Walk As Jesus Did...

"Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did." 1 John 2:6

This is such a serious statement. It seems like a simple verse, but there is so much depth to it. Our Youth Pastor, David, shared this verse in his sermon tonight and it really stuck with me.. I grabbed a pen and wrote it on my hand so I wouldn't forget it. I think I will make it my memory verse for the week, even though it's already almost wednesday.
What does it mean to walk as Jesus did? To be perfect, to be blameless, to be all of these things that our flesh stands in the way of. The only way that we can walk in Jesus is if we fully seek Him in our hearts. I remember when the WWJD bracelets were really big as a kid. I loved them, but I also saw them becoming more of a statement for being cool than they were being a statement for Christ. There was one girl I knew who wasn't even a Christian but she would wear the bracelet because everyone else had one. We take our Lord and Savior for granted so many times throughout our lives, that we forget to truly ask ourselves, "what does it mean to walk as Jesus did?"
As David was saying tonight, there are things in this world that we have to question whether they are right or wrong to do. One of the bigger issues he touched on was alcohol because that is a common debate among Christians. David posed a very good question from 1 Corinthians 6:12.. is it beneficial? He went on to list some other questions that we should ask ourselves in order to hold our decisions accountable to God.. I wish I had brought a paper and pen with me, but instead I had a sleeping toddler in my arms. So I have to try and remember these questions off the top of my head. I will probably word them a little differently and I know there were more than what I can remember, but I'll work with what I've got..
If you are faced with a decision to make.. Is it beneficial? This does not just mean to look at how the decision will benefit you, but rather how it will benefit your walk with God. Will it be something that can help you grow or something that could hinder your faith?
I've been reading out of a book called "Lady In Waiting," which I recommend for any young single woman who is seeking God in their life. It is a great book, and it makes the story of Ruth its center focus (I've always been a huge fan of Ruth!). Ruth 2:10-11 talks about the moment she met Boaz, "At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. She exclaimed, 'Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me—a foreigner?' Boaz replied, 'I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before.'" Notice that Boaz did not answer, "I noticed your beautiful eyes and I couldn't stop staring," or "girl, your butt just looks so good in those jeans.."lol What attracted him to Ruth was her character; her personality and her devotion. When Ruth followed Naomi to her homeland, she was freshly a Christian (Ruth 1:16) but her heart was willing and virtuous and Boaz could see this. The Lord blessed her for her loyalty and her faith. It wasn't because she was beautiful on the outside but because she was beautiful on the inside. So, with that said, this is something that most of us (especially women) struggle with today. I have been quite guilty of it myself. Us single women get so caught up in catching that special guy's (or for some, ANY guy's) attention that we put a lot of time and effort into making ourselves look beautiful to them on the outside. There is nothing wrong with making yourself attractive, but when it consumes your heart you have to ask, "is it beneficial--to my walk with God?" Do we really want to attract a man by our outward appearances? Looks can change over time (and men, the same goes for you too). I can tell you from my own experience that a man who is attracted to you for your looks generally is not a faithful man. As soon as another pretty woman comes along, she will catch his attention as well. Nothing hurts more than to watch your husband check out other women right in front of you (especially when you're big, fat and pregnant). That is the result of marrying a man who I attracted with my outward appearances. If you spend more time working on your inward beauty, Lord willing you will attract the right man who will not be interested in finding another woman after he has found you. Again, the same goes for men.
"Your adornment must not be merely external--braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God." 1 Peter 3:3-4... Oh man, I know quite a few people who can testify that I don't always fit the description in these verses too well. I have a very ugly side that comes out when I don't let God control it. But He is so good to be working on my heart day in and day out, molding me more and more into the beauty in this verse, so that some day I can attract my Boaz. So the next time I begin to follow my flesh; when I begin to concern myself with my outward appearances, and when I begin to let my emotions get the best of me, I have to remember to ask myself.. is it beneficial?
The second question is if you are faced with a decision to make... can it bring glory to God? Again, I could think of a million things in my own life that I should be asking this question for. David listed a ton of them.. alcohol, smoking, the friends we hang with, the music we listen to, what we do in our relationships prior to marriage.. and then he touched on a good one that I had not thought about before. If we are struggling to know whether we are in a *beneficial* relationship, we should ask ourselves, "can it bring glory to God?" If there is no chance that the relationship you're in is capable of glorifying God then it is definitely a bad relationship to be in. That point really hit home with me.
And finally, the last question that I can remember. If you are faced with a decision to make... would it consume you? Unfortunately, this is where my flesh battles with my spirit on the alcohol situation. I don't necessarily condemn anyone for having a few drinks if they can control it, but I know in my heart of hearts that I personally am against it. Why? Because I know that it would consume me. I experienced this just a few weeks ago.
Satan convinced Eve to eat the fruit by making her believe that it was not a big deal; he told her she wouldn't die from it. I'm sure Eve was thinking something that we can all relate to, 'it's just one fruit! what's the big deal?' But once she made the wrong choice, it consumed her life. The poor woman still has to take heat from everyone about her bad decision... even her husband blamed her for their sins!
Like I said before, Satan works hard to deceive us. For me, he took something that I made a personal stand against (drinking) and convinced me that just one or two would not hurt anything. Before I knew it, it was consuming my life.

"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!" Romans 7:15-25

I hope it's understood that I don't share my personal life in order to boast or gain pity. I can't go back and change my mistakes, but God can use my life as an example to others and that is why I am open to sharing some of my life on here. My desire is to walk as Jesus did, and to put away my sinful nature. I am going to make a conscious effort to keep that verse at the front of my head throughout my days and see where God takes me with it.