The Conservative Christian Reader

A Call for Change – Part Two By Sandy Holden

A Call for Change – Part Two

By Sandy Holden[1]

Portions of the following concepts were obtained from study of The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges, The Walk of Repentance by Steve Gallagher, and lectures by Jeff Colon of Pure Life Ministries.

Just as we receive a call to repentance that leads to a changed life in the salvation process, there is another call for change.  We also receive a call to live in repentance.  The Bible tells of two kings that sinned against God.  One chose to love himself more than God and lost all fellowship with God.  The other acknowledged his sin against God and humbled himself before the Lord and was forgiven. 

King Saul loved and cherished his sin.  What a hideous thing!  Like King Saul, we can deceive ourselves by reforming some actions without repenting in our hearts.  Disobedience in one area of life increases the likelihood of disobedience in other areas.  We tend to rank our sin and work on the areas that we find most offensive, while all sin is equal in the eyes of God.  So, if we’re struggling to overcome what we consider a “big” sin, but continue to drive 15 mph over the speed limit, our progress may well be hindered.  He has provided instructions for us in honoring civil laws provided by our governing system just as well as moral laws provided by His Word.  A turning away generally means leaving the source or environment.  While there are some situations that cannot be changed, most can.  Being obedient and diligent is critical in turning away from sin.

King David, on the other hand, committed horrible sin; to include adultery and murder involving his commander, Uriah, and his wife, Bathsheba.  But, his repentance was sincere and accepted by God.  David faced the truth and accepted full responsibility for his sin.  He was humbled and broken before the Lord.  There were consequences for his sin, but he was reconciled to his Lord.  He was able to write:

If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer.  Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!  Psalm 66:19-20

Just as King Saul and King David were called to live in repentance, we are as well.  We can choose to keep ourselves on the throne or humbly allow our precious Savior to reign in our lives.  God sees the heart as it truly is. 

We are made holy by the grace of God.  But, many question their ability to live in holiness, with the belief that sinning is part of the Christian life and that God doesn’t expect obedience because He knows they will fail.  This belief interferes with determination to live in obedience to God, and it is false.

We must be willing to live morally blameless and to die to the sin which reigns within our heart.  This requires making a choice to resist sin and to break old habits that come from the desires within the heart.  Discipline is required if we are going to have the resolve to overcome our desires and live a life of moral purity according to God’s standard of holiness.  

This means coming to the Word of God in all humility and contrition as we openly understand the corruption in our own heart and our need for the Holy Spirit’s work therein.  We must become convicted of areas of sin in our life and address those through obedience to God’s Word.  This is done by fixing our mind on the commands of God.  His Word must become the dominant influence within our thoughts, attitudes, and actions. 

Change comes through meditation on and memorization of God’s Word.  As His Word becomes the dominant influence in our own heart, then it can be applied to our daily life.

While it is possible and our objective to live in holiness, when sin happens, it must be dealt with sincerely, as God’s truth is revealed to us.  We must consistently watch for His nudging to turn around and go the other way.  But, when we fail, we must repent and get right back up and keep going.  We do this better as we train ourselves to listen for God’s voice.  He’ll faithfully show us the truth.  Our responsibility is to guard the truth He has shown us.

But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.  John 3:21

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[1] Sandra K. Holden is pursuing her Master of Arts in Christian Studies degree with a major in Biblical Counseling with IABC Certification from Master’s International School of Divinity.

A Call for Change By Sandy Holden

A Call for Change

By Sandy Holden[1]

We are a people that love comfort.  It is to what we have become accustomed.  Having comfort was not common throughout history past, it is not common for many in our world now, and it is likely that it will not be common in the future.

However, the biblical message is not generally one of comfort.  The prophets did not forecast calm, but storm.  They did not say that “All is well in the world.”  In fact, Jesus would not have needed to come as our Savior if all had been right in the world.  The prophets consistently spoke out saying “Repent, repent.”

Man is sinful by birth, because sin came into the world when Adam and Eve sinned, which was the point of singularity (inception of sin), and it has expanded since that time.  The world is not getting better, it is getting worse moment by moment.  From the point of singularity, sin can do no other than to expand; thus, making the natural condition of man’s heart one of depravity.

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.  Psalm 51:5

 

[F] for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, . . . Romans 3:23

Because God is holy and cannot be around sin, man was destined to eternal death.

Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.  Deuteronomy 24:16

Repentance is a change of mind and heart that leads to a change of life.  I received the call to repent from my sin in November 1972.  This was a personal decision that I made uniquely at the same time that my husband made his decision for which I am eternally grateful.  We discussed our desire to be saved and agreed to separately pray our own prayer at the same time.  Three months later very little in our life circumstances was the same.

This decision was of supreme importance to me/us as it was our only hope.  We could not do for ourselves what Jesus had done for us on the cross.  We were sinful creatures that needed the way provided for us by our Creator God.

My husband was a full-time student taking 21 units a semester (year-around) while working 48 hours a week as a security guard to support our family.  We had one hour a day together and Sundays.  I was a stay-at-home mom with two little boys ages 4 ½ and 3.  He was exhausted, and I was sad and lonely.  We knew that things were not right.  God sent two people into our lives to tell us of our need.  One was a long-time friend of Doug’s who was traveling through town on his way to go to seminary in Tennessee.  He was witnessing to people and baptizing them along the way.  He spoke to us about the end times, which was something that was never discussed in our previous church experiences.  The other was Doug’s sister who came across town every Thursday evening to have Bible Study with me and several of our neighbors.  She repeatedly told me to tell Doug that we were not saved, and in order to be saved we must repent of our sin and ask Jesus into our hearts.  Just like Noah, Jeremiah, and John the Baptist, these people were the voices telling us to repent.

The Holy Spirit was simultaneously convicting us so that we were able to be saved at the same time.  What a precious, precious gift that has been to us over the years.  We have been so richly blessed!

We know that the Lord used our circumstances at the time to get our attention in order to point out our need for Him.  Once we had given ourselves over to Him, He changed many of our circumstances and blessed us through those changes.  It was after our salvation that I went to work at the private college that Doug attended which allowed him to go to school tuition free.  Then, I also worked at the private law school he attended and we received a 50% tuition discount.  The hard part for me was leaving our young boys in the care of others.  But, God even provided for us through this painful experience as we found our new church home at the church-based day care provided for our sons.

There is purpose to living out our lives according to the plan of our Creator.  While the message is one of storm, there is also a message of hope and even comfort.  Sometimes God blesses His children with the kind of comfort that they desire, but there is a greater comfort.  I did not get the comfort that I desired to stay home with our children during those years of sacrifice, but I knew that we were in our Lord’s will.  And, this comfort did bring peace. 

May your unfailing love be my comfort, according to your promise to your servant.  Psalm 119:76

 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  2 Corinthians 1:3-4

This hope comes through the blood of Jesus Christ.  God sacrificed His own Son, so that man could be redeemed.  He loved His creation so much that He came to earth as a defenseless baby.  He changed for us by becoming one of His creation; one of us.  Who, but Holy God, would even think of doing such a thing!

What is going on in the world is not where it’s at.  God calls us to change. 

From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”  Matthew 4:17

 

I tell you, no!  But unless you repent, you too will all perish.  Luke 13:3

As the prophet Amos would say, “Prepare to meet your God . . . The Lord God Almighty is his name.”

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[1] Sandra K. Holden is pursuing her Master of Arts in Christian Studies degree with a major in Biblical Counseling with IABC Certification from Master’s International School of Divinity.