Pursuit Of His Presence Day 114

2 Timothy 2:24-26 

24 And the servant of the Lord must not be quarrelsome (fighting and contending). Instead, he must be kindly to everyone and mild-tempered [preserving the bond of peace]; he must be a skilled and suitable teacher, patient and forbearing and willing to suffer wrong.

25 He must correct his opponents with courtesy and gentleness, in the hope that God may grant that they will repent and come to know the Truth [that they will perceive and recognize and become accurately acquainted with and acknowledge it],

26 And that they may come to their senses [and] escape out of the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him, [henceforth] to do His [God's] will.

 

 1 John 5:4-5

 

4 For whatever is born of God is victorious over the world; and this is the victory that conquers the world, even our faith.

5 Who is it that is victorious over [that conquers] the world but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on that fact]?

 

Devotional

Strife Will Keep You Carnal

by Gloria Copeland

“For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?” 1 Corinthians 3:3
It’s bad enough that strife opens the door of our lives to confusion and every evil work (James 3:14-16). That alone should make us resist it with all our might. But that’s not all the Bible has to say about it.
In his letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul gave us even more information about the damaging effects of strife. He wrote:
“And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?” (1 Corinthians 3:1-3).
Carnal Christians are miserable people. They’re born again and they know enough about God not to enjoy sin, but they aren’t committed enough to stay out of sin.
If you don’t want to find yourself trapped in that condition (and I know you don’t) then stay out of strife, because strife will keep you carnal! It will inhibit your ability to digest the meat of the Word, and without that meat you won’t be able to grow into a strong, victorious Christian. If you fuss and bicker with others, your spiritual growth will be stunted. You’ll remain in a perpetual state of spiritual infancy and the devil will run over you regularly!
So grow up. Don’t stay a baby. Get out of strife and into the Word. Soon you’ll be the overcomer the Word says you are!
Speak the Word
“I walk in love and grow up in every way and in all things.” —Ephesians 4:15, The Amplified Bible
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