What defines an intimate relationship? Sometimes it's revealed by unique friendship, shared with no other. Sometimes it's experienced by what is not said, just felt.
Sometimes it's welded together by obstacles shared and endured. And sometimes it's observed in the lives of their children, when a husband and wife's cup fills
up and spills over into those hearts and minds. All of these wonderful things transpire because of making the right choices.
The beginning of the world was created by choice of God, " choosing love thru free choice "
It was a decision by God to create a species that the common goal was & is to serve and to live on the basis of free love. MT. 22: 37- 39
Love cannot be expressed through force, but through genuine sincere concern, in affection towards others.
Sincere love must be formulated with compassion.
And how the direction of our lives come down to " the choices we choose in our daily lives.
Life is a choice, as in how you handle the pitfalls along it's rough roads
Choice making however, can be difficult when our life has pressured us into a corner, especially when our fears are amplified and overshadowing our intuition. Choices made from a calm, peaceful place bring us to the right places and people, while choices made from fear or under pressure, lead to disaster.
Spiritual growth is a choice and is necessary to deepen our relationship with God, and Lord Jesus Christ, . It is letting Jesus into of our lives, submitting to the guiding power and blessings of the Holy Spirit. Growing in our spirituality is the desire to become righteous and more Christ-like in our everyday lives
.Spiritual growth is not the same thing as being religious. Religion comes from regimens of rigid traditions, ceremonies, and mandated deeds. Originating in man-made rules or religious laws, obedience is often guilt-motivated. Godly spirituality does not come from what man has dictated, but from true and earnest desires from the heart
We, too, must decide, we must make an exclusive choice, and it is urgent. But one more point becomes clear in this text. This is a personal choice. "Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve." Your husband can't choose for you; your wife can't choose for you; your parents can't make the decision for you. You, personally, will decide about Jesus. You, personally, will stand before God to give account of your decision. Choose. Choose today. Choose today for yourself. Choose today for yourself whom you will serve! As we sing, let your choice to surrender to Jesus be known as you make your way forward.
When a person "chooses" to accept Christ as his Savior, he actually does not make the choice himself. The desire to make this decision is implanted by God. Before God implants this desire, the person literally has no ability to decide spiritual things himself. Listed below are some of the comments by Selective Salvationists that say we have no choice:
And what about Ruth? What would her future be? She must have wondered about that every second of the day. She needn't have been frightened, though. Because Ruth was a very special person. Ruth had been chosen by God! God had chosen this poor, humble woman from Moab to have an exciting and successful future. She couldn't possibly imagine it yet, but she was to become a member of the royal line of Judah. She would be married to one of the wealthiest men of the one of best families of Bethlehem. Her grandson would be King David. One of her ancestors would be Jesus, the very Son of God - the promised Messiah! God had chosen humble Ruth to be His own.
For Ruth there was only one choice. She chose to follow the Lord, and that meant following Naomi on a weary journey of 75 miles back to Naomi's hometown of Bethlehem. Ruth decided that this strange country would become her country, because it was the Lord's country. A strange people would become her people, because they were the Lord's people. She would serve Jehovah, the God of love, with her whole life, no matter what the consequences. It was courageous choice to make.
( The Original Plan )
" Choosing love through free Choice "
MT. 22: 37-39
The beginning of the world was created by Choice. It was a decision by God to
create a species in his own image ( Gen. 1: 27 ) that the common goal is to serve
& live on the basis of love
Love cannot be expressed through force or influence, but in genuine concern &
affection towards ones.
Sincere love must be formulated with compassion, being expressed through
submission of feelings of concern in re guards to others.
Choice making however, can be difficult when our life has pressured us into a corner, especially when our fears are amplified and overshadowing our intuition. Choices made from a calm, peaceful place bring us to the right places and people, while choices made from fear or under pressure, lead to disaster.
Spiritual growth is a choice and is necessary to deepen our relationship with God, and Lord Jesus Christ, . It is letting Jesus into of our lives, submitting to the guiding power and blessings of the Holy Spirit. Growing in our spirituality is the desire to become righteous and more Christ-like in our everyday lives
.Spiritual growth is not the same thing as being religious. Religion comes from regimens of rigid traditions, ceremonies, and mandated deeds. Originating in man-made rules or religious laws, obedience is often guilt-motivated. Godly spirituality does not come from what man has dictated, but from true and earnest desires from the heart
Spiritual Growth - How do we grow?
Spiritual growth begins first and foremost with believing and following Jesus Christ. We do this through faith. Our spirituality grows and matures through:
Prayer (regularly conversing with God).
Becoming students of His word and teachings (being disciples).
Sharing the blessings of our spirituality with others (evangelizing).
Giving God glory and praise through speech, behavior, and songs (worship).
