Spending your whole life learning ‘how to walk like Jesus walked’ was not the ‘long term’ plan for any Christian believer. The idea was for us to ‘take up our bed and walk’ so that we could get about ‘doing the will of God’ (1 Pet. 4:1-2) which is pretty important given it is only those who ‘do the will of the Father in heaven who shall enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Matt. 7:21)

Yeah...I’ll give you a moment with that one; and reading yesterday’s message first should help some (in case you missed it).

If anyone is tempted to fire back at me and ask: “So Tony, are you saying you walk like Jesus walked now?”...all I can tell you is... what I do, or fail to do is not the issue here. What does God’s word say? But let’s agree...should we not all all be able to say “Follow me as I follow Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1)? And if we are truly following Him, then we ought to be walking as He walked’ (John 10:27; 1 John 1:6-7; 2:6)

Yes, we all know (using a natural example) that human babies will develop at various rates in learning how to walk, which is usually in that 9-15 month range...but if a four year old child is still wobbling and crawling and unable to walk...hopefully they are being seen by medical experts...because we all know that would not be ‘normal’.

So why do we ‘Christians’ believe it takes ‘years’ to accomplish this ‘spiritual’ walking and even then, are convinced we will never master this on ‘this side of heaven’? I would submit to you as I have in the past that we were probably given ‘bad intel’, or possibly presented with ‘another gospel’ (Gal. 1:6-9; 2 Cor. 11:3-4). And amazingly, God in His loving mercy is trying to wake up a bunch of ‘lame saints’ who need to get with the program...sooner than later.

This was where I was headed with when we touched on the study of ‘doing those first works’ we did in the beginning as we ‘return to our first love’ (Rev. 2:4-5). And it goes back to learning to ‘do whatsoever He tells us to do’ (because we Love Him with all our hearts) ...if we want to see genuine transformation in our lives (John 2:1-5; John 14:15)

Can I just tell you now that after you first come to Jesus with all your heart, the focus of the work of the Holy Spirit is NOT...to establish you in some ‘ministry’ so you can go out and do ‘great things for God’. I know...that’s the common theme we hear these days and the ‘go-to recipe’ for churches to grow quickly, accumulating ‘nickels, noses, and numbers’. How easy it is for us to forget that ‘God’s ways are nor like our ways’.  We all have a 'destiny to fulfill in God'....right?

If you are involved in a relationship where sexual immorality is taking place, can I just tell you that God is going to deal with this sin long before He ‘gets you involved with the music ministry’ at church? If you are struggling with anger issues and outbursts of wrath, there is no need to begin jockeying for ‘titles’ or positions at the church you are attending. How many examples of the ‘deeds of the flesh nature’ would you like me to list here to continue making this point? And it’s a point worth making given the truth Paul taught that those who continue to ‘practice these things (deeds of the flesh nature) will not inherit the kingdom of God’ (Gal. 5:19-21).

Oh...but you see 'preachers' who still produce that ‘kind of fruit’ which makes it okay to do then? Hmmm...I wonder if that is what Jesus might have been giving us a ‘heads up’ on there in Matt. 7:15-20. Since when did ‘fruit’ (or lack of) become a ‘non-issue’? Oh...but you were taught that ‘God uses imperfect people’? What verse is that? And ‘who told you that’? (Gen. 3:11). I know...prevailing philosophy would fire back and suggest that “if God is waiting on, or needing 'perfect' people to work through, then nothing would ever get done!”...and that might be the clue we are not thinking as God thinks.

I really don’t believe we realize just how ‘deep of a hole’ we have been in which is why today’s modern ‘church’ has lost a lot of credibility in the world, not to mention is powerless (2 Tim. 3:5). We keep harping on how bad things are today in this world of darkness and sin...while forgetting the fundamental call of the church was to be ‘the light of the world’ and ‘let our lights shine’ (Matt.5:14-16).

The only way darkness prevails is when the ‘lights to out’. If we ‘believers’ are still claiming to be a ‘sinful mess’, then maybe it’s time to step back and examine ourselves and ask ‘why that is’? (2 Cor. 13:5). What does that say about the workmanship of the Holy Spirit that is supposed to be conforming us into the likeness and image of Christ...where we are to be ‘perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect’? (Rom. 8:29; Matt. 5:48)

What is wrong with this picture?...because something ain't right!