Edification part 3
"It doesn't cost anything to be nice." I agree with that statement 100%. And yet... it seems like its so much easier to be mean. And when people do mean, selfish, wicked things it seems like they shrug their shoulders and blame "human nature." They say, "Meh. I'm only human. What do you expect?" But... but watch this: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them" (Genesis 1:26-27). And watch this: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). One more: "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power" (Colossians 2:9-10). Do you see what I'm getting at? We put this separation, or this disconnect, between God and man. Like, "He's up here, and I'm waaaay down here." When in fact we were created in His image. And He (love) was made flesh and dwelt among us. Then through the cross He took it a step further and began to dwell IN us. Jesus is the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Love in a body, filled all the way to overflowing. And, in the same way that He is complete in us... we are complete in Him. Human nature is NOT the selfish, soulful, beast nature of the Old Man. The Old Man died on the cross. And the NEW MAN was raised up to walk in newness of life. Human nature is the love nature that is letting God love you and loving others with that same love! Receiving and releasing the gift that we've been given. And here's where it ties in to the idea of edification: It really doesn't cost anything to be nice. But it is SO valuable. Building someone up... loving them... instead of tearing them down or condemning them. But it comes from within. My last verse for today: "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh" (Luke 6:45). And I'm not getting into "good men" and "evil men" today. I'm simply saying, what's in there--what you BELIEVE is in there--comes out. We live out of the abundance of our hearts. The issues of life flow out from within the heart. So in order to build someone up, you have to let yourself be built up. Strengthened by the Holy Spirit in the inner man, right? Letting that still, small voice of God that says, "I love you" with every beat of His heart in your chest build you up. And then you can build others up. Naturally. Because when you partake of the Divine Nature you find that YOU are a divine being! That's who Jesus is--God in the flesh, love in a body. God in YOUR flesh, love in YOUR body--and that's who YOU are. Because who you are in Christ is who Christ is in you. Jesus is our true identity. The master carpenter built (and continues to build) us up. With mercy, and grace, and kindness, and forgiveness, and love. So that we can build one another up. With mercy, and grace, and kindness, and forgiveness... and love!