Today's "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers uses some older language, having been written long ago, but the message is still vital for us today!
Come unto Me. — Matthew 11:28
God means us to live a fully-orbed life in Christ Jesus, but there are times when that life is attacked from the outside, and we tumble into a way of introspection which we thought had gone. Self-consciousness is the first thing that will upset the completeness of the life in God, and self-consciousness continually produces wrestling. Self-consciousness is not sin; it may be produced by a nervous temperament or by a sudden dumping down into new circumstances. It is never God’s will that we should be anything less than absolutely complete in Him. Anything that disturbs rest in Him must be cured at once, and it is not cured by being ignored, but by coming to Jesus Christ. If we come to Him and ask Him to produce Christ-consciousness, He will always do it until we learn to abide in Him.
Never allow the dividing up of your life in Christ to remain without facing it. Beware of leakage, of the dividing up of your life by the influence of friends or of circumstances; beware of anything that is going to split up your oneness with Him and make you see yourself separately. Nothing is so important as to keep right spiritually. The great solution is the simple one — “Come unto Me.” The depth of our reality, intellectually, morally and spiritually, is tested by these words. In every degree in which we are not real, we will dispute rather than come.
The temptation is there for the born again believer, every day, to 'judge' ourselves by our thoughts, words and actions, rather than by what the Word of God says about us! At the moment of our New Birth, our dead human spirits were recreated by Holy Spirit in the image of God Himself (2 Corinthians 5:17). They are perfect and cannot sin! We are no longer sinners! It is not even correct to say that we are 'old sinners, saved by Grace'! We WERE sinners! We WERE saved by Grace! We are no longer sinners (heathens, unbelievers) but we are now saints because we WERE saved by Grace! We sometimes still sin (make selfish decisions to do things our own way, rather than God's way, in thoughts or words or actions). The remedy for that sin is to recognize that it IS sin. Acknowledge that we are wrong when we are contrary to His Word and that HE is ALWAYS right! Accept and receive the forgiveness that Jesus provided and the cleansing from ALL unrighteousness (unconfessed sin) because of the precious Blood of Jesus that has already been shed for us and that continually cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7 and 9)! Go through all of the 'IN HIM' Scriptures again to renew in your own heart just who YOU are IN HIM! Then refuse to ever even consider yourself in any other light! AMEN! HE does not! GLORY! Here is Hillsong United with "Closer Than You Know":Shalom in Him!
