Day 304: "He Must Increase, But I Must Decrease."
Read: Psalm 18:20 - 27, John 3:25 - 36, Colossians 3:1 - 14
Statement of irrefutable fact: God definitely wants to have a personal relationship with each of
us. Statement of irrefutable fact: God is the God of all individual
believers through His Son Jesus Christ. So He delights in us just as we
delight in those we love? Irrefutable fact: the highest, most holiest
experience we can ever achieve in our one lifetime is the worshipful
delight of the Lord. Delighting in God is an expression of our personal,
abiding, intimate relationship with Him. His delight in you is an
expression of His full love for you. What should it take for
contemporary Christians to more fully express the delight in God's love for them more than we express love delighting in ourselves?
This passage gives us significant insight into how we can delight in
God and how He delights in us. First, 'how does one delight in God?' By
ones character. From verse 20 we learn that David had integrity. Notice
here that David does not say that David was a man without sin, but his
heart was devoted to God. Please take the time to notice the word 'righteousness' used here. I believe this is one of David's favorite words. Righteousness as used here refers to 'obedience'. David strove hard to be obedient to the will of
God. For myself, it is also here where I find myself failing the most.
David continually failed God, yet He still delighted in David because he kept coming back. David kept on humbling himself! David kept decreasing himself before his God!
That's the kicker for me - returning to the Altar of God after an epic event in my life. I reflect upon a convicting verse like 2 Chronicles 7:14 'and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their
land.' I reflect upon it and think to myself, that it surely would be an
absolute delight for God, perhaps even draw an epic smile from God if in
my alleged righteousness, obedience to His Living Word, I actually delighted infinitely more in returning to Him than trying to run full speed so full of me. To be a contemporary Christian who delights more in God, I must delight in me less, I must decrease myself before my God.
Then there is the incredible testimony of John the Baptist: "For this
reason He must increase but I must decrease." It just reaches out and
grabs me by my pride and my ego. To take this verse to its seemingly
next logical conclusion says that, my delight in my own righteousness, my own delight in my epic successes, my own epic failures, must humble themselves in no uncertain terms. Basically, God is saying
to all: "Get over yourselves, and do it quickly!" (Col. 3:1,2):
"Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the
things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your
mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth."
Let Us Pray: Lord, we come as we are that we may be changed by your grace. We come with our fullness that we may be emptied. We come with our emptiness that we may be fully filled with you. We come with our darkness that we may seek your light. We come with our weakness that we may be filled with your strength. We come with our brokenness that you may make us whole again. Lord, please reveal yourself.
Lord, we come as we are, that we may be changed by your grace. We come with our lives to be filled with your power. We come with our worship to praise
you forever. We come with our words "He must increase, but we must
decrease" and a humble prayer that you make it so in spite of us. Lord
God, we humbly come before your Altar that we may be changed by your grace. That who you are will be more fully revealed in our lives for as when Christ who is our life is fully revealed, then
we will also be fully revealed with Him in glory. Through Jesus Christ,
truest center of Christian life.
http://www.youtube.com/
Read: Psalm 18:20 - 27, John 3:25 - 36, Colossians 3:1 - 14
Statement of irrefutable fact: God definitely wants to have a personal relationship with each of
us. Statement of irrefutable fact: God is the God of all individual believers through His Son Jesus Christ. So He delights in us just as we delight in those we love? Irrefutable fact: the highest, most holiest experience we can ever achieve in our one lifetime is the worshipful delight of the Lord. Delighting in God is an expression of our personal, abiding, intimate relationship with Him. His delight in you is an expression of His full love for you. What should it take for contemporary Christians to more fully express the delight in God's love for them more than we express love delighting in ourselves?
This passage gives us significant insight into how we can delight in God and how He delights in us. First, 'how does one delight in God?' By ones character. From verse 20 we learn that David had integrity. Notice here that David does not say that David was a man without sin, but his heart was devoted to God. Please take the time to notice the word 'righteousness' used here. I believe this is one of David's favorite words. Righteousness as used here refers to 'obedience'. David strove hard to be obedient to the will of God. For myself, it is also here where I find myself failing the most. David continually failed God, yet He still delighted in David because he kept coming back. David kept on humbling himself! David kept decreasing himself before his God!
That's the kicker for me - returning to the Altar of God after an epic event in my life. I reflect upon a convicting verse like 2 Chronicles 7:14 'and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.' I reflect upon it and think to myself, that it surely would be an absolute delight for God, perhaps even draw an epic smile from God if in my alleged righteousness, obedience to His Living Word, I actually delighted infinitely more in returning to Him than trying to run full speed so full of me. To be a contemporary Christian who delights more in God, I must delight in me less, I must decrease myself before my God.
Then there is the incredible testimony of John the Baptist: "For this reason He must increase but I must decrease." It just reaches out and grabs me by my pride and my ego. To take this verse to its seemingly next logical conclusion says that, my delight in my own righteousness, my own delight in my epic successes, my own epic failures, must humble themselves in no uncertain terms. Basically, God is saying to all: "Get over yourselves, and do it quickly!" (Col. 3:1,2): "Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth."
Let Us Pray: Lord, we come as we are that we may be changed by your grace. We come with our fullness that we may be emptied. We come with our emptiness that we may be fully filled with you. We come with our darkness that we may seek your light. We come with our weakness that we may be filled with your strength. We come with our brokenness that you may make us whole again. Lord, please reveal yourself.
Lord, we come as we are, that we may be changed by your grace. We come with our lives to be filled with your power. We come with our worship to praise you forever. We come with our words "He must increase, but we must decrease" and a humble prayer that you make it so in spite of us. Lord God, we humbly come before your Altar that we may be changed by your grace. That who you are will be more fully revealed in our lives for as when Christ who is our life is fully revealed, then we will also be fully revealed with Him in glory. Through Jesus Christ, truest center of Christian life.
http://www.youtube.com/
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