Ambassadors For Jesus - Do We Really Have a Choice? (The Battleground, “The Will” of Man) (www.ambassadorsforJesus5.com) Have you ever considered that question? The topic of choices is all over the bible. Others tell us love is a choice and we can choose to forgive. Unfortunately, we human beings have perpetually gravitated towards evil over good. Do we really have a choice? The question is not one of having a choice. The question is one of having what it takes to gravitate towards the good, to desire and will it. Simply put, to love it. See, man was created to be united to our bridegroom Jesus, two-as-one in marriage. In this union we will love Father God wholehearted and his wonderfully good desires will be ours. Unfortunately, we ate of the wrong tree. We were never to live out of the knowledge of good and evil. We were created “to be One with Love Himself from whom all good springs”. The problem with man is not sin. Sin is just the product of the will that has chosen to go at life apart from God. The problem and battlefield is along the will of man, and the will is an expression of what he loves and desires. Jesus said a good tree will bear good fruits and a bad tree, bad fruits. Not hard to understand. If we just try and address the fruit of sin, we still have tainted roots. The fruit is the product of a tree and its roots. Sin is a fruit, a bad fruit, but nonetheless fruit. The carnal life is the sap that flows from a life rooted in self. It will bear the fruits of sin (hatred, lusts, envy, strife, etc). When it comes to the inner life, the only choice to make is whether we will come to the Lord. He is the only one who can uproot our old life and deposit his life in man. He is also the One by which his Sap, the Holy Spirit, bears good fruit in our lives (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, etc). We cannot choose to desire or will the will of God. It is given to us through Christ and is an expression of his love for our Heavenly Father. We don't work in but we do work out what has been worked in us. I don't see the love of God as a choice but something that is given to us and happens to us. The heart doesn't choose. The heart is won over. It grows and flourishes as we grow in relationship. This was part of the lesson God's law would teach us, that we of ourselves cannot do it; that having a choice isn't enough. Here's an example: Have you ever tried to stop a strong, unhealthy desire but found that knowing you had to stop, and others continuously telling you to stop, had the opposite effect on you? Just thinking of not doing it seemed to strengthen it. Why? Because the knowledge and words alone carried no power to change your desire. It is like trying to peddle a bike up a mountain, you're working against gravity. Romans 8: For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. Now for the believer our old carnal life has been crucified with Christ and we have the Holy Spirit in us. In Him we have wings by which we soar. That life is in us. Think about it, when we love there is pleasure even in the sacrifice. For the believer love and forgiveness for all has been poured into our hearts. It's there and it will blossom as we put our trust in Jesus by denying ourselves and using the tools He has given us to nourish his life in us. Just remember, we aren't working for it, we are nourishing it. It's grown, not earned. It is truly all by grace through faith in Christ. The bible tells us that a human being cannot even come to Jesus without Father drawing them. None of us can see or hear without Jesus opening our eyes and ears, but we can pray. As children approaching their Father, we can simply ask. We can seek. We can knock. It's all with the promise that we will be rewarded for doing so. He is the One who paid the dear price for us to enter in, we are the benefactors of his free gift. There is no other way. Granted, grace is not to be abused. Let us just remember that the bible says grace is given to the humble and it is truly a humble position to realize that we cannot do what only God can. That's humility. So if you find yourself ensnared in this merry-go-round ride of repeatedly making poor choices and weighed down by heavy burdens, prayerfully consider whether you are living out of the knowledge of good and evil and the law instead of in relationship with Father as you enter in through Jesus. Jesus said his burden is easy and his yoke is light. When we are in relationship with Him his Spirit does the most important work of giving us the inner drive fueled by his love by which to flourish and soar. Jesus is our door so let us go ahead and enter in through Him. In him Father God not only paid the dear price to set us free and equip us with his life, but to reveal himself to us, Emmanuel-God with us. For it is only in love that the unequal can be made equal. ~Soren Kierkegaard. Further reading: Romans 11, The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

Ambassadors for Jesus

an Online Magazine

Do We Really Have a Choice?

