<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Mark 9;43-48<div><br></div><div><b>43. &nbsp;And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.</b></div><div>(44. same as verse 48.)</div><div><b>45. &nbsp;And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.</b></div><div>(46. Same as verse 48.)</div><div><b>47. &nbsp;And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,</b></div><div><b>48. &nbsp;where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>Sadly, some have taken Jesus’ words literally, and have actually cut off hands and gouged out eyes trying in foolish human effort trying&nbsp;to stop their&nbsp;sinning.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;There does&nbsp;exist in the new-man, born of the water and the Spirit, a sincere desire for holiness. &nbsp;A desire to do the Father’s will, (this is The Mind of Christ given into us). &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;But, we of ourselves,&nbsp;do not have the power to make ourselves&nbsp;holy in all our thoughts, words, and deeds. as Paul says, <i>“Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. &nbsp;So then it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me. &nbsp;For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. &nbsp;I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. &nbsp;For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” &nbsp;</i>(Roman 7;16-19)</div><div><br></div><div>We rightly&nbsp;seek to live <u>not</u>&nbsp;in the old-man,&nbsp;<u>not</u>&nbsp;as carnal&nbsp;people controlled by their old sinful nature, but, by faith,&nbsp;we seek&nbsp;to live&nbsp;as born-anew children of God, who love the Father,&nbsp;and strive for holiness of life.&nbsp;&nbsp;Believers&nbsp;understand that our flesh is infected with sinful desires and a rebellious will which we cannot in the strength of human good intentions&nbsp;now be fully rid of. &nbsp;We must drag this unclean thing&nbsp;through this life, like people troubled with an evil&nbsp;Siamese twin who has absolutely&nbsp;no desire to obey the will of the Father. &nbsp;&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>As long as we are in a physical&nbsp;body and here on earth, we will be this evil attached twin seeks to sin.&nbsp;Only physical death can deliver us from the&nbsp;sinful nature still in our being. &nbsp;Thankfully, we have been an escape from the power of that evil twin. &nbsp;We have been&nbsp;given spiritual death to the old-man in our baptism into Christ.</div><div><br></div><div>If we ourselves&nbsp;were&nbsp;to&nbsp;remove&nbsp;the true cause of sin in us, we would have to remove our hearts. &nbsp;As Jesus says,&nbsp;</div><div><i>“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. &nbsp;These are what defile a man;” &nbsp;</i>(Matthew 15;19&amp;20a)</div><div><br></div><div>Yet, God in his goodness and love has given us in our baptism into Christ,&nbsp;a death to sin, for us to&nbsp;share in, so that we may no longer be ‘controlled’ by the evil will and deeds which infect the flesh. &nbsp;We, through holy baptism, have been joined with Christ in His death to sin, so that the born-anew Believer may walk by faith&nbsp;in the Spirit, in&nbsp;newness of life with Christ indwelling us.&nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;In Christ, by faith we have been given a new clean heart, it is the very heart of Christ, filled with the love of God. &nbsp;This heart, dwells in our faith, and beats in the breast of the new-man, the inner-man, (<u>this is who we</u>&nbsp;<u>truly are</u>, (by faith).&nbsp;We who believe in Christ,&nbsp;are by faith called to&nbsp;believe that we the&nbsp;new-man have&nbsp;been joined <u>as one</u>&nbsp;with Jesus.&nbsp;We are to&nbsp;live in the&nbsp;new man).</div><div><br></div><div><i>“And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. &nbsp;If we live by the Spirit, let us also&nbsp;walk by the Spirit.” &nbsp;</i>(Galatians 5;24&amp;25)</div><div><br></div><div>Romans chapter six, verse 1-14, and Romans 8;1-17, must be read, learned, and meditated upon, in order to understand what power God has given us over temptations to sin, escaping sin’s <i>“dominion”</i>&nbsp;over us. &nbsp;(also, 1 Corinthians 10;13, note: the <i>“means of escape”</i>&nbsp;which Paul refers to are the Word of God, the promises, and commands of &nbsp;God.&nbsp;&nbsp;The Holy Sprit given in Holy Baptism, gives us&nbsp;the power to <i>“deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Jesus” &nbsp;</i>(Matthew 16;24)</div><div><br></div><div>This is how we are by faith (in the indwelling presence of Christ in us)&nbsp;to fight sin, and temptations to sin. &nbsp;<i>“I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith, in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” &nbsp;</i></div><div>(Galatians 2;20)</div><div><b><br></b></div><div>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, grant that I by faith,&nbsp;live&nbsp;daily&nbsp;crucified with Jesus in His death to sin. &nbsp;Bless me to live in the gift of my ‘baptismal death’ so that by Christ’s resurrection from death,&nbsp;I may walk in newness of life, in&nbsp;my Jesus,<u>&nbsp;my Lord&nbsp;and my Life.</u></div><div>In a Jesus I pray, Amen.<br>&nbsp;</div><div>Lutheran Service Book,&nbsp;Hymn #659, “Lord of Our Life”</div><div><br>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>


Mark 9;43-48
43.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire.(44. same as verse 48.)45.  And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell.(46. Same as verse 48.)47.  And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell,48.  where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.
