Mike Wilkins Ministries

PHILIPPIANS 2:13 LB
13 For God is at work within you, helping you want to obey him,
and then helping you do what he wants.

Don’t be discouraged. God is at work!

You may not be happy with yourself now, but God is not finished
working.

PHILIPPIANS 1:6 NASB
6 For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a
good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.

God can complete what He starts. Give Him some time.

HEBREWS 13:20-21 RSV
20 Now may the God of peace…
21 equip you with everything good that you may do his will,
working in you that which is pleasing in his sight, through
Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

You will never be able to please God just on your own effort,
but through Jesus Christ and His work in you, you WILL become
what God wants you to be.

I JOHN 5:4 NIV
4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the
victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.

Yes, we do face difficulties in life, but they only give us an
opportunity to trust the Lord and overcome. Without problems we
would have nothing to overcome, and thus not be able to receive
all the blessings promised to those who do overcome.

There are seven promises given to overcomers in the second and
third chapters of Revelation. Here is the last one:

REVELATION 3:21 NIV
21 To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me
on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on
his throne.

As you face the problems of life, keep your eyes on your
destination, just as Jesus did. Walk close to God and depend on
Him. He will not fail you.

I JOHN 4:4 NIV
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them,
because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in
the world.

JOHN 13:34-35 NKJ
34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another;
as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
35 “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you
have love for one another.”

Instead of being known for love, Christians are more likely to
be known for disagreements and fighting with other Christians.

Why?

Those who fight are displaying their immaturity. Children can
be expected to squabble over insignificant things, but adults
should not.

Yet even Christian leaders often fight with other Christian
leaders.

It is the devil’s strategy to get believers in strife because
it opens the door to him. Do you really want to open the door
to the devil?

JAMES 3:16 KJV
16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and
every evil work.

God allows us to face the temptation of strife so we can
overcome and learn to walk in love. We are continually given
the opportunity to walk in love.

God’s primary concern now is preparing us to inhabit eternity
with Him. His plan is to make us like Jesus (Romans 8:29). To
become like Jesus, we must learn to resist the temptation to
not walk in love.

JOB 40:8 LB
8 Are you going to discredit my justice and condemn me so that
you can say you are right?

Many are quick to blame God for all the bad things in their
life and in the world. “After all, God is ultimately
responsible, isn’t He?”

Is a parent responsible for the choices their grown children
make? Certainly, they had influence in raising their children.
But ultimately, each human makes their own choices and we are
each responsible for our own actions. We cannot blame our
parents — our spouse — or anyone else. If we choose to do
wrong, it is our choice.

People are guilty. The devil is guilty. Not God.

“But what about storms, earthquakes, and such?”

Jesus rebuked the storm in Luke 8:24. Are we to believe that
Jesus was rebuking something that God was responsible for?

Although it is not clear now to most people, one day it will be
clear to all: God is not guilty of anything. The devil and
people shoulder the blame for all the heartache, misery, and
pain on earth.

JEREMIAH 9:24 NIV
24 but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands
and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness,
justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,”
declares the LORD.

1 PETER 4:11 NIV
11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very
words of God. . . .

When you speak what the Bible says, you are speaking the very
words of God. Anything contrary to what the Bible says, should
never be spoken by a Christian.

EPHESIANS 4:29 NIV
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but
only what is helpful for building others up according to their
needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

JAMES 4:11 NKJ
11 Do not speak evil of one another . . . .

TITUS 3:2 NKJ
2 to speak evil of no one . . . .

You are responsible for what you say. If you cannot say
something good, the Bible is clear: keep quiet.

ROMANS 3:24 NLT
24 Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are
righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us
from the penalty for our sins.

Righteousness is right standing, or good standing with God. It
does not mean human “perfection.” You are righteous because God
says you are.

You may wonder about Romans 3:10 which says no one is
righteous. Yes, it does say that, but it is quoting an Old
Testament passage to prove that both Jews and Gentiles were
guilty before God and needed salvation. It immediately goes on
to say in the next few verses (see verses 22 and 24) that now
we can be righteous through faith in Jesus Christ.

2 CORINTHIANS 5:19a,21 NLT
19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no
longer counting people’s sins against them.
21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering
for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through
Christ.

TITUS 3:5 NLT
5 he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done,
but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a
new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.

Righteousness is a gift from God — not something you can earn
or achieve. God simply declares you are innocent, as far as He
is concerned, because of your faith in Jesus.

ROMANS 3:22 NLT
22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus
Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter
who we are.

ROMANS 10:10 NLT
10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right
with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are
saved.

GALATIANS 2:16 NLT
16 Yet we know that a person is made right with God by faith in
Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. And we have believed in
Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because
of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For
no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.”

The only way to have good standing with God is by accepting His
gift — Jesus Christ.

1 CORINTHIANS 1:30 NLT
30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God
made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he
made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin.

ROMANS 5:17 NLT
17 For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over
many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of
righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over
sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.

ROMANS 12:21 NIV
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

There seems to be no lack of evil. That gives us an opportunity
to overcome.

We will be tempted to respond in kind — to strike back at
those who hurt us. But that is a bad choice. All it leads to is
more pain and misery for more people — including ourselves.

The answer is divine love.

With God’s love inside us, and God helping us, we can return
good for evil done to us. That breaks the vicious downward
cycle and also breaks the power of evil to affect us.

Don’t tell me this won’t work in your case. I have personally
heard the victorious testimony of a believer who was tortured
by his communist captors yet walked in love and overcame the
evil situation. It will work!

Love is stronger than hate. Good is more powerful than evil.
You can walk in victory no matter what anyone does to you.

ROMANS 5:5 NIV
5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out
his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given
us.

HEBREWS 13:6 NIV
6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not
be afraid. What can man do to me?”

MATTHEW 11:28-30 NIV
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will
give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and
humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Are you struggling? Do you feel like you are barely keeping
your head above water?

If you feel like you are struggling and striving just to make
it — you need to turn to Jesus. He will give you rest.

If you say that you have turned to Jesus and you think His yoke
is hard and His burden is heavy — you are deceived.

You need to cast your care on the Lord and learn of Him. So
many people are striving and struggling to get God to love them
when He already loves them and accepts them.

Living a successful Christian life is not done by our own
strength or willpower. It is the result of depending on the
Lord. Only He can do it.

Quit trusting in your plans and abilities and efforts, and
trust in Jesus instead. Turn things over to Him. Let Him be
Lord in your life.