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Children, Not Slaves, May 10
Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have
grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly
fear.
Hebrews 12:28
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There are many who profess to be Christ’s followers and yet are not doers of
His Word. They do not relish this Word because it presents service which is not
agreeable to them. They do not relish the wholesome reproofs and close, earnest
appeals. They do not love righteousness, but are mastered and tyrannized over by
their own erratic, human impulses.
It makes every difference how we do service for God. The boy who drudges
through his lessons because he must learn will never become a real student. The
man who claims to keep the commandments of God because he thinks he must do
it will never enter into the enjoyment of obedience.
The essence and flavor of all obedience is the outworking of a principle
within—the love of righteousness, the love of the law of God. The essence of all
righteousness is loyalty to our Redeemer, doing right because it is right. When
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the Word of God is a burden because it cuts directly across human inclinations,
then the religious life is not a Christian life, but a tug and a strain, an enforced
obedience. All the purity and godliness of religion are set aside.
But adoption into the family of God makes us children, not slaves. When
the love of Christ enters the heart we strive to imitate the character of Christ....
The more we study the life of Christ with a heart to learn, the more Christlike we
become. Into the heart of every true doer of the Word the Holy Spirit infuses clear
understanding. The more we crucify selfish practices by imparting our blessings
to others and by exercising our God-given ability, the more the heavenly graces
will be strengthened and increased in us. We will grow in spirituality, in patience,
in fortitude, in meekness, in gentleness.... A train of cars is not merely attached to
the engine; they follow on the same track as the engine. Whom are we following?
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