Following the Feast of Pentecost, we are reminded of the power and Holy Spirit of God made available to mankind. The tremendous ability of the Spirit allows us to do things that are physically impossible. That is not to say that we can leap over buildings or lift cars above our heads if we have the Holy Spirit. Rather, with the Holy Spirit we have the ability to perform spiritual feats of strength. The Holy Spirit gives man the mind of God, and with that the ability to understand His truth in a spiritual way. The gift is marvelous!

However, we all are still obliged to live a life with a physical existence. A natural tension exists between the physical and spiritual life, which is expressed throughout the Bible. This tension forces a necessary choice on our part—to live in such a way that we may receive the gift of life, or in a way deserving the penalty of death (Romans 6:23). Paul wrote to the Romans about this spiritual distinction between the physical and spiritual life, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:5-6). Paul emphasizes that we can affect our way of life by controlling the things that we set our mind on. What do you set your mind on? Are you concerned with spiritual matters, or things that have a mere physical consequence?

This is a powerful concept if we are willing and able to harness it. By controlling the things that concern us, we improve our ability to overcome this world. If we discontinue our concern with purely physical, the physical world ceases to sway us. Temptation becomes less and less powerful through the Spirit. Satan has a serious influence over the world, and causes many to neglect the spiritually important matters, such as the fruit which we are directed to bear (Galatians 5:22), but through the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ and His Life in us, we too can overcome that influence, after having obtained forgiveness for our past sins.

Setting our mind on spiritual matters instead of physical things might also help us through a trial. Are the trials that we experience physical or spiritual? Do we find relief if we drop the concern for our desired physical outcome, and focus instead on finding a way to have a correct spiritual response that pleases God?

Living as a Christian with a mission to overcome the world and the way of sin is a huge challenge. By allowing the Holy Spirit of God to live within us, Christians have the ability to do just that. In fact, that is the only way that one can do it. By setting our minds on the spiritual things of God, we set aside the sins of the world, which so easily ensnare us (Hebrews 12:1).

After participating in the Passover and while we are in the midst of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, many of us have similar thoughts running through our minds. Foremost, the sin that we acknowledged during our personal examination of ourselves in preparation for Passover has become starkly clear. We are all sinners (1 John 1:8-10), and the wages of the sin we commit is death (Romans 6:23). Because of this, God required that His Son be sacrificed so that we might have the opportunity to live forever as part of His Family. These facts describe the bottom line of Christianity – the ultimate plan of God. If we want to participate in that plan, we have some responsibilities.

The fundamental starting point occurs during the Passover, with the acknowledgement of our sin, when we take personal responsibility for causing the death of Jesus Christ. The Days of Unleavened Bread follow, giving us the instruction to continue from that acknowledgement of sin, and work to remove it from our lives. It is a common and intended phenomenon for us to become acutely aware of our inadequacies and weaknesses during this time, so we specifically know the areas where we need to improve. This is heavy stuff to take in, and this is the season of the year when these truths generally penetrate the deepest. It is enough to trigger a great deal of guilt, knowing that individually we have directly caused the death of our Savior – and that we have so, so much to work on.
 
Becoming paralyzed by guilt is not something that we should allow, however. While we live lives that include sinful actions, which might cause us to feel unworthy of Christ’s Sacrifice, our remorse must transform into repentance. Our willingness to change our behavior to be in accordance with God’s laws proves to Him that even though we sin, we are working to improve. Bearing fruits of repentance is what God looks for in our lives. That shows God that we are not behaving unworthily of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Repentance takes work because it is so contrary to the way of this world in which we live. However, it is something that God believes we are capable of performing, with His help, and He is glad to offer us the opportunity. It is, after all, His good pleasure to offer us the Kingdom of God (Luke 12:32). For this awesome opportunity to repent, we should be thankful.

Even though the wages of sin is death, the gift of God is eternal life! What we have to remember is that God wants us to take advantage of the opportunity He provides to us. Jesus Christ was not sacrificed so that we might continue to feel guilty and unworthy, but rather, so that we might claim it, change our lives, and be grateful. The guilt of our sin, transformed by repentance into good behavior, should make us grateful. Do you offer God your sincere thanks for this gift? Now is certainly the time to do so.
 
But even after partaking of the Passover, we find that we sin again. The Feast of Unleavened Bread reminds us that we have to continue, with God’s help, to conquer the sin that stares us directly in the face. We must remember how God wants us to respond. We must not become paralyzed by the faults we recognize, leading us to inaction. Instead, we must be thankful for the opportunity to be saved and actively express that gratitude by bearing fruit of repentance.

It seems that many news reports that I encounter emphasize and glorify the scientific discoveries of man. You don’t have to work very hard to find this kind of reporting. Some recent examples that I came across included reporting on scientific findings about genetic patterns in homosexual men, linking specific chromosomes to sexual preference, and the genetic engineering of viruses to thwart the growth of brain cancer tumors. These weren’t part of a scientific report in some obscure journal either. These reports were part of standard daily reporting by the BBC. If journalism can be used as a barometer for popular opinion, it is safe to say that societal trust in conclusions made in scientific research is the norm.

The scientific apologist will be quick to say that proper science provides insight into observed facts, has no agenda, no bias, and therefore must be trusted. Even with these high standards of rigor that are so important to scientific research, conclusions once thought to be immutable have flip-flopped in the past, and will do so in the future. Scientific research and conclusions are limited by the finite capacities of man, which explains why theories do change as more information becomes available. Even so, you will struggle to find many people in modern society who will trust in the truly immutable promises of God over contrary conclusions made in scientific research. It is a sad commentary to say that science has become a god of this age.

However, we know that God does not lie (Hebrews 6:18) and God does not change (Malachi 3:6). What can be trusted more than that which does not change? This plain truth, God’s Word as it is presented in the Bible, is more trustworthy than anything concluded by the limited intellect of man. What a blessing it is to have enough insight to believe it. 

Once we learn about the truth of God – the one that is worth believing – it boggles the mind that anyone could trust in anything different. Why is it that so many refuse to trust in God? Why is it that so many trust in the limited knowledge of man instead? Certainly, the influence of Satan causes many to reject or turn away from God and favor the pride of man. But it also takes a certain state of mind and a specific state of being to completely have faith in God. Spiritual conversion is necessary in order to obtain the Spirit of God, and thereby gain spiritual understanding (1 Corinthians 2:11). Unfortunately, this is not a popular path to follow for man – at least not yet.

In this present age we can expect that trust in the pride of mankind will increase, and that faith in God’s truth will be rejected or wane throughout most of the world. Of this we have been warned: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from the LORD’” (Jeremiah 17:5). However, we also have this encouragement to guide us:  “‘Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD’” (Jeremiah 17:7).  In whom will you choose to trust?