God’s Word gives us clear standards by which we can measure our words (what we say), our deeds (what we do), and our attitudes (what we think). Two such standards are listed in Romans 14:19.
Romans 14:19 reads, Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another. In the Amplified version, it reads: So then, let us pursue with enthusiasm the things which make for peace and the building up of one another (things which lead to spiritual growth). Pursue Peace and Edification In our relationships, we are to follow after or pursue (1) things which make for peace, and (2) things that edify others. Let’s consider how to apply these two standards so we can strengthen our relationships with others. In Romans 14:19, “peace” denotes the absence of strife, or a state of untroubled, undisturbed well-being. What a worthy state to pursue in our relationships—freedom from strife, trouble, and disturbances! If God tells us to pursue these things, then it must be available to do. How can we pursue peace? At times, pursuing peace involves resolving conflicts. Unresolved conflicts can lead to bitterness, and bitterness is never constructive. It prevents people from having a close relationship with God and with their spiritual brothers and sisters. Hebrews 12:14-15 says: Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled. What that means is... instead of holding on to past hurts, disagreements, or disappointments, we can decide to forgive. We can decide to demonstrate the love of God toward others with long-suffering and kindness. Our relationships greatly benefit when we make these choices according to God’s Word. And resolving conflicts helps us claim the peace of God in our lives. It helps us live free from the past and focus on the more abundant life God has called us to today. We are also to follow after or pursue “things wherewith one may edify another.” To edify is to build up. The Greek word literally means “to build a house.” I was a home builder. There are standards and step-by-step procedures to follow when building a house. Building a house is a big project that is completed one purposeful step at a time. Likewise, building up our brothers and sisters in Christ can be undertaken with purpose—one positive word or action at a time. Ephesians 4:15-16 reads, But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. What that means is... God’s love is what truly builds. To build up one another, we speak the truth of His Word with love at the right place and at the right time. This can bring comfort and encouragement to others. It can encourage them to elevate their thinking to the Word and to take action on it. God’s Word gives us clear standards by which we can measure our words, deeds, and attitudes. We looked at two great standards from Romans 14:19—pursuing peace and pursuing edification. These relationship-strengthening standards are also stated in Romans 12 and Romans 15. In Romans 12:18, is reads: If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. And in Romans 15:2: Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. Pursue Peace When we follow after peace, we can enjoy freedom from strife, trouble, and disturbances in our relationships with one another. Resolving conflicts when they arise helps us do the Word in this category. Pursue Edification We also pursue edification. We can edify our spiritual brothers and sisters with our words and actions. The world may tear people down. But as believers, we are in the business of building up people by what we say and what we do. And we can choose to do this at any season of our lives and at any moment of the day. Conclusion Applying the standards of pursuing peace and pursuing to edify one another can help us strengthen our relationships. Let’s build these standards into the fabric of our lives and enjoy the more abundant life. Extra Tips
This article explores the way in which you see yourself positioned in the cosmos and how that defines who you are and how you see the world around you. We live on a wondrous planet spinning around an amazing solar system. Everything you see in our system, the sun, planets, Earth, me, and you were all created and formed from dust. Yet Earth is astonishingly beautiful and complex. Our oceans are enormous. Our weather is incredible and ever changing. Our mountains are giants and our landscapes are breathtaking. I am fascinated by how the world in which we live was created by God, how it moves, how it is shaped, and how the physics that governs our world also shapes other worlds in the universe. The ways in which we experience life here on Earth connects us with everything else in the universe – from our solar system to the moving stars in the night sky. It’s an amazing time in which we live, because we’re the only beings that have the capability to explain who we are and our position in the universe. Perspective My perspective, the way in which I see myself, on our planet, in the universe, defines how I see the world around me. Similarly, the way in which I see myself positioned spiritually in the cosmos defines much of who I am. Flat Earth When the Bible was written, people thought that the Earth was in the center of the universe, and that it was flat like a round disk, and if you went too far out to sea, you’d fall off the edge. We know better now. People used to thank God for the sun rising over the Earth, and for the Sun setting below the Earth, and its apparent movement across the sky. But the movement of the sun is caused by our planet spinning through space. What we see is different from what’s actually taking place. The sun does not revolve around the Earth. It's the other way around. Our planet is a sphere, a ball of rock.
