Title: Sanctify Yourself / (Joshua 3:5)
Content The Word of God is full of the history of promises and fulfillment. You do what you promise, and you do what you promise.
This is the day the Israelites had been waiting for 40 years to cross the Jordan. What a happy and blessed day it is to survive the many trials and finally cross the Jordan River with the help of God's mercy and grace. But one day before the miracle is performed, he commands, "Sanctify yourselves." It would mean to completely repent from the sinful thoughts of the past and to cleanse your heart. It is a call to repent of all the sins and unbelief that became sexualized before and after the Israelites' Exodus from Egypt. Because the new millennium ahead of us is so precious, we should bury all of the past and be born again. Now it is a command to swear to do so, to follow God's Word in a clean and pure way.
“Put off the old man, which is corrupt according to the lusts of temptation, and put off the old man, but be renewed in the heart, and put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and holiness of truth.” (Eph 4:22-24)
We all have habits. Some habits are very good and helpful. But the bad of our habits must be cast off.
We have two masters in our hearts. It is the old character and the new character. (2 Peter 1:4) The old disposition can never change and cannot please God. (Rom. 8:8) That is why we have an inner warfare while we are Christians. (See Gal 5 17, Romans 7:22-25; 8:5-6, Col 3:8-10) Therefore, evil and harmful habits are formed through repeated surrender to this sinful impulse. The more we lose our bad habits, the more deeply they become entrenched in our lives. Ultimately, you become a slave (slave) to sin (Romans 6:16).
The Bible is giving us practical help as to how we can free ourselves from habits. What steps should you take to break a bad habit?
1. We should seriously think about quitting what has become a bad habit. No one can give up a bad habit unless he truly wants to. Jesus never took it lightly. (See Matthew 5:29-30) You cannot ignore bad habits and hope that they will disappear on their own. (Jeremiah 17:9)
What is your “sin that is prone to entanglement” (Hebrews 12:1)? Have you considered the problems they will cause in the future?
2. To break bad habits, we must commit ourselves to God, the master of our will and actions.
Knowing that our old self was crucified with Jesus (Romans 6:6), we must now consider ourselves alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Rom. 6:11) And we must give our members to God (Rom. 6:13) God wants His followers to be obedient to Him, regardless of their feelings or circumstances. You must not have two hearts. (Approx. 1.8) Who will you serve?
3. We need to know that we cannot continue to practice our bad habits if we are in the power of God. Many are afraid of their struggle against sin. Because of Christ's death and resurrection, our sinful nature has lost the power to keep us in the habit of sin. (See Romans 6:2-3, 6-7)
4, God wants us to avoid or reject situations that make us practice the bad habit. “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not devote yourself to the lusts of the flesh” (Romans 13:14) “Flee the lusts of youth” (2 Timothy 2:22) “Wherefore, submit yourselves to God. . resist the devil Then I will flee from you” (James 4:7).
“But be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18)
We cannot compete with Satan by our own strength. Let's ask God for help. He wants to help us. He is indeed stronger than Satan. (1 John 4:4, 5: 14) Bad habits will disappear and be completely conquered and destroyed. Hallelujah!