Have I not commanded you?
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/jos.1.9.NIV
Get up, pick up your mat
Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.”
John 5:8 NIV
https://john.bible/john-5-8
He will give your mortal bodies life
And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
Romans 8:11 NIV
https://romans.bible/romans-8-11
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.
Romans 6:12 NIV
https://romans.bible/romans-6-12
If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.
John 15:10 – 11 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/jhn.15.10-11.NIV
By his command, he gets us up each day- which is easy for he who spoke life into existence(Genesis 1). Though outwardly we waste away, inwardly we are being renewed each day. But how is that done, what’s the process? Actively rejecting pattern of sin in this world. Instead of filling up on the trash of the world, you renew your mind on the very word that gives life.
His command got the man off the ground, off the mat, out of that place where he was accustomed to being. He was sick and though he wanted to be healed, he grew used to being where he was. Maybe we’re battling something that we too are quite used to being apart of. We have to battle more with greater determination because sin is always at your doorstep, hiding and trying to get in and reign. You must actively read and pray so you overcome(Luke 21:36)
His word commands. By faith, we trust his word and we follow his commands. Not by sight or power of might but, but faith, and his spirit that leads us on this walk of faith. Knowledge is relative and analytical- it questions, it cripples, it crumbles, it doubts. But faith, it moves. Faith is a lot like his commands. Faith in God commands you to follow his commands.
Let’s pray that our faith grows, that we set up greater determination and to follow his command. We die to ourselves(Luke 9:23) and follow him, and allow God to give us life( Phil 2:5-9). Jesus who said “ not my will but your will be done”, has shown us the way to follow, the truth that gives life, and the life we must live.
One of my favorite praise singers belts out the key to happiness on this path of faith when he says, “Trust and obey, cause their no other way, to be happy in Jesus than to trust and obey”- Don Moen. Link provided below.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JjWV_Kuxd2s
Be prayerful and blessed.