Our Ancestors Our ancestors didn’t know all of these beautiful patterns, rhythms, and order of the solar system. When our ancestors looked up into the night sky, they saw tiny bright lights, and imagined images and figures. And they used the stars to tell stories of creation, life, and their position in the cosmos. Today, we tend not to look up at the stars in the majestic sky anymore. We’ve lost our connection to the stars and other planets. When our ancestors looked up at the night sky, it told them one thing – they were at the center of the universe. If you look up at the northern night sky, you’ll see a star called Polaris, the North Star. The cup of the Big Dipper points to Polaris, which is at the end of the handle of the Little Dipper. The North Star is almost in line with the Earth’s celestial pole. And when you stare at the North Star at night, all of the other stars rotate through the night sky around that point. So, it looks like the entire universe rotates around the Earth, that the Earth is apparently the center of the universe. And that’s what everyone, our ancestors, thought for thousands of years. It looked obvious. But they were wrong. Mars Retrograde Motion To really understand the position of the Earth in the solar system, we have to look at Mars. When you plot a chart of the position of Mars traveling across the night sky, you’ll notice that it doesn’t move in a straight line across the nighttime sky, but changes direction and loops back on itself. This retrograde motion is impossible to explain, if you think Earth is at the center of the universe. It can only be explained when you position the sun at the center, and the Earth as one of many other celestial bodies orbiting the sun. Understanding this retrograde motion was a great achievement in understanding our position in the solar system and the beautiful patterns and order of universe. Paul A couple thousand years ago, a man named Paul had a similar breakthrough achievement in understanding our spiritual position in the cosmos. And he taught others about it. And he wrote those teachings down for us to read, learn from, and apply to our lives. Let’s take a look at Ephesians 3 in the King James Version. About 50 AD, a man named Paul wrote about the most fundamental change in our relationship with God. He revealed the greatest spiritual truth that anyone could ever know. It was one of the greatest mysteries of the world. And it triggered a fundamental change in humanity's relationship with God - a relationship in which believing, rather than behavior, became the key to a more than abundant life. Paul was born Jewish. He lived in Tarsus, which is now Turkey. He lived within the Roman Empire. He traveled to Jerusalem, Asia, Greece, and Rome. And he taught and wrote. Paul wrote 13 letters. He never met Jesus, the man, but met his friends and disciples, and for many years, Paul actually had a job to hunt and persecute them. He grew up under Roman law, and he knew the Jewish law or Law of Moses (Old Testament) very well.
Pay for Love Under Jewish Law, good behavior included what was/is called “indulgences,” where you essentially pay for God’s love. The more money you pay the church, the more of God's love you receive. This religious dogma limited people of the past. But, because of men like Paul, we now know better. Ephesians 3:6 actually reveals a certain spiritual truth that remained a mystery until Paul revealed it:
Mystery Revealed This was a great mystery revealed -- that we are to be of the same body (both Judean and Gentile). Paul revealed to the folks who lived back in those days that everyone could be of the same family, one new body, a new spiritual family body, both Judeans and Gentiles, both the "haves" and the "have nots," both the rich and the poor. All believers in that body are "fellow heirs" of all that God has made available to us. And we can "partake" of God's "promises." Turn to Colossians 1:26-27 in the King James Bible. It says,
Paul writes this to help reveal the great mystery in more detail. And it's all about love. Gift of Love Every believer can have Christ in him or her, which is referring to the gift of holy spirit. Holy spirit is a gift from God to every believer. And it's given unconditionally. "Christ in you" in the bible means the love of God in the renewed mind in manifestation. So, where the bible says "God in Christ in you," that means that you can have the gift of holy spirit in you, the unconditional love of and from God, held in your mind (renewed mind) and manifested (applied) in your life. How can God be in your mind? Well, you have to understand what God is, and what God is not. God is not a man. God is not an old man with curly hair floating in the clouds, waving his finger, and doing good and bad things. That's a bit delusional. You might as well believe in Poseidon. Actually, God is what the bible says it is. God is spirit, love, light, energy, everywhere, powerful. Buddha The Buddha said, "The mind is everything. What you think, you become." That's so true. The Mind That's how every believer can have the love of God in the renewed mind in manifestation. It's all about believing. And it starts with your mind. That’s what Paul revealed. That’s what Paul taught and wrote for us to read today. Paul revealed a spiritual truth that helps us understand our spiritual position with God and our relation with others. Summary So, in this article, we learned a little bit about our position in the universe and our relationship with God. We know a bit more than our ancestors did. The retrograde motion of Mars helps us position ourselves in the universe. And Paul revealed a great spiritual truth that also helps position ourselves as the children of God who have the unconditional love of God held in our renewed minds and manifested in our lives. You're positioned just right. Stay where you are. We've all made lists of goals to accomplish. Yes? Your list may have goals of personal achievements, financial means, or a satisfying relationship. But what would be the significance of such list? In this article, we'll learn that:
