What would you do?

What would you do if you knew, really knew, that God cannot fail?Think, think about it and pray...

If I really, REALLY knew?I'd fall on my face in thanksgiving and worship.I'm posting a new thread: "A Saviour to the Uttermost" by T.Austin-Sparks.I'm posting it in response to Lars' question.It begins like this:"'Wherefore also He is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them' (Heb. 7:25; RV). "Howsoever viewed, this is a great and heartening statement. The ability of our Lord Jesus Christ to save at all times and in all circumstances is the sheet anchor of the faith of God's people. A SAVIOUR WHO NEVER FAILS, who can never be confronted with a situation too difficult for Him, is a fundamental necessity to all who are seeking to live to the glory of God in an end time, and who are, therefore, continually meeting the fierce and unceasing antagonism of the forces of darkness....." Roger

I would Trust. Trust Him that I would be satisfied with what He has for me in every single area of my life."GOD IS MOST GLORIFIED WHEN WE ARE MOST SATISFIED IN HIM." J.PiperBut it takes trust.~Chanin

An insight of this kind would bring infinite trust in the One who cannot fail in a world which despises truth, especially a truth of this category,in a world which despises those who pursue truth

An insight of this kind would bring infinite trust in the One who cannot fail in a world which despises truth, especially a truth of this category,in a world which despises those who pursue truth.

I would cling to Him as if my life depended on Him. He would be my ever present thought.To know Him, my consuming passion.My goal to be like His Son, who was always about His Father's business.If there is anything of reality that is striking to me of late, it would be the refreshing taste of truth, authenticity, that has been coming to these ears, eye's and more importantly spirit.At the same time though is the almost desparingly realization of how far short I fail to live out these truths. The words "I am not dead yet" have been echoing in my head for awhile now, not dead to myself, not fully surrendered.Because of this stubborness, it is if the Lord has allowed me to wander about in this tension, waiting for me to make the first move. "Go to Nineveh", but I have refused. Could it be that it is the last thing that I am holding on to? That He has asked for and I am willingly and yet unwillingly wrestling to let go of.Enough with the illustration's...Here is my problem.Smoking. I have no power in me to overcome this, that is in the flesh. What is it, 25 years now? It is a deep rooted bondage and it has to be dealt with.My fear is that it will take some tragedy to come to an end of myself and I can only hope to avoid this by dealing with it before hand.This may not sound like a big deal to many, but I will tell you that my will to not give this up is stronger than my will to be obedient to the Lord and that frightens me.Miraculous deliverance? Always possible.My sense, suffering.I am not to that point yet, of surrender.But I have to be.I covet your prayers.

What do you think will happen to you if you try to quit? Pain? Extreme uncomfortableness?... Don't you think it is the fear of not being able to handle it? Everything that we hold onto has to go. We have to only be relying on Him. If we cannot let it go- it is an idol. It is another "love".I know exactly where you are coming from. He has dealt with me on this in more than one issue. It is so hard but He wants to see if you trust Him.Trust Him.My prayers are with you. Don't let the enemy get the best of this stronghold. Let God come out the victor in this one. :-) Encouraging you all the way!!!~Chanin

Mike (crschk):I just wanted to share a couple of things with you. I'm sure you know everyhting I will say but I want you to be encouraged and free.I want you to know that I myself struggled with smoking after I was saved. I would smoke, be very convicted, confess and go a while in what appeared to be victory for months and then, boom! fall again. I went in this same cycle for a few years. All I can say is I know I am free now but I don't have a formula. I simply got tired of sin and confess over the same thing I just cried out to God.Another thing I know is that I was not in any company or fellowship with people who would say it's alright for me to smoke. If I had heard such a thing my freedom could have been hindered.There is no power in us to quit something like that because it is deep rooted. But Jesus Christ can give you the power to do it. One scripture that comes to mind is that he who suffers in the flesh has ceased to sin. We must suffer in our flesh with something like this. It will be and is a death to self.I know we can all give words to you but what we really need to do is pray with you. By confessing this to everyone you have opened the door for us to pray for you and with you. I will pray that God would first give you a hatred for it and then the freedom from it.God bless you brother and keep clinging to Jesus!Mike