Sadly, some have taken Jesus’ words literally, and have actually cut off hands and gouged out eyes trying in foolish human effort trying to stop their sinning. 
 There does exist in the new-man, born of the water and the Spirit, a sincere desire for holiness.  A desire to do the Father’s will, (this is The Mind of Christ given into us).  
 But, we of ourselves, do not have the power to make ourselves holy in all our thoughts, words, and deeds. as Paul says, “Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good.  So then it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.  For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh.  I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.  For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.”  (Roman 7;16-19)
We rightly seek to live not in the old-man, not as carnal people controlled by their old sinful nature, but, by faith, we seek to live as born-anew children of God, who love the Father, and strive for holiness of life.  Believers understand that our flesh is infected with sinful desires and a rebellious will which we cannot in the strength of human good intentions now be fully rid of.  We must drag this unclean thing through this life, like people troubled with an evil Siamese twin who has absolutely no desire to obey the will of the Father.   
As long as we are in a physical body and here on earth, we will be this evil attached twin seeks to sin. Only physical death can deliver us from the sinful nature still in our being.  Thankfully, we have been an escape from the power of that evil twin.  We have been given spiritual death to the old-man in our baptism into Christ.
If we ourselves were to remove the true cause of sin in us, we would have to remove our hearts.  As Jesus says, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.  These are what defile a man;”  (Matthew 15;19&20a)
Yet, God in his goodness and love has given us in our baptism into Christ, a death to sin, for us to share in, so that we may no longer be ‘controlled’ by the evil will and deeds which infect the flesh.  We, through holy baptism, have been joined with Christ in His death to sin, so that the born-anew Believer may walk by faith in the Spirit, in newness of life with Christ indwelling us. 
 In Christ, by faith we have been given a new clean heart, it is the very heart of Christ, filled with the love of God.  This heart, dwells in our faith, and beats in the breast of the new-man, the inner-man, (this is who we truly are, (by faith). We who believe in Christ, are by faith called to believe that we the new-man have been joined as one with Jesus. We are to live in the new man).
“And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”  (Galatians 5;24&25)
Romans chapter six, verse 1-14, and Romans 8;1-17, must be read, learned, and meditated upon, in order to understand what power God has given us over temptations to sin, escaping sin’s “dominion” over us.  (also, 1 Corinthians 10;13, note: the “means of escape” which Paul refers to are the Word of God, the promises, and commands of  God.  The Holy Sprit given in Holy Baptism, gives us the power to “deny ourselves, take up our crosses, and follow Jesus”  (Matthew 16;24)
This is how we are by faith (in the indwelling presence of Christ in us) to fight sin, and temptations to sin.  “I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith, in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”  (Galatians 2;20)
Prayer:  Merciful Father, grant that I by faith, live daily crucified with Jesus in His death to sin.  Bless me to live in the gift of my ‘baptismal death’ so that by Christ’s resurrection from death, I may walk in newness of life, in my Jesus, my Lord and my Life.In a Jesus I pray, Amen.
 Lutheran Service Book, Hymn #659, “Lord of Our Life”
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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