Faith may begin like a tiny seed. When we exercise our faith, it grows. Let us compare it to planting a seedling. We tend to it, fertilize (nourish) it, and it grows. We need to keep the weeds away from it. Our spirituality is much the same. The Holy Spirit of God prepares our hearts as the seed of faith is planted. That tiny seed of faith is nourished through prayer, studying the Bible, and surrounding ourselves with like-minded Christians. As it grows, we begin to share with others what God has done for us. When we do not give into the temptation to sin, we will spiritually grow and draw closer to the Lord. This will yield the fruit in our lives that He has designed for us. God brings us a joy and peace in life that defies all circumstances.
Our love increases for Him and all He has done. This creates a deeper, personal relationship with Him and causes us to yearn for all that He has for us. It is a realm that our human minds often cannot understand; it requires trust and faith in God. The Lord God gives us a mental, emotional, and spiritual peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) He has many more blessings for us that are brought through the Holy Spirit
"And in life, it is all about choices we make.
And how the direction of our lives comes down to the choices we choose."
Life is a choice - as is how you handle the pitfalls along its bumpy road."
But Adam's spiritual freedom was not the highest kind of freedom. For though he was able not to sin, he nevertheless did sin. He could loose his moral, ethical freedom. God had warned him of that when He told him, But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eat est thereof thou shalt surely die. (Gen. 2:17). Adam could will to eat of the tree. If he did, he would die spiritually. He would loose the image of God and his spiritual freedom to choose good. In the providence of God that is just what did happen. Even though all of the inclinations of his being, including his spiritually free will, pointed him to obedience to God; he did eat. He lost the image of God and died spiritually. His holiness, righteousness, and knowledge of God were changed into darkness and unrighteousness. His will became the slave of his wicked nature. He could no longer choose what is good and righteous.
There are many who believe that freedom in Christ gives the believer the liberty to sin. They reason that since Christ has died for the sins of His people and thereby freed them from the guilt of sin, the believer can live in sin. Since salvation is all of grace, the believer does not have to be concerned about fleeing sin and seeking after righteousness. The apostle Paul refers to this kind of thinking when he says, What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? (ROM. 6:1). Jude also refers to this distortion of the truth when he says, For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness... ( Jude 4).
Such thinking is not the teaching of Holy Scripture. It is true that as long as the believer is in this world, he will always be a sinner. The child of God is not freed from the presence of sin until he is taken to glory. In fact, he may even fall into very great sin as did King David and the apostle Peter. A child of God is not immune to sin-not even the worst kinds of sin. Moreover, there is no such thing as sinless perfection in this life. Thus the apostle says, For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. (ROM. 7:14-15). The believer desires to do good, but because he still possesses the old sin nature along with the new nature, all his deeds, including his best good works, are defiled by sin.
But this does not mean that the believer is freed from sin in order that he might continue in sin. Freedom in Christ is not freedom to sin. The Biblical doctrine of spiritual freedom does not mean that we are free to do whatever we want, whether it is good or evil. Spiritual freedom is always freedom from sin. We read in ROM. 6:6-7, Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Since the old man with all of its sin has been judicially killed with Christ on the cross, the believer has been freed from the legal guilt of sin. He, therefore, should not serve sin. Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (ROM. 6:1-2). The apostle says, Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin... (ROM. 6:12-13). The believer, who has been freed from the guilt of sin must, by God's grace, not allow sin to reign in him. The members of his body must not be instruments of unrighteousness.
We, too, must decide, we must make an exclusive choice, and it is urgent. But one more point becomes clear in this text. This is a personal choice. "Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve." Your husband can't choose for you; your wife can't choose for you; your parents can't make the decision for you. You, personally, will decide about Jesus. You, personally, will stand before God to give account of your decision. Choose. Choose today. Choose today for yourself. Choose today for yourself whom you will serve! As we sing, let your choice to surrender to Jesus be known as you make your way forward.
When a person "chooses" to accept Christ as his Savior, he actually does not make the choice himself. The desire to make this decision is implanted by God. Before God implants this desire, the person literally has no ability to decide spiritual things himself. Listed below are some of the comments by Selective Salvationists that say we have no choice:
And what about Ruth? What would her future be? She must have wondered about that every second of the day. She needn't have been frightened, though. Because Ruth was a very special person. Ruth had been chosen by God! God had chosen this poor, humble woman from Moab to have an exciting and successful future. She couldn't possibly imagine it yet, but she was to become a member of the royal line of Judah. She would be married to one of the wealthiest men of the one of best families of Bethlehem. Her grandson would be King David. One of her ancestors would be Jesus, the very Son of God - the promised Messiah! God had chosen humble Ruth to be His own.
For Ruth there was only one choice. She chose to follow the Lord, and that meant following Naomi on a weary journey of 75 miles back to Naomi's hometown of Bethlehem. Ruth decided that this strange country would become her country, because it was the Lord's country. A strange people would become her people, because they were the Lord's people. She would serve Jehovah, the God of love, with her whole life, no matter what the consequences. It was courageous choice to make.
