In the following article, Dan Corner offers Biblical advice for us
Christians for spiritual safeguards in our lives. I hope they aid you as
they have for me.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
---
Safeguards For You
by Dan Corner
In the Parable of the Ten Virgins, Jesus taught that five out of ten (or
50%) of the people who once had a light burning in their spiritual
lanterns
will not be known by him when he returns (Mt. 25:1-13). The context of
that
teaching is specifically for the last generation. This same kind of
incredible apostasy-warning is also found in Mt. 24:10; 2 Thess. 2:3; 1
Tim.
4:1 and 2 Tim. 4:4. It's eternally im****tant, therefore, that we stay
ready
to meet the Lord. This is where safeguards come in!
Spiritual safeguards are real, very im****tant and should be taken
seriously:
Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to
write
the same thing to you again, and it is a safeguard for you (Phil. 3:1,
NIV).
The following list of safeguards are for your spiritual health and well
being. The more of these the Christian acts upon, the more he will benefit
spiritually.
Rejoice In The Lord
Because the Christians at Philippi were going through (and enduring)
sufferings and struggles (Phil. 1:29,30), Paul issued the command
(safeguard) for them to rejoice in the Lord.
Similarly, Jesus told the disciples:
Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you,
but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven (Lk. 10:20,
NKJV).
Remember that no Christian ever had it ideal in this life! You are not
alone
with your troubles and sufferings (Jn. 16:33; 1 Pet. 5:9). We are living
in
a cursed age, with rampant deception, sin and injustice everywhere. This
world is now the devil's turf and he hates Christians. Obviously, this
world
can't be the saint's haven. Paul wrote:
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory
that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but
on
what is unseen. For what is seen is tem****ary, but what is unseen is
eternal
(2 Cor. 4:17,18, NIV).
Be Humble And Stay Humble
Be humble and stay humble like a little child. Jesus shockingly warned his
disciples that they would never enter the kingdom of heaven unless they
would change and become humble like little children (Mt. 18:1-4)!
And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like
little
children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (Mt. 18:3, NIV).
In other words, though they were saved at the moment, their individual
selfish ambitions to be greater than the other disciples (Lk. 9:46-48;
22:24-26) would somehow prove spiritually fatal in the future for them,
unless they would become humble like a little child who doesn't aspire for
such greatness over his peers the way the disciples were.
Peter later wrote:
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be
subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth
the
proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under
the
mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time (1 Pet. 5:5,6, KJV).
Verse 6 from the Amplified Bible reads:
Therefore humble yourselves (demote, lower yourselves in your own
estimation) under the mighty hand of God, that in due time He may exalt
you).
Hide God's Word In Your Heart
Psa. 119:11 says:
Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You!
(NKJV).
To strengthen your own ability to resist sin's temptations, store up God's
word in your heart. You can accomplish this by meditating in and
memorizing
Scripture. One method that might work well for you is to make little flash
cards with the Scripture verse you desire to memorize on one side and its
reference on the reverse side. Verbally reading the verse(s) out loud and
writing them out will enable you to memorize almost any passage after a
while. It would also be wise to listen to the Bible on cassette tape every
chance you get, such as in your home and car.
Don't Even Think About The Pleasures of Sin
Scripture actually teaches that sin has pleasure in it (Heb. 11:25). If it
didn't, it would never be a temptation. The dangers of just thinking of
sinful pleasure is also shown in Scripture:
If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have
had
op****tunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country --
a
heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he
has prepared a city for them (Heb. 11:15,16, NIV).
Remember the awesome truth of Num. 11:5 where wrong thinking is
exemplified.
The Israelites thought about the cu***bers, melons, leeks, onions and
garlic
that they regularly ate while in bondage in Egypt (a type of the world),
but
couldn't find contentment with manna, their God-supplied food. Because
they
focused in upon the good things they had while in Egypt, they totally
forgot
that they were worked ruthlessly and their lives were made bitter with
hard
labor (Exo. 1:13,14). The misery and emptiness of their lives in Egypt had
escaped them. They now, incredibly, thought they were better off in Egypt
(Num. 11:18)! The devil will use the same type of lie on us too,
especially
since it worked so well for him back then.
We should always be looking forward and never back. Long for heaven and
that
city which God has prepared for the worthy. Peter wrote:
.... We are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of
righteousness (2 Pet. 3:13, NIV).
Similarly, Heb. 13:14 reads:
For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city
that is to come (NIV).
If you follow this principle you won't disobey Rom. 13:14b:
.... Do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature
(NIV).
