Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart
Philippians 2:12-13, “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”
We need to understand, from God’s point of view, what it is to take the initiative.
It is our response to and cooperation with God’s operation in our being.
Let me say that if you are born again and Christ is living in you, then there is present within you a divine working that is one-hundred percent bent on beholding the Lord.
There is something already in you that matches the Word of God concerning spending time to behold Him.
You do not have to produce something in yourself in order to take the initiative.
Check with your inner man.
Look for the hidden desire within you, and see if there is not a corresponding burden and feeling about your spending time with the Lord.
If you are honest with your deepest sense, you will realize that there is a still small voice within you day by day speaking to you about spending time with the Lord to enjoy Him and to behold Him.
In fact, on the negative side, it feels like something nagging you.
When you live neglecting your time with the Lord, there is something within you that spontaneously feels dissatisfied.
You sense an incompleteness in your daily life even to the point of an inner protesting.
Also, on the positive side, there is a desire and a longing to be with the Lord in a definite way–to wait upon Him, behold Him, and enjoy Him.
This desire and longing is God working in you.
Taking the initiative simply means to cooperate with what God has already put within you.
The Greek word translated “work out” in Philippians 2:12 and the word “beholding” in 2 Corinthians 3:18 both mean that believers need to take the initiative to actively be involved and participate in the working out of their own salvation.
However, the basis for taking this initiative is clearly defined by the following words: “For it is God who operates in you.”
This means that the initiative we take is actually our going along with the operating God within us.
This is a crucial point in all our experiences of the Lord.
God works and operates in us to a certain extent; then we need to take the initiative to complete and finish what He is working in us.
Until Tomorrow
With A Shepherd’s Love,
Pastor Jackson
WEDNESDAY’S PRAYER REQUESTS
Amy Garner
David Burnette – Boating Accident – Serious Condition
Lamar Knight – Surgery on Rib Cage
Jim Mabe
Charlene Palmer
Sandy Paschal
Lorraine Elliott
Joanie/Jeanie’s Dad
Daniel Cooper – Surgery May 2
Dr. and Mrs. Davis
Sandra Graham – Home
Dan Haines
Doris Loyd
Linda Alexander
June Cronan
Jillian Gray
Amy Garner’s Mom & Dad
Brandon’s Dad
Darlene Thaxton
David Harrison
Denise Hulsey – Jordan’s G’mother
Easton Fielder
Erik Magusson
Freddie May’s Mom
George & Linda Alexander
James Burnette
June Cronan’s Sister
John Austin
John McClain
Lillanna Magnusson’s Mom
Linda Hodges’ Sister
Michael Stanley
Ricky Gipson – Ashley’s Brother
Rose Fuller
Scott Nix
Terrell Loyd
Tom Witcher
James Garner’s Friend
Kim McClain’s Mother
Lonzo Christin
Ashely Burn’s Sisters
Coly/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Larry Barker
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Mary Sims
Marynell Ford
Pastor & Mrs. Driskell
Ricky Stubbs
Roseleigh Osborn
Scott Lanier
Sheila Simmon’s Cousin