Introduction: Time to take a test. This is a spiritual aptitude examination. After becoming a Christian, we can easily fall into a rut. Unknowingly, we can just go through the “motions” in the Christian life. Even unintentionally, our heart can drift further away from a life of holiness. If that happens, pray and make the corrections. That is the purpose of this devotion.
Take a minute to see if this has happened to you.
1. Teachable spirit or know-it-all? (1 Cor. 8:2) – “And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know.” (Prov. 9:9) – “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.”
No matter how much we learn, we should never get to a point where we think we “know it all”! Are you teachable or argumentative?
2. Proud spirit or humble? (1 Pet. 5:5) – “For God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.” (James 4:6) – “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
Do you know why God resists the proud? It is because the proud resist God, or at least think more highly of themselves than they ought to. Think about it. From birth, we are taught to look after #1—me, myself, and I. The problem is, when it comes to the Christian life, it is no longer about me, myself, and I; instead, it is about Jesus Christ. Are you finding yourself talking or bragging about all that you are doing? Are you touchy and defending yourself all the time because of pride, maybe even spiritual pride?
3. Judgmental spirit or broken spirit? (Luke 7:36-42) – “Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.”
Simon the Pharisee “cleaned the outside” but left the “inside dirty.” In other words, he could see other people’s faults but could not see his own faults. Isn’t it interesting that we see other people’s sin through a microscope but our own through a telescope?
4. Unforgiving spirit or forgiving? (Eph. 4:32) – “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”
If we have been forgiven for our multitude of sins by God, then we should forgive others who sin against or offend us. Have you?
Conclusion: How did you do? Usually, when taking this test, some slippages show up. So then, what should we do? Make the necessary adjustments—get them right! Move on!!
Love y’all,
Pastor Randy Reese