It is also very im****tant that you guard your heart by not watching
adulterous TV shows and going places such as public swimming pools and
beaches. This will definitely be a safeguard for your soul! Remember, it's
possible to commit adultery and never actually go through the physical act
(Mt. 5:28). [Please see our on-line article regarding Jesus' teaching on
lust.]
Ponder the following truth about how your thought life influences your
behavior:
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what
that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have
their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is
death,
but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace (Rom. 8:5,6, NIV).
Consider Jesus
To prevent growing weary and losing heart in your race, consider Jesus:
Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will
not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not
yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood (Heb. 12:3,4, NIV).
The word consider in Greek means contemplate. Therefore, we are advised to
contemplate the unfair, unjust and merciless treatment the perfect, loving
and sinless Lord Jesus was subjected to from the hands of wicked,
merciless
people. He didn't deserve any of it.
Learn The Bible
This is the all-inclusive safeguard. Hos. 4:6 reads:
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected
knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me:
seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy
children (KJV).
The only way you can adequately learn the Bible is to spend quality time
in
it for yourself. Start in the New Testament, reading and rereading it so
that no zealous and sincere, Scripture-quoting false prophet or false
teacher can shake the true message from your heart. Remember, we can
negate
our salvation by accepting a wrong plan of salvation.
By which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached
to
you; unless you believed in vain (1 Cor. 15:2, NKJV).
After you learn the New Testament, move to the Old Testament. The Old
Testament was written to teach and warn us in New Testament times (Rom.
15:4; 1 Cor. 10:11). It was also the only Bible the earliest Christians
had
before the New Testament was written! There is much in it for us today.
Don't Envy The Unsaved
Read Psalm 73. Asaph envied the wicked and almost slipped spiritually (v.
2,
NIV). He noticed the prosperity they have, their healthy bodies, them
being
carefree from burdens common to man and not plagued by human ills and he
thought:
In vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in
innocence (v. 13, NIV).
Asaph was oppressed until he focused in upon their final destiny (v. 17).
This means don't envy the wicked because they might be popular, happily
married, with a good job, physically healthy, good looking, live in a nice
home, drive a new car and have lots of money. They are on their way to the
lake of fire where they will be tormented forever (Mt. 25:41,46; Mk.
9:43-48; Rev. 14:10,11; 20:10).
To envy the wicked is a subtle Satanic temptation designed to get you to
stop living godly and to pursue the tem****al pleasures of this life.
Maintain A Biblical View Of Physical Death And Your Life Here
This will be especially helpful in extreme persecution, where martyrdom
prevails.
For the Christian, physical death is gain (Phil. 1:21) and better by far
(Phil. 1:23). Only then will you really be at home with your real family,
that is, your heavenly Father, your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and your
brothers and sisters in the faith from all parts of the earth. It's also
where your treasures are.
This life is not your home! We are strangers in the world (1 Pet. 1:1) and
we are to live our lives as strangers here in reverent fear (1 Pet. 1:17).
You are just passing through this life, so don't be engrossed in the
material things of this world! Think in terms of eternity. Remember:
.... The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be
destroyed
by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare (2 Pet.
3:10,
NIV).
Maintain The Hope Of Being Like Jesus When He Returns
1 Jn. 3:2,3 read:
Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet
been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him,
for
we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies
himself, just as he is pure (NIV).
How will we be like Jesus? We too will have a glorified body of flesh and
bones like his (Lk. 24:39; Phil. 3:21), that is, a tangible body that can
enter a room with the doors locked (Jn. 20:19) and disappear from a
location
(Lk. 24:31).
Pray To Stand Firm In All The Will Of God
In Col. 4:12, we read:
.... He (Epaphras) is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may
stand
firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured (NIV).
Be quick to pray about everything you face, casting all your anxieties on
God (1 Pet. 5:7). Pray for other people, too.
Sing And Make Music In Your Heart To The Lord
Eph. 5:19,20 read:
Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God
the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (NIV).
Keeping a tune of thanks and praise in your heart to the Lord will help
you
greatly in your spiritual battles. Focus in upon what you have, not what
you
do not have but would like to have! In other words, learn to be content in
your non-ideal cir***stances. This is a safeguard in itself. Paul wrote:
.... for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content (Phil. 4:11,
NKJV).
Remember, he was in chains and in prison when he wrote this (1:13), yet he
was content! Furthermore, he wrote:
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into
the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and
clothing, we will be content with that (1 Tim. 6:6-8, NIV).
Avoid Godless Chatter
The godly, like Timothy, can become increasingly ungodly through godless
chatter. Hence, the following warning came from Paul:
Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more
and
more ungodly (2 Tim. 2:16, NIV).
