In
first aid, these priorities are easily remembered as the ABC’s. A=airway,
B=breathing, C=circulation, and, if it applies, D=deadly bleeding. Do those
things in that order and we have the best likelihood of saving lives.
In
helping people with soul-issues, things we would associate with the mind, emotions,
will, spirit, or any other descriptions of the immaterial parts of our being,
we also must understand what is most important to deal with first. While I am not
sure if there is an ABCD list to follow, I do know that a consistent issue is
whether people are facing their life-problems in the flesh, or in their new
heart.
The
flesh, which I prefer calling the “sark”,[1] is
that part of ourselves that is independent of God, and is unable to ever have
connection with God. Paul describes the flesh in great detail, with Romans 7 as
his most extensive explanation. In that chapter he shows that the flesh is
unable to do the good things we might want to do, and, instead, does the bad
things we don’t want it to do. That applied to Paul as a non-believer even when
he was doing all kinds of good religious things as a devoted follower of
Judaism.
On
the other hand, the believer in Jesus Christ is given a new heart that is able
to know God, walk with God, do his will, and enjoy fellowship with him by the Holy
Spirit. God promised his people he would give them a new heart,[2]
and Paul described this “new self” as
“created after the
likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”[3]
Facing
something in the flesh is doomed to failure every time, no matter how brilliantly
our flesh has picked a solution, while facing that same thing in our new heart
in fellowship with God’s Spirit gives us the very best experience of God no
matter how much we feel like we are traveling through the valley of the shadow
of death to get there.[4]
Today
I want to remind all God’s children that, through our faith in Jesus Christ, we
have a new heart, we are “a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”[5] We
have put the new wine of the Spirit into the new wineskins of new life in Jesus
Christ.[6] We
are alive in Jesus Christ rather than dead in our sins.[7] We
are being transformed through the renewal of our minds.[8]And
we have the words of Jesus to fill us with his joy, and bring our joy up to the
full.[9]
The
difference in our well-being from one day to the next has nothing to do with
the days of the week (TGIF), but everything to do with where we are fixing our
minds. “For to set the mind on the
flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.”[10] When
we look to Jesus, fix our eyes on him, and consider him and all he has done for
us, we will “not grow
weary or fainthearted.”[11]
I could say more, but my main focus is to encourage us to
do what’s most important. “But seek first
the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to
you.”[12] “All these
things” are important to God, but putting these things first makes for a
life of worry. When we seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness, we
experience “righteousness and peace and joy in
the Holy Spirit.”[13]And, since God makes such priorities known to us, we will have the
best day and week possible if we join him in his way of doing first things
first.
If then you have been raised with
Christ, seek the things that are
above, where Christ is, seated
at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above,
not on things that are on earth.”[14]
From
my heart,
Monte
© 2014 Monte Vigh ~
Box 517, Merritt, BC, V1K 1B8 ~ in2freedom@gmail.com
Unless otherwise
noted, Scriptures are from the English Standard Version (The Holy Bible,
English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway
Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.)
[1] A transliteration of
the Greek word.
[2] Ezekiel 36:26
[3] Ephesians 4:24
[4] Psalm 23:4
[5] II Corinthians 5:17
[6] Following the imagery
of Luke 5:37-38
[7] Ephesians 2:1-10
[8] Romans 12:2
[9] John 15:11
[10] Romans 8:6
[11] Hebrews 12:1-3
[12] Matthew 6:33
[13] Romans 14:17
[14] Colossians 3:1-2
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