Verse of the Day 3/6

Verse of the Day 3/6

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12  To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power,¹² so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.    English Standard Version (ESV)

In his sermon series "REACH" our Pastor Bob spoke of those who are willing.  Our actions are an indication of our will.   We may think that we want to do something but the will is revealed when we reach for it.  As I read today's verses, the word that stood out to me was "resolve".  Resolve can be defined as to settle or find a solution; or decide firmly on a course of action.  Notice that in this verse that it is God who fulfills every resolve for good work of faith.

I like the way it is stated in The Message, "Grace is behind and through all of this, our God giving himself freely, the Master, Jesus Christ, giving himself freely."

Even our resolve to do His will is powered by His grace, behind and through to our actions.  John Piper writes, "

When Paul says that God fulfills our good resolves by his power through our faith, he means that we defeat sin and we do righteousness by being satisfied with all that God promises to be for us in Christ in the next five minutes, five months, five decades, and into eternity....The engagement of God's power never takes the place of the engagement of our will! The power of God in sanctification never makes us passive! The power of God engages itself beneath or behind and within our will, not in place of our will.....The evidence of God's power in our lives is not the absence of our willing, but the strength of our willing, the joy of our willing.

Think about that last statement, "the evidence of God's power in our lives ...is the strength of our willing, the joy of our willing, to do and to give, to reach.

What is your resolve?

1. I am resolved no longer to linger,
   Charmed by the world's delight,
   Things that are higher, things that are nobler,
   These have allured my sight.
   • Refrain:
     I will hasten to Him,
     Hasten so glad and free;
     Jesus, greatest, highest,
     I will come to Thee.
2. I am resolved to follow the Savior,
   Faithful and true each day;
   Heed what He sayeth, do what He willeth,
   He is the living Way.

--   In Christ,  Mike    Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com  Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins,  in accordance with the riches of God's grace.  NIV    

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 The Message (MSG)

^11-12 Because we know that this extraordinary day is just ahead, we pray for you all the time—pray that our God will make you fit for what he's called you to be, pray that he'll fill your good ideas and acts of faith with his own energy so that it all amounts to something. If your life honors the name of Jesus, he will honor you. Grace is behind and through all of this, our God giving himself freely, the Master, Jesus Christ, giving himself freely.