The children of Israel were given specific instruction to not mingle with the enemy. The warning came because God knew that they would be entrapped. Their leader made a clear statement. 

Joshua 24:14-15 says, “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served…choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” 

We know from verse 14 that they followed their father’s wrong example. They left God’s path to follow their own pursuits. Peer pressure is not just for the young. It affects every one of us when we fear what others will think. Proverbs 29:25 says, “The fear of man brings a snare…”

Compromise is just one circle off the path of righteousness that the Lord has set us on at salvation. Our progressive sanctification journey trains our character. Romans 5:3-4 says that the Lord uses our trials.

The Lord never sets a temptation before us. We either flee or embrace satan’s design to entrap us. We are to be in the world, but not a partaker of its system. 2 Corinthians 6:14 says, “…For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?”

Verse 17-18 says, “…Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

We are called with a holy calling to be influencers through His light that shines through and out of us. Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

1 Thessalonians 5:22 says, “Abstain from every form of evil.” Abstain means to resist from doing something. If we look like the world, then how can we be the change agents to those who know us? Our goal is that they might know Him through our character of Christlikeness.

Keith Green wrote a book and composed an album, “No Compromise.” I think back to Joseph. The setting was perfect. No one was around. Yet when he faced it, he fled to avoid any compromise.

Genesis 39:11-12 says that none of the men were in the house, “That she caught him by his garment…But he left his garment in her hand, and fled and ran outside.” It was a set up. She had tried many times and Joseph would not yield to the temptations.

We know that satan looks for opportunities to entrap us. In 2 Timothy 2:22 Paul told Timothy, “Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”

Who do you spend time with? Who influences your life? Who is your example, and who do you follow? In 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul said, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” Do you have Christ imitators in your life?

I want you to take a piece of paper and put some small circles on like this: oooo       o. The last o is your mark. After the fourth circle, place the next circle just slightly higher than the one before it. If we followed the line of that circle to the end, we would miss the mark, which is a definition of sin.

Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” The raised circle leads us off the straight path. Our character is tested and revealed when the circumstances to compromise are presented. No one is around. No one will know. 

Quench is an interesting word. It means to suppress, thwart, and extinguish. It describes how the enemy seeks to destroy our faith. The opposite of suppress is to express. The opposite of thwart is to succeed in victory. The opposite of extinguishing is to ignite.

We are warned in 1 Thessalonians 5:19, “Do not quench the Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 4:30 says to not grieve the Holy Spirit. Verse 31 listed the enemy’s tactics. He works through people that are under his influence through the lies they have believed.

It says, “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice.” Verse 32 helps us to come in the opposite spirit. It says, “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another; even as God in Christ forgave you.”

Paul’s further instructions are in Colossians 3:12-13. It says, “Therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.”

The underpinnings of our faith is forgiveness. As we are forgiven, we are to forgive in the same manner. Matthew 18:35 says that unless we forgive from our heart, God the Father will send tormentors. 

Paul had a thorn in the flesh. It was tormenting him. We do not know what the thorn was, but 2 Corinthians 12:7 says it was given to him, “…a messenger of satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.”

Could the Lord be using folks in your life that you are at cross purposes with? What He allows always has His purpose ingrained in the fabric of the trial. It is tightly woven so that nothing can thwart it.

Proverbs 27:17 Amplified says, “Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend (to show rage or worthy purpose).” We are to be iron sharpeners not friction igniters.

Proverbs 15:1-2 says, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise uses knowledge rightly, but the mouth of fools pours forth foolishness.” We are to exemplify the Lord’s character at all times. He uses adversity to reveal the hidden lies that undermine our faith.

How does unbelief get in? I felt this question pop into my mind when I read Matthew 17:20. Jesus was speaking to His disciples. They wanted to know why they couldn’t cast out the man’s epileptic son’s demon.

It says, “…Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move from here to there, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”

The issue was not the size of their faith. It never is with us either. Unbelief comes in when we allow a fiery dart lie to penetrate our mind. It also comes in when we waver in what God’s words instructs us to do.

James 1:8 says that those who waver are double-minded and therefore unstable. Their faith borders are not secured. Faith is a resolute, unshakeable, and steadfastly rooted truth that is hidden in our heart. It is surrounded with thankfulness. 

In Colossians 2:5 Paul commended the church, “…rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.” He went on in verse 6-7 to say, “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.” 

1 Corinthians 10:5 says to take every thought captive. That does not mean that we take every thought apart to see if it has a lie in it. It means that we hide God’s truth in our heart. It is an inward truth that will rise like a sentinel to thwart any lie from entering in the first place.

Those that we dialogue with became our own. They seeded into our hearts unknowingly. That is the stealth activity of our enemy. It is essential to remember that not every thought is of our own origin. As each lie is hidden, it is gathered into a stronghold which fights against us from the inside. 

