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Gifts and Obligations



But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation—but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will
                                                          live. (Romans 8:10-13)
 
      Imagine seeing on the news that someone has been given a million dollar grant to create a special piece of art. What would you think of that person if he spent the million on lavish parties for his friends involving all that activities that you happen to think are sick, disgusting, depraved and illegal? Would his statement that the money was given to him and therefore he had a right to do with it whatever he wanted be all the justification you need? Would you pay him in advance for anything?
      This is the situation in this passage. Christ dwells in Christians. His Spirit lives in us. He gives us life. The same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead gives us life. We have been given a magnificent gift. We did nothing to earn that gift, but now that we have it, we have an obligation to live in accordance with the purpose of the gift.
        This is always where the going gets tough. We all have misdeeds of the body. We all tend to be quick to excuse our body's misdeeds. It's genetic. It's just who we are. It's not our fault. It's socially acceptable now. Everybody does it. I don't like the idea of hearing "So what? It's a misdeed. Put it to death" about my not eating the way I should.  I know others don't like the idea of being told that about their sexual proclivities. I now giving up what we think is "natural" or "normal" isn't something we anticipate with joy. It's a battle that may continue for the rest of our lives.
 
 
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On the Calendar:
President's Day
Susan B. Anthony Day
Birthday of
Galileo
Cyrus Hall McCormick (inventor and founder of the company that became International Harvester)      

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