Discerning Love

Philippians 1:9-11 “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.” 
 
HOW do you make the best decisions to respond to various circumstances? Often, you act on assumptions and feelings. If you have the right information, your response is generally appropriate to the circumstance. If you are misinformed, or your feelings do not match the truth, your response will be hurtful and possibly damaging to yourself or others.
    Paul wrote to encourage the church in Philippi to grow in knowledge and discernment. To be Jesus’ true disciples and effective church, they must make Christ-like decisions. This is not about what they feel or assume. They must seek what is true and live into Jesus truth.
    To do so, of course, they must know Jesus. And so must you. This sounds simple, doesn’t it? But you know it’s not. Sin’s great penalty is to cause your mind to seek your own truth first. That’s why it is easy to make excuses and to excuse yourself from Jesus’ wisdom.
    For example, I was talking with someone who said his desire is to know God more. But I didn’t believe his heart is in it. Why do I say that? He says he’s too busy to read the Bible. He’s too busy to pray and too busy to learn from others. His life, then, stays distant from God. His choice is to do nothing, and no good thing will result.
    Be alert to prevent this type of undisciplined life. To be too busy for God tells him, “Father in heaven, you’re really not my father. I’m leader and lord of my life. I’ll let you know when I’m ready for you.”
    Yes, there are many days we assume we can neglect spiritual disciplines. This will only hurt and even destroy your faith. Be strong against the assumption temptation. Submit to the Lord’s leading. That’s why Paul writes to the Philippians, “I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment.” He is covering their minds in prayer, so they will purposefully seek God’s wisdom. You and I need to pray this for ourselves and each other, so our love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment until the day we meet Jesus.
    I encourage you to this. Pray, too, that God will empower and sustain your mind to know him more. This is the only way you can properly decide how to live in truth. Remember, Jesus calls you to be his disciple. A disciple is disciplined. A disciple has a daily goal to learn more of Jesus. A disciple desires to live more deeply into God’s great love. A disciple desires to make the right decisions.
         
Joy Link: Discipline leads to true discipleship.