The Defining Moments
The growth we experience from childhood until we become full-grown adults occurs imperceptively. As is our physical growth, so is much of our spiritual. However, there are those transformative defining moments in our lives when we face a crossroads that demands the correct decision, leading us towards a more enlightened path.
When the Gospel is made clear to us, we must decide: will we continue down the road of self-centered pride, selfishness, and rebellion toward the God who gave us life, or we will repent of our sin and take the road less traveled that leads to eternal joy and peace. Such a moment defines who we will be in two extremely different ways.
The Defining Moments When We Are Sleeping
When Paul penned his first letter to the Corinthian believers, it was a call to avoid sin. Each chapter revealed a sin that could have been averted through intimate time with God. In His wisdom, God guides us if we are willing to listen. Paul was not ignorant, but what of the Corinthians? "'But one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes" 2 Corinthians 2:10-11.
Those who live intimately with God learn to discern the difference between His voice and their own. His voice is always in harmony with His written word, but knowledge of His word is not enough because the devil always seeks to distort our learning, as he did in the Garden. For this reason, there are multitudes of differences between brothers of differing beliefs, which is the sin of division. The only way to overcome the devil is to walk in the light.
Notice Paul's admonition to all Christians down the centuries to wake up and walk in the daytime when there is light. "But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, "Awake, sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Ephesians 5:13-17)
The Defining Moments When We Wake Up
A critical element of God's Word that makes it different from every other book is the intricate way God wrote through over 40 authors. Yet, it fits together perfectly, as only God could have inspired it. Consider: Paul tells us not to be unwise because the days are evil. He then follows by saying, "Then do not be foolish." David, 800 years before, tells us, "The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." Hence, the foolish person is living as if there is no God. John, who understood the love of God as well as anyone, for when writing his Gospel, refers to himself as, the one whom Jesus loved, tells us in his first letter, first chapter, "This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another..."
In defining moments, God removes the blinders and reveals what we, at times, prefer not to know. In an age when we are told there are no moral absolutes, everyone is entitled to their opinion, and no one is wrong, God tells us, "IN Him there is no darkness at all." Therefore, when two brothers walk by finding their identity IN CHRIST, they walk in the light, meaning they walk in the Light of God. Unfortunately, as we read on, we are told, "If we say we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth." In God's economy, words and actions are always in agreement. Lastly, "If we walk in the light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another." Two people cannot both walk in God's light and disagree because that would mean God is divided. Where there is disagreement, one is always right, and the other, dare I say it, is always wrong.
Why We Miss The Defining Moments
The Christian believer can never go along with the crowd, listen to the voice of the age, or lay down their guard against the lies of the devil. We are told the age is evil, scripture transcends ages, therefore it is always evil. We must study to show ourselves approved of God, rightly dividing the truth. We have to be the most relentless in our search for the truth. We can assume the devil is always evil and always seeking to take us off God's path of truth. The defining moments of our lives always, if done well, lead us to God, without error, in the light of truth, and cause us to practice the same.
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