Appendix 1M; Equipped for Every Good Work
A humble, hopeful motive, driven by faith, is the Attitude (A) that begins the A, B, C’s of Christlike living. Any other motive that kick-starts action likely stems from a prideful human perspective and will trigger behavior (B) that will be double-minded, self-serving and possibly manipulative. The resulting Consequences (C’s) will be tainted. Only God can interrupt this delusional sin cycle (Romans 1:21). God awakens the conscious and gives every person the choice to respond to the good news of the Gospel. Once your conscience is awakened, make the choice to renew your soul with God’s truth. Your decision to bend your will to rely upon the Divine power of the Spirit, D, activates the strength to form new behavioral habits; D(A + B). This decision stems from a pure motive of love and gratitude towards God, producing righteous behavior, that brings peace from Christian cognitive consistency because of the power of the Holy Spirit expressed through you, shaping your holy consequences driven by your decision to follow the way of righteousness, D(A+B) = C . In order to persist through the change cycle so conformity does not feel like an obligation (head knowledge), you’ll need to have a willing attitude and make a heartfelt choice to show your loyalty to God through action. The heart transformation is spiritual and begins and ends with God, but the change process is physical and is man’s responsibility.
D
You’ve been “equipped for every good work” to be a productive Christian (2 Timothy 1:6-7, 3:17, see “Fit to be Used” Bible study in the Capture your Vision tab). When you decide to keep your A, B, C’s in alignment with who you are in Christ, C , you produce the fruit of the Spirit and can enjoy a full life on earth; C = E (Psalm 91, Isaiah 58:11, John 8:32, 10:10, 15:4, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 5:22-23). Your decision to produce the characteristics of the Holy Spirit ("fruit") in you is your free will response to God’s mercy and grace (Romans 8:28-30, 12:1-3). Your choice to abide in (or obey, or imitate) Christ leads to the joy that comes from living out your Christian values. Showing integrity to God is a choice in both action and attitude. Accepting the truth that God loves you will prompt you to trust Him. When your trust of His truth is acted upon, His trustworthiness is proven. Trust proven generates positive emotions that cumulate in a loving relationship. A choice to love God "never fails" because His character integrity is shown by love, bounded by holiness and justice. Because of His reliability (unchanging nature) your trust / obedience is ever-increasing (2 Timothy 2:11-13, 2 Peter 1:8-9). Your trust acts and God’s love persists-it’s an endless cycle! Decide to put on Christ and get dressed for the action of faith as you live out your Christian integrity, despite a corrupt world (Romans 6:5-6, Colossians 3:10, Ephesians 6:10-18).
Trust is seen when you do and speak what you know of God’s Word while seeking to learn more and more of the Word. The more you know, the more you grow and the more you can show your faith by acting on the Word. Acting on the knowledge you know about God is what makes you a productive New Testament Christian; some 30, 60, or 100% productive (Mark 4:8). Some believers get stalled in their faith when circumstances get overwhelming and worry, fear, shame, or unbelief creeps in. (See the parable of the talents Matthew 25:14-30 or the imagery used in 1 Corinthians in 3:15). This is an example of having only one side of the coin that was discussed in Appendix 1A. While this group of believers are saved spiritually, they aren’t productive and do not reap eternal life on earth because of their unbelief (Matthew 13:58, Mark 9:24, 16:14). But the believer who knows God and is grateful for His Presence conquers fear by using what they know and believe of their faith publicly. (Your personal faith is what you know and believe of the Word of God, not what some else told you that you should believe.) Personal knowledge of God, acted out, proves God to yourself and others (Romans 12:1-3, Ephesians 2:10, 3:20, Hebrews 12:28, 2 Peter 1:3-10, 1 John 4:8).
D
D
2
Eternal excellence (E2) because of D(A + B)= CD is achieved when your hope in Christ sees the future, your faith believes it’s possible, your trust acts consistently with the Word and, because you love, you actively wait until what has been promised by God (who is Love) becomes apparent in life - according to His sovereignty and timing (Matthew 25:31-46, Galatians 5:13,1 Thessalonians 1:3, 5:19-24, Hebrews 13:1, 1 John 4:18).
It is continuous faith that makes it possible to keep walking in love down the highway of holiness
(Isaiah 35:8, 1 Corinthians 16:14, 2 Corinthians 5:7).