Wherever Jesus went (after He was sent out to preach), He never changed who He was. In the Synagogue, in Solomon's Temple, in people's houses, in the public square, on the hill side, by the seashore, and on the mountaintop. It didn't matter where He went or what situation He found Himself in, His heart and His mind was fixed on His Father and on the work He was given to do while He walked the face of this earth.
If you are a Christian, (Born of water and the Spirit), we are called to be like our Master! How was He able to do what He did? Because He was empowered by the Spirit of God and His soul was full of the fruits of the Spirit! Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, Faith, and Self-Control.
The fruit of the Spirit is NOT a willful change of one's own self, but a supernatural work of God through His Spirit inside the immortal soul (heart and mind) of the believer and follower of Jesus Christ!
This is exactly why Jesus said, "By their fruits you will know them", and "Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks."
In every situation Jesus was placed in, He responded with the fruits of the Spirit perfected in His soul. Loved, when He was hated, Kind and Gentle, when He was confronted, Faithful, when faced with persecution and His imminent crucifixion. Jesus displayed all the fruits of the Spirit during His life and earthly ministry.
If you profess to be a Christian and go to a church service on Sunday, say amen and clap your hands, but the moment you leave the building, you go to the local pub to watch the football game, drink beer and yell at the T.V., something is wrong! Or if you were looking at your phone the whole time checking the latest scores while you sat in service, are you really a Christian?
Being a Christian, a disciple of Jesus, is a daily lifestyle, a daily dying to the flesh and the things of this world. A literal spiritual transformation from the old man into a new creation in Christ Jesus. If you find yourself acting one way inside the church building and the exact opposite, outside the building, you definitely need to examine yourself to see if you are really in the faith!
It's easy to put on a show for people and act pious and religious, but God knows the heart! He sees everything that is going on inside the soul and He knows those who serve Him and those who are faking it for whatever the reason. This is also why Jesus is going to separate the sheep from the goats when He returns. The ungodly hypocrites will wonder when they didn't serve Jesus, and He will tell them the truth about themselves, and the righteous will wonder when DID they do all the things Jesus mentions?
Matthew 25:31-46
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the [c]holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
“Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’
“Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Matthew 7:21-23
Do you change your colors like a Chameleon?
Jesus Christ, the SAME, yesterday, today, and forever! Let those who truly love the Lord strive to be more like Him every day!
In Christ Jesus,
Tyrone
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