I have no power in me to overcome this, that is in the flesh. What is it, 25 years now? It is a deep rooted bondage and it has to be dealt with.We stand back to back with you brother. May the Lord give you strength and peace.He has been so faithful to me in delivering me from physical addictions. Two weeks after I was born of the Spirit the Lord showed me that I needed to quit smoking through a chance encounter with my pastor at a Christian bookstore. The Lord showed me how it hurt my testimony for Him. As I walked out of the bookstore I tossed my last pack of smokes in the garbage and by the grace of God I haven't touched one since. I had a 1 1/2 pack-a-day habit for 20 years, I could have never quit in my own power.More recently the Lord showed me that I had a caffeine addiction and He gave me great grace in delivering me there as well, praise His name!I don't want to be a slave to anything of this world. Let all captivity be turned over to Jesus.You are in my prayers.Ron

Thank you, all of you.Your prayers mean so much to me.Mike

Hi Mike,You're in good company bro..In Romans Chapt. 7 the Apostle Paul lamented the same problems that you have spoken of. He said in II Cor. 12:7 that, " a mesenger of Satan" (a demon) had been sent to beat him up.I believe that All disease has a spiritual root, and that it's not God that is putting these maladys on us.Also, based on scripture, I have to hold out for the fact that it's ALWAYS God's will to heal. :-) You mentioned deliverance, and that is what you need. But, probably not in in way that you picture deliverance. That is, deliverance based on the modern models of ministry that we're familiar with. :-( Pastor Henry Wright, of Pleasant Valley Church in Thomaston Ga. has written a book entitled " A More Excellent Way". If you apply the scriptural teachings contained in this book, it WILL help you. :-) If you're interested, send me a private message with your mailing address, and I'll send you a copy. ;-) Clutch 8-)

one thing to believe that God cannot fail, and another to believe that you cannot fail.-mellian

Bless you Clutch.P.M. on the way...Mike

It is indeed one thing to believe and trust in God cannot fail to save to the utmost. To be anchored here is to be involved in the eternal purposes of God, which focuses on the establishing of a testimony of the Glory of the Son and the Lordship of the Son.It is certainly another, very different thing to believe that man cannot fail. This stance has its root in vanity. It is man fully side-tracked, believing flesh to have capacity to survive the Cross of Christ.Forgive me for being a bit blunt, but it is a matter of salvation or faith on its way being shipwrecked.

It is amazing to me sometimes how these forums gain a life of their own and the direction they go in....5na wrote " there is no power in us to quit something like that because it is deep rooted. But Jesus can give you the power to do it." I believe that with any sin or "stumbling block" in our walk, God will guide us to a position to come to the end of ourselves, and at that moment we will move aside and allow the Lord to work through us. Any time I have ever had God move dramatically (in my estimation)in my life is when I had reached the end of myself.....as far as Jesus giving us the "power" to do things, to overcome , to heal, to move mountains is a true misunderstanding in deed...God never gives us anything, but what we give God is the sacrifice of ourselves that He may work through us. Our true sacrifice is at the Cross, and the sacrifice is ourselves---then the Lord may freely move in our lives.As far as what Lars had written originally, I will have to take time to truly pray about what the Lord is telling us... ;-) ;-) ;-)

Quote:Pastor Henry Wright, of Pleasant Valley Church in Thomaston Ga. has written a book entitled " A More Excellent Way".There is a review of this book atwww.bible.org/docs/br/bookreview-01.htmRoger

Quote:"Jesus Christ can give you the power to do it."In his work on Sanctification, Marshall, in the twelfth chapter, on "Holiness through faith alone," puts with great force the danger in which the Christian is of seeking sanctification in the power of the flesh, "with the help of Christ", instead of looking for it to Christ alone, and receiving it from Him by faith. He reminds us how there are two natures in the believer, and so two ways of seeking holiness, according as we allow the principles of the one or other nature to guide us. The one is the carnal way, in which we put forth our utmost efforts and resolutions, trusting Christ to help us in doing so. The other the spiritual way, in which, as those who have died, and can do nothing, our one care is to receive Christ day by day, and at every step to let Him live and work in us."Despair of purging the flesh or natural man of its sinful lusts and inclinations, and of practising holiness by your willing sand resolving to do the best that lieth in your own power, and trusting on the grace of God and Christ to help you in such resolutions and endeavours. Rather resolve to trust on Christ to work in you to will and to do by His own power according to His own good pleasure. They that are convinced of their own sin and misery do commonly first think to tame the flesh, and to subdue and root out its lusts, and to make their corrupt nature to be better-natured and inclined to holiness by theirstruggling and wrestling with it; and if they can but bring their hearts to a full purpose and resolution to do the best that lieth in them, they hope that by such a resolution they shall be able to achieve great enterprises in the conquests of their lusts and performance of the most difficult duties. It is the great work of some zealous divines in their preachings and writings to stir up people to this resolution, wherein they place the chiefest turningpoint from sin to godliness. And they think that this is not contrary to the life of faith, because they trust in the grace of God through Christ to help them in all such resolutions and endeavours. Thus they endeavour to reform their old state, and to be made perfect in the flesh, instead of putting it off and walking according to the new state in Christ. They trust on low carnal thins for holiness, and upon the acts of their own will, their purposes, resolutions, and endeavours, instead of Christ; and they trust to Christ to help them in this carnal way; whereas true faith would teach them that they are nothing, and that they do but labour in vain."Andrew Murray - "Abide in Christ"; footnote to chapter29 (Abide in Christ - And Not in Self)Roger

