News and Updates
August 1, 2022
David Copeland · August 1, 2022
Newsletter · Volume: 22 Issue: 8
Luke 9:23 (The Passion Translation)
Jesus said to all of his followers, “If you truly desire to be my disciple, you must disown your life completely, embrace my ‘cross’ as your own, and surrender to my ways.
24 For if you choose self-sacrifice, giving up your lives for my glory, you will embark on a discovery of more and more of true life. But if you choose to keep your lives for yourselves, you will lose what you try to keep. 25 Even if you gained all the wealth and power of this world, everything it could offer you, yet lost your soul in the process, what good is that? 26. So why then are you ashamed of being my disciple? Are you ashamed of the revelation-truth I give to you? “I, the Son of Man, will one day return in my radiant brightness, with the holy angels and in the splendor and majesty of my Father, and I will be ashamed of all who are ashamed of me. 27. But I promise you this: there are some of you standing here right now who will not die until you have witnessed the presence and the power of God’s kingdom realm.”
Forty years of being taught situational ethics has dulled our generation to the point that no one knows what the truth is any more: the prevailing mindset in 2022 is “truth is ‘whatever makes me happy…’” The spirit of the age has greatly affected our mindsets.
Our mindset is also affected by the things you are currently going through, things you’ve experienced or are currently experiencing. Paul reminds us that we have the power to control our mindsets and bring them in line with the Word of God:
2 Cor 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
2Co 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
2Co 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
2Co 10:6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.
Change your mind and you will begin to change your habits.
2.Change your disciplines
Disciplines create habits, habits create your future. I greatly admire people who work out every day. My son in law Eric is VERY disciplined at working out. I jokingly tell him all the time his arms look like guns. He has those arms because he has disciplined his life almost every day to work out, eat the right foods and stay in shape.
Changing your disciplines involves a commitment to do it…until. Even when you fail, you must make the commitment to start again.
3.Be willing to confront & crucify your flesh.
I am becoming convinced our generation has more trouble with our uncrucified flesh than we do satan. I say repeatedly I have more trouble with my flesh than I do with satan. Our flesh controls us through three ways: an unrenewed mind (which we have already written about), unchecked emotions (which is a subject for another day), and an undeveloped or an underdeveloped inner man/spirit man. Some of us have been serving Jesus a very long time, so, our inner man has developed somewhat; but we are not as developed in our inner man as we need to be.
I am convinced all of this is rooted in an uncrucified flesh man. You cannot coddle or pamper your flesh man….your old nature…carnal desires that hinder or frustrate your forward progress in God. Your flesh man must continually be crucified.
I say it often:
Who your connected to determines what flows out of you. What flows into you determines what flows out of you. When a Rabbi would choose their students, they would literally hand pick them. This is what made what Jesus did so spectacular. He chose men who had either not been chosen by any other rabbi or had been rejected by every other rabbi and take those men and turn the world right side up.
Jesus has chosen us to be a part of His Kingdom for such a time as this. Chosen, selected, elected for this day & hour. So, the question remains, are we walking like Jesus? Are we talking like Jesus? Have we spent so much time with Jesus, in His Presence and in His Word that the world can’t tell us apart!!
standing here right now who will not die until you have witnessed the presence and the power of God’s kingdom realm.”
The habits you create determine the product your life produces.