A Great Deception

“Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous;” 1 John 3:7 NASBS

A genuine mark of one who has really been touched and called by the Lord to salvation is a hatred and mourning over sin. Jesus, Who is God, confirming this, says, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” The Apostle John brings more light to this statement when he also pens, “Little children, make sure no one deceives you; the one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous; the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. No one who is born of God practices sin because His seed abides in him; he cannot sin because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.” And again in Romans Paul tells us, “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.” The one who habitually practices sin, who has no regard for the righteousness of God, is under the tyranny of its reign, held captive by its power, and has no fellowship with Jesus Christ.

So then, beloved, if you have been called by the living God to a great salvation, “Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.” Do not let your mind take you back to the valley of dry bones where you once lay lifeless, with no desire for godliness. Do not allow yourselves to be deceived with religious notions of the heart, but rather seek to grow strong in the grace of God, trusting in Jesus Christ, as you prove your calling and election. Remember, genuine spiritual mourning over sin is the work of the Spirit of God in you, conforming you into the likeness of Jesus Christ. Christian, it is disgraceful even to speak of things which are done by those who do not have the restraint of the Holy Spirit governing their lives. So then Christian, fight the good fight, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Turn the eyes of your heart to Calvary and gaze into the eyes of the One who died in your place. Look upon His body that bore the lash of the taskmaster, laced with sharp rocks and bones. See the blood of God flowing out of His mutilated body, hear the cry of earth in His voice, “My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me,” and rise up and say “no” to the sins that sent Him there. Cry out with holy admiration toward God, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”