Rabbi Schneider - Is the Truth in You?
Shalom, beloved one. I want to expand today on a scripture that I read earlier. I'm going to the book of 1 John Chapter 2. I'm going to read a longer portion today. I'm going to read verses three through five. Listen carefully and be attentive. "By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says I have come to know Him and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in them. But whoever keeps His word in him, the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know we are in him:"
The truth is, is that we can't walk in peace with God if we're not striving, beloved, to abide in Him and obey Him. You see? Repentance isn't just about saying a sinner's prayer. Repentance is truly running after Jesus. Running towards Jesus. We were running this way: chasing after the things of the world, trying to fulfill ourselves and gratify ourselves by what the world had to offer. And then we hear the name of Jesus and we say, "Jesus, be my Lord". What that means is now we are endeavoring to submit to His Lordship.
What does it mean to submit to His Lordship? It means to endeavor beloved to obey Him. And the Holy Spirit has been given to you and me to communicate to us the thoughts and the heart and the nature of God so that we can abide in them. But we have to be listening. We have to be attentive so we can try and discern what the spirit is speaking to us. And then we have to obey Him as we perceive, His will, both through the inner witness of the Holy Spirit and through the written Word of God.
So let's not deceive ourselves if we're not being obedient in our lives if we're not being obedient by keeping out of our lives what's not of God and seizing into our lives? What is of God? The truth is not in us, and we're only deceiving ourselves. If, on the other hand, we're endeavoring, we're trying to keep out of our lives, what we know is displeasing to the Lord with our eyes, with our ears, with our mouth, with the things that we do, with the way that we live.
So the way we spend our money, the way that we conduct ourselves sexually, if we're endeavoring to be obedient to the Lord know this God's love is upon your life. You're abiding in Him and you shall have His peace.