The questions have already started and confusion has already been admitted…how can I choose life if God chose me for salvation before the foundation of the world? While I believe the Bible clearly teaches God chose us for salvation (John 15:16; Ephesians 1:3; 2 Thessalonians 2:13) I also believe that God holds us responsible for choosing to follow and obey Him every day as believers. God tells us to choose to walk in the power of His Spirit (Ephesians 5:18) and yet how often do we choose to walk in the flesh and do our own thing. Throughout Romans 6 Paul tells us to "consider yourselves dead to sin" and "don't let sin reign in your mortal bodies" and "do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin"; these are all choices we make every day. To choose not to sin is to choose life! Granted that choice is powered by the Holy Spirit because "…nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not." (Rom. 7:18)

We are in a heavenly relationship with our Creator which is started and empowered by His amazing grace. However, like any other relationship we either contribute to the enhancing of the relationship by choosing to communicate with Him and then follow what He wants us to do. Philippians 2:12-13 says, "…work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." Paul commands us in Galatians 5:16 "…walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh." Do we still choose to sin; sure we do, I'm betting far more than we'd ever like to admit. So we do make a daily, even moment by moment choice to walk by the power of God's Spirit and by doing so we choose life!

Like any relationship, once two have met the depth and intimacy of the relationship is completely dependent on the amount and quality of the communication between them. Please meditate on the following verses in preparation for considering the first of the three "how's" of choosing life (Deuteronomy 30:20) - Matthew 22:36-40.

"Father please move us to choose life by loving you! Please give us a passion to know You more than anything on earth. Oh God please give us a hunger for Your Word like never before in our lives. Please move us to desire You as we desire the air we breath and the food we eat! To Your glory and advancement of Your Kingdom, we pray in Jesus Name. Amen!"

His Kingdom Come,
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