Lesson 21: God’s Power Can Return Right Behavior to Us
Revelation 2:5 - “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent."
Jesus says in this verse that the test of true repentance is not in what you say about your sin, but in what you do about it. Repentance is not just being sorry for your sins. It is being sorry enough to stop your sins right now. In fact, He says if we fail to do something about it right now we are in some serious danger.
Herein lies our problem: if denying, blaming, excuses, or rationalizing does not work, we simply start procrastinating. For instance, we say, "Okay, first thing Monday morning," or "That will be my New Year's resolution," or "The first thing I am going to do when I retire is..." and on and on it goes! If we ever want to experience personal revival, it requires immediate action, NOT just good intentions. One man said, "The Church's integrity problem is in the misconception that we can add Christ to our lives, but not subtract sin. It is a change in belief without a change in behavior. It is revival without reformation, revival without repentance.”
I started thinking about this whole process of repentance and procrastination; maybe this is the whole reason why the moral fiber of our world is going down so fast. Maybe the problem with us is not so much with the unsaved rebel but the saved rebel. Maybe the problem is not with the world, but the Church. We are quick to pray for revival tomorrow, but we do not practice repentance today! We want the whole world to change, but we do not want to change ourselves! If you want that first love back, you need to turn around today. If you want your country to get back on track then we, the Church, need to get back on track!
We need to realize that delaying in doing something about our spiritual condition is not going to change a thing. All it guarantees is that our condition will never change. We must take that third and final step and redo our previous behavior today! Unless we do, our lives will never change and we will never get that first love for Jesus back again.
You might be thinking, “You are making a big deal out of nothing. Okay, so my love for Jesus is not what it used to be. It is not that big of a deal. Besides, my behavior only affects me." If you really think that, then you need to know how one life not only affects other lives today, but future ones as well in a profound way:
Jonathan Edwards, a great preacher in America’s early years, chose to spend time with each of his eleven children every day, teaching them God’s way. Of the 1394 known descendants of this man, 13 were college presidents, 65 college professors, 30 judges, 100 lawyers, 60 doctors, 75 military officers, 100 pastors, 60 prominent authors, 3 Senators, and 80 public servants.
Max Jukes, a contemporary of Edwards, was a drunk and had little time for his children. His known descendants include 310 paupers, 150 criminals (including 7 murderers), more than 100 drunkards, and half of his female descendants became prostitutes.
The decisions you make today not only affect your life, but they affect your legacy. The legacy you leave for the future will always hinge on what you do with Christ today. Come back to the Father today!
* What is the legacy you are leaving for those who come after you?
Lesson 21: God’s Power Can Return Right Behavior to Us Print
Modified on: Fri, 11 Dec, 2020 at 11:50 AM
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