"I came back with such a cry from a recent overseas trip that the Gospel, the everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ needs to be proclaimed, not so much to the world as, first, to the Church. It is amazing how few Christians know it; how few understand it; how few have been affected by it; how few are living in it; how many who call themselves “Christians” enjoying the benefits, so-called, of the New Covenant are living essential Old Covenant lives, bound and under the law, thinking that by their deeds they can somehow buy themselves something that could be called redemptive. Do you think only the Jews know the Law? Law is any attempt by men, through human effort, to earn for themselves a modicum of religious satisfaction, and acceptance with God. ‘God gave His only-begotten Son, full of grace,’ and how many of us have yet to taste that grace. Legalisms abound in a no-man’s land of religious frustration and defeat. Weary millions profess for doctrines realities which they never have experienced."And they Crucified Him - Art Katz A good place to begin to understand the New Covenant is with Andrew Murray's "The Holiest of All"; a remarkable verse-by-verse devotional expositon of the Letter to the Hebrews.Roger

There are other book reviews on " A More Excellent Way" on Amazon.com. Scroll down, and read the Customer Reviews section there.Clutch :-)

Roger, great quote and it describes exactly what the Lord has revealed to me over the past year....just some clarification--you start out quoting Marshall and then end with murray --which Marshall are you referring to? thanks scott

Scott writes:"great quote and it describes exactly what the Lord has revealed to me over the past year....just some clarification--you start out quoting Marshall and then end with murray --which Marshall are you referring to? The first paragraph is pure Murray. The second paragraph is Marshall’s own words, and Murray is quoting him. Murray refers to him also in a footnote to his (Murray’s) chapter 9 Of “Abide in Christ”—‘As Your Sanctification’.I’ve linked to chapter 9 of “Abide in Christ”. The note is at the end of the chapter.http://worldinvisible.com/library/murray/5f00.0562/5f00.0562.09.htmMurray does not give Marshall’s first name, but Marshall’s book was called “The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification”. I’ve been unable to locate the book.Thanks so much, Scott, for sharing what He has been doing. May He continue ....

Brothers and sisters,At the risk of being tedious,I ask you to consider the common factor in the following statements:"I came back with such a cry from a recent overseas trip that the Gospel, the everlasting Gospel of Jesus Christ needs to be proclaimed, not so much to the world as, first, to the Church. It is amazing how few Christians know it; how few understand it; how few have been affected by it; how few are living in(the New Covenant) ...how many are living essential Old Covenant lives, bound and under the law ... ‘God gave His only-begotten Son, full of grace,’and how many of us have yet to taste that grace. Legalisms abound in a no-man’s land of religious frustration and defeat." Art Katz "And They Crucified Him" (see post above)."The thought that in the personal holiness of our Lord a new holy nature was formed to be communicated to us, and that we make use of it by faith, is the central idea of Marshall's invaluable work, The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification:" Murray (from chapter 9 of "Abide in Christ")"One great mystery is, that the holy frame and disposition whereby our souls are furnished and enabled for immediate practice of the law, must be obtained by receiving it out of Christ's fulness, as a thing already prepared and brought to an existence for us in Christ, and treasured up in Him; and that, as we are justified by a righteousness wrought out in Christ, and imputed to us, so we are sanctified by such an holy frame and qualification as are first wrought out and completed in Christ for us, and then imparted to us. As our natural corruption was produced originally in the first Adam, and propagated from him to us, so our new nature and holiness is first produced in Christ, and derived from Him to us, or, as it were, propagated. So that we are not at all to work together with Christ in making or producing that holy frame in us, but only to take it to ourselves, and use it in our holy practice, as made ready to our hands. Thus we have fellowship with Christ, in receiving that holy frame of spirit that was originally in Him; for fellowship is where several persons have the same things in common. This mystery is so great, that notwithstanding all the light of the Gospel, we commonly think that we must get an holy frame by producing it anew in ourselves, and by pursuing it and working it out of our own heart" . Marshall (quoted by Murray in chapter 9 of Murray's "Abide in Christ" Roger