To admit that we do not have or are in complete control is something our prideful hearts do not like to hear, consider, or accept. We like to think we are in complete control of ourselves, our desires, all circumstances we live in and the outcome. If something happens in a way we do not like, we may find someone or something to blame. We may look to cast blame because we will not dare look within or at ourselves. But, if something goes our way we are more likely to instantly look at ourself and give ourselves the credit.
We may not like someone telling us what to do or how to live, but we increase the depth of our prideful heart by telling others what to do and how to live according to our view of what is right or wrong. We have become our own authority and think very highly of ourselves. We may tend to look at the lives of other people in our network of family and friends and begin to take a critical look at them from the outside looking in without realizing we are and have been standing in quicksand.
When something is broken we tend to want to fix it, even if the broken thing is a person. We rationalize our behavior by convincing ourselves that we are helping to fix this broken person. We begin to give this person advice on how to change their circumstances or life. But, what usually happens? This person does not take our perfect, right, advice and we may become angry. Why can we become angry? Because our motivation was never really about wanting what was best for the other person, it was really about ourself. We now think we are this person’s savior.
But, we have all the answers to fix them, right? If she would just do what we told her to do, her life would be better and on the right path. Why can he or she not see how perfect my advice is and just do what I say? We tell ourselves that if we were in that same situation as he or she is, this is how we would handle things, so he should do it my way. Does this sound familiar? We have now just become their judge. We now think all of our views are the right ones and judge anyone who does, thinks, or believes anything differently than what we judge as right or wrong.
Our pride of self can be so full that we feel we can control other people and can change them. That ultimately means that we think we are their God. To think we are their God means we think we are God. Here lies the most important factor to consider; the desire of the heart. We may actually think we can change the desire of someone’s heart if he or she would just do what we tell them. The truth is, we cannot change the inward desire of one’s mind, not even our own. Only God can.
The hardest truth for many to hear is not only can we not change the desire of someone’s mind, we do not have the ability to change the desire of our own heart. If we could, there would not be any sort of addiction/idol on this planet. You quit smoking on your own, you say? Your desire to create an idol out of something or someone is still in your heart. If you truly look within and conduct a self examination, by God’s grace, your eyes will see. You will see that the greatest idol is the idolizing of self. Since the fall to sin in Adam, our desire is for ourselves; to be God. That inward sinful desire of the heart can only be changed by the merciful, grace filled effectual call of God, through Jesus Christ, by the power of The Holy Spirit. In Jesus we receive freedom from our slavery to sin.
1 John 1:8,10 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth(Spirit) is not in us. If we say we have not sinned, we make (God) a liar, and His word(Spirit) is not in us.
John 8:34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.”
Ephesians 2:3 We all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.
Romans 8:7 For the mind that is set on the flesh (sinful desire) is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.
John 3:20 “For everyone who does wicked things hates the light (Jesus) and does not come to the light (Jesus), lest his works should be exposed.”
Psalm 10:4 In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him; all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”
Romans 3: 10-11 “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands, no one seeks God.”
John 6:44, 65 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.” And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
Romas 9:16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Ephesians 2:1-2, 4-5 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked….But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved.
When I first became a Christian, my faith, as well as the truth of the Bible, was challenged by a few people. I defended my faith as well as a new Christian with limited Biblical wisdom could, but I found my own doubts of the Bible’s truth creeping about in my mind. As much as my desire was not to doubt the truth of the Bible, I could not make it go away! The more my doubts surfaced in my mind the more I began to panic.
One evening after enduring the most heavily challenged conversation about my faith since becoming a Christian, I came across a documentary that questioned who Jesus is and if what the Bible says is true about Him. I only saw a minute or so of it, but it was enough to set me over the edge. My wisdom of the Bible was not rooted deep enough to fight these attempts by the devil to turn me away from God. I did not yet have God’s word ready in my head to ward off doubt. Christianity was still new to me. I had been studying the Bible for a short period of time and there was still so much to learn so I could be deeply rooted in my faith and wisdom.
