Click For Audio Version
We human beings often take too much credit for the things that we do. Sometimes, we take credit for things that we didn’t do.
Then, there are the things that we fixate upon. Our appearance, our accomplishments, our fame, fortune, and attractive personality are all things that we spend our years polishing and perhaps, if we meet our own high standards, holding up for others to admire. We are vain and, above all, tend to evaluate that which is of no value.
The Bible tells us to seek things of true value, eternal value.
Today, we will look at three of them.
—
Psalms 119:11 NKJV, Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.
When we study and learn God’s Word, we must do exactly that. This is no glance and hurry through exercise. We must study His Word, ponder it, pray over it, apply it to our lives, and put it into our hearts and minds. Hid it in your heart. You will see, in difficult times, the hidden words of God in your heart will resurface to help you make a decision or encourage you through a trying time.
Your heart is involved.
—
Let us look at our second Scripture:
1 Corinthians 2:16 NKJV … But we have the mind of Christ.
When we believe and openly declare that Jesus is the Risen Son of God Who died to save us from our confessed sins, and receive the Holy Spirit of God to live within our beings, things change. God has forgiven our confessed sins through Christ, given us His Holy Spirit of Love, and …think of it…given us the mind of Christ!
We should now concentrate upon the things that are good and pure and true.
Thus, we begin to see things as Christ sees them.
No longer should we desire, nor feed our minds, the desires of the world, but of God.
Philippians 4:8 gives us a good illustration of feeding our minds what is pleasing to God.
Philippians 4:8 NKJV, Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
Your mind is involved.
Thirdly, we turn to
1 Corinthians 3:16 NKJV Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
Not only do we belong to God as His children who are saved through His Son, but we become a temple of God in which the Spirit of God dwells.
God stays in this temple of your heart.
Just as the physical church in your neighborhood should be treated with the respect it deserves, so should we treat the temple that we become when the Spirit of God indwells within us.
Keep only things that are pure and right and holy within your mind.
Go and do and partake in the things that edify and do not harm your temple of God.
Years back, one of my sons and I had the job of keeping the physical church we attended clean.
We polished, vacuumed, and washed that place of worship.
Likewise, we threw away anything of no value left behind. Candy wrappers, old crumpled, outdated bulletins, etc., were thrown away.
Have you cleaned the temple of God that is your body?
Have you rid it of all that is impure and not to be kept?
Are you cleaning out the thoughts of your heart?
Do you ask God what you need to do to beautify His church?
Sometimes, we brought in flowers and set them on the altar. Sometimes, we brought in someone in need of the Lord.
Maybe it is time to usher into your life, a new way to bring beauty to God.
Jesus showed us that to love God, we must love others. We are to live accordingly.
Your temple is involved.
—
Finally, we are to belong to God with all that we are and serve Him in every way we are able.
Our heart, mind, and our entire being/temple must be given to God and used for Him.
Therefore, every bit of your life and every second of your existence must be committed, or you are only giving Him lip service and not life service.
So lastly, ask yourself:
How much of YOU belongs to God?