I know there are many things that Jesus was recorded to have said/taught...that can have me scratching my head at times as I try to figure out what He was trying to convey in that moment. But there were also plenty of times He was quite plain spoken and made things very clear. Take for example that passage I left you with yesterday, in Matt. 12:43-45...

“When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places seeking rest, and finds none. Then he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came. And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven others spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”

Still not sure what to make of all this ‘unclean spirit’ talk? Can I have you jot down Eph. 2:1-3; 1 John 5:19, and Acts 10:38 for additional reference?

This past Sunday at church, we were singing some chorus in a song about wanting to ‘be more like Jesus’, or asking God to ‘make us more like Him’, and the thought occurred to me- do we even know how that actually happens? If a new convert approached you and asked that question: “How can I become more like Jesus?”...what would you tell them...Read your Bible every day and come to church faithfully...and it will just ‘sort of happen on its own’? Wouldn’t that be kind of like telling a person who wanted to ‘get in shape’...to go buy some nice workout clothes and start hanging around the gym?

There really is a bit more to it than just ‘showing up’. And speaking of gyms...I’ve shared with you here my own personal workout journey that I began 18 months ago when I realized I better get in shape if I wanted to keep up with these twin grandsons of mine, and it has been quite the journey, which I am still on, and I really am in much better condition than I’ve been in for years. I’ll come back to this in a bit.

So this idea of ‘becoming more like Jesus’ as we were singing about...really is ‘scriptural’ according to Romans 8:29 & 1 John 2:6. I came up with my own short answer that I would offer up if asked ‘how do we do that’ (become more like Jesus)?

“One Canaanite nation at a time.” (I’ll give you a moment with that one)

Let’s do a quick review here. You probably recall where Paul calls out that first generation of folks whom God delivered from the bondage of slavery in Egypt, which is a picture or foreshadowing of what Jesus came to do for us. And Paul spends some detailed time explaining there in 1 Cor. 10:1-12 how God was not very happy with that group of people and how most of them died out or perished in the wilderness. We are also told there how all those things happened to them...as examples and warnings to us: “Don’t be like them!”

We have studied here in the past how God first led them into the wilderness (to test their hearts to see if they would obey Him- Deut. 8:2). Then, He informed them that He was going to lead them into a land where He wanted to bless them and make them fruitful, calling them out to be a holy nation where God could demonstrate his goodness and faithfulness...provided they just cooperate with Him. But...He also told them ahead of time...that there were some nations on the land that would need to be dealt with and eradicated, and that they were a wicked people more numerous and stronger than them.

Yet, there was no need to be overly concerned or fearful because it would be God driving them off the land, ‘little by little’. It was a ....process that required obedience to God. And it came with plenty of warnings as to what would happen if they failed to obey...and were to fall back into sin.

This might be a good time to look at Leviticus 26:21 & 28, and then make a notation to that reference in Matt. 12:45.

God told the people (through Moses) that it would not do any good to just wipe out all those Canaanite nations at one time lest they be ‘overtaken by the beasts of the field’ (Ex. 23:29-30), but in a matter of speaking...just ‘trust the process’...and keep your heart and mind focused on following the Lord. We are reminded to do that frequently in the NT (Col. 3:1-2; Matt. 6:33)

So pick an area in your life that you know...God has some ‘issues’ with, that you have continued to struggle with. You might do well for a while...then you stumble and fall back and wonder at times if you will ever overcome that particular ‘sin’. Did Jesus not promise true freedom (John 8:32,36)?

Grace (which we've been talking about the past day or two)...is not some ‘covering’ or ‘get out of jail for free card’ that you cash in on every time you sin. Grace is made available to the humble to overcome “all...the power of the enemy” ...once and for all (Luke 10:19).

I have to say that probably one of the most insightful and practical illustrations of how grace works in our lives...took place in the gym months ago, when I was working out with my trainer, Jordan. Do you know how any person who is wanting to get in shape...does it effectively? One. Rep. At. A. Time. There are no shortcuts or magic wands or special powders to supplement your diet with ...in order to tone those muscles as you build up strength. And I promise you, my goal here was never about trying to 'look chiseled’!

There have been multiple times when I was on some machine or lifting the barbells as Jordan had either added extra weight or increased the number of reps he wanted me to lift. And it usually got down to those last three reps...where he saw me struggling...shaking...and was pretty sure that I was not going to make it ...on my own. And while my eyes were usually clenched shut as I was sucking in extra oxygen to finish...I was fully aware that Jordan would reach in...and give me just enough added help...to get that bar up. I knew...there was no way I would...or could...have finished those reps without him.

Friends...that is ‘grace’... in action. You don’t change your ‘condition’ simply because you want to, or desire to, or by thinking about it all the time. You deal with these things...one Canaanite nation at a time; but now it’s not the Amorites or the Jebusites you are contending with...it’s greed, lust, anger, pride, impatience, selfishness, etc.; and let’s not forget...you are not dealing with ‘flesh and blood’ either (Eph. 6:12).

So...do you want to be made well? (John 5:6) Maybe there is more to this ‘submitting to God and resisting the devil’...than what we have been taught? (James 4:7)

"The people found grace...in the wilderness..." (Jer. 31:2)

He gives us 'grace'...to resist the enemy that we might "overcome him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony...and did not love their lives to the death". (Rev. 12:11)