In the secret; in the shadow, You are there. How do we live in the world but not of the world? How do we behave when the world is in our face because we have to live on this earth. The being Jesus Christ will teach me how to live in this world without being a part of this world. Does that mean I am better than the world? Does that mean I am superior? No, I am crawling through this world on my knees because there is nothing I can do apart from God. I say that because I have been brought to a place that is the end of myself–others have not brought me to this place. The Rock has fallen on me in my life–now I fall on the Rock.
So where does that leave me? Questions, questions, questions.
I am where I am, I am who I am, every experience is a part of me, but not all of who I am. Who I am is saved by the mercy of Jesus Christ.
How can I be in the world but not of the world? One way and one way only. Let go and let God. Yield myself to Jesus, who is the only way to the Father; who is the veil into the Holy of Holies.
Is the Blood of Jesus a “Carte Blanche” for me to travel the path of life with doing anything I want to do? Does the sin of another imposed on my life give me liberty to sin back? Does the fact that I am challenged emotionally because of abuse in my life give me an excuse to sin? No it does not. If my right hand is sinning, “cut it off.” Why do we sometimes squirm when sin is the subject? Because if we can be ashamed of ourselves, rather than repentant, the devil can get the upper hand in causing us to sin and sin again.
When I am walking each moment in the spirit, the devil cannot get a foothold. 1 Peter 5:8-11
Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lionlooking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.
10 And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. 11 To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.
It is up to me to be alert and sober in my thinking. I live in a world that is of a self-mindset. Look at the facts. When I am allowing the fruits of the spirit to rule in my mind, there is no room for error. Ultimately, Jesus works all things to the good of those who are called according to His purpose. What is His purpose?
His purpose for me is to live my life. 1 Peter 5–Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. In this world I will see tribulation, but I will count it all joy because He will lift me up if I trust in Him. How do I really trust Him? By becoming as a little child, clueless to where my next step is going to be; humbled but not demeaned; yielding as a sheep is to the shears; broken hearted; and empty. Why? So Jesus can live in me as the living waters that never run dry.
When I am as a child, I must trust and cast my cares on Him. What are my cares? Anything I am in the process of figuring out on my own: where shall I live, where shall I work, who shall I marry, what shall I eat, how shall I cloth myself? The cares of the world are kind of repetitious in terms of food, shelter, clothing, jobs, and the like. What then is of true value in the world? The treasures to lay up in heaven? What are those? The treasures to lay up in heaven is the word of your testimony in the earth as it reflects and gives substance to the manifest presence of God. The works done by His leading, His guidance, His promptings, His will, are the treasures that are eternal. The eternal treasures of God bring the substance of Heaven into our lives and therefore, the world. “The Kingdom is Heaven is here” means it has come.
The Kingdom of Heaven is the Good News. We don’t have to die to get there. All we have to do is ask Jesus to come into our heart and believe every moment from then on that we don’t have to do life in our own strength, we are not alone. To enter into this Kingdom is to let go of this world and all the cares, trials, tribulations, fame, success, failure, the good, the bad and the ugly and allow Jesus to do His thing. His thing is to be Lord of my life.
I am lost in the secret, in the shadow of Jesus; under His wings of love and protection, in His Kingdom within, in the eternal promise. I am His and He is mine forever.