The fiery darts are outside. Ephesians 6:16 was written so we could stop it from coming in. It says, “Above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.” More on this tomorrow.

Even though I passed these verses days ago in my reading, the Holy Spirit kept taking me back to them. God’s word is a seed. In the parable of the sower in Matthew 13:19, Jesus gave great insight for us. It says, “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.”

Have you ever heard a message and thought it was really good? Then you promptly forgot it. We heard it, but did not absorb it, so that we could apply it to our own life. Here is another part of hearing and understanding. Matthew 15:8 says, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.”

We hear with our ears, but we absorb with our heart. Think now of the disciples. Jesus had just fed the 5,000. Then He told them to get into the boat. Matthew 14:24 says, “But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.”

Picture yourself in a boat being tossed by the waves because of a strong wind. The disciples saw Jesus walking on the water. He was walking with no regard for the waves and the wind. They cried out in fear and He calmed them with His words.

In verse 28 Peter asked the Lord to command him to, “…come to You on the water.” Remember that nothing had changed as far as the waves and the wind. When Peter heard the Lord (verse 29) say, “…Come…” Peter climbed down out of the boat and walked on the water. Is that amazing or what!

Verse 30 says, “But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, Lord save me!” Wait. What happened? The waves and the wind were still there when he started walking to Jesus.

Here is what Jesus said to Peter, “…O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” Has the Lord ever told you to do something and you started out well? Then your mind was assailed with fear, doubt, and unbelief. You were stopped in your tracks. No more forward movement.

When Peter took his eyes off the Lord, he began to fear because all he saw was the boisterous wind. How like us. Don’t look at your circumstances. Remember that satan will do anything he can to get us to veer off the path of righteousness.

Do you remember what Philip said to the Ethiopian eunuch? The Lord sent him quickly to overtake the chariot. He heard what the eunuch was reading. Acts 8:30 says, “So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, Do you understand what you are reading?”

The eunuch replied in verse 31, “…How can I, unless someone guides me?…” Romans 10:14 says, “How then shall they call on Him to whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”

We are all called to evangelize. My take away from my reading is this. Unless I clearly explain the gospel, the enemy will snatch away what I say. The person might hear what I say, meaning that the seed fell on their ears. Yet, did it get absorbed into their heart?

We are the messenger. It is up to the Holy Spirit to bring the conviction of sin for salvation. However, we need to be sure that we are fulfilling our part. Does what I say match my lifestyle? Do I speak life-giving words that are backed by character that exemplifies the Lord?

Peter addressed the Sanhedrin with boldness. He declared to them the way of salvation. Acts 4:12 says, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Verse 13 says, “…they realized that they had been with Jesus.” What a commendation!

Paul’s prayer continued in verse 10. Let his words sink into your spirit and rest there. Receive them for yourself. He prayed, “That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy.”

When I don’t know how to pray for someone who is spiritually struggling, I use these verses. It is God’s word that will never return to Him void. He constantly watches over His word to perform it on our behalf.

Romans 8:29 says, “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son…” It is through the discipline of our trials that He works His character into us. Like a Master Potter, He works the water of His word into our heart.

The progression of Romans 5:3-4 bears out this irrefutable truth. The Amplified says, “Moreover (let us also be full of joy now!) let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance.

And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character (of this sort) produces (the habit of) joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation.”

Hebrews 10:36 says, “For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.” The Greek word for endurance is hupomone. I love the definition of this word. It is like spiritual rebar.

Note in my Bible: It means constancy, perseverance, continuance, bearing up, steadfastness, holding out, patient endurance. It combines hupo, “under” and mone, “to remain.” It describes the capacity to continue to bear up under difficult circumstances, not with a passive complacency, but with a hopeful fortitude that actively resists weariness and defeat.

Jesus is our example of endurance. Hebrews 12:2 says, “…who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame…” Isaiah 52:14 says, “…His visage was marred more than any man.”

Isaiah 53:11 says, “He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities.” 1 Peter 2:24 says, “Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.”

How then shall we walk in Christlikeness? Romans 6 is a great chapter to memorize and meditate on. Verse 13 says, “And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.”

When I was in first grade we were given a coloring book. Each page was designed to help us share and not be me-centered. Why is it so hard for children to learn to share? We are born with a sin nature.

I mentioned narcissists yesterday. Psychology says that it is a personality disorder. What does the Bible say? John 6:63 says that our flesh profits nothing. A biblical definition for narcissistic behavior would be: me-centered, selfish, self-idolatry, my way is the only way, and pure ego rooted in sinful words and actions.

What is Christ-centered? I had a favorite hymn when I was young that was my theme song. It is called “Others” and is a prayer. The chorus is: Others, Lord, yes others. Let this my motto be. Help me to live for others, that I might live for Thee.”

Galatians 5:16 says, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Can a true believer in Christ be a narcissist? Yes. When we seek our own way and demand that others follow us.