In my state of panic, I was scared, so looked outside of myself for help. I turned to the only One I knew could help me. I turned to God and prayed for Him to show me the truth. In my state of panic and doubt, at that moment, I could have turned away from God and just decided that there was no way the Bible was true. But, the desire of my heart was to know God and to trust Him. I already knew that the only reason I had a desire in my heart for God was because I am His and He placed His effectual call upon me. But, what God recently showed me, is that the only reason I even turned to Him and prayed to Him in that moment is because I am His.
In the book of John chapter 6, the circumstances of the doubt that I went through as a new Christian were spoken of by Jesus. The situation begins with Jesus teaching how he is symbolically the bread of life and the true food. He says, “If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” The people around Him are new to the teachings of Jesus. They misunderstand and take His words literally. They say, “How can the man give us his flesh to eat?”
Therefore, when many of His disciples heard this, they said, “This teaching is hard. Who can accept it?” Jesus knows that his disciples are complaining about Him, so he asks them, “Does this offend you?” (John 6:60-61) Jesus explains,”The Spirit is the one who gives life. The flesh doesn’t help at all. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and are life. But there are some among you who do not believe.” He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted to him by the Father.” (63-65)
The disciples complain that the teaching of Jesus is too hard to understand, so how could they accept it? Here they are at a crucial point. Will they stay with Jesus, or will they turn away and refuse to accept Jesus’ teaching as truth because it is too hard to understand?
From that moment many of his disciples turned back and no longer accompanied him. So Jesus said to the twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, do you?” Simon Peter answered, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.” Jesus replied to them, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve?” (John 6:66-70)
Many of the early disciples were not genuine disciples of Christ, for they turned back. Their initial “faith” was not genuine. They may have been following Jesus only because of the physical benefits he gave, such as healing and multiplying food. As soon as the teaching exposed the doubt in their hearts, became hard to understand and accept, they all turned away. But, if they would have stayed with Jesus, over time, they would have had their wisdom increased and would have come to understand Jesus’ teachings. Of the twelve remaining disciples Jesus says, “Didn’t I choose you?” The twelve disciples stayed because He chose them.
Knowing that God chose me brings me comfort, and humbles me. It is humbling because knowing that God chose me takes away all potential prideful boasting that it was out of my greatness to pray to God for the truth that evening. I would not have been able to make the decision to turn to God and pray if I had not already belonged to Him. According to scripture, if the decision was left up to me, in my state of sinful fallenness, I would not desire to know God. The desire of my heart would be for the self and to be God. I only desire to know God because He desires to know me and loves me. It is freeing to know that God has His hold upon me and He is NOT going to let me go.
Take a moment and conduct a self examination of your heart. Do you have a desire to know God? If not, do you long for a desire to know God? If you have a desire to know God, or even wish you had a desire to know God, His Spirit is already working within you. Giving up control and selfish pride is a little scary at first, but once you surrender to God and ask Jesus into your heart, your fear is turned into contentment and joy!
Are you a new believer who has not opened the Bible because you are afraid you will not understand, or are you early on in your Biblical education and unsure about what you are reading? Do not turn away! I stared at my Bible for a month before I opened it the first time because it looked like a book of foreign language to me. The more you read and study God’s word the easier it becomes to understand. As time goes on and you deepen your study, new and deeper wisdom will be revealed to you by God.
Solid trusted Biblical teaching is highly important because there are many people out there teaching false interpretations of the Bible. A red flag is if someone is not speaking of our sin and the need for Jesus Christ. Be careful of the denominations who do not believe Jesus is God and only believe He was a prophet.
I study with an ESV Study Bible. I highly recommend a study Bible. It includes the interpretations of scripture on every page. If you are new to the Bible, I recommend you start reading with the book of John. After you read John, then start at the beginning of the New Testament in the book of Matthew. Once you read the whole New Testament and feel comfortable, then start reading the Old Testament beginning in Genesis.
If you are not yet a believer in Christ, I invite you to come to Jesus just as you are! Repent (change your ways), ask Jesus for forgiveness and ask Him into your heart so you may have eternal life with Him! You do not need to clean your act up before you come to Jesus. He wants you just as you are! Come to Jesus, come!
Susan McCeldry 