Choices

God chose to give you free will to use as you see fit. But that doesn't mean He's okay with the choices you make.

The invisible spirit realm is a very busy place. It's loaded with God's holy angels and Satan's demons. They're not just standing around twiddling their thumbs.

• God's angels work hard to reinforce righteousness (Hebrews 1:14).

• Demons work hard to reinforce evil (John 10:10).

God gave limited authority over the earth to Adam (Genesis 1:26). When Adam chose to obey Satan instead of God, he handed himself and his authority to Satan. Not only that. His spirit died to God. (Genesis2:17; Romans 6:16).

Jesus chose to die for us, paying the full price for Adam's sin. With His death and resurrection, Jesus took back all of the authority and ownership Adam had given away (Matthew 28:18).

Satan and his minions have lost the war, but we do not yet see the full results of their defeat (Hebrews 2:8). It's coming, but for now, evil remains very active in both the visible and invisible realms.

Once we're born again, we're no longer trapped in Satan's realm of darkness. We have been delivered out of that fallen realm. Our citizenship has been transferred into Jesus' Kingdom (Colossians 1:13).

Satan's demons are real. The way demons operate in this world, if you give them an inch, they'll try to take a mile.

They want to take up residence inside physical bodies (John 13:27). They will lie about everything, disguise their presence and make you think that their thoughts and evil passions are really yours.

Jesus often cast demons out of people (Matthew 8:16; Mark 1:34; Mark 5:1-13; Luke 4:41; Luke 11:14).

Jesus gave His disciples the authority to cast out demons (Matthew 10:8; Mark 16:17; Acts 16:16-18; Acts 19:13-16).

When a demon is evicted from a person, the demon wants to return or find another human host. If the cleansed person doesn't fill that void with new life in Jesus, the demon will easily return  (Matthew12:43-45).

We touch the invisible world and it touches us. Every day, the way we think, speak and live impacts both the seen and unseen realms.

Whether we realize it or not, holy angels are wrestling alongside us against Satan's minions and their evil (2 Kings 6:17; Daniel 10:12-13: 2 Corinthians 10:4; Ephesians 6:12). Just as an army rookie goes through extensive training, Believers will become more capable warriors as they learn and gain experience in righteousness.

Your choices -- the way you live your life, the things you believe, say and do -- have an impact in both realms (Proverbs 18:21; Matthew 12:36-37). As you follow Jesus, you are demonstrating what He can do with people who turn to Him in faith and surrender (Ephesians 3:10-11).

At the right time, God will bring all of the wrestling between the forces of good verses the forces of evil to an end. He calls that right time Judgement Day (Revelation 20:11-15). He's holding off for now, waiting for more souls to turn to Jesus before it's too late.

Choosing to belong to Jesus is the only way out of final judgement. Jesus' payment is our get-out-of-jail-free card. He is the only get-out-of-jail-free card there is (John 14:6; Hebrews 2:9).

The moment you choose to accept Jesus' payment and turn your life over to Him, you get a brand new  born-from-above spirit that is fully clean and in synch with Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:17; 1 John 4:17; Hebrews 10:10; Hebrews 12:23). If your body died at that moment, your spirit would go straight to heaven (The Truth About Death).

But as long as you're on this earth, the Holy Spirit will work in your soul to reprogram your mind, will, and emotions (Romans12:2). That's called sanctification.

Gaining a born again spirit happens in the blink of an eye. But sanctification of the soul is an ongoing process. (Hebrews 10:14). It's a lifetime of surrender, right choices, growth and transformation (The Three Salvations and Sanctification, the Middle State of Salvation).

After you're born again, you still have free will. Wrong choices can make your journey down the path of sanctification a lot harder than it has to be.

Your choices make your heart harder or softer to the Lord. It really is up to you. Choosing to keep a tender heart towards God is vital. A tender heart makes for a far more effective, worthwhile and happy life.

 

Big Warning 

A hard heart and sin go hand in hand (Hebrews 3:12-13). Together, they set up an ungodly process that opens the door ever wider for demons to operate in your life (2 Peter 1:9).

Given enough rope, sin and unbelief will take you captive to do Satan's will. (2 Timothy 2:25-26). And that, my friend, is a very bad thing. It's a miserable place to be. So stay tenderhearted towards God.

If you are caught up in a dark place of captivity to sin and the devil, 1 Corinthians 10:13 reassures you that God provides a way out. Escape will involve confession, fresh repentance, and return to a tender heart of deep surrender. Escape is there for you (1 John 1:9).

Oh how He wants us free! Free from sin, shame, and the grip of demons. Free to love Him more and more! Free to walk in newness and abundance of life! (John 10:10; Romans 6:4)

And it's not just about OUR  freedom. Loving Him with all the heart, soul, mind and strength (Matthew 22:37) opens your life up for God to love on you without restraint. Isn't that ultimately what He's really after?

God has so much more for you if only you choose His path.

 

Final Thoughts

Deeper heart surrender means you're trusting, loving and embracing His Lordship even more. The deeper you  surrender your life to Jesus, the better. You'll gain immeasurably more than you give. That principle is reflected in Mark 10:29-30.

Surrendering deeper to Jesus is ALWAYS to your benefit. I'm convinced that when we get to heaven, each of us will wish we'd gone even deeper with Him. (Proverbs 3:5-6; Luke 9:23; Romans 15:13; 1 Peter 5:7; James 4:7).

• The more you choose to know and believe the Bible, the better (2 Timothy 2:15).

• Being filled with the Holy Spirit is really a big deal (More Holy Spirit, Please and He's Not Your Drunk Uncle)

• Engaging in real worship and meaningful prayer help keep your heart in tune with God's heart (Philippians 4:6; Ephesians 5:19; 1Thessalonians 5:16-18).

• Having close fellowship with a community of on-fire Believers really helps (Colossians 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 3:13).