooled that we are under the authority of a sin nature. No! The enemy—the god of this world, the powers of darkness—will have you to believe that. They will lie to you and try to enforce a FALSE authority over you and your life, only to draw you away into temptation.

The Truth stands and will destroy every lie of the wicked one. We are new creatures, no longer slaves to sin. If we sin it is because we allow our flesh to be drawn away by the lusts thereof. We must daily mortify the deeds of this body and expose the lies of the enemy to walk in the reality of who we are in Christ Jesus. Sons of God, heirs and joint-heirs with Christ Jesus, kings and priests unto God, awaiting that blessed day when this body of corruption will be done away and we will forever be with our Lord.

“Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Pet 1:2-4)

Self-Deception

With all the talk/worry about being deceived by what/who is around us (often for good reason), it’s most important to examine our own selves and ensure we are not first walking in self-deception. The Bible speaks, on more than one occasion, about deceiving our own selves/our own hearts. “Follow your heart” doesn’t work if your heart is deceived. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer 17:9)

Since it’s mentioned in the scriptures, it seems we should take heed to those things that lead to self-deception.

WORLDLY WISDOM
Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. (1 Cor 3:18-20)

PRIDE
For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. (Gal 6:3) 

BEING HEARERS ONLY OF THE WORD
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (Jam 1:22) 

HAVING AN UNBRIDLED TONGUE
If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. (Jam 1:26) 

THINKING WE HAVE NO NEED OF REPENTANCE
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (1 John 1:8)

So to all who seek to walk honestly and humbly in the perfect law of liberty: “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves...” (2 Cor 13:5)

A Little Smile...

...goes a long way. Even if it's an unseen smile. I had a moment of escape from the everyday routine of life today. Who would've thought it could be such a blessing to take five minutes away from everything, grab the cam, and shoot a couple pics of the flowers sitting on our kitchen table? Well, it most certainly was. I love yellow flowers anyway and the chance to capture and share them made me smile. Not to mention the freedom you feel from even a brief escape from the same ole Wednesday routine.

So here are some flowers to help brighten up your day. Be blessed in Jesus today friends.

*Edited with Soft Autumn Glow from The Coffee Shop Blog