Several years ago, I chose a vegetarian lifestyle that has helped me keep my body healthy. I supplemented my new lifestyle with additional rules to help me monitor and guard my health. Of course there are times when I break the rules, but my commitment to health is greater than my desire to break the rules.
Becoming a Christian means that we undergo a lifestyle change. We can no longer live according to our “old self with its practices” (Colossians 3:9b), but “have to put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator” (Colossians 3:10).
To help maintain the health of our “new self,” Paul gives us some practical rules to incorporate into our daily lives. In 2 Timothy 2:16 he writes, “Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.” He also wrote, “but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). And he cautions Timothy to “watch your life and doctrine closely” (1Timothy 4:16). All these rules can be kept only through the power of the Holy Spirit, and we stay close to the Holy Spirit through diligent reading of the Scriptures.
These rules simply offer a means of monitoring the health of our “new self,” and when we keep the rules, we are testifying to our pledge to live in a manner pleasing to Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. Certainly, we will err; however, we should want our commitment to the Lord to be greater than our desire to break the rules.
Denise Larson Cooper has a passion for Christ and sharing His Word. A wife and mother of two daughters, Denise currently works as a gymnastic coach.
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Godnesia: Keeping God in Mind Each Day http://amzn.to/2GSquOD
Ordinary Days With an Extraordinary Savior – http://amzn.to/2mFGASBLife Is a Metaphor: Recognizing God in the Everyday – http://amzn.to/2De1rU2