List of Goals in Life Everything on that list of goals comes with promises that, once accomplished, would bring us joy, satisfaction, and a future time when we could really enjoy our lives. But this is just wishful thinking. Hopeful thinking. Because goals do not bring joy, peace, satisfaction and love to our lives. Q: What does bring those things? A: Our spiritual walk in life. Our believing action in God. Our minds are everything. What we think, we are. In Proverbs 23:7, it's written, "For as she thinketh in her heart, so is she." It doesn't matter how successful you are or who's in your bed, you won't enjoy anything in your life if you're mind is out of control. Goal in Life It's important to have goals in life. Yes, of course. I have goals that include good personal health, mature children, and good relationships. But people tend to search for happiness without understanding the rules of the game of life that we're playing. And the goal of the game for me, and for each of us, is to enjoy the present moment as myself, as I am, regardless of the situation. That's the goal. Now that you know the goal of the game, let's learn a bit about how to play the game. It starts with your mind. Sam Harris in his book Waking Up says:
Being Mindful of the Present Moment By paying close attention to how we think about the present moment is the basis for a fulfilled, spiritual life. We call this mindfulness. By becoming simply interested in the nature of your own mind, and by paying attention to your experience in the present moment, you can investigate certain truths for yourself, without accepting religious dogma or metaphysical abstractions. And examining and studying our thoughts can be done without awkwardness or embarrassment (which cannot be said when chanting Lord Krishna while banging a drum, for example). The quality of your life, how you feel right now, in the present moment, is critically dependent upon what you're thinking. The boredom, distress, irritation, worry, or disappointment - your suffering or dissatisfaction - that you may be experiencing in your life right now exists because you think it does. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. You're Not Alone You’re not. Jesus said, "I can of mine own self do nothing." That's true. Our natural predominant propensity is to go it alone, achieve our own goals by ourselves, with an "I alone can do" attitude. Our tendency is to trust in our own abilities and strengths. We believe and act as “self-sufficient" in achieving the goals we’ve set for ourselves, accomplishing them, and be happy and enjoy life. Goals Do Not Bring Happiness But none of those goals, and none of their promises of joy and happiness, will actually bring such things. Why? Because we don’t have the resources within ourselves to meet all of our needs. Alone we can do nothing. Divine Resources Only when we trust in the promises and resources of God, not in those of the world, can we truly find peace, love, joy, and satisfaction in our lives (2 Corinthians 3:5-6). Our sufficiency is not of ourselves; it is with God that we are self-sufficient. Physically, we have health, long life, shelter, and food. Mentally, we have peace, confidence, happiness. Spiritually, we have a new birth, holy spirit, spiritual rights, and manifestations. In all ways, in all situations, for all times, our believing action in God, when we walk in the spirit, we can tap into an inexhaustible supply, where every need is met. Our enjoyment in life is not based on human resources, but on divine ones. A couple thousand years ago, Paul wrote, "God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." What this means is that when our lives are based upon God, walking in the spirit, then there’s no limit to our power and resources. Alone, we can not supply all of our needs. We don’t have the resources within ourselves to meet all of our needs. If we did, everyone would be blessed, happy, and at peace. Seeing Divine Blessings Regardless to how things may appear from the senses perspective, when I walk by the spirit I see divine blessings, which are eternal. The eternal things are the most important aspects in my life. The things that I see are temporary. In 2 Corinthians 4:18, we read, "While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."
By believing, by walking with the spirit, you don’t have to worry, doubt, or fear anything. I am satisfied. I’m not in a constant state of want or need.
How? I can do all things through Spirit that strengthens and empowers me. I am ready for anything and equal to anything through the Spirit that infuses me with inner strength and confident peace (Phil 4:11-13). Summary I encourage you to be more mindful about your thoughts, which are the invisible boundaries that prevent you from enjoying the present moment regardless of the situation you're in, and understand how your believing action in God brings joy, peace and love in your life. |
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