Facing "Temptations" ??

1/26/2008

IN CHRIST, walking in the Spirit of His Life, “overcoming temptation” is VERY different than “exercising willpower”—thank GOD for that! : ) When we have not yet Learned much in Him—and something our flesh is “crawling for” is in front of us—as we “succeed” or “fail” we will scratch and claw, rise and fall, strut and grovel. None of that is Life in the Spirit, “born of the Wind of Heaven” Life, really. It may even be, and often is, well meaning. But there is more still to Learn of Him, praise God. : )

When we are living IN Him, temptations are not an everyday “battle” of “willpower” to “obey.” As we Learn to walk in the SPIRIT, we’re not putting our faces in the stench of temptation anymore, and then trying to muster day-by-day “willpower.” That would be “Christ, FOR you, the hope of glory.”

INSTEAD! Life in the SPIRIT is stepping *into* the Covenant of HIS Oath, His Covenant, His Blood—and opening our hands to Him. It is not about our “willpower”—but about our word, our oath that has ALREADY been Sealed in our hearts. It is then about HIS WORD, and HIS OATH.

We’re not groveling in our circumstances and trials and temptations FOR Him, but walking in the oath and covenant—our word IN Him. We aren’t revisiting the possibility of what we will do or not do, sin or not. That was decided when we GAVE our very lives to Him, when we were Sealed in Him. The decision was made LONG ago, and we are just cooperating now with His Spirit to step OVER the filth, rather than looking at it to decide each time, by willpower. We are walking in our Oath and His Oath, merged Together in the Spirit by His Blood.

“Greater is He who is IN you, than he who is in the world.” “Christ *IN* you—the hope of Glory” and “this hope does not disappoint!”

•  The Covenant Is Absolute Surrender