Sins wiped away … times of refreshing:  

Acts 3:19
19 “Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord;

           

            We all get tired from time to time. We get bogged down in the cares of the world. If we’ve sinned and not repented of it, we feel even more weighed down. As it talks about in Hebrews 12:1, we need to “lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us”. When we repent, we come into His presence. In His presence is fullness of joy. We are refreshed. His joy washes over us, and our spirits dance in ecstasy.

If you could hear God speak, I believe this is what He would say:

            "Do not the things of the world weigh you down? Do not submit to them. They cannot bring peace and they cannot bring you happiness. You are not of the world. You are in it, but you have overcome the world because I have overcome the world. It cannot affect you because I am in you. Do not let it reign over you. You cannot have peace as long as you let the world rule over you. You have peace in Me and refreshing from My Spirit.”

           

            71. My sins have been wiped away. Times of refreshing are mine to be had.

Results:

            Crucified to the world:  

Galatians 6:14
14 But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

            Through the cross of Jesus, I am dead to the world. It has no power over me. It has no lure to the spirit man inside me. Nothing can influence a dead person. I can’t change it, and it can’t change me … at least the real me. Of course I can let it influence me in this life. That’s the problem. We’re dead to the world, but we act like it’s still in control of us. It is, only if we let it. The real us is not persuaded by the enticement of the world system. It doesn’t tempt us. If we would only allow His Spirit to control us, we would have no trouble in this life following His commands.

If you could hear God speak, I believe this is what He would say:

            "My children, you are not of the world and the world has no power over you. Do not submit yourselves to the things and desires of the world. It cannot save you, and it cannot help you in time of need. It can only bring you down. It has no influence over you unless you let it. It is powerless against My Spirit. You have power over the things of the world as long as you submit to Me. Trust in Me to take care of you and you will have good success.”

            70. The world is crucified to me and I to the world. It no longer holds power over me.

Disciplines to share His holiness:

Hebrews 12:6-10
6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

            Try using these verses as an altar call for salvation! How many do you think would come running down the aisle? Nobody wants to be disciplined, especially when you say that He scourges every son whom He receives. Jesus was physically scourged before His crucifixion.  It was an unbelievably painful experience. Maybe you’ve seen Mel Gibson’s, The Passion of the Christ. Even if Jesus suffered only half of what was depicted in the movie, most of us would not have survived. Now we’re talking about God scourging us? No thanks! Of course His scourging is not physical. It is inward; however, it can be quite painful if we resist. If we are quick to respond to His Spirit’s admonition to repent and change our ways, we don’t have to go through such a painful experience as we would otherwise. If our earthly fathers disciplined us, why not our Heavenly Father? Unlike some earthly fathers, He would never discipline us if we didn’t need it. He also has the infinite wisdom as to when and how to do it.

            In Proverbs 3:11-12, it warns us to not reject His discipline and to not loathe His reproof … that the one whom He loves, He reproves as a father his son in whom he delights.

If you could hear God speak, I believe this is what He would say:

            "You are My children. I would not willingly have you to suffer. However, you must walk in My path of holiness; for it cannot be that the world would think that you are just like them. They know that they are wrong, but they believe that you are just like them and do wrong also. They need to see that you walk in My path of holiness and do not desire the things of the world. It is not enough to just say that you do. You must show it in every circumstance. You cannot achieve this without My help. I have need to guide you into the paths of righteousness. You cannot obtain this without Me. You have a struggle to obey Me on you own. You need My help to walk in the path that I have chosen for you. You need My encouragement to keep walking in that straight and narrow path. It is not for the faint of heart, but for those willing to give up everything for Me. You cannot achieve perfection apart from Me. You need My guiding hand to help you on the way.”

            69. God loves me. Therefore, He disciplines me to share in His holiness.

How:

            Purified – zealous for good deeds:  

Titus 2:14
14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.

            All those things we did in the past which were out of a rebellious heart … Jesus redeemed us from them. We were in bondage to sin; but He redeemed us. He didn’t redeem us just to get us out from under the bad things we had done. He redeemed us for Himself … His very own people for His very own possession. He didn’t want a blemished people. He wanted one purified for Himself. Why? So that we, being out from under the bondage to sin, would be zealous to do good deeds; not just to keep from doing the bad ones.

If you could hear God speak, I believe this is what He would say:

            "I desire that you have a strong desire to be like Me. I would have you walk in My path. You should have a passion for doing what is pleasing unto Me. You cannot have true success without walking in My holiness. It is not a path of least resistance, but rather one of strong resistance. You have to have a passion for My holiness to walk in this path. It is not a struggle that the faint of heart would take on. It is one of tremendous importance in your life. You cannot reach the place that I would have you to without overcoming the sin that begs you to obey it. It is not something that the flesh would choose. The flesh would choose a way of least resistance, but the spirit must choose the path to glory through obedience to Me.”

            68. God has purified me and I am zealous for good deeds.