All secular TV shows are prime examples of godless chatter. They also
promote a value system which is of this world and highly antithetical to
the
Scriptures.
Indulging in voluntary conversation on a regular basis with the darkened
people of this age will take a spiritual toll after a while. This is
especially true if spiritual matters are intentionally avoided by the
spiritually enlightened.
Similarly, Paul wrote in 1 Tim. 6:20,21:
.... Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is
falsely
called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered
from the faith (NIV).
The danger of godless chatter, as well as so-called knowledge which is
contrary to Scripture, is evident from this.
Stay Self-controlled, Alert And Continue To Resist The Devil
This is the way we can protect ourselves from our spiritual arch enemy,
who
is not in the lake of fire yet, but continues to try, and often succeeds,
in
hurting Christians:
Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a
roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in
the
faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are
undergoing the same kind of sufferings (1 Pet. 5:8,9, NIV).
The seriousness of our spiritual warfare is shown here. Also regarding
being
self-controlled, alert and resisting the devil, remember this: those who
enter the kingdom of God will have to be more self-controlled, alert and
faithful in resisting the devil than Solomon, the Apostle Judas Iscariot,
the unnamed disciples of Jn. 6:66, etc. who didn't enter the kingdom!
Avoid Bad Company
Surprisingly, the Bible teaches that Christians are to avoid certain
people
(Prov. 20:19; 22:24,25; 24:1; Rom. 16:17,18; 1 Cor. 5:11; 2 Thess.
3:6-15),
places (Prov. 4:14,15; 5:8; 2 Cor. 6:17) and things (Prov. 20:3; Acts
15:29;
1 Thess. 5:22; 2 Tim. 2:23; Jam. 1:19,20). Not to avoid these when you
can,
is to needlessly open yourself up to spiritual danger. Paul wrote:
Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character (1 Cor. 15:33, NIV).
Please note, according to that reference, bad company tends to adversely
affect the Christian and not the reverse. This, however, does not mean
that
we willingly should never associate with the unbeliever, for we are called
to evangelize them. Jesus ate with the sinners, but he did so with an
evangelistic motive only, not to socialize with them.
Especially destructive to one's spiritual condition would be to marry
someone who does not belong to the Lord (1 Cor. 7:39). This is evident by
what happened to Solomon when he married pagan women. See Neh. 13:26. If
you
are a single Christian, please know that it is much worse to marry the
wrong
person than to remain single, though it can be painfully lonely at times!
Know That Persecution Comes To All Of The Godly And You Must Testify About
Jesus
Jesus told his disciples:
All this I have told you so that you will not go astray (Jn. 16:1, NIV).
To find out what this is in this verse that we must do so we won't go
astray, we must go back to chapter 15. There we will see the Lord assured
the disciples that the world would hate and persecute them (15:18-20)!
Furthermore, he added that we must testify of him. These two truths,
internalized and acted upon, will keep us from going astray, according to
Jesus.
Witnessing to others about Christ will also add to your understanding of
spiritual things:
I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have
a
full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ (Philemon 6,
NIV).
A good, reliable, easy-to-read translation like the New King James or the
New International Version will help you greatly in learning the Bible.
Especially avoid the Living Bible and the New World Translation.
Fear God
We are told to fear God for he can destroy our bodies and souls in hell
(Mt.
10:28; Lk. 12:5). This command to fear God is past (Deut. 10:12,13),
present
(1 Pet. 1:17), and future (Rev. 14:7). While the fear of man will prove to
be a snare (Prov. 29:25), only good can be said about the fear of God! If
you continue to fear God, it will keep you from sinning (Exo. 20:20).
Keep A Clear Conscience
Paul cited the reason why he personally kept a clear conscience:
And I have the same hope in God as these men, that there will be a
resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked. So I strive always to
keep my conscience clear before God and man (Acts 24:15,16, NIV).
Paul kept a clear conscience because there would be "a resurrection of
both
the righteous and the wicked." Similarly, Paul told Timothy he also needed
to hold to faith and a good conscience. The reason was to safeguard his
faith from becoming ****pwrecked like that of Hymenaeus and Alexander:
Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the
prophecies
once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good
fight,
holding on to faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and so
have ****pwrecked their faith. Among them are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom
I
have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme (1 Tim. 1:18-20,
NIV).