Proverbs 10:17 Amplified showed the contrast between being Christ-centered or self-centered. It says, “He who heeds instruction and correction is (not only himself) in the way of life (but also) IS a way of life for others. And he who neglects or refuses reproof (not only himself) goes astray (but also) causes to err and is a path toward ruin for others.”

Paul wrote to the Corinthians to follow his example. 1 Corinthians 11:1 says, “Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.” Paul patterned his life after the life of Christ. As we read the four gospels, we can watch Jesus in action.

A person who lives in their flesh refuses all correction. They see nothing wrong in their behavior, because they are deceived and do not know it. Hebrews 3:13 warned, “…lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”

Romans 8:5 says, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.” Romans 6:11 says, “Likewise you also, reckon yourselves dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Self-denial is a high watermark of an authentic follower of Jesus. I encourage you to read chapter one of 1 John. Jesus’ disciples personally walked with Jesus. Verse 1 says, “…which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life.”

John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” 1 John 2:6 says, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as Jesus walked.”

We gain our understanding of how Jesus walked as we daily read our Bibles. It is through His word that we become acquainted with Him. As we abide in Him, He abides in us, and draws us into intimate communion with Himself. 

2 Corinthians 3:18 says that as we gaze upon the Lord, we are transformed, “…into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” Colossians 1:9-11 was Paul’s prayer for the folks in the Colosse church.

It is our template for being Christ-centered. Verse 9 says, “…that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.” I will continue this tomorrow.

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True inner freedom says NO to our flesh. It is called self-denial. It comes up constantly in our journey of progressive sanctification. Matthew 16:24 says, “…If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.”

Following in Jesus’ footsteps looks like Psalm 85:13. It says, “Righteousness will go before Him, and shall make His footsteps our pathway.” That does not leave any room for our flesh. It is a narrow path. 

In Genesis 4:7 God instructed Cain. We do well to heed His words. It says, “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well,  sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

We were given dominion. That means that we are not to allow anyone or anything to rule over us. Years ago I heard a definition of the Jezebel spirit: controlling another through a spirit other than the Holy Spirit. What did Jezebel do? She took away Naboth’s inheritance through her witchcraft (1 Kings 21:1-16).

1 Samuel 15:23 says, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…” The devil is crafty. He looks for those he can use against another. His goal is to permeate the body of Christ and bring division.

We each have a holy calling. 1 Thessalonians 5:24 says, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.” The Holy Spirit within us is our Leader. When we follow Him, we will be equipped to do the work the Lord has called us to do.

Beware, lest anyone try to usurp His place. We sin against God when we allow someone or something to take dominion. This pops up in interpersonal relationships in our families and within our local church. 

False teaching can creep in and lead us astray. In my lifetime, there have been numerous high profile men who created a dominated following through false doctrine. Matthew 15:8-9 says, “These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me,

And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.” Verse 6 says, “…Thus you made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.” What tradition of man have you been sucked into? It makes me think of Tevye in “Fiddler On The Roof” singing, “Tradition!”

Remember the broken cisterns from Jeremiah 2:13? It is a great description of our flesh. It says, “For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.”

I recently read a book for a friend about narcissists. Their main goal is to control others through their self-centered demands. When we receive satan’s lies, we will be controlled by them. Remember, that he seeks to divide. He uses others’ fleshly desires to control our freedom of choice.

An authentic follower of Jesus seeks to be controlled only by the Holy Spirit. He is our Fruit Producer. Galatians 5:22-23 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…”

On the 4th of July, America celebrated the freedom of our nation. The Declaration Of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. 13 American colonies celebrated their independence from Great Britain. 

The moment we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we severed our allegiance to the prince of the power of the air. All control was broken through Jesus’ death for us. We entered into our freedom through dependence on the Lord.

John 8:36 says, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” This verse followed a very important truth for Jesus’ disciples—that’s us. John 8:31-32 says, “…If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Paul warned his readers about how not to use their freedom. Galatians 5:13 says, “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”

We lose our freedom when we critically judge another. Romans 2:1 says, “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.”

We have many choices in our freedom in Christ. I’m reading through the book of Matthew as I type this. We still have a free will. When we veer off our progressive sanctification path, we will sin against the Lord.

Matthew 7:13 says, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.” The wide gate holds no restriction for our flesh.

Verse 14 says, “Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Narrow to me means a tight squeeze, restriction on both sides, tunnel vision, and no way to turn back. It reminds me of being inside an MRI machine.

Romans 14:4 says, “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.” Each one of our hearts is open before the Lord. Nothing is hidden. Every thought is known by Him even before we think it.

Therefore we will continue to walk in our freedom when we are attentive to the Holy Spirit. He will ‘check’ us when we are still in the thought stage. At that moment we have a choice. We can submit to His way, or chose to go our own fleshly way. More on this tomorrow.