Philippians 3:15
“Therefore, all who are mature, let’s have this attitude; and if in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that to you as well”.
That’s how God works. If we have an attitude that He wants changed He will show it to us. I am presently holding a grudge against someone. I feel justified in doing so. However, I know it’s wrong and poisonous. His love for us persists and He will keep on pointing it out.
He can do this in numerous ways: a guilty conscience, continual reminders, others bring it up without their knowing it and so on.
The reminders will go away if we continue to ignore Him. This is hardening our hearts. The famous character that did this in the bible is pharaoh (Exodus 8:32). He was ignoring God and being stubborn. If we continue in this then God respects our decision and further hardens our hearts. “But the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, and he would not listen to them, just as the LORD had said to Moses”, (Exodus 9:12).
When we ignore God our spiritual sensitivity lessens. We sense God less. Hebrews 5:11 says, “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain, because you are dull of hearing.” It’s a bad thing when we ignore Him.
God gives us our senses for many reasons. Part of it is enjoyment. Our sense of taste allows us to enjoy our food. But our senses can act as a warning system when danger exists. If we ignore Him, we are putting ourselves at risk.
Today’s verse speaks of maturity. A mature person listens to God. We’ve all ignored Him and reaped the consequences. One of them is being alienated from God. If one is a christian, then one is still a child of God, but we lose His peace and the sense of His presence. It’s not pleasant. Maturity teaches us to repent quickly. Dragging it out is misery.
He does help us. Pray to Him. Ask His help. I am doing that presently. Remember that His yoke is easy and His burden light. Lay it before Him and ask.
What can complicate it is the devil. I Timothy 3:6 says, “He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same condemnation as the devil.” He is skilled at condemning us. A new believer isn’t as experienced with this tactic. We easily allow ourselves to feel guilty. The antidote is knowing God’s love and forgiveness. Dwell there.
Lord, help us to listen to Your Spirit and repent quickly. Help our spiritual senses to remain sharp. Help us to shake off the devil’s condemnation.