Be Careful To Read And Obey The Bible
Before Israel ever had a king, God taught Moses how the kings could assure
a
strong spiritual walk for themselves. God told Moses:
Also it shall be, when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, that he shall
write for himself a copy of this law in a book, from the one before the
priests, the Levites. And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all
the
days of his life, that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be
careful
to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, that his heart
may
not be lifted above his brethren, that he may not turn aside from the
commandment to the right hand or to the left, and that he may prolong his
days in his kingdom, he and his children in the midst of Israel (Deut.
17:18-20, NKJV).
The kings were to write their own personal copy of the Scriptures for
themselves, which they were to carry with them and read daily. If done,
they
would consequently fear the LORD and follow God's commands. Then pride,
through their powerful and exalted position, their great riches, etc.
would
not deceive them into thinking themselves better than others and straying
from God's commands.
If only this was practiced, David would not have committed adultery and
murder, Solomon would not have turned to idolatry, Uzziah to pride, and
Saul
to jealousy, murder, etc. which ended with suicide. If such clear and
powerful advice would work for kings as the leaders over millions of
people,
how much more should it work for us? Of course, the proper attitude to
have
when reading Scripture is to read it with a willingness to change
accordingly, either doctrinally or behaviorally.
Test The Spirits
The Apostle John informs Christians not to be gullible:
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they
are
of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world (1 Jn.
4:1,
NKJV).
The testing of all teachings, dreams, visions, experiences, etc. must be
with the standard that God has given mankind, namely his written word (2
Tim. 3:16,17).
Walk In Love
Dozens of times throughout the New Testament we are commanded to love.
Perhaps one of the most im****tant truths about the welfare of our own
faith
is linked to this thing we call love:
For [if we are] in Christ Jesus, neither cir***cision nor uncir***cision
counts for anything, but only faith activated and energized and expressed
and working through love (Gal. 5:6, Amplified Bible).
Your faith is energized by your love and your love is adversely affected
by
sin (Mt. 24:12)! Love is patient and kind (1 Cor. 13:4).
Help God's People
The unnamed writer of Hebrews stated:
Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop
useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But
land
that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being
cursed. In the end it will be burned. Even though we speak like this, dear
friends, we are confident of better things in your case -- things that
accompany salvation. God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and
the
love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help
them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in
order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to
imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been
promised
(6:7-12, NIV).
According to that passage, to make our hope sure (v. 11) we are to help
God's people to the very end. (Compare to Mt. 25:34-40.) According to
other
passages, salvation and eternal life are our hope (1 Thess. 5:8; Titus
3:7).
Faith and patience are exalted in Heb. 6:12.
Flee The Desire To Get Rich
The New Testament often mentions greed (Mk. 7:22,23; Lk. 12:15; Eph. 5:3;
etc.) and its ability to exclude one from the kingdom (1 Cor. 6:9,10; Eph.
5:5-7). It, therefore, should be apparent that this sin should be
carefully
guarded against. Paul wrote Timothy about this:
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into
the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and
clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall
into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that
plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of
all
kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith
and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from
all
this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and
gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal
life
to which you were called when you made your good confession in the
presence
of many witnesses (1 Tim. 6:6-12, NIV).
Please note, Paul told Timothy to flee the desire to get rich (v. 11) and
stated why such was so im****tant. Some Christians have wandered from the
faith over this! Clearly, a man of God can yet be plunged into ruin and
destruction through the desire to get rich. So alongside the command to
flee
***ual immorality (1 Cor. 6:18) and idolatry (1 Cor. 10:14), we are also
informed here to flee the desire to get rich.
Rather than being eager for money, we are to pursue righteousness,
godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. See also 2 Tim. 2:22.
Make Your Calling And Election Sure
After our salvation, we are to put forth every effort to add to our faith,
according to the Apostle Peter.
For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and
to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to
self-control,
perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly
kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these
qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective
and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But if anyone
does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he
has been cleansed from his past sins. Therefore, my brothers, be all the
more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these
things, you will never fall (2 Pet. 1:5-10, NIV).
We Must All Go Through Many Hard****ps
The ministry of Paul and Barnabas included strengthening and encouraging
real Christians to remain true to the faith. In part, they did this by
teaching them:
.... strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to
the
faith. "We must go through many hard****ps to enter the kingdom of God,"
they
said (Acts 14:22, NIV).
Again, Christians are in an intense, spiritual battle. Hard****ps will come
even to the most devoted saints. We are told to endure them.
Endure hard****p with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 2:3,
NIV).
This issue of endurance is very im****tant because sometimes our powerful
prayers will not remedy the situation the way we'd like them to! This will
be especially true when Rev. 13:7 is fulfilled.
He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And
he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation
(NIV).
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