(The Battleground, “The Will” of Man)

(www.ambassadorsforJesus5.com)

Have you ever considered that question? The topic of choices is all over the bible. Others tell us love is a choice and we can choose to forgive. Unfortunately, we human beings have perpetually gravitated towards evil over good.

Do we really have a choice?

The question is not one of having a choice. The question is one of having what it takes to gravitate towards the good, to desire and will it. Simply put, to love it. See, man was created to be united to our bridegroom Jesus, two-as-one in marriage. In this union we will love Father God wholehearted and his wonderfully good desires will be ours. Unfortunately, we ate of the wrong tree. We were never to live out of the knowledge of good and evil. We were created “to be One with Love Himself from whom all good springs”.

The problem with man is not sin. Sin is just the product of the will that has chosen to go at life apart from God. The problem and battlefield is along the will of man, and the will is an expression of what he loves and desires.

Jesus said a good tree will bear good fruits and a bad tree, bad fruits. Not hard to understand. If we just try and address the fruit of sin, we still have tainted roots. The fruit is the product of a tree and its roots.

Sin is a fruit, a bad fruit, but nonetheless fruit. The carnal life is the sap that flows from a life rooted in self. It will bear the fruits of sin (hatred, lusts, envy, strife, etc).

When it comes to the inner life, the only choice to make is whether we will come to the Lord. He is the only one who can uproot our old life and deposit his life in man. He is also the One by which his Sap, the Holy Spirit, bears good fruit in our lives (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, etc).

We cannot choose to desire or will the will of God. It is given to us through Christ and is an expression of his love for our Heavenly Father. We don't work in but we do work out what has been worked in us.

I don't see the love of God as a choice but something that is given to us and happens to us. The heart doesn't choose. The heart is won over. It grows and flourishes as we grow in relationship. This was part of the lesson God's law would teach us, that we of ourselves cannot do it; that having a choice isn't enough.

Here's an example:

Have you ever tried to stop a strong, unhealthy desire but found that knowing you had to stop, and others continuously telling you to stop, had the opposite effect on you? Just thinking of not doing it seemed to strengthen it. Why? Because the knowledge and words alone carried no power to change your desire. It is like trying to peddle a bike up a mountain, you're working against gravity.

Romans 8:

For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.

Now for the believer our old carnal life has been crucified with Christ and we have the Holy Spirit in us. In Him we have wings by which we soar. That life is in us. Think about it, when we love there is pleasure even in the sacrifice.

For the believer love and forgiveness for all has been poured into our hearts. It's there and it will blossom as we put our trust in Jesus by denying ourselves and using the tools He has given us to nourish his life in us. Just remember, we aren't working for it, we are nourishing it. It's grown, not earned.

It is truly all by grace through faith in Christ. The bible tells us that a human being cannot even come to Jesus without Father drawing them. None of us can see or hear without Jesus opening our eyes and ears, but we can pray. As children approaching their Father, we can simply ask. We can seek. We can knock. It's all with the promise that we will be rewarded for doing so. He is the One who paid the dear price for us to enter in, we are the benefactors of his free gift. There is no other way.

Granted, grace is not to be abused. Let us just remember that the bible says grace is given to the humble and it is truly a humble position to realize that we cannot do what only God can. That's humility.

So if you find yourself ensnared in this merry-go-round ride of repeatedly making poor choices and weighed down by heavy burdens, prayerfully consider whether you are living out of the knowledge of good and evil and the law instead of in relationship with Father as you enter in through Jesus. Jesus said his burden is easy and his yoke is light. When we are in relationship with Him his Spirit does the most important work of giving us the inner drive fueled by his love by which to flourish and soar.

Jesus is our door so let us go ahead and enter in through Him. In him Father God not only paid the dear price to set us free and equip us with his life, but to reveal himself to us, Emmanuel-God with us.

For it is only in love that the unequal can be made equal.

~Soren Kierkegaard.

Further reading: Romans 11, The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

jo@ambassadorsforjesus5.com