<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Philippians 1;29&amp;30<div><br></div><div><b>29. &nbsp;For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,</b></div><div><b>30. &nbsp;engaged in the same conflict which you saw and now hear to be mine.</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>To be <i>“granted” </i>that we&nbsp;<i>“suffer”</i>&nbsp;in our&nbsp;love and devotion to Christ and the gospel, is God’s gift to us.</div><div><br></div><div>Suffering in faith&nbsp;is worship. &nbsp;It is the <i>“putting off of our old nature (which belongs to your former manner of life&nbsp;and is corrupt through deceitful lusts), and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put</i><i>&nbsp;on the new nature, created in the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”&nbsp;</i><span>&nbsp;This&nbsp;is a display of Christ indwelling us.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Such suffering is seldom public. &nbsp;Not many of us will be granted to honor of imprisonment or even death for the sake of Christ. &nbsp;But, all of us share in the suffering of Christ when we refuse to be deceived by our lusts, passions, fears,&nbsp;and appetites. &nbsp;When we, <i>“by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body” </i>(Romans 8;11-14) we partake of the divine nature. &nbsp;The love of God at work within us overpowers the deceitful&nbsp;love of self. &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>It is ‘love of self’ which causes us to be unfaithful to our vows, to become addicted, to be dishonest, to be depressed and discontented. &nbsp;In short, such love of self above God is sin. &nbsp;True love of God becomes&nbsp;‘<u>right</u>&nbsp;love of self.’ &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>We receive power to love God more than self, power to deny the selfish old man, as we are transformed with renewed minds. &nbsp;The renewed mind <u>is the Mind of Christ.</u>&nbsp; The Mind of Christ inspires <u>us</u>&nbsp;to cry out in prayer, “Abba! Father!” ‘Not my will, but Thine be done.’ &nbsp;&nbsp;</span><span>This is the work of the Holy Spirit within us by the Word. &nbsp;</span><span>(See, Romans 12;1&amp;2 and Romans 8;15-17).</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>This is what <i>“walking by the Spirit” </i>means. &nbsp;(See, Romans 8;4 and Galatians 5;16-25)</span></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Prayer: &nbsp;O most merciful Father, grant us wisdom and grace to suffer with Christ, to walk by the Spirit, and live in true newness of life. &nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</div><div><br></div><div>Love,</div><div>Dad/Baba/Eric</div><div>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</div><div>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”<br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Philippians 1;29&30
29.  For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake,30.  engaged in the same conflict which you saw and now hear to be mine.
To be “granted” that we “suffer” in our love and devotion to Christ and the gospel, is God’s gift to us.
Suffering in faith is worship.  It is the “putting off of our old nature (which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful lusts), and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new nature, created in the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”  This is a display of Christ indwelling us.
Such suffering is seldom public.  Not many of us will be granted to honor of imprisonment or even death for the sake of Christ.  But, all of us share in the suffering of Christ when we refuse to be deceived by our lusts, passions, fears, and appetites.  When we, “by the Spirit, put to death the deeds of the body” (Romans 8;11-14) we partake of the divine nature.  The love of God at work within us overpowers the deceitful love of self.  
It is ‘love of self’ which causes us to be unfaithful to our vows, to become addicted, to be dishonest, to be depressed and discontented.  In short, such love of self above God is sin.  True love of God becomes ‘right love of self.’  
We receive power to love God more than self, power to deny the selfish old man, as we are transformed with renewed minds.  The renewed mind is the Mind of Christ.  The Mind of Christ inspires us to cry out in prayer, “Abba! Father!” ‘Not my will, but Thine be done.’   This is the work of the Holy Spirit within us by the Word.  (See, Romans 12;1&2 and Romans 8;15-17).
This is what “walking by the Spirit” means.  (See, Romans 8;4 and Galatians 5;16-25)

Prayer:  O most merciful Father, grant us wisdom and grace to suffer with Christ, to walk by the Spirit, and live in true newness of life.  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we are His.”

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