極大的奧秘 - 基督與教會

Reason

God's building is living and requires the growth of believers' life

To ensure Christ's life is unhindered within believers

Negative things hinder life growth

Need spiritual nourishment to maintain life growth

Method

1. Love the Lord

2. Mind the spirit

3. Guard the heart

4. Stay on the path of life

Experience the putting to death of Christ in His all-inclusive Spirit, the Spirit of glory

Thoroughly put away all:

1. Malice

2. Guile

3. Hypocrisy

4. Envy

5. Evil speaking

1. Understand through the rational mind

2. Absorb through mental faculties

3. Nourish the inner man

Explanation

Through loving the Lord and guarding one's thoughts and intentions, life can grow on the correct path

Through the work of the cross, deal with and remove inner obstacles

Need to thoroughly remove all negative elements that hinder life growth

God's pure word can nourish our life like milk

Example

Like plants needing sunlight and proper environment to grow, believers need to keep themselves in love

Like pruning trees, removing dead branches to promote growth

Like clearing weeds so good seeds can grow healthily

Like babies needing pure milk to grow

Application

1. Set apart daily time to love the Lord

2. Often examine one's thoughts and intentions

3. Stay on the proper path of life

1. Accept perfecting in environment

2. Submit to the Spirit's government

3. Let the cross work on us

1. Examine and deal with negative things

2. Practice living a holy life

3. Maintain pure thoughts and intentions

1. Daily Bible reading and prayer

2. Seriously digest God's word

3. Apply truth in daily life

Related Scripture

1 Peter 2:5: "You also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ."

Deuteronomy 10:12: "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul."

1 Peter 4:14

"If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you."

1 Peter 1:11

"Examining what time or circumstances the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating, when he testified beforehand about the sufferings of Christ and the glory that would follow."

1 Peter 2:1: "Therefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings."

1 Peter 2:2: "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow thereby."

Deuteronomy 11:18: "Therefore shall you lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes."

1 Corinthians 2:15: "But he that is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged of no man."